April 6, 2004

Environmental Watch: Toxicologist Hays hired for Intertox

Hays

SEATTLE -- Sean M. Hays was recently named principal of Intertox, a Seattle health science consulting and research firm. He is a toxicologist and chemical engineer specializing in physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling and exposure assessment.

Hays helped NASA determine the effects of lead exposure to the bone mass of astronauts.

Intertox focuses on environmental, health and safety issues. Experts in toxicology, industrial hygiene and epidemiology conduct risk assessments, characterize hazards and develop mitigation plans.

Flexcar names new Seattle manager

SEATTLE -- Flexcar, a Seattle-based car-share company, has added 23 vehicles to its Seattle-area fleet, which now totals 130, and named a new general manager for the Seattle region: Brett Allen. Former general manager William del Valle will manage the San Diego area.

Flexcar began as a Metro Transit pilot program and is based on a European model. It started in 2000 with four cars and a few members on Capitol Hill. Membership in the Seattle area is now about 10,000. Nationwide, the company has nearly 20,000 members and operates more than 300 vehicles.

County gets brownfields job training grant

SEATTLE -- The Environmental Protection Agency will give King County a $150,000 grant to provide environmental cleanup job training to people who live in low-income areas near brownfield sites.

The program will train residents on safety, industrial hygiene, lead and asbestos abatement, and environmental assessment. Partnerships with cleanup firms and trade unions are expected to generate apprenticeships and jobs for graduates.

According to the EPA, more than 60 percent of people completing such programs have obtained employment in the environmental field, earning an average hourly wage of $12.84. For information, call (206) 553-2100 or visit www.epa.gov/brownfields.

State tightens environment rules

OLYMPIA -- Gov. Gary Locke recently signed five bills involving carbon dioxide, stormwater runoff and oil spills.

One bill requires power plants to offset 20 percent of carbon dioxide they generate. Plants can either directly or indirectly invest in CO2 mitigation projects such as forest preservation, or the conversion of buses from diesel power to natural gas. New standards will reflect rules developed by Washington State Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council.

Another bill makes changes to the state stormwater permitting system. The Department of Ecology will have authority to monitor and enforce the permits.

A bill aimed at preventing incidents like the 4,800-gallon oil spill that occurred at Point Wells last December would require Ecology to form a rule for how to contain such spills.

Meeting on Whidbey Island weeds

COUPEVILLE - The Washington State Department of Transportation will hold a public meeting today at 6 p.m. at the Performing Arts Center at Coupeville High School. Environmental experts will discuss roadside maintenance, weed control and herbicide use on Whidbey Island.

WSDOT says it reduced herbicide use on Whidbey Island more than 40 percent in the past two years. Maintenance crews expect to cut herbicide use on Whidbey Island in half this year.

WSDOT recently released a draft Whidbey Island Integrated Vegetation Management Plan which covers the route along Highway 20 and Highway 525. For more information, visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/maintenance/ivm.htm. Also contact Ray Willard at willarr@wsdot.wa.gov or (360) 705-7865.

Nisqually watershed plan to be reviewed

OLYMPIA -- On April 13 the Pierce County Council will meet with its counterparts in Thurston and Lewis counties to decide whether to approve the proposed Nisqually Watershed Management Plan. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge Visitors Center Olympia, 100 Browns Farm Road.

If approved, this will be the first watershed plan whose development was led by a tribe. The meeting will be chaired by Diane Oberquell of the Thurston County board of commissioners and open with comments by Dorian Sanchez, Nisqually Tribe chair.

Pierce County Council held a public hearing on the proposal last week and received a briefing from Susan Clark of Pierce County Water Programs and Lisa Dally Wilson of Golder Associates.

Alternative vehicle show April 10

SEATTLE -- The Seattle Parks and Recreation's Alternatively Fueled Vehicle Rally will take place April 10 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Discovery Park Environmental Learning Center. Vehicles on display include electric cars, bicycles, trucks and natural gas-fueled mechanisms.

According to Seattle Parks and Recreation, motor vehicles are the primary source of air pollution in the central Puget Sound region.

Water policy expert to speak at PLU

TACOMA -- Sandra Postel, co-author of "Rivers for Life: Managing Water for People and Nature," will present an Earth Day lecture at Pacific Lutheran University on April 22. The free talk will begin at 7 p.m. and will be followed by a reception and book signing.

Postel's work is about preservation and sustainable use of fresh water ecosystems. She is director of the Global Water Policy project in Amherst, Mass. For more information, contact Charles Bergman at (253) 535-7490 or bergmaca@plu.edu.

Converter retrofits for diesel school buses

OLYMPIA -- Some older-model school buses will be outfitted with catalytic converters, at a cost of $1,200 per bus, which will cut toxic exhaust emissions by as much as 50 percent, according to the Olympic Region Clean Air Agency.

Washington state has contracted with Renton-based Cummins Northwest to retrofit some buses from Olympia School District No. 111 and Ocean Beaches School District No. 101 this month.

Washington State Clean School Bus Program aims to retrofit more than 5,000 school buses statewide in the next few years. For more information, visit www.orcaa.org/news.html.

Exam review course for hazmat managers

SEATTLE -- The Northwest chapter of the Academy of Hazardous Materials Managers will offer a Certified Hazardous Materials Managers overview course May 17-19 at the Swedish Cultural Center on Dexter Avenue in Seattle.

The certification exam will be offered on May 21 at Shoreline Community College and exam applicants must register six weeks in advance. Call (301) 984-8969, or visit www.ihmm.org to register.