“Environmental Cleanup: Why and How to Get Involved & Do It Now”

By Drue Ann Hargis-Ramirez, Write Right Enterprises

Robert M. Hinderliter, President of Delco Cleaning Systems of Fort Worth and Environmental Chairman of Power Washers of North America (www.pwna.org ) has been an advocate for the mobile power washing industry for decades. He was, in fact, instrumental in establishing Fort Worth’s existing mobile commercial cosmetic cleaning ordinance, which was adopted January 2, 1996. The ordinance was developed following the Delco-sponsored “Mobile Power Washing Environmental Protection and Compliance Conference,” conducted on July 17, 1995, which was attended by 40 government regulators from state, regional and municipal agencies and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as well as 100 contract cleaners. Today, EPA references the Forth Worth ordinance as a guide for other municipalities developing similar ordinances. (Fort Worth’s ordinance can be viewed at http://www.fortworthgov.org/DEM/powerwash.htm .)

Robert and the PWNA have continued working to inform and educate contract cleaners in the industry and now hope to encourage them to come together in a united effort to lobby regulators to ensure adoption of reasonable, rational and logical codes and ordinances that will allow them to perform their work cost-effectively and profitably while ensuring water quality throughout the U.S.

Issues & Goals

“Various approaches have been tried by municipalities to control the effluent [wastewater created by the contract cleaner] from mobile power washing, ranging from banning all power washing to lenient measures allowing discharge to sanitary sewers,” explains Robert. Wastewater is defined as water that has been used in homes, industries, and businesses that is not for reuse unless it is treated. “Frequently municipalities have stringently enforced ‘No Off-Property Discharge’ measures without designating approved disposal sites.”

Sanitary sewers are systems that carry domestic and commercial wastewater, usually delivering the wastewater to Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs). They are separate from storm drains that carry surface runoff from the land directly to lakes, rivers, and streams without remediation (cleanup).

The problem with the ‘No Off-Property Discharge’ approach is two-fold. Cosmetic mobile power washing wastewater is a significant contributor of pollution to the effluent flowing into storm drains, yet it is NOT a significant contributor of pollution to the sanitary sewer systems. To support this claim, Robert references Fort Worth’s water figures as an example of a typical U.S. municipality. “In any given day Fort Worth handles 110 million gallons of wastewater; cosmetic cleaning discharges represent only one-fifth of one percent of this total.” Because the ‘No Off-Property Discharge’ approach to protecting water quality does not leave the contract cleaner with an economical discharge site, it forces the industry underground, resulting in discharges to storm drains on nights and weekends when enforcement is at its lowest, thus compounding the problem.

“If the regulations require Best Management Practices (BMPs focus on the prevention of pollutants from ever getting into stormwater) that are reasonable, rational and logical with access to the sanitary sewers, there will be a high level of voluntary compliance by contract cleaners,” explains Robert. This has been demonstrated for nearly ten years by the City of Forth Worth, which charges a nominal fee of $25 per company plus $25 per rig annually to discharge to the sanitary sewer systems.

So what is Robert’s goal for the industry today? “My goal is to open up all the sanitary sewers to the contract cleaners.” In line with this goal, Robert has been invited to speak at StormCon ( www.stormcon.com ) on Wednesday, July 20, 2005, in Orlando, Florida. StormCon is the nation’s largest stormwater conference and will attract over 1,000 municipal and government leaders, federal agency representatives, engineers, contractors, and consultants to focus on stormwater pollution prevention methods and technologies.

Some Background

Water pollution degrades surface waters making them unsafe for drinking and other needs and activities. The Clean Water Act (CWA), originally adopted in 1972, is the foundation for surface water quality protection in the U.S. and uses both regulatory and non-regulatory tools to reduce direct pollutant discharges into waterways and manage polluted runoff. The CWA authorizes the EPA with implementing pollution control programs, including establishing wastewater standards for industries, such as the cosmetic mobile power pressure washing industry.

Through its Office of Wastewater Management (OWM), the EPA develops strategies and controls, and then implements those strategies through the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit Program. “The Clean Water Act prohibits anybody from discharging pollutants through a point source into a water of the United States unless they have an NPDES permit,” reads EPA’s website. A point source is water pollution coming from a single point, such as sewage-outflow pipes like those in storm drains or sanitary sewer systems. The OWM focuses its efforts on controlling water collected from point sources, including both sanitary sewers and storm drains.

Clean, Safe Water Equals Pressure Washing Profit

Clean, safe water is critical for humans and the health of our ecosystem. Although the amount of water on earth is constant, available water supplies are shrinking, stretched beyond capacity by growing populations, rising agricultural use, poor water management, and the effects of global warming. It is expected to reach a crisis by 2025, which unbelievably is only two decades away. In the past 20 years alone U.S. communities have spent more than $1 trillion on drinking water treatment and supply and wastewater treatment and disposal, according to EPA.

If the cosmetic mobile power pressure washing industry carries out environmental cleanup, from capturing wastewater to proper disposal, mobile power washers will not only accomplish their part toward improved management of our water supplies, but their businesses will realize a higher potential for profit and growth while avoiding the risks of penalties through compliance.

“The contract cleaners that are addressing the environmental issues of wastewater cleanup are going to achieve significant financial benefits from it,” says Robert. “It is turning into a marketing tool because more and more companies and municipalities are requiring environmental cleanup as part of the job.”

Don Flory, Owner/Mobile Enviro Wash, located in Baldwin City, Kansas, agrees wholeheartedly. “People are becoming aware that they need to do things environmentally.” Mobile Enviro Wash has been around for more than 30 years, focusing its pressure washing services on fleets and commercial buildings, including all types of environmental cleanup. Don admits that while his pricing has to reflect the extra equipment and labor costs, his company name alone is generating additional jobs. And he always tries to educate his prospective clients in the process.

Understanding the NPDES Program & Permits

EPA’s website (www.epa.gov/npdes ) explains what is outlined in an NPDES permit. “The permit will contain limits on what you can discharge, monitoring and reporting requirements, and other provisions to ensure that the discharge does not hurt water quality or people's health. In essence, the permit translates general requirements of the Clean Water Act into specific provisions tailored to the operations of each person discharging pollutants.” Industrial, municipal and other facilities must obtain NPDES permits. NDPES permits are not typically available to cosmetic mobile power washing cleaners.

Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4s) are the conveyances (channels, drains, bar ditches, or any place that storm water flows) owned and operated by a municipality, such as a city, which is designed or used for collecting or conveying storm water. EPA requires municipalities and urban areas with a population over 50,000, and some areas over 10,000, to have an NPDES permit to operate their MS4s. This program has been phased in over the last 15 years, and more recently smaller municipalities (those of at least 50,000 and densities of at least 1,000 people per square mile as well as military bases and correctional facilities) were required under Phase II to obtain NPDES permits. Both Phase I and II permits for municipalities affect cosmetic mobile power washing.

Although applications or Notices of Intent (NOIs) for Phase II permits were initially due in March 2003, a law suit (“Environmental Defense Center, et al v. EPA”) challenged EPA’s authority and delayed many municipality applications. The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling upheld EPA rules requiring small cities, counties and developers to protect waterways from stormwater pollution. In September 2003 they issued a revised ruling prohibiting any petitions for rehearing on the issue. The decision covered several issues relating to the implementation of MS4 programs, including public availability of NOIs, opportunities for public hearings, and review of NOIs by permitting authorities. Implementation of Phase II NPDES permits is now moving forward nationally and many Phase II municipalities have been issued their permits.

The Phase II regulations require that MS4s reduce the discharge of pollutants to the maximum extent practicable (the “MEP Standard”) and to require the MS4s to develop, implement, and enforce a stormwater management program including BMPs identified by the cosmetic mobile power washing cleaner. BMPs should focus on the prevention of pollutants from ever getting into stormwater. NPDES permits specify time frames for implementation of the BMPs and may differ from permit to permit and cover time periods as long as five or more years. “This transition period,” Robert emphasizes, “will probably last as long as ten years before full implementation.”

Getting in Step with Phase II

This year the EPA launched a national training program, “Getting in Step with Phase II:  A Workshop for Stormwater Program Managers,” to educate regulators of Phase II municipalities and urban areas. Training has already been offered in Lexington, Virginia, on April 11, in Memphis, Tennessee, on May 17-18, and in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, on June 15. Additional training programs will be offered on August 3-4 in Indianapolis, Indiana, and on September 14-15 in Boise, Idaho. This education will ultimately affect mobile power washers because it will affect wording of ordinances and stringency of BMPs. For more information on these programs, visit Delco’s website at http://www.dcs1.com/regs/ .

Influencing Regulators While Benefiting Your Business

At this time the priorities for municipalities involve administrative functions, such as adding and training staff, filing their NOIs, and mapping the locations of their MS4s, as well as permitting construction sites which are one or more acres in size and developing BMPs for significant sources of pollution. It is important to note that while some municipalities are developing their own BMPs, others are delegating what constitutes BMPs to the contract cleaner.

“Only about 5 percent of the communities in the U.S. are currently addressing wastewater from contract cleaners,” says Robert, “but this will change in the next 3-5 years.” For example, although the NPDES permits require an illicit detection and elimination program for non-storm water discharges, detergent detection and elimination is currently low on the priority list for most phase II municipalities. “Contract cleaners,” Robert explains, “have a unique opportunity to influence the codes that will be written and enforced in the next 10 to 50 years.”

How can you do that? Public comment periods are required, as a result of the Ninth Circuit Court decision, for development of these ordinances and BMPs. “This is the contract cleaners’ opportunity to get involved in the legislative process,” Robert emphasizes. Other events will help contract cleaners become more informed about the issues. For example, Delco exhibited at the recent EPA Region 6 Stormwater Operators Conference in Oklahoma City. Don Flory also attended this event. “As we learned about industrial spills and listened to fines of negligence and carelessness, it solidified our thinking on the direction we’ve taken.” He also noted that the trade show displayed various filtration screening systems and other technology available, which allowed him to take back ideas he could implement in his environmental cleanup techniques. Attending events like this keeps you in the forefront of the direction that the technology and applications are taking.

What about the fines Don mentioned? According to John Tinger, Engineer/CWA Standards & Permits Section, EPA Region IX, if contaminated wastewater is disposed of improperly, a fine of up to $10,000 per day plus damages can be levied. “If it is a mobile operator, there would probably be an investigation as to how wastewater is being disposed of.”

Tools and Techniques for Cleanup

“If it is an industrial facility, they will have an agreement with the local sewage facility to discharge the wastewater,” John Tinger explains. “Wash water is included as part of their permit, so in that case the facility would know if the power washer can discharge the wastewater into the sanitary sewer.” Make sure you obtain permission from the property owner before discharging your wastewater to their sanitary sewer. Unfortunately, POTWs are not inclined to allow cosmetic mobile power washing effluent to be discharged into the sanitary sewers. Thus, it is even more important to remediate your wastewater.

“The lower level the technology, the less expensive it is to remediate your wastewater,” Robert points out. What you do and how you do it will depend on your customer and the regulating authority for the area. “Pay attention to your marketplace to know what is needed and check with your local municipality.”

Robert’s recommended minimum BMPs, before allowing the wastewater to run into either the sanitary sewer or storm drain, as allowed by the respective municipality, are as follows: 1) Pre-clean the area of debris (e.g., cigarettes, trash, leaves) using leaf blowers or sweepers then bag it and dispose of properly ; 2) soak up oil and grease spots with oil-absorbent media, which should later be disposed of properly, to eliminate free oil; 3) pass the wastewater through an oil-absorbent boom, ensuring the wastewater has no oil sheen afterwards; 4) then pass the wastewater through a 20 mesh or finer screen to catch any debris bigger than a grain of sand; and 5) finally discharge into the sanitary sewer, if permitted. “This procedure is presently being accepted in many Phase II municipalities.”

Robert goes on to explain requirements and tools further. “All wastewater that does not meet the requirements of the exemptions (see www.dcs1.com/regs ) must be collected before it leaves the property and it is up to you to determine the best method of confining the wastewater on property. You may choose to use an oil absorbent boom teamed with a sump pump or vacuum sludge filtering system teamed with a vacuum boom or some other method. Regardless of the method you choose, you should not let any wastewater escape the property and enter the storm drain system, unless it is an exempt effluent.”

Although a child’s wading pool will seal off a storm drain, a commercial piece of equipment, such as Delco’s portable drain covers, will last longer and provide a better image for your company. The same thing applies to the use of window screens for catching debris. It works, but it won’t standup to the test of time or convey the best image. “Collecting wastewater is not rocket science. You can do it cheaply while protecting the environment,” attests Robert.

For mobile truck washing, for example, although washing on the hard surface is preferred by most contract cleaners, some municipalities may require a portable vinyl wash pit (tough-tarps). Whichever surface is used, make sure to put down portable dams to funnel the wastewater to a collection point where it can be recovered. Delco’s water control devices consist of portable dams and drain covers of varying sizes that can be filled with water onsite for easy portability, sump pumps and vacuum systems. For parking lots, Robert recommends portable dams measuring 20 and 50 feet in length and oil absorbent booms measuring 10 feet in length. The booms can be reused again and again. Once you decide they need to be tossed for aesthetic reasons, you can dispose of them in a drum and arrange for a waste oil disposal company to dispose of the drum once it’s full just like used oil filters. Delco uses Safety Kleen (www.safety-kleen.com ) for its waste oil disposal.

Don Flory disposes of the wastewater down his customer’s sanitary sewer, employing BMPs to remediate the wastewater first, and keeping it from going down the storm drains. He uses motorcycle inner tubes filled with water to create a dam and a vacu-boom created in his own workshop and Delco’s drain covers. “Many of our tools are homemade but economical and effective.”

Some contract cleaners are capturing their wastewater and dumping it at their own facility. Whenever possible, however, run it first through a sand trap (oil-water separator or clarifier) to remove the sludge plus the free oil.

Robert also promotes using a pollution prevention voucher system like that developed by the Bay Area Stormwater Management Agencies Association (http://www.basmaa.org/ ). You can find an example on Delco’s website at http://www.dcs1.com/regs . The voucher shows what surfaces were cleaned, and how the contract cleaner captured and disposed of the wastewater. “Leave a copy of the voucher with the customer for his use if he gets audited and keep one in the customer’s file.” Robert believes the voucher system will raise the level of compliance.

“If you don’t do anything else,” Robert emphasizes, “put down oil absorbent booms in front of the wastewater discharge. You will have tremendous benefits for minimal costs.”

Robert adds that most enforcement actions are within a 10-20 mile radius of universities so BMPs are especially important in surrounding areas.

Delco offers all the environmental cleanup equipment you’ll need to comply and get ahead of the regulatory curve (see pages 5 and 24-26 of this issue of the Blaster for environmental cleanup equipment).

Delco’s Environmental Training Seminar

Through its university extension, Delco offers a one-day Mobile Power Wash Seminar. “The class covers the reality of enforcement, what is really happening in the marketplace, risk management and different regulatory scenarios they will encounter,” explains Robert, who personally teaches the class. The curriculum includes environmental cosmetic mobile power washing rules and procedures, including water recovery and disposal.

The cost is $40 per person and includes lunch compliments of Delco. The class is offered from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on one Friday every other month. Upcoming classes are offered on August 26, October 17, and December 9. The class is complimentary to purchasers of Delco’s gasoline engine hot high pressure washers.

For more information on regulations and tools and techniques to remediate or capture your wastewater, visit Delco’s website at http://www.dcs1.com/regs/ .

The Bottomline

Don Flory puts environmental cleanup this way. “It is an opportunity, not a problem.” Don’t let this opportunity pass you by. Now is the time to get into environmental cleanup and reap the rewards for your company and our environment.

Drue can be reached at WriteRightEnt@aol.com.