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Pollution Prevention
Overview
Pollution prevention is reducing or eliminating waste at the source by modifying production processes, promoting the use of non-toxic or less-toxic substances, implementing conservation techniques, and re-using materials rather than putting them into the waste stream.
The City of Port Angeles received a grant from the Washington Department of Ecology to provide no-charge, on-site advice to small businesses that generate dangerous wastes.
The goal of this grant funded program is to help Port Angeles businesses avoid polluting local waters, reduce the impacts of stormwater pollution, and eliminate potential sources of toxic materials and dangerous waste.
Pollution Prevention Specialist - Ready to Assist
The City's Pollution Prevention Specialist is visiting local businesses in order to demystify regulations about dangerous waste and help implement pollution prevention practices. The goal of this program is to protect water quality and help businesses deal with pollution at its source, before it pollutes local waters.
This approach not only protects our city's water quality and standard of living, but it is also expected to save businesses money through conservation of resources, improved worker safety, reduction and avoidance of risk, possible decrease in insurance premiums, and an increase in business efficiencies.
This position is 100% grant funded through the Washington State Department of Ecology's Local Source Control Partnership. This partnership gives the City's Pollution Prevention Specialist access to the resources and expertise of twenty-five partner jurisdictions around Puget Sound and the Spokane River Basin.
Qualified Businesses
This program is for businesses that:
- Accumulate less than 2,200 pounds of most dangerous wastes
- Create less than 220 pounds of most dangerous wastes per month
- Would like to avoid paperwork, mandatory inspections, and emergency plans
You'll be provided with:
- Inspection of dangerous waste handling and storage facilities
- List of licensed dangerous waste recyclers / haulers
- No charge, on-site dangerous waste evaluation
- Recommendations to fix any issues we find
What to expect:
- The inspector is available Monday through Friday, from 7:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Most evaluations will take 15 to 45 minutes
Businesses within Port Angeles city limits and its urban growth areas are welcome to participate in the voluntary program.
RESOURCES
Please click on the following tabs for more information.
- Preventing Water Pollution
- Answers to Basic Questions
- Shop Guide for Dangerous Waste
- Safer Choice Products
- Fat Oil and Grease Program
- Cost Analysis
Port Angeles is home to a very unique environment with the majestic Olympic Mountains nestled alongside the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Many mountain-fed streams run right through our city as they make their way to the Strait, picking up pollution from our storm drains in the process. As a result, stormwater pollution has become a serious problem for both the wildlife and citizens that use these waterways for fishing, boating, and swimming. This beautifully drawn flier (PDF) explores sources of local water pollution and offers ways for eliminating the pollution from our streams and waterways. Feel free to print it out and post it in your business.
This brochure (PDF) answers the most basic questions about your waste. How do I know if my waste is hazardous? How do I handle hazardous waste? Will I be regulated? Do I need to file any special documentation with the government? Where do I go for help?
Do you run a maintenance shop? Auto body shop? Auto repair shop? If so, this is the guide (PDF) for you. It discusses proper waste management for common shop items such as aerosol cans, antifreeze, used oil, towels and rags, batteries, waste storage regulations and more.
Have you ever wondered if there are less hazardous chemicals available that can do the same job? The EPA Safer Choice label helps consumers and businesses find products that are less hazardous to human health and the environment. Safer Choice products must pass category specific performance standards so you can trust that the Safer Choice products perform as well as their more hazardous counterparts. Click here to find over 2,000 safer alternatives for your home and business.
Port Angeles has a big grease problem. Fats, oils, and grease (FOG) are clogging the City's sewers and costing us all a lot of money each year to respond to and clear these grease-clogged pipes. FOG waste from cooking and cleaning equipment hardens and builds up inside our drain and sewer pipes, constricting water flow the way cholesterol affects blood flow in arteries. In 2010, the City adopted a FOG control ordinance to address these problems. This document (PDF) clearly states the steps restaurants must take to be in compliance with local laws and help reduce grease clogged sewers.
Pollution prevention can save money on the costs involved in an industrial production process, as well as provide new sources of revenue. Many pollution prevention opportunities cost very little to carry out, and can be quite profitable, while others must be analyzed carefully to weigh their profitability. This analysis (PDF) involves identifying all the major costs involved in a current process and possible pollution prevention alternatives, and then comparing the costs and savings.