Protecting the Environment & Helping Small Businesses

ERP is a unique environmental performance initiative used by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP). ERP features a multimedia, sector-based regulatory approach that replaces facility-specific state permits with industry-wide environmental performance standards and annual certifications of compliance. ERP applies three innovative tools to enhance and measure environmental performance. These tools supplement MassDEP's traditional compliance inspection and compliance assistance efforts:

• An annual self-certification of compliance by companies to increase self evaluation and accountability;
• Compliance assistance from the agency through outreach and innovative workbooks; and
• A new performance measurement methodology to track results, determine priorities and strategically target inspections and compliance assistance efforts.

ERP Tools

• Self-certification. ERP requires that a senior company official annually certifies that the facility is and will continue to be in compliance with all applicable state air, water and hazardous waste management performance standards. DEP provides compliance assistance (see below) for facility managers so they can better understand the information that is the basis for their certification. Facilities that are not in compliance must file a "Return to Compliance" plan, which describes the corrective actions that the facility will take and a schedule to achieve full compliance.
  
• Compliance Assistance. MassDEP assists the self-certification process by providing compliance assistance for all ERP facilities. Compliance assistance includes sector-specific workbooks and workshops that clearly explain facilities' environmental obligations as well as sound environmental practices that go "beyond compliance".
  
• Performance Measurement. MassDEP is experimenting with an evaluation methodology that uses random sampling and statistical analysis to measure the performance of ERP sectors and facilities. This methodology validates the performance of the program itself, and is used to target facilities for inspections and compliance assistance. The evaluation tracks environmental business practice indicators (EPBIs), which are industry-specific performance measures that provide snapshots of facilities' environmental performance before and after certification and on a long-term basis.

Currently, ERP applies to three sectors in Massachusetts: dry cleaning, photoprocessing, and printing. MassDEP is expanding the program into other sectors, and is working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA to investigate the potential transferability of the ERP approach and its tools to other states.

Why is the Environmental Results Program Unique?

The Massachusetts ERP approach is unique in several ways:

• The compliance certification process involves industry proactively in ensuring its environmental compliance. Yearly facility reviews of environmental requirements and annual certifications of compliance create more comprehensive environmental performance than short-term compliance resulting from infrequent inspections.
• Making information about industry's environmental performance and the effectiveness of ERP readily available to the public makes both industry and government more publicly accountable for their performance. Periodic reports provide the public with meaningful information about industrial environmental performance.
• MassDEP oversees the program by reviewing certifications and conducting random and targeted compliance inspections, to make sure that the program is working. MassDEP can focus its limited resources on companies and sectors that are not performing adequately by targeting inspections and assistance efforts to facilities with specific compliance problems (including failure to file their certifications), and to demonstrated sector-wide problem areas.

What is an EBPI?

An Environmental Business Practice Indicator (EBPI) is one of the tools developed by MassDEP's Environmental Results Program. EBPI's are industry-specific performance measures that provide a snapshot of a facility's environmental performance.

The EBPIs include both traditional program compliance measures (e.g. level of compliance with labeling, record keeping) as well as measures that go beyond program compliance (e.g. use of low-VOC cleaning solvents, extent of silver recovery, and perchloroethylene recovery). The number of EBPIs for each sector differs: there are 18 EBPIs for printers, dry cleaners have 16 and photoprocessors have eight EBPIs (the number of EBPIs varies based on complexity of a sector).

MADEP conducts statistical analysis of the EBPIs along with random inspections and review of self-certifications to evaluate the performance of individual facilities, sectors and ERP as a whole. MassDEP uses its evaluation to:

1. Determine industry-wide compliance rates and actual environmental performance;
2. Make more informed and strategic resource allocation decisions for inspections and compliance assistance efforts; and
3. Evaluate ERP's programmatic effectiveness.

What Problems Is ERP Designed To Solve?

MassDEP undertook ERP to address several concerns, in its view, about the effectiveness of the existing regulatory system for small business and the agency's limited resources. MassDEP believes that the traditional regulatory approach:

• Does not efficiently cover all facilities regulated by the state. For example, only 10 percent of dry cleaners were identified in the state's compliance program prior to ERP implementation (95 percent of dry cleaners are now included in ERP);
• Does not sufficiently encourage multimedia compliance;
• Needs to encourage more pollution prevention;
• Leads to significant costs for both facilities and MassDEP to permit small sources that individually contributed a small fraction to overall pollution.
• Could benefit from more compliance assistance to inform small businesses of their environmental requirements.
• Does not achieve a desired level of environmental performance.
• Does not promote lasting change and improvement in environmental performance at facilities because of: the sporadic nature of inspections; facilities' staff's limited understanding of regulatory requirements and beyond-compliance possibilities; and the frequent turnover of facilities within the regulated sectors.

How can I learn more?

• Contact John Reinhardt, MassDEP, 617-292-5667, to learn more about ERP.
• Contact Greg Ondich or Patricia Mott, EPA, 202-556-2215 or 202-564-5133, respectively, for information on the ERP approach and its tools.