Department Of Environmental Quality Research Articles

Neural Network Based Estimation of Service Life of Different Metal Culverts in Arkansas

The Arkansas Department of Transportation (ARDOT) uses different types of metal culverts and cross-drains. Service lives of these culverts are largely influenced by the corrosion of the metals used in these culverts. Corrosion of metallic parts in any soil-water environment is governed by geochemical and electrochemical properties of the soils and waters. Many transportation agencies including ARDOT primarily focus on investigating the physical and mechanical properties of soils rather than their chemical aspects. The main objective of this study is to analyze the geotechnical and geochemical properties of soils in Arkansas to estimate the service lives of different metal pipes in different conditions. Soil resistivity values were predicted after analyzing the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) soil survey data using neural network (NN) models. The developed NN models were trained and verified by using laboratory test results of soil samples collected from ARDOT, and survey data were obtained from the USDA. The service lives of metal culverts were then estimated based on the predicted soil properties and water quality parameters extracted from the data acquired from the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ). Finally, Geographic Information System-based corrosion risk maps of three different types of metal pipes were developed based on their estimated service lives. The developed maps will help ARDOT engineers to assess the corrosion potential of the metal pipes before starting the new construction and repair projects and will allow using proper culvert materials to maximize their life spans.

Distribution of environmental justice metrics for exposure to CAFOs in North Carolina, USA

BackgroundSeveral studies have reported environmental disparities regarding exposure to concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). Public health implications of environmental justice from the intensive livestock industry are of great concern in North Carolina (NC), USA, a state with a large number and extensive history of CAFOs. ObjectivesWe examined disparities by exposure to CAFOs using several environmental justice metrics and considering potentially vulnerable subpopulations. MethodsWe obtained data on permitted animal facilities from NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Using ZIP code level variables from the 2010 Census, we evaluated environmental disparities by eight environmental justice metrics (i.e., percentage of Non-Hispanic White, Non-Hispanic Black, or Hispanic; percentage living below the poverty level; median household income; percentage with education less than high school diploma; racial residential isolation (RI) for Non-Hispanic Black; and educational residential isolation (ERI) for population without college degree). We applied two approaches to assign CAFOs exposure for each ZIP code: (1) a count method based on the number of CAFOs within ZIP code; and (2) a buffer method based on the area-weighted number of CAFOs using a 15 km buffer. ResultsSpatial distributions of CAFOs exposure generally showed similar patterns between the two exposure methods. However, some ZIP codes had different estimated CAFOs exposure for the different approaches, with higher exposure when using the buffer method. Our findings indicate that CAFOs are located disproportionately in communities with higher percentage of minorities and in low-income communities. Distributions of environmental justice metrics generally showed similar patterns for both exposure methods, however starker disparities were observed using a buffer method. ConclusionsOur findings of the disproportionate location of CAFOs provide evidence of environmental disparities with respect to race and socioeconomic status in NC and have implications for future studies of environmental and health impacts of CAFOs.

Baseline evaluation of legacy hydrochemical data for the Republican River watershed, southcentral Nebraska, USA

The objective of this study was to comprehensively evaluate and interpret hydrogeochemically the extensive legacy surface-water data for the expansive Republican River watershed in southcentral Nebraska. Historical (1968–1991) hydrochemistry data [major cations and anions, total salinity [specific conductance (SC)] and pH supplied by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality and the US Geological Survey were hydrogeochemically and statistically analyzed. Interpretation of this large legacy dataset (315 sample analyses at 12 Republican River sampling stations) revealed that the Republican River’s range in SC is relatively low (200–1020 µS/cm), with a river-wide median of 587 µS/cm (~ 380 mg/L). The range in SC for 10 tributaries (204 sample analyses) is 190–2910 µS/cm with a median value of 550 µS/cm (~ 360 mg/L). The Ca–HCO3 hydrochemical facies dominates throughout the watershed followed by the Na–HCO3 facies. Hydrochemical equilibrium modeling reveals that most samples occurred in an aqueous environment characterized by gypsum undersaturation but slight calcite and dolomite supersaturation; low supersaturation values comprise a line of evidence for the thermodynamic equilibrium or near equilibrium of the studied surface waters. Scatter plots of meq/L concentrations for selected anions and cations reveal the impact of silicate mineral (e.g., feldspars) weathering on the aqueous hydrochemistry throughout the watershed. These ubiquitous feldspar minerals most likely originated along the eastern slope of the Front Range during Late Cretaceous time (Laramide Orogeny) and were subsequently transported into the study area. The relatively high concentrations of sulfate and sodium in numerous samples collected from the Arikaree River probably originate in the underlying Pierre Shale, rich in S-bearing minerals.

Systemic Racism and Othering within Government Agencies: A Psychoanalytic Interpretation of Environmental Injustice in the Flint, Michigan Water Crisis

ABSTRACT The severe water emergency in Flint, Michigan between 2014 and 2016 was inarguably caused by systemic organizational dysfunction. The Michigan Governor Snyders’ Flint Water Advisory Task Force, in their analysis of the severe water emergency in Flint, Michigan, emphasized the degree of systemic organizational dysfunction, providing evidence that the agencies involved demonstrated a disregard for the poor and black citizens of Flint and participated in environmental injustice. The author traces, through journalists’ reports, e-mails between and among officials, first-hand testimony and the timeline provided by the Task Force, that the performance of the involved agencies (the state Department of Environmental Quality and the Michigan Department of Health Services) was tainted by systemic racism, Othering and by the dehumanization of Flint citizens the majority of whom were African American, and poor. The scandal was finally made public when a pediatrician showed unequivocal data on the alarmingly high lead levels in children who ingested the water. An organizational analysis based on psychoanalytic principles (Freud, Bion, Hopper) further supplements her observations that systemic racism aided and abetted severe systemic dysfunction.

Vegetation Sampling Concepts for Compensatory Mitigation Sites

I n 2018, the Norfolk District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), in their roles as co-chairs of Virginia’s Interagency Review Team (IRT), proposed modifications to the Virginia Mitigation Banking Instrument (MBI) Template (Template). The Template is a document used to establish compensatory wetland and stream mitigation banks in the state, serving as a planning-level tool with minimum standards and design criteria for that purpose. Prospective mitigation banks are approved via IRT ratification of an acceptable MBI, which provides the necessary documentation for the “…establishment, use, operation, and management…” of mitigation banks in Virginia.

Occurrence and distribution of hexavalent chromium in groundwater from North Carolina, USA

Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is a groundwater contaminant that is potentially harmful to human health. Understanding the occurrence of Cr(VI) in groundwater resources is critical for evaluating its risks to human health. Here we report a large dataset (n = 1362) of Cr(VI) and total chromium (CrT) concentrations in public, private, and monitoring wells from different aquifers across North Carolina. These water quality data come from new and previous measurements conducted at Duke University, as well as data reported by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, and the U.S. Geological Survey. The data confirm that Cr(VI) is the predominant species of dissolved Cr and that groundwater from aquifers in the Piedmont region contain significantly higher concentrations than groundwater from the coastal plain. Though there is only one exceedance of the U.S. EPA Maximum Contaminant Level (100 µg/L for CrT) in the dataset, over half of all wells measured for Cr(VI) (470 out of 865) in the dataset exceeded the N.C. Health Advisory Level of 0.07 µg/L. Using information from this dataset, we explore three different approaches to predicting Cr(VI) in groundwater: (1) CrT concentrations as a proxy for Cr(VI); (2) Exceedance probabilities of health goals for groundwater from aquifers located in specific geologic areas; and (3) Censored linear regression using commonly measured field parameters (pH, electrical conductivity, dissolved oxygen) with relationships to Cr(VI) as regressors. Combining these approaches, we have identified several areas in the Piedmont region where Cr(VI) in drinking water wells is expected to be higher than the advisory level, which coincide with large population groundwater reliant populations. While this study focuses on N.C., the wide-spread occurrence of Cr(VI) in groundwater at concentrations above health guidelines in aquifers of the Piedmont region could pose high human health risks to large populations in the eastern U.S.

Relations of dissolved-oxygen variability, selected field constituents, and metabolism estimates to land use and nutrients in high-gradient Boston Mountain streams, Arkansas

Continuous monitoring data can be extremely useful for assessing water-quality conditions particularly for variables, such as dissolved oxygen, that exhibit dynamic diel swings. As a means of evaluating stream dissolved oxygen criteria used by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), we compared continuous dissolved oxygen (DO) data collected at five small- to moderate-sized (watersheds 10-100 mi2), high-gradient streams in the Boston Mountains distributed across a land-use and nutrient condition gradient. The sampled streams exhibit a general pattern established for other aquatic systems (e.g., larger streams, low-gradient streams, and lakes) where increasing land-use intensity results in increased nutrient concentrations, stream eutrophication, and increased DO variability. DO concentrations were < 6 mg/L for fewer than 4% of measurements at the two sites identified "a priori" as least disturbed by nutrient and land-use indices, while concentrations at the three sites identified as moderately and most disturbed were < 6 mg/L for 20 to 33% of measurements. These findings demonstrate that the current criterion (10% of the DO measurements are < 6 mg/L) employed by ADEQ was effective at identifying various degrees of DO impairment in Boston Mountain streams. Our analysis also demonstrated that continuous pH and specific conductance data and estimates of stream metabolism were helpful for attributing DO variability to anthropogenic or natural origins. Considerations that were useful for examining these relationships and evaluating ADEQ's DO criterion should be applicable to DO studies in other locations where stream and geologic characteristics are similar to those of the Boston Mountains.

Interpretation of storage and retrieval major-ion chemistry, with emphasis on significant sulfate and sodium concentrations in the White River watershed, northwestern Nebraska, United States

The White River watershed encompasses four major tributaries within a basin area of 130 km2 (1595 mi2) in extreme northwestern Nebraska. An examination of the historical (1968–1975) aqueous geochemistry data (major cations and anions and total dissolved solids [TDS]) supplied by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality revealed that the TDS is relatively low (130–1200 mg/L), excluding Big Cottonwood Creek (BCC), with a basin-wide median of 340 mg/L. The median TDS for the BCC is 1880 mg/L (brackish); the median values for Na and SO4 are 385 and 897 mg/L, respectively. Mineralization in the river increases steadily downstream. The scatter plots of meq/L concentrations for selected anions and cations reveal the impact of silicate mineral (e.g., feldspar) weathering on the aqueous geochemistry throughout the watershed. These ubiquitous feldspar minerals most likely originated along the eastern slope of the Front Range during the Late Cretaceous and Tertiary (Laramide orogeny). Twenty-nine samples for three White River stations and the BCC exceed the US Environmental Protection Agency secondary maximum contaminant levels for TDS and/or SO4 in drinking water supplies at 500 and 250 mg/L, respectively. Uncontaminated streams that drain marine shales (typically containing S-bearing minerals) nationwide typically show an excess of Na and a deficiency of Ca and Mg. This is due in part to cation exchange of Ca in solution for Na on clay minerals. Consequently, the weathering of shale terrains commonly produces an Na-SO4 brackish surface-water runoff as is the case with BCC, which drains the Pierre Shale hills.

An introductory course in green chemistry: Progress and lessons learned

Abstract This work provides a description of our experience with designing and implementing green chemistry elements in higher education. It addresses the problem of content and methodology in green chemistry education and provides models of innovative approaches in design and teaching practices. An introductory course, Pollution Prevention, Green Chemistry and Green Engineering, supported by a grant from Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, was designed at Grand Valley State University (GVSU), in Michigan, in 2008 and run for the first time in 2009, with 12 students. The positive response from the students who took the class coupled with increasing visibility of green chemistry initiative at the state level (MI Governor’s Green Chemistry directive and Green Chemistry Round Table) led the GVSU administration to recognize the need of such a course and, after revision, to its inclusion into the Chemistry Department curriculum, under the designation “Introduction to green chemistry”, CHM 111. This remains to be a sought-after course for freshmen and upper-level undergraduates interested in the issues of green chemistry who have no chemistry background in their education. Since 2011, the course ran twice a year with a total of 302 students to date (December 2017). From semester to semester, it underwent several modifications, in order to accommodate the most recent, up-to-date developments in green chemistry and green engineering. The repository of teaching materials created is growing continuously. The progress and lessons learned throughout the years in running this course are summarized here.

Climate-governance entrepreneurship, higher-order learning, and sustainable consumption: the case of the state of Oregon, United States

ABSTRACTThe ongoing devolution of climate policy-making to sub-national levels has prompted growing interest in policy entrepreneurship by individuals who are politically and technically creative and institutionally resourceful. This paper investigates the case of the materials-management programme in the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality which has emerged as a national and international leader by focusing on the role of household consumption in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Two noteworthy innovations involve the development of a consumption-based GHG emissions inventory and introduction of policies aimed at facilitating construction of small homes (so-called Accessory Dwelling Units, ADU). The case traces over several decades the higher order learning processes within the group and their entrepreneurship toward affecting broader changes in emission accounting and climate policies in Oregon. The paper identifies the enabling factors for these innovations, and considers: how to create the conditions for learning, experimentation, and policy entrepreneurship; how to reproduce these conditions in different locales; and how to recognize and foster innovations that arise outside the established mainstream ‘climate community’. It also stresses the benefits of breaking down the barriers between science-based analysis and policy. The two questions frequently raised in the climate policy debate – how to bring researchers and practitioners together to develop efficacious policies; and how to replicate successful programmes and policies across different communities, jurisdictions, and locations – should be re-examined. It may be more appropriate to ask instead: How to create conditions for learning, experimentation, and policy entrepreneurship; and how to reproduce these conditions in different locales.Key policy insightsUsing a consumption-based greenhouse gas emission inventory instead of a sector-based inventory radically changes climate policy priorities, shifting the emphasis from technological fixes to curbing household consumption.Policy innovations thrive in teams that combine technical and scientific competencies with: a commitment to addressing societal problems; interest in inquiry, experimentation, and learning; entrepreneurship; and strategic and political savvy.These qualities require breaking down artificial barriers between science and policy.Transformative policy ideas can originate within institutional nodes that operate outside of an established community of expertise and authority; and these should be identified and fostered.

NC BEACH AND INLET MANAGEMENT PLAN: AN EVALUATION OF A DEDICATED BEACH NOURISHMENT FUND

The North Carolina General Assembly started the process for the original NC Beach and Inlet Management Plan (BIMP) in 2000 (HB 1840 Section 13.9c), with completion of the document occurring in 2009. The General Assembly passed legislation to update the BIMP in 2015 (HB 97) to review new coastal and socio-economic data driven by policy changes created since the original document. The NC Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ) served as the managing agency for both the original and updated BIMP studies.

2014 residential wood combustion survey: Results overview and spatial allocation of emissions estimates

Through the use of monitoring, modeling, and emission inventories, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) has identified residential wood combustion (RWC) as a significant source of air pollution in Oregon. Detailed emission inventories provide the best source of information to inform pollution reduction strategies. In order to refine and improve state and local RWC emission inventories, DEQ contracted with the Portland State University Survey Research Lab to perform a telephone survey on RWC in the Portland metro area. The goal of the project was to 1) quantify these emissions by type and location, and 2) to spatially allocate these emissions to US Census blocks in the study area and other parts of the state. Results, based on 1061 residences surveyed, showed that 4.3% of respondents burned wood for primary heating and 17.8% burned wood for secondary (backup heating or aesthetics) purposes. Primary burners burned four times more wood on average per device than secondary burners. As such, even though there were fewer primary burners they burned 51% of the total wood fuel combusted. The breakdown of estimated emissions of particulate matter 2.5 μm or less (PM2.5) from primary and secondary burners is nearly even, with 46.5% of emissions coming from primary burning and 53.5% of emissions coming from secondary burning. Uncertified woodstoves and inserts are the source of just over half (50.5%) the emissions in the Survey area, followed by emissions from certified woodstoves and inserts (26.3%), fireplaces (21.5%), pellet stoves (0.9%), and fire-log burning (0.8%). Survey results for burning activity and housing type showed good correlation, and were mapped to US Census housing data (units in structure) for block-groups. The Survey results also showed differences in burning behavior between urban/suburban and rural areas. This distinction coupled with housing types provided a method of spatial allocation for RWC activity and emissions that could be a useful tool for other states and regions.

High levels of PFOS, PFOA trigger state of emergency

Michigan has declared a state of emergency in a community of 3,100 people whose drinking water is tainted with high levels of perfluorinated chemicals. The state’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) discovered the contamination July 26 in the city of Parchment in southwestern Michigan. DEQ test results showed water with 1,410 parts per trillion of a combination of perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), commercial chemicals that were once widely used but are no longer manufactured in the U.S. PFOS levels in the water were 740 ppt and PFOA concentrations were 670 ppt, DEQ says. The agency found the pollution as part of a state effort to test all public drinking water supplies in Michigan for 14 perfluorochemicals. PFOS and PFOA, which essentially don’t break down in the environment, are linked to health problems, including cancer, thyroid hormone disruption, and increased cholesterol levels, says the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

North Carolina agency seeks court order against Chemours

To protect drinking water, North Carolina regulators are asking a state court to order Chemours to stop fluoroether pollution from its plant outside Fayetteville. If the court grants the request of the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), the facility, which makes Nafion ion-transporting polymers and other fluorochemical products, could face at least a partial shutdown. In addition to controlling air emissions and other sources of fluoroether pollution, DEQ wants Chemours to hand over information about the use of a drainage ditch at the plant that was contaminated with fluoroethers. According to the agency’s April 9 court filing, Chemours for an unknown period of time discharged industrial-process wastewater into the open ditch, bypassing the facility’s wastewater treatment plant. The untreated water flowed into the Cape Fear River, DEQ says. “It’s time for Chemours to own up to the level of contamination they have caused to the environment in and

367 Regulating Livestock Waste in Nebraska – a Brief Overview.

The Department of Environmental Quality (Department) is tasked with regulating livestock waste control facilities in the state of Nebraska. The purpose of the Livestock Waste Management Act, the primary enabling legislation behind Title 130, Livestock Waste Control Regulations, is to protect waters of the state from being negatively impacted by livestock waste. The Department oversees both the state Construction and Operating Permit program and the federal National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting program via delegation by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The Department seeks voluntary compliance from livestock producers and promotes engagement with the general public through educational outreach and the solicitation of public comments regarding permitting decisions. The Department faces a number of challenges in accomplishing these tasks including: public perceptions and misconceptions of the beneficial use of manure; a lack of understanding of the regulations that are in place and the requirements placed on the livestock industry; changes in production practices that have improved nutrient retention; and emerging practices that have yet to be addressed by current regulations.

Surface coal mine permit application for successful reclamation, semi-arid shortgrass prairie (Wyoming, USA)

Approximately 40% of USA coal originates in an ecologically sensitive area of semi-arid shortgrass prairie in Wyoming. Before a surface coal mine can begin operation in the USA, it must secure a mining permit and comply with regulations and performance standards under the USA Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA), other federal environmental acts, and state programs. The Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality (WDEQ)/Land Quality Division (LQD) administers Wyoming’s coal regulatory program. The permit application and bonding process for the largest surface coal mine permit in the USA, North Antelope Rochelle Mine (NARM) located in short grassland prairie in the northeast Wyoming, is discussed. The permit application process begins with the collection of baseline environmental data that characterizes premining conditions of the permit area. The permit application includes adjudication information, baseline information, mine and operation plans, and reclamation plans. Fulfillment of permit commitments and requirements of rules and regulations are inspected monthly by the LQD’s representative in the field. Before a mine permit is issued, the mine operator must submit a reclamation bond to secure the performance of reclamation obligations that is later revised annually. In Wyoming, four reclamation bond release phases indicate the completion of various stages of the reclamatikon process. NARM’s specific bond release verification cirteria, performance standards, and field verificatoins of bond release phases are discussed. The Bond Release Geodatabase (a GIS/GPS approach) was developed for this mine to monitor progress in meeting criteria and performance standards for incremental bond release. The Bond Release Geodatabase significantly reduces the time needed to track bond release progress, reach agreement between operator and regulator, and improve the state inspector’s ability to assess reclamation adequacy and progress.

Chemours to end GenX discharges

Reacting to a barrage of criticism after the fluoropolymer processing aid GenX was found in the Cape Fear River, Chemours says it will now “capture, remove, and safely dispose” of wastewater containing the chemical at its Fayetteville, N.C., plant. North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) says Chemours’s action is a step in the right direction. The department and the state’s Department of Health & Human Services say they will continue to “investigate this issue until we have answers to address the concerns of downstream water users.” Used to manufacture fluoropolymers, GenX is a six-carbon fluorinated compound that Chemours says has a “favorable” toxicological profile. However, DEQ points out that GenX is a relatively new chemical whose health effects are not fully understood. The processing aid replaced two eight-carbon molecules, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate, that persist in the environment and have been linked to human disease. In February,

Development of Non-Collinear Arrays for Use Near Wastewater Holding Ponds

Mineral and organic salts from beef manure contained in precipitation runoff from feedlot pen surfaces can alter the conductivity properties of soil and water receiving it. Typically, holding ponds are constructed to control runoff from concentrated animal feeding operations. The integrity of these holding ponds has come under increased scrutiny since subsurface leakage has the potential to affect soil and groundwater quality. Traditionally, ponds are monitored by installing monitoring wells at strategic locations to evaluate the impact of these ponds on the environment. Monitoring wells are expensive to install, costly to sample and the information received is subject to ambiguous interpretation. Researchers from USDA-ARS U.S. Meat Animal Research Center have combined efforts and resources with the Nebraska Cattlemen, the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ), and AgraTek LLC, to evaluate electronic monitoring of subsurface soils near holding ponds used to contain runoff from beef cattle feedlots. A three year study summarized data from two feedlots and concluded that resistivity array systems were able to adequately measure subsurface dynamics and to alert operators of changes that exceeded nominal operation. Subsequently, two NDEQ provisionally approved systems were installed at a University of Nebraska research site. Unlike previous test installations, each of these new sites required non-collinear installations. This report discusses the theoretical development and testing of non-collinear arrays which proved to be a viable approach to unique array geometries necessitated by feedlot designs.

Strength in Numbers

The State of Montana dedicates sizeable portions of its annual budget to collect, analyze, and store water quality data. This information resource is used by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to decide (1) whether water bodies support their beneficial uses, (2) if discharges are in compliance with permits, (3) whether water quality is improving or declining, and (4) what the causes and sources of impairment of water bodies are. At present this information is neither readily available nor easily accessible for many prospective end users. But this resource has tremendous potential and value for citizen‐based groups working to restore and maintain water quality.

Large watershed management and restoration: dioxin sediment remediation case study

This paper reviews continuing, long-term remediation of river sediments containing dioxin and other chemical compounds in a large watershed of the Great Lakes Region. Chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins are a ‘family’ of chemically related compounds commonly known as chlorinated dioxins or simply, dioxins. The highest levels are usually found in sediments, soil and animal fats. The most toxic chemical in this group is 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-para-dioxin, the ‘standard’ to which other dioxins are compared and which has been shown to be very toxic in animal studies. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) have made a lengthy effort to assess and remediate portions of the Saginaw Bay Watershed, including the Tittabawassee River. The paper reviews the EPA-proposed ‘phased approach’ to restoration and remediation of a short segment (Segment 1) of the Tittabawassee River sediments. Sediments are contaminated with a number of chemical pollutants other than dioxins, including arsenic, cholorbenzenes, cholorphenols, ethyl parathion, o-phenylphenol and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The paper evaluates three proposed ‘cleanup alternatives’, with final action method suggested based on effectiveness, feasibility for implementation and cost.