EPA and IDEM Self Disclosure and Environmental Audit Policies

Transcription

1 EPA and IDEM Self Disclosure and Environmental Audit Policies Eliminating risk and liability in your environmental programs. Dan Derheimer Environmental Manager IU EH&S

2 EPA Audit policy Revision published in the federal register on A non rule policy Full title: Incentives for self-policing: Discovery, Disclosure, Correction and Prevention of Violations. This is exactly what it is. Purpose: To enhance protection of human health and the environment by encouraging regulated entities to voluntarily discover, disclose, correct and prevent violations of federal and state environmental requirements. Incentive: Gravity based penalty reduction! 2 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

3 IDEM Self Disclosure and Environmental Audit Policy Also a non-rule policy Adopted ; revised ; Mirrors EPA Audit policy Provides the Office of Enforcement at IDEM with the discretion to reduce or eliminate gravity-based civil penalties for violations voluntarily disclosed! Contacts: Dave McIver Office of Legal Counsel 3 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

4 Not to be confused with Indiana s Audit Privilege A law (not a non-rule policy) which provides protection against disclosure of voluntary audits. So this makes it the polar opposite of the audit disclosure policies However, privilege is lost if environmental violations are not corrected in a reasonable amount of time no time limit except for 90 days if a permit is required. Mark all correspondance as Environment Audit report:priveleged document However, there is no penalty reduction with this Privilege so that necessitated the need for the incentives in the non-rule audit and self disclosure policies 4 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

5 So, since you plan on correcting those violations anyway you might as well get the benefit of the penalty reduction incentives in the audit and self disclosure policies 5 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

6 Just what are those penalty reductions? 100% of gravity based penalties if all nine conditions are met 75% if all but the first condition, Systematic Discovery, are met. 50% reduction in gravity based penalties if you don t meet all of the remaining eight requirements but show good faith. Penalties based upon Economic benefit (the other half of most environmental penalties) are not expressly stipulated as being waived in this policy but IDEM does have this authority. Criminal prosecution-this too is waived so long as there is not a practice of concealing or condoning violations and there is no high level corporate officials/mangers conscience involvement or willful blindness to violations. 6 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

7 No routine request for Audits Neither IDEM or EPA will request your audit findings disclosed under this policy to initiate a civil or criminal investigation. 7 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

8 EPA or IDEM: Either or Both You can choose to use either or both governmental body s Audit policies. EPA provides some guidance: in their FAQ For federal programs only such as EPCRA disclose to EPA since states possess no legal authority. For state authorized programs such as Clean water Act and RCRA (in Indiana), you can disclose to either or both. However, in Indiana, there is an incentive to use IDEM because of the provision for 50% gravity penalty reduction for good faith even if < 8 conditions are met and an extended disclosure reporting time of 45 days. 8 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

9 Conditions: All nine of them! Condition 1: Systematic Discovery 9 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

10 What is an Environmental Audit? 10 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

11 So what is a Compliance Management System? 11 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

12 Condition 2: Voluntary Discovery 12 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

13 Condition 3: Prompt Disclosure 13 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

14 Condition 4: Discovery and Disclosure 14 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

15 Condition 5: Correction and Remediation 15 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

16 Condition 6: Prevent Recurrence 16 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

17 Condition 7: No Repeat Violations 17 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

18 Condition 8: Other Violations Excluded 18 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

19 Condition 9: Cooperation 19 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

20 Economic Benefit IDEM retains its right to assess fines for economic benefit gained by not complying. However, they may forgive the entire penalty if all nine conditions are met and if the economic benefit is insignificant. 20 Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

21 IDEM Contacts Contacts: Dave McIver Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety

22 EPA Contact Region 5 States: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin Region 5 Audit Information Contact: Jodi Swanson-Wilson swanson-wilson.jodi@epa.gov U.S. EPA Region 5 - Mail Code E-19J 77 West Jackson Blvd., Room R1918 Chicago, IL (312) ; fax (312) Indiana University Environmental Health & Safety