Great Lakes Regional Collaboration Toxic Pollutant Strategy:
Near-term Implementation Actions
To commence the implementation phase of the Toxic Pollutant Team Strategy, below is a list of
eleven high priority, achievable near-term actions, organized under each of the five major
recommendations. Some of these recommendations involve new funding but others do not as
they are achievable through the exercise of policy choices, political will and/or better
coordination/organization of existing programs or efforts. Also, some of these
recommendations include a binational component, and rely in part on the willing participation of
Environment Canada.
I.
Strategy Recommendation 1:
Reduce and virtually eliminate the principal sources of mercury, PCBs, dioxins and
furans, pesticides and other toxic substances that threaten the health of the Great
Lakes basin ecosystem, through coordinated intergovernmental strategies.
Action 1:
Establish a Great Lakes Municipal Toxics Stewardship
program.
Description:
This basin-wide program will promote household hazardous waste
collections, take-back of mercury products and clean-sweeps for
pesticides in municipalities throughout the basin. Existing
successful community efforts will be used to model best
management practices. Coordination will take place with Tribal
Nations to facilitate their integration and participation in these
efforts.
Great Lakes Cities Initiative
GL States and Tribes, Great Lakes Pollution Prevention
Roundtable, EPA (GLNPO, Region 5 Waste Pesticides and Toxics
Division, Region 2 and Region 5 Tribal Operations Committees,
and American Indian Environmental Office)
$3.5M ($500K set-aside for Tribes)
The Great Lakes Cities Initiative will develop a program including
best management practices, and develop seed funding to assist
Great Lakes municipalities and tribal communities to implement
stewardship programs by 2006.
Lead entity:
Other partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
Action 2:
Establish a Great Lakes Mercury Product Stewardship
Strategy
Description:
Great Lakes States and Tribes will develop a basin-wide mercury
product stewardship strategy which will establish a basin-wide
mercury phase-down program, including a mercury waste
management component. In addition, focus will be placed on
facilitating tribal participation in the Great Lakes Pollution
Prevention Roundtable.
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Lead Entities:
Other Partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
The Great Lakes Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR)
States, Tribes, Municipalities, USEPA, the Great Lakes Binational
Toxics Strategy Mercury Workgroup.
$50K (to conduct study identified in Milestone); $100K/year to
enhance tribal participation in the GLPPR)
GLRPPR will conduct a study of current GL State and tribal
legislation and policies and municipal ordinances, to identify
necessary next steps; increased and consistent tribal participation
in the Great Lakes Pollution Protection Roundtable.
Action 3:
Reduce Residential and Agricultural Waste Burning Through
Education and Enforcement Support. 1
Description:
Conduct a Public Outreach Campaign and Support for Officials
Responsible for Developing Regulations and Enforcement
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


Educate local officials (including municipal and fire
officials) on the environmental health concerns related to
trash burning in pits, barrels, or indoor stoves and boilers.
Provide examples of successful programs and model
legislation.
Work to pass regulations on trash burning in more
communities.
Print brochures for State, Tribal, and local officials to
distribute.
Peer to Peer Mentoring Program for Communities

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Lead Entity:
Other partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
1
Offer opportunities for officials from communities to share
information in person or via a website.
Provide funding for communities with successful programs
to support other communities in setting up similar burn
barrel reduction efforts.
Great Lakes Binational Toxics Strategy Burn Barrel Workgroup
Local governments, GL States and Tribes, EPA-GLNPO
$3M, ($250K set aside for Tribes)
Establish enforced waste burning prevention programs in 25 local
governments by 2007.
Coordinate with NPS Team recommendation to support a Great Lakes Regional Farm Bill.
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II.
Strategy Recommendation 2:
Prevent new toxic chemicals from entering the Great Lakes basin: Target
production, use and sound disposal of toxic chemicals across the Great Lakes basin
through strategic deployment of pollution prevention and waste minimization
programs.
Action 4:
Bundling of State P2 and Compliance Assistance Services, and
enhancement of Tribal P2 programs.
Description:
Great Lakes States will “bundle” technical assistance services,
such as compliance assistance, pollution prevention (p2) audits,
and energy efficiency (E2) audits, in “one-stop-shop” programs,
using the efforts of States who have already done so (e.g., Ohio)
for guidance. In addition, focus will be placed on developing and
enhancing tribal P2 programs.
Great Lakes States and Tribes, Great Lakes Pollution Prevention
Roundtable
EPA’s GLNPO, Regional Tribal Operations Committees and
American Indian Environmental Office
$2.5M ($250K/year per GL State to State technical and compliance
assistance providers and $500K/year tribal set aside);
Bundled P2 and compliance assistance programs in all Great Lakes
States by 2007; and establishment of a tribal set-aside funding
source for the development of new or the enhancement of existing
tribal P2 programs
Lead Entities:
Other Partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
Action 5:
Research and Develop Options for Implementation of a Great
Lakes Pollution Prevention/Energy Efficiency (P2/E2)
Revolving Loan Fund.
Description:
The Great Lakes Environmental Finance Center will conduct a
study of existing pollution prevention revolving loan fund (RLF)
programs and advise the collaboration on how to establish a basinwide RLF for P2/E2 projects.
Great Lakes Environmental Finance Center
Great Lakes States and Tribes, Great Lakes Pollution Prevention
Roundtable.
No Cost
A report on implementation options will be completed by the Great
Lakes Environmental Finance Center by 2006
Lead Entity:
Other partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
3
Action 6:
Review of Existing Chemicals in TSCA Inventory to Inform Great
Lakes Monitoring and P2 Programs.
Description:
Lead Entity:
Other partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
III.
U.S. EPA Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics (OPPT) will
begin a systematic, prioritized review of existing chemicals,
especially those used in the Great Lakes Basin, using existing tools
and authorities under the Toxics Substances Control Act (TSCA).
Compounds identified as potential contaminants are evaluated
further, and referred to Great Lakes monitoring programs, to
regulatory programs, and to pollution prevention programs for
chemicals of emerging concern.
U.S. EPA OPPT, Chemical Control Division
U.S. EPA-GLNPO, U.S. EPA Region 5 Waste Pesticides and
Toxics Division
$250,000
Evaluate 150 chemicals by the end of 2006.2
Strategy Recommendation 3:
Institute a comprehensive Great Lakes research, surveillance and forecasting
capability to help identify, manage, and regulate chemical threats to the Great
Lakes basin ecosystem. A Great Lakes basin-wide coordinated program that
incorporates and augments current efforts should be created to better characterize
links between PTS sources and exposure.
Action 7:
Great Lakes Emerging Chemical Surveillance Program.
Description
Lead Entity:
Other partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
With approval from Environment Canada, the US proposes to
establish a Great Lakes Monitoring and Surveillance workgroup
under the Great Lakes Binational Toxics Strategy. This
Workgroup will partner with EPA and EC national screening
programs to evaluate chemicals of emerging concern, in order to
inform their management and to systematically monitor them in
the Great Lakes basin ecosystem.
Great Lakes Binational Toxics Strategy
EPA OPPT Chemical Control Division, States, Tribes.
$100K
Establish Workgroup by 2006.
Action 8:
Establish Central PTS Database
Description:
Establish an easily-accessible, central Great Lakes PTS database for
monitoring data, emissions and releases information, and research
results, including chemical fate and transport, emissions and releases
2
Note: The 2003 TSCA inventory lists about 9000 non-polymer organics produced in quantities greater than
10,000 pounds/year. About 3000 of these are being evaluated in the High-Production Volume Challenge; about 5%
of the remainder are expected to require evaluation after automated screening.
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Lead Entity:
Other Entities:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
IV.
information, toxicological and epidemiological data, and including a
clearinghouse for toxicity data used to develop GLI criteria, and State
Water Quality Standards.
USEPA – GLNPO, Region 5
States, Tribes, Academia
$35K
Operational database by the end of 2007
Strategy Recommendation 4:
Protect human health through consistent and easily accessible basin-wide messages
on fish consumption and toxic reduction methods and choices.
Action 9:
Enhancement and Improved Consistency of Great Lakes Fish
Consumption Advisories.
Description:
All Great Lakes States and Tribes will adopt the Sport Fish
Advisory Task Force protocols (for PCBs, chlordane, and mercury)
for development of Great Lakes consumption advice. The Task
Force will address additional contaminants (including
consideration of chemical interactions)3 that may warrant
development of new consumption advisories in the Great Lakes.
Funding will be provided to continue the operation of the Sport
Fish Advisory Task Force. Adequate funding will also be
provided to State and Tribal fish consumption advisory programs
for ratification and implementation of the Sport Fish Advisory
Task Force protocols and creation of outreach strategies associated
with adoption of the protocols.
Great Lakes Sportfish Consumption Advisory Task Force, Great
Lakes States and Tribes.
U.S. EPA-GLNPO
$50K/year for the Sport Fish Advisory Workgroup.
$4.2M/year current, $4.0M/year new for enhancement of State and
Tribal fish consumption advisory programs.
By 2007, the Panel will finalize the chlordane and mercury
protocols.
By 2008, the Great Lakes States and Tribes will adopt the
protocols.
Lead Entity:
Other Partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
Milestone:
Action 10:
Great Lakes Toxics Reduction Public Outreach Campaign.
Description:
A basin-wide public education and outreach campaign, including
the use of TV and newspaper advertisements, that focuses on
habits of individuals, households, the workplace, and schools, to
3
See Section 2.3.4 and Section 3.5 in Guidance for Assessing Chemical Contaminant Data for Use In Fish
Advisories, Volume 2: Risk Assessment and Fish Consumption Limits
http://www.epa.gov/ost/fishadvice/volume2/index.html.
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Lead Entity:
Other partners:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
V.
reduce the use of PTS and to protect against adverse health effects
of toxics, including awareness of fish consumption advisories,
prevention of household and agricultural burning, and energy
efficiency.
Great Lakes Sea Grant programs and USEPA.
State and Tribal governments.
$250K/year.
By 2007, commence basin-wide PTS public information campaign.
Strategy Recommendation 5:
Support efforts to reduce continental and global sources of PTS to the Great Lakes
basin.
Action 11:
Description:
Lead Entity:
Estimated Cost:
Milestone:
U.S. Ratification of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent
Organic Pollutants (POPs).
U.S. Senate Ratifies the Stockholm Convention on Persistent
Organic Pollutants, and the U.S. becomes a voting member to the
Conference of Parties under the Treaty.
U.S. Senate
No Cost
Ratification of Stockholm Convention by 2006.4
4
EPA will continue to pursue the decommissioning of PCB-containing equipment under the GLBTS and national
programs.
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