Traditionally, training has often been approached as an afterthought -- a vendor demonstrating a specific product to operators after the product has been purchased and installed. But in today's highly competitive marketplace, training is an important part of the whole solution. Training provides operators with tools and insights that can help them lower costs and improve efficiency plant wide.
This article originally appeared in the 09/01/2003 issue of Environmental Protection.
All drinking water treatment plants (WTPs) must dispose of their potable water residuals. One privately owned water utility in Fairbanks, Alaska, uses a filter press to dewater its water treatment mineral byproducts. By doing so, the utility achieves zero discharge to the nearby Chena River, which serves as a recreational area and spawning ground for several fish species threatened with possible extinction.
- By Matthew Burdick, PE, Michael Spring
This article originally appeared in the 09/01/2003 issue of Environmental Protection.
Groundwater contamination has been an area of environmental concern for decades. Underground storage tank and process line leaks, product spills and intentional dumping have been the greatest contributors to the problem.
- By Duygo Tokat, Arturo A. Keller, PhD., Reid H. Bowman, PhD., Peter Herlihy, Michael J. Joy
This article originally appeared in the 07/01/2003 issue of Environmental Protection.
Louisiana contains approximately 40 percent of the coastal wetlands in the United States. These wetlands consist of swamps and both economically and environmentally important freshwater and saltwater marshes. The wetlands support nearly a third of the fish and shellfish yields in the lower 48 states and approximately 40 percent of its fur harvest, while there are more than 200,000 acres of private oyster leases. Also, the wetlands provide a wintering habitat for more than half of the ducks and geese in the Central and Mississippi Flyways.
- By Robert Gambrell, Irving Mendelssohn, Norman Murray
This article originally appeared in the 07/01/2002 issue of Environmental Protection.
Whole effluent toxicity (WET) testing has evolved into a critical element of many National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits issued to both industrial and municipal dischargers. More than 6,500 dischargers to both fresh and salt waters are required to conduct toxicity tests to determine if their effluent might be potentially toxic to organisms in the receiving system.
- By David Pillard, J. Russell Hockett
This article originally appeared in the 07/01/2002 issue of Environmental Protection.
The recent history of the total maximum daily load (TMDL) program is now well known, as is the debate it is has engendered.
- By Leonard Shabman, PhD., Kenneth Reckhow, PhD.
This article originally appeared in the 05/01/2002 issue of Environmental Protection.
The most commonly used methods for water treatment have been around for more than a century and rely on large basins to accommodate the processes of sedimentation, sand filtration and the addition of chemicals. These methods often do not address the current pressures placed on water resources, falling short of stringent new drinking water regulations.
This article originally appeared in the 05/01/2002 issue of Environmental Protection.
The safety of the nation's water is protected by a cooperative relationship between governments at every level and water producers and purveyors. The U.S. Congress makes national water policy and has authorized the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to implement this policy by means of the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974, as it is periodically re-authorized and amended.
This article originally appeared in the 05/01/2002 issue of Environmental Protection.