May 2009
| PLEASE NOTE: Some newsletter content is only available to members in good standing of NMSHMM. |
- President's Message - Field Trip and Santa Fe Trip
- Mark Coffman and Sandra Martin Receive EPA Excellence Award
- Plan Now to Attend the 2009 Essentials of Hazardous Materials Management Course
- Local News Stories
- Upcoming Meetings and Events
- Monthly Meeting Location
- Job Openings
- NMSHMM Officers and Committee Chairs
| Our Mission |
| To
provide environmental professionals in the Southwest a
forum for professional development, education, and networking opportunities; and to offer our community environmental, health, and safety expertise |
President's Message - Field Trip and Santa Fe Trip
Mike Sanders, CPG, CHMM
GRAM, Inc.
Past-President Brian Pence hosted a tour of the Assaigai Analytical Laboratories facility on Wednesday April 15. The tour lasted from noon until approximately 1:30 pm, and was led by William Biava, President. Five NMSHMM members were in attendance.
Assaigai began its corporate life as a mining service lab analyzing for mining and exploration industries including coal, uranium, copper and oil and gas development and production. By the mid 1980's, mining in the southwest was declining, and Assaigai started transitioning to meet the burgeoning needs of environmental protection. By the early 1990's, Assaigai had obtained and has maintained to this day, accreditation by A2LA, the foremost accrediting agency recognized by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
William took us through the sample check-in area, organics and inorganics laboratories, and the mold and asbestos analysis facilities (Assaigai is one of the only laboratories in New Mexico that performs asbestos analyses). William has worked in the lab since he was 13 years old, and was obviously very familiar with all aspects of analytical laboratory operations. He was not stumped by any of our questions, some of which were quite specific about laboratory analytical procedures. This was a very interesting tour. Thanks very much to William and Brian for taking the time to show us around the operation.
The next NMSHMM general meeting will be held at Tiny’s Restaurant, 1015 Pen Road in Santa Fe on Thursday May 21. The dinner speaker will be Peter Maggiore with Northwind Inc., based in Los Alamos. He will talk about Los Alamos National Laboratory Environmental Restoration Projects. Dinner must be ordered by May 19 (contact for menu options) so that the restaurant can plan ahead. We anticipate that NMSHMM members from northern New Mexico will be attending with Peter. Please plan to attend this event and interact with our colleagues from northern New Mexico. See you there!
Mike Sanders
Mark Coffman and Sandra Martin Receive EPA Excellence Award
Recognition for Work on Criminal Investigation
EPA Excellence Award winners Mark Coffman and Sandra Martin
NMSHMM members Mark V. Coffman, CHMM and Sandra Y. Martin, CHMM, of the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED), were both honored with Excellence Award for outstanding work and dedication to the highest standards of excellence from the EPA. The plaques from Vernon Jackson, Special Agent, Washington, D.C. Criminal Investigations Headquarters, recognized their involvement in the only criminal case in the NMED’s history that resulted in both federal time served and monetary penalties for environmental crimes against the State.
Mark Coffman, Hazardous Waste Inspector, was assigned to investigation in 1997 when he discovered the fraudulent disposal during a routine compliance inspection. Later, he was the key expert witness to testify during the United States Criminal Trial versus the General Waste Corporation. Sandra Martin, Compliance and Technical Assistance Program Supervisor, was instrumental in securing the evidence and the case management for the next six years. The NMED Hazardous Waste Bureau was wholly supportive in the assistance to the EPA Criminal Investigative Division Region 6 and Special Agent Vernon Jackson.
Plan NOW to Attend the 2009 Essentials of Hazardous Materials Management Course
Paul Karas, CPG, CHMM
The 2009 Essentials of Hazardous Materials Management (EHMM) Course will be held November 16 - 18, 2009, at the NMED District 1 office, 5500 San Antonio Drive NE, Albuquerque, NM. The 3-day course offers a comprehensive review of the physical and chemical properties of hazardous materials, environmental laws and regulations, and safety and health principles important to every environmental and safety professional. This is an excellent opportunity to prepare for the Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM) or Certified Hazardous Materials Professional (CHMP) Exam or to satisfy training or re-certification requirements, enhance competence in the profession, and to stay current with new rules and regulations.
Watch for information about course registration and logistics in future newsletters and on the NMSHMM website. Please contact Paul Karas, NMSHMM Education/Professional Development Committee Chair, at 505-243-3200 or if you are interested in learning more about the EHMM, to volunteer for the EHMM organizing committee, or to be considered as an instructor.
Local News Stories
Compiled by Eric Johnson, AICP, CHMM
The following are news stories reported during the past month:
- A lawsuit filed by Defenders of Wildlife and the Center for Biological Diversity regarding the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Mexican wolf reintroduction program continues to move forward. Defenders of Wildlife and the Center for Biological Diversity are challenging a decision by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to create an oversight committee. The Mexican wolf reintroductions in Arizona and New Mexico have been controversial. Only 52 wolves, including two breeding pairs, are living in the wild.
(Albuquerque Journal, 4-3-09).
- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will meet with the NMED to discuss impacts from the proposed Desert Rock coal-fired power plant in northwestern New Mexico. NMED is concerned with mercury and other emissions from the plant. In a court ruling, the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the EPA followed proper procedures in establishing an implementation plan for the power plant. Arizona Public Service Company believed the plan was too restrictive. Environmentalists believed the plan was not restrictive enough and failed to account for regional air quality. By the end of the month, however, regional EPA officials asked the Environmental Appeals Board to allow EPA to reconsider the air permit that the agency issued in 2008 for the power plant.
(Albuquerque Journal, 4-3-09, 4-21-09, and 4-28-09)
- Governor Bill Richardson signed several renewable energy bills that were passed by the legislature during this year’s session. SB 647 allows cities and counties to form districts to provide property owner financing for solar, wind, and geothermal energy systems. HB 572 enables property owners to uses a special property tax assessment to repay private loans for solar energy improvements. SB 257 expands a solar power system installation tax credit for residences and businesses. SB 237 creates income tax credits to cover portions of utility-scale construction costs for solar, geothermal, or advanced coal technology electric power plants.
(Albuquerque Journal, 4-10-09)
- Solar Array Ventures Inc., of Austin, plans to build a solar panel manufacturing plant in the Cordero Mesa Business, park west of the Tempur-Pedic mattress factory in western Bernalillo County. Approximately 1,000 people could be employed at the plant. The Bernalillo County Commission approved a $175 million industrial revenue bond and $13 million bond for a water line as incentives to build the plant.
(Albuquerque Journal, 4-10-09 and 4-14-09)
- Texas State Senator Eliot Shapleigh, of El Paso, has requested copies of internal documents between Asarco and the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality regarding the Asarco smelter located just south of the New Mexico border in El Paso. Asarco decided not to open the smelter, but controversy persists. “Just because the Legislature created an agency, it doesn’t give the Legislature power to interfere with agency functions,” said Nancy Olinger, assistant state attorney general for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Senator Shapleigh responded as follows: “We see a pattern where polluters have penetrated and agency. We want a road map on how the agency that was created to protect our air is now aligned with those that pollute our air.”
(Las Cruces Sun-News, 4-14-09)
- A coalition of sportsman and environmental groups, including the Western Environmental Law Center, filed an administrative protest against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The coalition believes the BLM needs to address greenhouse gas emissions related to oil and natural gas lease sales on 52 parcels covering 44,000 acres in New Mexico.
(Albuquerque Journal, 4-22-09)
- Groundwater contamination under the new Santa Fe district courthouse site is forcing Santa Fe County officials to reconsider their options and got the attention of NMED Secretary Ron Curry. The contamination appears to have been caused by leaking underground storage tanks from three service stations that were in operation at the corner of Galisteo Street and Montezuma Avenue from the 1920s through 1970s. “It does not appear that the County or its original consultant undertook adequate due diligence nor completed an adequate site assessment prior to construction,” Curry said in a letter sent to the county. Santa Fe County spokesman Stephen Ulibarri responded, “We don’t want to do this in the press. (County Attorney) Steve Ross has contacted (the Environment Department) directly in response to the letter.” The county intends to assist NMED cleaning up the contamination and is applying for assistance from the NMED Voluntary Remediation Program.
(Santa Fe New Mexican, 4-22-09 and 4-23-09; Santa Fe County Press Release, 4-22-09)
- Viable International Technology Associates (VITA) intends to construct a Renewable Energy Industrial Campus in Luna County. The facility would manufacture silicon photovoltaic (solar panel) modules and energy management systems. An estimated 100 to 300 jobs would be created. In addition, VITA intends to construct 200 units of affordable homes that utilize solar and energy conservation technologies.
(Las Cruces Sun-News, 4-27-09)
- The Schott Solar manufacturing plant, operated by a Germany-based company, is anticipating a grand opening of their Mesa del Sol facility in Albuquerque on May 11. Robotic machinery and other equipment used to manufacture photovoltaic panels and long tubes were being tested in April.
(Santa Fe New Mexican, 4-28-09)
- The 10th Circuit Court of U.S. Appeals ruled that the BLM did not comply with the National Environmental Policy Act when it prepared a plan for management of oil and gas leases on the 1.2 million-acre Otero Mesa in southeastern New Mexico. The ruling does not prohibit drilling on Otero Mesa, but it requires the BLM to conduct site specific analysis before the leasing stage and prepare an Environmental Impact Statement. (Albuquerque Journal, 4-29-09)
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Society luncheon meetings are held at
Golden Corral Buffet on Central and Eubank (10415 Central Avenue NE) at 11:30 on the third Wednesday of the month (except Mar. and Dec.) |
| May 2009 |
May 5, 11:30 am, New Mexico Chapter of the Air and Waste Management Association (AWMA) monthly meeting at the Golden Corral (10415 Central Avenue NE, northeast of Eubank) in Albuquerque. For more information, e-mail .
May 14, New Mexico Chapter of American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) technical meeting, Furr’s Fresh Buffet, 2004 Wyoming Blvd. NE. For more information, e-mail .
May 19, 5:30 pm, NMSHMM Board Meeting at GRAM offices, 8500 Menaul Blvd. NE, Albuquerque. All members are welcome.
May 21, 6:00 pm, NMSHMM Dinner/General Meeting in Santa Fe, Tiny’s Restaurant, 1015 Pen Road in Santa Fe. Speaker will be Pete Maggiore, of Northwind Inc, on Los Alamos National Laboratory Environmental Restoration Projects. NOTE: Dinner orders must be place 24 hours in advance to obtain separate tickets. Please send reservations to by May 19.
| June 2009 |
June 2, 11:30 am, New Mexico Chapter of the Air and Waste Management Association (AWMA) monthly meeting at the Golden Corral (10415 Central Avenue NE, northeast of Eubank) in Albuquerque. For more information, e-mail .
June 11, New Mexico Chapter of American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) technical meeting, Furr’s Fresh Buffet, 2004 Wyoming Blvd. NE. For more information, e-mail .
June 16, 5:30 pm, NMSHMM Board Meeting at GRAM offices, 8500 Menaul Blvd. NE, Albuquerque. All members are welcome.
June 17, 11:30 am, NMSHMM Luncheon/General Meeting at Golden Corral (10415 Central NE, northeast of Eubank) in Albuquerque. Sandra Ely, NMED Environment and Energy Policy Coordinator, will speak on the Western Climate Change Initiative and expected changes in New Mexico.
| July 2009 |
July 7, 11:30 am, New Mexico Chapter of the Air and Waste Management Association (AWMA) monthly meeting at the Golden Corral (10415 Central Avenue NE, northeast of Eubank) in Albuquerque. For more information, e-mail .
July 7, 5:30 pm, NMSHMM Board Meeting at GRAM offices, 8500 Menaul Blvd. NE, Albuquerque. All members are welcome.
July 9, New Mexico Chapter of American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) technical meeting, Furr’s Fresh Buffet, 2004 Wyoming Blvd. NE. For more information, e-mail .
July 15, 11:30 am, NMSHMM Luncheon/General Meeting at Golden Corral (10415 Central NE, northeast of Eubank) in Albuquerque. Speaker to be announced.
| August 2009 |
August 9, Isotopes Night. NMSHMM and the Health Physics Society will share a skybox at the game.
August 18, 5:30 pm, NMSHMM Board Meeting at GRAM offices, 8500 Menaul Blvd. NE, Albuquerque. All members are welcome.
August 19, 11:30 am, NMSHMM Luncheon/General Meeting at Golden Corral (10415 Central NE, northeast of Eubank) in Albuquerque. Speaker to be announced.
August 30 - September 2, AHMP National Conference, San Diego. For more information see AHMP web site at www.achmm.org
| November 2009 |
November 16-18, Essentials of Hazardous Materials Management (EHMM) Course presented by NMSHMM at the NMED Albuquerque office, 5500 San Antonio Drive NE. For more information, please click here.
Did we miss something? To get your event added to the calendar please contact Eric Johnson at .
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Society business meetings are
held at
AMEC Earth and Environmental, 8519 Jefferson NE, at 5:00 on the third Tuesday of the month (except Mar. and Dec.) |
Our regular monthly meetings are held at Golden Corral Buffet on Central and Eubank (10415 Central Avenue NE - click here for a map). Meetings are held the third Wednesday of the month (unless replaced by a special event as announced via this newsletter) from 11:30 am until 1:00 pm. If you have any ideas for speakers or field trips, please contact a NMSHMM board member.
For the latest job openings, please click here. (MEMBERS ONLY)
NMSHMM OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE CHAIRS
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Officers:
President
Past-President
President-Elect
Treasurer
Secretary
At-Large Director At-Large Director |
Committee Chairs: Communication Education/Professional
Development
Membership |
Please send contributions for future newsletters to Eric Johnson at . Thanks!