Success in such projects helps municipalities move closer to achieving their sustainability goals. These two Maryland projects provide value to their communities by lowering greenhouse gas emissions, providing renewable energy and environmental integrity, and creating jobs and savings for taxpayers. That’s a win for Maryland and its citizens.
Closed landfills require significant maintenance and environmental compliance expenditures for many years, more often decades. Recent changes in federal tax law under the Inflation Reduction Act have dramatically improved opportunities for public and private sector landfills to convert a liability to an income-producing asset. The Inflation Reduction Act includes provisions for a 30% investment tax credit for solar projects with other provisions that can increase this incentive to as much as 50%. There are also equivalent provisions for direct payment to non-taxpaying entities such as cities and counties. An excellent summary has been prepared by the law firm of Holland & Knight and is available here.”
Two Maryland counties are among recent SCS Engineers’ clients who are converting their idle properties into revenue-generators that serve their communities—they are installing solar farms, a growing trend on closed landfills. The Oaks Landfill in Montgomery County, MD, is one.
The Oaks Landfill Photovoltaic Array project will be a 6-megawatt (MW) system on 170 acres of the closed landfill, the largest solar project on county property. Governed through a power purchase agreement, two MWs are allocated for the County. The other four MWs are for a community solar project, with 100% of the electricity generated, provided to low and moderate-income subscribers. In total the solar energy system is expected to generate 11.4 million kilowatt hours of electricity each year – enough to power 930 homes. The solar power is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as much as taking 1,740 cars off the road.
It will be one of the largest solar farms nationwide to allocate all power to disadvantaged communities. The array is on schedule to operate in 2023.
Siting solar energy installations
Ideal sites for these facilities are fairly flat (preferably less than 15% slope) with open spaces conducive to photovoltaic system installation. Favorable sites are also in close proximity to utility connection points providing developers a viable means to bring their product to market and consumers. While properties like closed landfills provide ideal locations, the projects command a robust multidisciplinary redevelopment approach. Important skills for successfully engineering and permitting these projects include landfill engineering expertise and experience with state and local permitting processes.
You can learn more about renewable energy solutions here.
Donald Barfield (Don) joins SCS Engineers as a Project Director specializing in environmental assessment and brownfield remediation, the first step in returning damaged sites and property to productive use. Barfield brings AAI expertise developed at over 2,000 assessments and brownfield projects throughout the United States and globally, keeping them on schedule and budget.
“Don’s proven track record fits our aim to create sustainable environmental solutions. Our consulting engineer teams include members with field and financial experience to create solutions that meet and remain compliant with local, state, and federal policies while economically and socially practical, states Senior Vice President and Southeast Business Director Carlo Lebron.
All Appropriate Inquiries (AAI) is a process of evaluating the environmental condition of a property and assessing the likelihood of contamination. Parties must comply with the requirements of the AAI Rule or follow the standards set forth in the ASTM E1527-13 or E1527-21 Standard Practice for Phase I Environmental Site Assessments to satisfy the statutory requirements for conducting all appropriate inquiries.
Today’s commercial property transactions take environmental issues into consideration. Complex laws can impose significant environmental liabilities on purchasers, sellers, and lenders, whether or not they caused the problem and whether or not they still own the property.
Don brings years of experience helping municipalities, developers, and industrial clients prepare and submit EPA Brownfield Assessment and Cleanup Grants, including the compliance reporting and due diligence associated with making these projects successful for communities and businesses. His project experience includes due diligence and risk reviews for large acquisitions or mergers and the assessment and development of closure plans for RCRA Regulated Units.
“Sustainability and environmental compliance are important factors in moving projects forward while protecting communities,” says Don. “There are funding, grants, tax credits, and incentives available now. In Florida, the Voluntary Cleanup Tax Credit Program could support mixed-use developments and potential partnerships right now.”
Barfield is an LEED® Accredited Professional, HAZWOPER Certified, and an ASTM Environmental Professional. He earned his MBA at the University of North Florida and a BS in Biology at Jacksonville University.
SCS Engineers’ environmental solutions and technology directly result from our experience and dedication to industries responsible for safeguarding the environment as they deliver essential services and products. For more information about joining us, please visit the SCS Engineers website, or watch our video to see what we can do for your business and community.
We are deeply saddened by the passing of our founder Tom Conrad, but we celebrate his spirit by continuing the culture he established at SCS Engineers. Tom was energetic, creative, hard-working, and fun-loving! His accomplishments in preventing and mitigating environmental damage are just one of the reasons we respect him so much.
Another reason is that Tom believed in providing opportunities for everyone. He founded and ran SCS based on giving individuals the tools they need to thrive while providing for their families, the environment, and their communities. These tools are trust, mentorship, and open dialog. By building these philosophies into our culture, Tom sparked multiple innovations and environmental solutions by some of the finest people you’ll ever want to meet.
These SCSers continue our culture of caring and listening. Anyone at SCS can contribute their ideas for improving a process or technology. Our executives promote forums to keep the conversations and idea exchanges going and open to all. And just as Tom would insist, innovations are proven before they are implemented.
We’re proud of all SCSers, especially our young professionals, who consistently bring in fresh ideas and perspectives by asking “why and how” questions. Designing sustainable environmental solutions requires a deep understanding of systems, processes, and industry knowledge. Asking the right questions and seeking answers indicates a curious mind; Tom called these people “thinkers,” one of the best compliments we could get. Asking these questions indicates a self-actualized mind. And answering the questions takes a team. At SCS, we encourage both.
SCS’s mentorship and young professionals programs are thriving. They were established more formally in the last decade but have always been a part of SCS. President and CEO Jim Walsh called Tom “The best mentor anyone could ever have,” going on to say that Tom “taught me a lot, but more, he let me figure things out on my own… I’ve often said that my best four years of education were not high school or college; it was learning from Tom Conrad.”
SCS’s culture survives because of trust. So as Tom did, we continue to place trust and confidence in SCS’s employee-owners. Tom understood long ago that trust creates a culture of teamwork and respect, enabling effective problem-solving. In fact, Tom was so proud and confident in the firm’s environmental accomplishments in 1987 that he modified the company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan to expand ownership of SCS to all employees. Today SCS remains 100% employee-owned and is a driving force for SCSers to deliver high-quality and ethical solutions to our clients.
Tom’s other major and no less important philosophy was to “have fun!” We take the time to engage and laugh with our colleagues, clients, and associates.
Our nationwide offices are busy year-round helping their communities, especially during the holidays. A special thanks to our young professionals, who think BIG, for organizing our annual Feed America campaign, always with a healthy, fun competition between our offices!
You can learn more about how SCS continues in Tom Conrad’s spirit today by watching this short video made by SCSers coast to coast.
AAEES Webinar Plastics: Hero or Villain When We Manage Their Afterlife?
Wednesday, January 11, 2023
12:00 PM Eastern | 9:00 am Pacific
1 hour and 30 minutes (approximate)
$40 for non-members | FREE for all AAEES Members
American Academy of Environmental Engineers & Scientists (AAEES) presents an interactive session with “live chat” capability. The session is open to environmental engineering and science professionals across all sectors and career stages. Our objective is to offer special insights on leading-edge solutions for graduate and undergraduate students and early to mid-career environmental professionals considering specialty certification.
AAEES Board Certified Individuals: Attend this event and earn 1.5 PDHs towards your PDH requirements for maintaining your specialty certification.
Webinar Summary
Plastics have always had a rocky reputation. Fifty years ago, the Kinks sang “Plastic Man” as a paean to their superficiality. Now they are blamed for a wide array of problems ranging from marine debris, environmental injustice, negative health impacts, and fraudulent recycling. Yet their use has transformed the products we use in our daily life and what we do with those products when we are through with them. In 1960, plastics were less than half of a percent of America’s trash. Today, they are one-eighth of the garbage we generate. Their impact is significant.
This webinar will look at the rise of plastics in our waste. It will examine the collection, disposal (whether energy recovery or landfill), and recycling along with the extent to which plastics have led to less waste to manage. This webinar will teach you more about plastics’ pervasiveness in our society and how we can best manage their afterlife.
About the Presenters
Bob Gardner holds B.S. and M.E. degrees in civil engineering from the University of Virginia. He is a Senior Vice President of SCS Engineers and has been with the firm since 1980. He serves on the firm’s Board of Directors and oversees SCS’s nationwide solid waste management practice. His expertise is in solid waste management and environmental engineering. He provides consulting and engineering services to municipal and private clients throughout the United States and abroad. Bob is involved with the Environmental Research and Education Foundation Research Council. He is a past Director of the Solid Waste Association of North Americas Landfill Management.
Chaz Miller is a fifty-year veteran of the waste and recycling industry. He was part of EPA’s original Resource Recovery program, is a recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Recycling Coalition, chaired the Aiming for Zero Waste Task Force in his home county in Maryland and writes an award-winning column for Waste360 magazine.
EPA intends to update and expand its November 2021 oil and gas regulation proposal by reducing methane emissions and other harmful air pollution from new and existing oil and natural gas operations. The Agency has issued a supplemental proposal adding proposed requirements for sources not previously covered.
Registration is open for EPA’s virtual public hearing impacting hundreds of thousands of existing oil and gas sources nationwide. The Agency states it will promote innovative methane detection technologies and other cutting-edge solutions which are being developed.
Hearing information:
To register to speak or to watch a live stream of the hearing on both days, please visit EPA’s website for the supplemental proposal.
The registration deadline is January 5, 2023. See instructions for submitting a written comment.
In December, the SCS Madison office hosted the Great Lakes Graphics Association’s “Women in Print” luncheon and program. The purpose of this group is to bring together “women working in a man’s world” and give them a space to share experiences, offer coaching and advice, and share examples with women of all ages. The group motivates and encourages each other to push past old gender norms and share experiences with women of all ages. It was wonderful that SCS hosted 17 women from their early 20s to women in their late 60s who were among the first to call print shops their employers.
Environmental sustainability is part of many printers’ business models. The network and GLGA provide opportunities to discuss best practices for moving in a green direction, addressing critical regulatory issues, and environmental reporting — while having many minds contributing great ideas and proven solutions.
This was the 5th meeting of the group, and we’re proud to host them, as it is challenging to find safe places to meet during COVID, RSV, and flu season. Cheryl Moran spoke about how she grew up in print, from her coursework in college to her first job as a secretary in a print house to her evolution as an environmental, health, and safety trainer, manager, and director. She continues to offer her expertise to printers across the US while she trains and develops her team here at SCS.
It was wonderful to see everyone, especially after being virtual for so long. We look forward to hosting more Great Lakes Graphics Association events and opening our doors even wider in 2023. If you are interested in joining us, you can contact Cheryl Moran.
Resources:
Agricultural growing and harvesting operations are typically exempt from air planning, permitting and odor nuisance regulations. However, cannabis operations may require approval from the local Planning Commission. They may also require air permits from the local air regulatory agency for manufacturing operations (e.g., for solvents and associated combustion equipment such as boilers). Air permit applications for cannabis manufacturing operations may include the following based on project-specific conditions:
In addition to these permitting services, and to avoid costly nuisance complaints, cannabis growers may also need odor-related services such as:
While these may seem like imposing lists for air planning they are not for engineers who work in the industry.
Developing effective plans to mitigate odors is vital in gaining Planning Commission approvals which often depend upon resolving concerns raised by the public. Comprehensive OAPs and OMPs include odor control Best Management Practices (BMPs) and adaptive management strategies for responding to odor complaints when cannabis operations are near residences and schools.
Odor Control – Odor Nuisance Mitigation Case Study
Cannabis greenhouses in the Carpinteria, California region were causing off-site odor nuisances at nearby residences. The inherent smell needed addressing, as odor-neutralizing vapors along cannabis greenhouse perimeters and ridgelines were not providing adequate odor control.
Working with Cannabis Association for Responsible Producers (CARP) Growers, Pacific Stone, Groundswell, and Envinity Group, SCS Engineers utilized its air quality and odor expertise to collect continuous measurements using our SCSent-i-PED (Pollutant and Environmental Data). SCSent-i-PED is a state-of-the-art method for measuring TRS compounds to the parts per billion (ppb) level. The system can assess concentrations in real time, and a single machine can assess multiple locations and sources within a facility. This method successfully assessed relative odor levels and spatial/temporal fluctuations in odor-causing emissions.
Data collection is vital and useful to:
SCS, through its years of experience in air quality and odors, provides cost-effective, sustainable solutions that enable greenhouses and facilities to coexist in urban and suburban environments. Our clients not only get solutions, but they also have the data and science to understand better how odors behave and vary within a cannabis greenhouse.
To learn more, watch a video about air planning and managing greenhouse odors at https://www.scsengineers.com/services/clean-air-act-services/odor-monitoring-and-control/
About the Author: Paul Schafer is a Vice President and Project Director at SCS Engineers and the firm’s National Expert on Ambient Air Monitoring. During his technical career, Paul has assumed key roles in several nationally significant monitoring efforts. He has in-depth experience interfacing with regulatory agencies regarding the performance of monitoring systems, source emission tests, and continuous process monitors, which SCS operates for our clientele. He has had direct working experience with multiple local, state, and federal agencies regarding monitoring programs and air quality impact assessments. As with all solutions at SCS, cost control management and defensible technical performance are primary goals integral to all sustainable monitoring programs.
Welcome to the SCS Engineers Environmental Learning Center. Every month we record a live session on an environmental hot topic! We invite everyone to these open forums where participants can ask questions throughout. The video recordings are available in our Learning Center to watch at your convenience. Best of all, we respect your privacy; these are educational videos not sales pitches followed by a mountain of spam email. Our videos are intended to share our experience in environmental fields with individuals to enhance problem-solving and innovation. Click below to visit.
Whether reducing methane emissions at landfills, repurposing contaminated properties, producing alternative energy, or sequestering carbon, we have focused on finding smart climate solutions and improving the natural environment since our inception in 1970.
SCS Engineers supports many businesses and municipalities taking steps to address climate change, which many consider the most important challenge facing our planet. Every business is resource-intensive with most environmental issues occurring during the operational phase of business or production. The sustainable environmental solutions and testing we discuss in our videos we offer to the agricultural, construction, extraction, manufacturing sectors, and municipalities to help them attain their cleaner operating goals and often improve operating efficiency.
You’ll also find articles, papers, blogs and more videos on environmental topics from A-Z using our search and filter feature. Can’t find something – let us know at our professionals are ready to help.
Other Playlists Include:
The FY 2023 Brownfields Multipurpose, Assessment, Revolving Loan Fund, and Cleanup Grant Guidelines are now available (go to Open Solicitations). The application submission deadline is November 22, 2022.
Please see the link below for Multipurpose, Assessment, RLF, and Cleanup (MARC) Grant Application Resources: https://www.epa.gov/brownfields/multipurpose-assessment-rlf-and-cleanup-marc-grant-application-resources#Open%20Solicitations
From the official guidance:
SCS Engineers has a successful track record supporting communities interested in land recycling and obtaining EPA Brownfields grants. Please visit our website for more information.
Welcome to the SCS Engineers Environmental Learning Center. Every month we record a live session on an environmental hot topic! We invite everyone to these open forums, where participants can ask questions throughout. The video recordings are available in our Learning Center to watch at your convenience. Best of all, we respect your privacy; these are educational videos, not sales pitches followed by a mountain of spam emails. Our videos are intended to share our experience in environmental fields with individuals to enhance problem-solving and innovation. Click below to visit.
Whether reducing methane emissions at landfills, repurposing contaminated properties, producing alternative energy, or sequestering carbon, we have focused on finding smart climate solutions and improving the natural environment since our inception in 1970.
SCS Engineers supports many businesses and municipalities taking steps to address climate change, which many consider the most important challenge facing our planet. Every business is resource-intensive, with most environmental issues occurring during the operational phase of business or production. The sustainable environmental solutions and testing we discuss in our videos we offer to the agricultural, construction, extraction, manufacturing sectors, and municipalities to help them attain their cleaner operating goals and often improve operating efficiency.
You’ll also find articles, papers, blogs and more videos on environmental topics from A-Z using our search and filter feature. Can’t find something – let us know at . Our professionals are ready to help.
Other Playlists Include:
Please send a request here if you’d like an invitation to our live sessions.
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