Small Business Enterprise - Summer edition

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Small Business Enterprise

Environmental news from the MPCA business assistance program


Small business regulatory or sustainability questions? Contact us - we’re here to help!

SBEAP help

Understanding regulations and navigating the permit process can sometimes be daunting for a small business. The MPCA business assistance program provides the help small businesses need to understand and comply with environmental rules, including the process of getting required permits or licenses. We assist with air quality, industrial stormwater, hazardous waste, recycling/solid waste, storage tanks, and wastewater. We feature financial and technical tools that encourage businesses to do more than is required and take voluntary sustainability actions that benefit their business. We are here to help all small businesses - but often assist aggregate/sand/gravel operations, asphalt plants, automotive shops, grain elevators, metal fabricators, painting and coating, woodworking, or anyone with boilers or emergency generators. 

We get it - sometimes it’s easier to connect to a person! New or existing businesses can get free, confidential help right now by calling 651-282-6143 or emailing us. Read more on the MPCA small business webpage.    

Follow us on Twitter for timely small business regulatory and sustainability resources!


Flood preparedness protects your business and builds resiliency

Downtown flooding timestamp

Increased flooding and heavy rains in recent years has impacted many regions across Minnesota, driving the need to properly clean up and manage contaminated solid waste, hazardous materials, and debris. Flood preparedness at your business now can prevent the need to manage so much later. It can also minimize health risks, environmental problems, and ultimately save both time and money in wasted product and effort.

While there are things that any business can do to prepare themselves for and properly cleanup after a flood, here are a few tips related to MPCA regulations, along with additional resources to prepare and protect your business.

For regulated businesses

Underground storage tanks

If flooding appears likely, tanks owners should make sure their tanks are properly installed and anchored to minimize the risk of underground tanks "popping" out of the ground. Keeping tanks full of product adds weight, making it less likely that the tank will become dislodged and float away.

MPCA officials recommend that tank owners secure all openings in the tank. Shear valves on underground tanks should be closed or "tripped" and power should be shut off to the system in the event of flooding. Shutting off the power prevents product from leaving the system if floating debris knocks over a dispenser.

Tank owners are reminded to call the Minnesota Duty Officer at 651-649-5451 or 800-422-0789 if their tanks become damaged or product is released. Tank owners can also call the tank inspector at the nearest MPCA regional office if their tanks become damaged or product is released, or for more on flood preparedness. Read more on preparing your underground storage tank for a flood.

Industrial hazardous wastes

If you handle hazardous wastes (HW) at your business, these tips can help prepare you for potential flooding.

Storage

  • Ensure drums and other HW or used oil containers are closed, sturdy, and leakproof.
  • Label all HW containers with  "hazardous waste," a description of the container's contents, and the date when waste first added to container.
  • Secure containers to protect from inadvertent damage.
  • Remove containers from lower areas, such as basements, and place in a higher storage areas.

Disposal

  • If possible, contract for the proper disposal of HW before flooding begins.
  • Ship HW  to a permitted HW transporter or facility, a very small quantity generator collection point, or other recycler as appropriate (e.g., used oil recycler).
  • Keep copies of shipping manifests and receipts upon disposal of any HW.

To report spills of hazardous materials, wastes or other potential pollutants, contact the Minnesota State Duty Officer at 651-649-5451 or toll-free at 800-422-0798. Contact your county environmental office or regional MPCA office for further preparedness and management information.

Wastewater treatment facilities

Flooding can cause serious problems for municipalities and industries that operate wastewater-treatment facilities (WWTFs). For businesses operating a WWTF, find guidance on bypassing, power outages, lift pump failures, excess flows, treatment system problems, fuels in sewers, flooding around ponds and more in the MPCA guidelines for wastewater-treatment facilities during a flood.

If WWTFs are MnWARN mutual aid program members, they can get help finding the personnel, equipment, materials and associated services they might need to protect the health and welfare of their customers during flooding.

Construction stormwater permit provision during emergency flooding

A provision in the state's construction-stormwater rules (Minn. R. 7090.2020) allows certain emergency construction activities to begin before a permit application is submitted, so long as the construction activity is needed to minimize the impacts of the emergency situation that present an "imminent threat to human health, public drinking water or the environment." In such cases, the landowner needs to notify the MPCA when construction begins.

This rule allows flexibility in meeting permit application requirements in emergency situations, and should not be interpreted as an exemption from permit requirements in the flooded areas. This provision is applicable only in rare cases where there is an "imminent threat." Read more on preventing further damage after floods as it relates to construction stormwater permits.

Cleaning up after a flood

Some businesses are located in buildings similar to a home environment. Learn more on how to manage your home/business property once flood waters recede on the MPCA expanded article Floods: Minimizing pollution and health risks.

For local assistance

Have further questions on flood preparedness/management or need help with environmental problems caused by flooding in Minnesota? Call the MPCA regional office nearest you - Detroit Lakes, Duluth, Brainerd, Mankato, Marshall, Rochester, and St. Paul.

The MN Department of Health provides health-focused advice on preparing for floods and protecting yourself during flood clean-up at home and your business.

Minnesota water-level/flood information

DNR/MPCA Cooperative Stream Gaging

National Weather Service - Minnesota forecasts and flood information

Stream flow conditions (U.S. Geological Survey) - Daily updates on stream and river flooding conditions in Minnesota


Dangerous Man Brewing reduces BPA exposure from receipts

DM photo

Dangerous Man Brewing, located in Minneapolis, recently replaced their taproom paper receipt system with a new paperless e-receipt point of sale (POS) system.

By switching, they are preventing patrons and staff from unnecessary exposure to BPA, which can have negative health effects even in small amounts. They also are saving money and reducing paper waste.

In the first 6 months, they had 18,776 credit card transactions without paper receipts, saving over 9,000 feet of paper. In a year, that prevents about 43 pounds of wasted receipts and a 1/3-1/2 pound of BPA chemical.

The new system is saving the brewery $276 in receipt paper purchases per year. Unexpectedly, the biggest cost savings came from no longer needing to count and enter nightly tip receipts, saving about 30 minutes every shift. It now takes 30 seconds for the new POS system to do it automatically. That is $6,240 in payroll savings per year. They realized further operational efficiencies from customers, who are more likely to start a tab as they no longer have to wait for staff that keep customer credit cards; and tabs save staff time by preventing multiple transactions with the same customer. 

After some initial staff training, adjustments, and troubleshooting with charging and usage, they were in full swing in about a month. They have eliminated printers entirely.  Initially, a few customers got frustrated at the lack of paper receipts, but often were satisfied with an option to get an e-reciept.

The MPCA encourages businesses to switch to paperless systems because receipt papers typically contain high concentrations of the chemical bisphenol-A (BPA) or related chemicals.  BPA can transfer onto skin and into bodies when people handle them.

Get inspired by other businesses realizing the benefits of going paperless! Read more success stories on the MPCA BPA in Thermal Paper project page.


A low-salt diet…for your sidewalks

low salt sidewalk

Even though its hot outside, we all know winter often gets here before we know it! Time to think now about the products and practices you use to manage your business' sidewalks and parking lots.

When dealing with ice and snow, everyone has a few tricks up their sleeve. Here are a few tips that will keep your parking lot and sidewalks clear, but keep your salt use to a minimum.

Check your sidewalks and parking lot for undissolved salt crystals on dry pavement. That means too much salt was used. Sweep it up, reuse it and use less next time.

What does the right amount of salt look like? Aim for evenly spread salt crystals that are about three inches apart. No piles. Handheld salt spreaders work great to spread salt evenly over large areas, and you’ll use about half as much salt as you would with a scoop. You can get a handheld salt spreader at the hardware store for about $15.

Use less than four pounds of salt per 1,000 square feet of pavement. One pound of salt is about a heaping 12-ounce coffee mug and an average parking space is about 150 square feet. That works out to no more than four mugs of salt for seven parking spaces.

Use a broom, shovel, snowblower or plow to remove as much snow as possible. There will be less melted snow to refreeze into ice, and you won’t dilute the salt you use. Remove snow quickly to prevent compaction. It’s frequently sunny the day after we get a snowfall. If you’ve removed most of the snow, the sun will clear the rest, even if it’s very cold.

Don’t spread salt when it is very cold out. Salt won’t do anything until it dissolves and forms a brine. And most salt won’t dissolve if the temperature is below 15 degrees F. If it is too cold for salt to melt ice, use grit or sand for traction.

For a stubborn icy spot, sprinkle it with just enough salt to perforate the ice. Give the salt time to do its work, then scrape the ice loose with a shovel. If there is a leaky downspout or other obvious reason for the icy spot, add it to the list to fix in the spring.

Why should you think about how much salt you use? Salt pollutes. When snow and ice melt the salt goes with it, washing into the nearest lake or river. Even small amounts of salt can harm fish and plants. High amounts can kill them. It takes only one teaspoon of salt to permanently pollute five gallons of water.

If it’s a warm day and the sidewalk is wet, don’t use any salt. The sun is already doing the job for you, and throwing salt onto the ice isn’t going to hurry the process. All that salt will immediately wash down the storm drains to your neighborhood lake or river.

The MPCA offers Smart Salting training classes for winter maintenance professionals. If you hire a service for sidewalk and parking lot maintenance in the winter, consider using one that has taken the class. If you do your own winter maintenance, consider attending the training yourself. Many companies that have taken the training have reduced their salt use by 30 to 50 percent. That’s a substantial amount of cost savings if you have a lot of sidewalk or a large parking lot!

Make efforts to reduce the amount of salt you use and use it more effectively. Keep your sidewalks clear and keep the water clean.

For more tips, short videos, and training information, visit the MPCA winter maintenance webpage.  


Up to $5M in MPCA diesel grants likely this fall

diesel crane

The MPCA’s DERA grant program anticipates having about $1 million in grants this fall for off-road diesel equipment, such as construction equipment, marine towboats, and railroad switcher locomotives only.

Later, about $4 million in grants is expected through a separate Request for Proposal for heavy duty on-road diesel trucks using Volkswagen settlement funding. One big advantage of offering separate grant rounds keeps off-road and on-road projects from competing against each other.

Stay updated! Sign up for the diesel grant opportunities email. See the MPCA diesels emissions reduction acts grant page or contact Mark Sulzbach for recent project success stories and example grant materials.


Industrial stormwater training workshop

Back by popular demand, the U of MN will host another Industrial Stormwater Regulations, SWPPPs, Sampling and Monitoring workshop on September 13, 2018 at the MnDOT facility in Shoreview. It's a full-day event that covers permit basics.

Topics include:

  • Industrial stormwater regulatory history
  • Stormwater pollution prevention plan requirements, implementation
  • Stormwater monitoring, sampling and reporting requirements
  • Annual reporting and fees
  • Case studies/success stories
  • Compliance tips and suggestions

This workshop routinely fills up quickly, so register today! Visit the U of M Erosion and Stormwater Management Certification Program’s website for more information or to register. Register online or view and fill out the paper registration form.

The U of M's program can customize training on specific topics and train at your facility. Also, keep an eye out for the program's new annual training refresher course next spring, for experienced industrial stormwater professionals who want a refresher or to meet annual training requirements.


MNTAP intern symposium features environmental business results - register today!

interns

Fourteen MnTAP interns will present the results of their intern projects at the 2018 Intern Symposium. Learn about the water conservation, pollution prevention and energy efficiency solutions from this group of highly qualified engineering students who are spending their summer researching and analyzing options that will result in cost and environmental savings for their host companies.

The intern symposium will take place at the McNamara Alumni Center on the University of Minnesota East Bank campus. The event includes a poster sessions and breaks that will provide opportunities to network and interact with the interns.

Thursday, August 16, from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Register for the symposium right away! 

Be inspired by past projects or learn more how your business can take advantage of the intern program. For registration or program questions contact Nathan Landwehr at MnTAP at 612-624-4697 or 800-247-0015.