Document DDEMxzmkX6prONg08dgjRprXQ

i3 - r/ / rt- < J.F. McAllister SUBJECT; PCB SPILL - When: . December 6, 1974, at about 5:30 F.M. Where: ' Near the Erie, Pennsylvania plant of Transportation Systems Bus. Division. How Much: A substantial portion of the 710 gallons contained in a locomotive-type transformer being transported by truck. Type of Accident: It is reported.that the bed of the truck was iced over. The transformer shifted, its restraining chain gave way, "and'the transformer fell to the ground. Pyranol ran out for some two hours. Notification by the driver was not as prompt as called for. Terrain: The Pyranol ran into a drainage ditch connected to a creek that drains eventually into Lake Erie. Because of the density of Pyranol, it is anticipated that most of the spill will collect along the bottom of the tributaries, and will not be extensively dispersed in the lake (2000 ppm was measured at the confluence of the ditch and the creek some time over the weekend). Emergency Measures and Notification: Erie contacted Transformers at Pittsfield (Dobbins, Thayer) and.Rome (Bob Arnold) for advice; notified EPA and other authorities. Electric Mutual informed by Dobbins, as was also E. Simons. Marv Phillips of EP0 also was in communication with Erie over the weekend. (I don't know what specific containment/clean-up measures have been instituted.) Source of above information: Telephone call from Lo m e MacMonagle, Manager - Product and Systems Safety - Transit Vehicle Products Department, and Division Product Safety Representative, Monday, December 9, 1974. JSN:cas - J. S. Nelson 12-9-74 NEL 000402 782249 i proouct quality staff GENERAL ^ ELECTRIC FAIR FIELD . CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT DECEMBER ACTIVITIES REPORT Tames S. N e lso n ______________ D ecem ber 2 3 , 1974 M r. J.F . M cA llister O ffice COPIES: F . S . R o th e A REDACTED NEL 000403 782250 GENERAL ELECTRIC J-F . M cA llister 2- - D ecem ber 2 3 , 1974 2 . PCB S p ills E x p e rie n c e L a st m onth w e re p o rte d on a PCB s p ill in G e o rg ia . T here h a s been another spill at E rie, on December 6. A locom otive-type tra n s fo rm e r, c o n ta in in g 710 g a llo n s , f e ll from a tr u c k . T h is m akes two "m ajor sp ills" in 1974, agreeing w ith the annual number predicted in the Task Force Report - Pvranol T ransform ers. published la st February. REDACTED JSN :cas 782251 NEL 000404 NEL 000405 782252 To Dr ^lirions Date. 1-3 -7 5 Ed: You may wish to cor.oare the attached transcript to tne advance copy you obtained from '.FA. iCindly ;;ive ire a call ir there is any discrepancy. tfara will publish this material, together with the To::aphene section, in the next Env. Reporter. NEL 000406 J. S. Nelson 782253 (D icated by phone by M r. Ward 1-3-75) S ta rt of Page 39 (4) The to ta l d a lly w e ig h t of P C B 's d is c h a rg e d in to a / a n : (a) stream , lake or em poundm ent, em baym ent, or a ^ re a t^ a k e shall not exceed 0.00086 tim es the receiving w ater body d esig n flow ^ 3^ m -/s e c . to give K g/day or 0.000054 tim es the receiving w ater body d e sig n flow in cfs to give Ib s /d a y ^ U n le ss there is more than one d isch a rg e point in th e im m ediate v ic in ity , in w hich c a se no fa c ility sh all discharge in ex cess of 0.24 K g/day or 0.54 Ib s/d a y regardless of receiving w ater flow . (b) E stu a ry or c o a s ta l w a te r from any f a c ility s u b je c t to th is su b p a rt s h a ll not exceed 0.00086 tim es the receiving w ater body d esig n flow in ni 3/ s e c to give K g/day or 0.000054 tim es the receiving 1 w aterbody d esig n flow in cfs to give Ib s/d a y u n less there is more than one d isch arg e point in the im m ediate v ic in ity , in w hich case no fac ility sh all discharge in ex cess of 0.24 Kg/day or 0.54 Ib s/d ay reg ard less of receiving w ater flow . y |o ** NEL 000407 782254 8*229-2287 J .F . M cA llister - Fairfield Jan u a ry 9 , 197 5 i ^ * _ ^ w M r. Tidal Henry E lectric M utual lia b ility Insurance Company 715 Lynnw ay Lynn, M a s s a c h u s e tts 01905 Dear Ty: We understand th a t you have been research in g th e law re la tiv e to PCBs and d esire background inform ation to aid you In understanding and ch aracteriz in g th e s e m a te ria ls . As you may k n o w , p o ly ch lo rin ated b ip h e n y ls (PCBs) are a c la s s of com pounds produced by th e ch lo rin atio n of b ip h e n y ls. PCBs m anufactured in the U .S . are made only by M onsanto and sold under the trade name A ro clo r. V arious u s e r s h av e th e ir own tra d e nam es for PCB fo rm u la tio n s, i . e . , Pyranol (G .E .) and Inerteen (W estinghouse). You w ill a lso encounter th e term " a s k a r e lH, a g e n e r ic , n o n -p ro p rie ta ry w ord u se d to id e n tify th e s e nonflammable in su latin g liq u id s. M onsanto id en tifies its Aroclor form ulations w ith a type num ber, e . g . , Aroclor 1242, Aroclor 1254, e tc . In m ost c a s e s , the first two d ig its represent the m olecular type and the la s t two d ig its the average percentage by w eight of chlorine. These various compounds have different p h y sical, chem ical and biological properties. B ecause of th e ir re la tiv e ly nonflam m able nature (and the nonflam m ability of arc-form ed g ases) and other unique p ro p e rtie s, PCBs are w idely used by the electrical industry In the m anufacture of capacitors and transform ers. C apacitor m anufacturers and some transform er m anufacturers use form ulations w hich are alm ost en tirely made up of PCBs (with very sm all additions of antioxidant compounds or scavengers of various kinds). G .E . Pyranol transform ers use a larg e frac tio n ( e . g . , 40%)of ch lo rin ated b e n z e n e s a s a d ilu e n t. The Environm ental Protection Agency h as id entified PCBs-- w ithout d istin ctio n a s to degree of chlorination-- a s m aterials to be controlled under Section 307 of PL 9 2 -5 0 0 a s to x ic p o llu ta n ts . P ro p o sed s ta n d a rd s w e re a n n o u n ced in D ecem ber of 1973 and w ithdraw n a fte r vigorous o p p o sitio n by s e v e ra l o b je c to rs . NEL 000408 782255 M r. Tidal Heiiry - 2- January 9 ( 1975 EPA I s a b o u t to try a g a in w ith a new p ro p o s a l. The EPA h a s a ls o lis te d PCB a s a m a te ria l to b e c o n tro lle d tin d er S e c tio n 311 of th e sam e a c t , in th e ir a d v a n c e n o tic e of in te n t (39FJR 3 0 4 6 6 ). The N a tio n a l In s titu te fo r O c cu p a tio n a l S afety and H e alth (NIOSH) is a ls o re q u e stin g Inform ation a s to lo catio n s w here em ployees are w orking w ith PCBs and certain other inform ation related to th e u se of th e se s u b s ta n c e s . We have b een told th a t NIOSH has some inform ation in anim al studies w hich is being Interpreted by one researcher to in d icate th at PCBs are p o ten tially a carcinogen. We have assem bled some reference docum ents th at w ill aid you in becoming conversant w ith the principal issu es: 1. The U se and D is p o sa l of E le c tric In su la tin g li q u i d s , a NIPCC report representing an early effort (authored by the undersigned) to place the PCB u s e and d is p o s a l p ro b lem s in p e rs p e c tiv e b y c o m p ariso n w ith petroleum . 2 . E x c e rp ts from PCBS and th e E n v iro n m en t, b y th e In te rd e p a rtm e n ta l T ask Force on PCBs. The pages reproduced concern prim arily the chem ical and physical properties. 3. Testim ony on Behalf of the G eneral E lectric Company as an O bjector to th e Proposed T oxic E fflu en t S ta n d a rd s for PCBs - 40 CFR 129 (M arch 1974). The Farnsw orth testim ony included in the third reference (and a lso assem bled by yours truly) should aid in understanding w h a t's .at stak e h e re , and why w e are resistin g pressures to give up on the use of th is m aterial. You m ay have a d d itio n a l q u e stio n s a fte r im m ersing y o u rself in th e se docum ents, If so , w e 'll do our b e st to steer you toward reliab le sources of inform ation. Very tru ly y o u rs , JS N :cas E n c lo su re s James S. N elson, C onsultant Product Environm ental Com patibility 782256 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF SUBJECT ir., -sc ";C.:0 M IW 8*229-2287 | BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE SURVEY COPIES; J .F . M cA llister-Fairfield w /a tta ch . F .S . Rothe E .L . Simons - Schenectady" " Ja n u a ry 2 4 , 1975 M r. Stephen K. G alpin M anager-Com m unity and Government R elations F a irfie ld , C o n n ecticu t Wl-B D ear M r. G alpin: Jack M cA llister is on th e w est c o a s t, and has asked me to provide Product Q uality Staff Inputs to your Roundtable su rv ey . I have seen th e contributions of RECO's E nvironm ental P ro tectio n O p e ra tio n . M o st of th e s e , q u ite p roperly - r e f le c t th e im p a c t of e x is tin g re g u la tio n s on C om pany f a c i l i t i e s / a c t i v i t i e s . O n e, at le a s t, has potentially an im portant product im pact-- I refer to the proposed standard for PCBs a s a to x ic p o llu tan t e fflu en t. If not further m o d ifie d , th e p ro p o se d sta n d a rd c o u ld s h u t dow n th e m a n u fa c tu re o f PCB c a p a c ito r s a n d PCB tra n s fo rm e rs . D r. Sim ons d id n o t a d d r e s s th e s u b je c t of sp ill control, presum ably because your request is for item s focusing on -- a sp ec ific re g u latio n , and in th is c a se th e problem is partly the lack of R eg u la tio n s. We have added a note on th is subject to com plem ent the over view you are creatin g . S im ilarly, our in p u ts on "burden of proof" and "product safety record keeping" concern proposed or threatened regulatory actio n s, rather than ex istin g . We tru st th ese notes w ill also be helpful. The C onference Board h a s a lso in stitu te d a p ro ject in support of regulatory reform . They are seeking to build a picture of the co st of product changes n ecessitated by environm ental im p erativ es. Since it appears likely th at th is office w ill be involved in a s s is tin g th e C onference Board effo rt, we should appreciate the opportunity to review your re su lts for pertinent inform ation. Very tru ly y o u r s , JSN icas E n c lo su re s James S. N elson, C onsultantProduct Environm ental C om patibility 782257 NEL 000409 m*uiuticr -oouinmiuiy auu uov eminent Kelationg Fairfield, Connecticut 06431 a n u . :<. TM n . Name of Regulatory Agency .'A .I'.nviroiuncntal Protection Agency Specific Nature of Regulattonx .lci ulatory Practice Asnni;i.ihi; authority for lihich the*re is iu> statutory basis; anticipating reflations not yot i roi.fiilt'ated; est.ablisuing a strong "federa.' presence" to Jnf.luonco actions of state aroncles; and, in suinwatiun, over-reacting to spills of certain cnemicals. t v?f t *, In the case of spills of polychlorinated biphenyl (PC.;),.SPA iia3 acknowledged that no federal statute ap lies to spill3 on land. file federal .;at.er Pollution t'ontrol Act contains v-wwlsi-0111 uveruing "hazardous .r.bstancc: viich h.ive been identified ` formally an such. PCtia have not been so identified (altho proposed for suci designation), r'u rlh e r inform ation on tho in cid en t be ;cribod, and iiruilar oeeiiraneeu o f More recent d ate, i.a'j Lc ol-taj nod i'duri Trans Ton,er and J i l s t r i - bul.i 0:1 r 'i.cjjib Hi v isio n aid Transportation Systems Hn 1noa vini.ori. NEL 000410 7QOOCQ YWhy -Regulation Is-U nnecessary Wh/y tne Pra ctice is ub ioction ab1l-e Estimated Cost to GE per year The p r a c tic e s dc. scribed arc "government by men, rather t.i:an l a / ' :. There i s clanger, under such lo o se roccddifnc, th a t tiie threat to p u blic health and w elfare may be exaggerated and that tiiose reop onsiole (or : ro;ij:ly held resp o n sib le) fo r a s p i l l :iay be pet to excessive or unnecessary expense. These abuse3 are, i f a c t , occurring: Item - On March 9 0 , ooine lb*00 (,allotu of polyculorinated-biphenyl formulation were duoiped by an independent truck d riv er from a UK-manufactured ir a u s l'oniier (near lin guton , Tennessee). On an a c tu a r ia l b a sijj an aver age o f t.l.'O si-n ifle a n t s p ills per year may occur. Costs for the i :oiaent cited have been e s t i mated a t about i!i 3/Ji m illio n , so annual costs could be in the region o f ono to tuq m iJlion. FClia are known to be m a teria ls o f low i.ai.nalian t o x ic it y , ' c l , '..PA (do io n 17) \ , demanded by telegram , tn a t GC assume res. o n 3 ib ility lo r immediate clean-up, d a ily sampling, and. s i t e m onitoring. An tiFA .o f f i c i a l fro;.. Jasbin -.ton appeared on Uni s i t e and in flu en ced . the -'ti.te o f Tennessee to require dir.iiiiji and s o i l removal u n t il roudside n o il uould t e s t a t no more than f iv e parts per m illion . co- parison, i'DA has set a standard of ten parts per m ill- ion for by: J . 3 . felson Name Ci.multant Product environmental I T i tle ---------------- ^ w ..i tU -U.i ty A ddress T>iln `-/h* 8*229-2287 JULY ACTIVITIES REPORT J m > i S. N e lso n ____________ M r. J .F . M cA llister O ffice July 30, 1975 -T6 t %' .. .. 2, P C B s Vi -- _i.v* -r'. TIm la te st governm ent agen cy to undertake a study o f P C B s Is the Energy R esearch and Developm ent A dm inistration. ERBA has engaged the National Bureau of Standards to make a study of the im portance o f PCBs in energy conversion, possible a lte r n a tiv e s , e t c . , and th e ir r e p r e s e n ta tiv e i s m e e tin g w ith the 7/; Capaeitor Products D epartm ent and the T ransform er Distribution Equipm ent D ivision In the near future. Both the Produet Quality Staff and the E nvironm ental P ro tectio n O peration (RECO) are involved. JS N :cas 782259 NEL 000411 3 A m i taue Drive A v.pt l T 1975 o ... - !r- J. ?. IcAllister Staff Executive Dear Jack, I have revie7;ed your draft Annual Feport for the Year 1374 and find myself leased at the organization and content, I do have a few suggestions to make, mostly of a proof reading, rather than a substantive, natures p.6: Second to last paragraph, change "environmental schedules'* tc "environmental groups" (or "organizations"). The phrase "fSOO "** appears ambiguous could stand for either 1000 cr 1,000,000. me, as p.3: In the second to last paragraph, reference " made to Incarnation that r-lll not be available "until sometime after Tun e 1? 1 13 ^ 5 " . "]n view of the date cf snbm*ssion of the r e y * Vf T langv as 0 s-"S S * s t retting 7.' e l: on? to supply alternative Tcf.* 9: ns*: l I- n a +-i tthhes on " tt hhiirrdd paragraph, change "Insulated c r 1 11i! slating" liquids. liquids" to T^ t iiIS X.po u r t h - a r a , the ra r t ic i ra t i on 1 P'- c h e a r i n g s cn "in conjunction v/ith after !,E?C" . . 1 D: S u r e s t c h a n g in g "succeeding'1 tc "successfully negotiating e m i t s " or soar cthe;.- substitute. (Third bulleted aranrauh.) ..19: Change "v'tits" tc "contacts" (end of first ararraph) to reco0niS3 that :..ost cf this type of eval"atlon s conducted by telephone and correspondence. Is "Cn.-wliance anage.-.ent ^eration (1st pa r .) a designation' T fail to r e c o , nize it ~ think I intended ^ S * 'C "orporate D.^al h ^ e . A cu^ ndix **eTM"ovo the Ml !! he-e and *n the * a s -V.*ch a w the 's no othr a cenl"::. ice to it, .I"- *n the second -h o'-ld ^e t r t paragraph (Tvjr "*q"1 } `"ho 'afflT'o - r>n " / t i i ! *.? : i " !*t r p n c ^ i l s an~ c o v e r s . r h'-pe these co rrcen ts -:r 11 -9 he 1c f u l . NEL 000412 782260 - 2Tn l e t its a d d t h a t I h a v e d e c i d e d t o e a t e n d rzy v a t i ' o n " o th e e n d c* th e- w e e k , b o r r o w in g th e t h r e e d a y s from tin e p re v io u s ly ach ^f.u lsd f o r a y e a r-e n d v a c a tio n . Thus, ( ' n le a a s r :\e e m e r g e n c y r e q u i r e s my p r e s e n c e s o o n e r ) 1 '.T i ll p l a n t o h e b a s k in th e o f f i c e ~r. * '.rn d ay , A u r a t 2 5 . I s h a l l assum e t h a t t h i s a rra n g e m e n t v;Lll oe - u t i s f a c t o r y u n le s s I h e a r rth e rv ;ise from you; Y ours v ery t r u l y , J.i>. 'ielso n 782261 NEL 000413 8*229-2287 AUGUST ACTIVITIES REPO RT Jam e fl S. N e lso n _______________ A u g u st 29 1975 M r. J. F. M cA llister O ffice IV. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COM PATIBILITY 1. P C B s On A ugust 1, POS w as re p re s e n te d a t a m eetin g w ith a re p re s e n ta tive of the E nergy R esearch and D evelopm ent A dm inistration, C ap acito r D ep artm en t people and RECO to a s s is t an ERDA study to evaluate the econom ic and engineering im portance of PCBs and th e ir possible a lte rn a tiv e s. A sim ila r d iscu ssio n with an EPA co n tracto r is scheduled in Septem ber. These efforts at d isp assio n ate a p p ra isa l a re going fo rw ard am id st a background that includes proposals in W isconsin and M ichigan to ban PCBs outright, and headline-m aking d isclo su res concerning PCB levels in fish caught in the Hudson R iv er. REDACTED MEL 000414 782262 o M r. J. F. M cA llister - Z 'J A ugust 29 1975 REDACTED JSN tcas O O Ja m e s S. N elson 782263 NEL 000415 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF New York T im es E ditorial on PCB o COPIES: J. F . Young J. F. M cA llister J .F . Repko E . Li. S im o n s Septem ber 15, 1975 M r. M ichael M. M asterpool M anager - Corporate Public Inform ation F airfield Dear M r. M asterpool: The follow ing notes m ay be helpful in preparing a C orporate p osition with r e s p e c t to the N ew Y ork T im e s e d ito r ia l, "A F a ilu r e H ere" (9 - 1 0 -7 5 ). D um ping. ,fDumping" a su b sta n ce is g ettin g r id o f a su b sta n ce un cerem oniou sly or irresp o n sib ly -- hardly an appropriate term for the resid u al discharge experienced after the application of sophisticated technological controls to p r o c e sse s and w aste strea m s. H ighly to x ic. It is in co rrect to refer to any of the d o m estic co m m ercia l form ulations of PCB as "highly toxic. " T his is a term that has been rigorou sly defined by the United States Environm ental P rotection A gency, in conjunction with the Food and Drug A dm inistration and the Departm ent of Transportation (R eference: F ederal R egister, Vol. 38, No. 173, Septem ber 7, 1973). A substance is highly toxic if feeding a group of lab oratory an im als, such as rats a sin g le dose equivalent to 50 m illigram s for each kilogram of body w eight w ill resu lt in the death, w ithin two w e ek s, o f h alf of the t e s t pop ulation. It ta k es m o r e than 100 tim es this dose to produce a sim ila r resu lt with various grades of PCB used in the e lec tr ic a l ind ustry. (Source: Food and Drug A d m in istra tion, as quoted in P olychlorinated Biphenyls and the E nvironm ent, Inter departm ental T ask F orce on P C B s, May 1972, page 131. ) T oxicity in fish . The grade of polychlorinated biphenyl recen tly d isco v ered in som e Hudson R iver fish is not that u sed in G eneral E le c tr ic plants on the Hudson R iver, --n ow or in any recent y ear. The grade now used is a NEL 000416 782264 GENERAL ELECTRIC M r. M ichael M. M asterpool - 2- Septem ber 15, 1975 sp ecia l form ulation, introduced sev era l y ea rs ago when a growing body of evidence pointed toward p ersisten ce in the environm ent of grades form erly used. The Japanese incident. The "Yusho" experience in Japan was not related to environm ental contam ination by w aste products, but w as a ca se of the d irect accidental contam ination of rice o il in the factory where it was p rocessed . The people made ill all consum ed oil from a lot produced within a period of a few days in February 1968. An epidem iologic study prepared by the D epartm ent of Health, Faculty of M edicine, Kyushu U niversity, Fukuoka, Japan, appears in full in the U .S . D epartm ent of Public H ealth, Education, and W elfare p eriodical, Environm ental Health P ersp ectiv es, A pril 1972. This study m entions no fa ta litie s. An exten sive review of the available inform ation on PC B s was m ade by the Subpanel on PC Bs of the P anel on Hazardous T race Substances. This panel concluded that "Deaths from exposure, either acute or chronic, have not been clea rly docum ented for m an. PC B s do not have a high acute toxicity. " (Environm ental R esearch , V ol. 5, No. 3, Septem ber 1972, page 335). The Japanese product involved, Kanechlor 400, has been shown by te sts on chickens to be unusually toxic com pared to A m erican PC Bs (Op. c it. pp. 332 and 318). One of the two fetal deaths (m entioned in the editorial) was attributed to knotting of the u m b ilic a l cord . (Op. cit. page 332). o Contam ination of the Hudson's Sedim ent. T here is evidence of contam ina tion of the Hudson R iver by som e grades or form s of PCB. The sou rces and the disp osition of the residual burden ar only partially known, and the environm ental im pact m ust rem ain, for the p resen t, a m atter of conjecture. D espite the form er w idespread use of PC Bs in open applications,. "The exten sive harm p redicted.by som e th eo ries has not been found and docum ented. This lack of evidence indicates that a ll of the PCBs do not p e r sist in the environm ent as a resu lt of factors such as. . .biodegradation. . . One ch a ra cteristic which undoubtedly is of significant im portance is the ability of PC B s to adsorb tenaciously to particulate m a tte r .. .P r e se n c e (in the environm ent) should not be assu m ed to im p ly ad v erse effect. To our know ledge, no published rep ort e x ists which co n clu siv ely rela tes the m ortality of any w ildlife sp e cie s to the p resen ce of P C B s. .." (Quotation is fro m the sw o rn te stim o n y of W. B . P a p a g e o r g e , sp o k esm a n for the NEL 000417 782265 GEMERAI ELECTRIC Mr. M ichael M. M asterpool - 3- S e p te m b e r 15, 1975 M onsanto Industrial C hem icals Co, , in re P roposed toxic pollutant effluent standards for aldrin-dielclrin, et al - FWPCA (307) - Docket No. 1, M arch 14, 1974. ) I have treated above som e of the problem s raised by the ed itorial. Others are adequately handled in the p ress r e le a se s prepared for Septem ber 5 and Septem ber 10. O bviously, the editorial contains m ore m isleading aspects than can be dealt with in the form at of a u sual " letter to the e d ito r ." The follow ing is an attem pt to deal with som e of the m ore im portant points, and can perhaps be m elded with the reply which I understand is being drafted by John Repko. EDITOR, THE NEW YORK TIMES An ed itorial in the T im es of Septem ber 10, 1975, speaks of the G eneral E lectric Company as "dumping highly toxic chem ical compounds into the Hudson R iver" and c r itic iz e s the Company for such action and both the New York State and F ed eral governm ents for having perm itted it. , The public should understand that no grade of FCB is "highly toxic"; that th ere have been, to our know ledge, no human deaths or m o rta lity of any w ild life sp e cie s docum ented as a sso cia ted with its u se . PC B 's are u sed in electrica l apparatus, not only because of the design efficiency they con tribu te, but b ecau se no known potential substitute affords the safety from fires made possible by PC B s. PC B-containing electrical apparatus is re quired for safety reasons in occupied b u ildin gs--hospitals, sch ools, fa cto ries, o ffice b u ild in gs, e tc . and in railroad c a r s and lo c o m o tiv e s. In m any " applications, electrica l codes and insurance regulations require its u se. In the late 1960's and ea rly 1970's evid en ce appeared of w id esp read d isp e r sio n of PC B s in the environm ent, with p o ssib le adverse b iological effects com ing under study. R esponding to th is sc ie n tific con cern , U .S . in d u stry took s e v e r a l im portant steps to m in im ize further r e le a se while the study of the p o ssib le environm ental im pact continues. The sole U .S. producer withdrew from about h alf its m arket, lim itin g continuing sa le s to clo sed applications in sealed electrica l apparatus. E lectrica l m anufacturers, by voluntary action, adopted a code to prom ote containm ent of the ch e m ic a ls. In resp o n se to evid en ce that only the m ore highly chlorinated form s of the ch em ical w ere being found in the environm ent, a sp ecia l grade was developed from which th ese fractions w ere largely rem oved. This grade was adopted by G eneral E lectric for u se in its plants on the Hudson R iver in 1971. No tr a c e s of it have been id en tified in the fish sam ples caught in the river. NEL 000418 782266 M r. M ichael M. M asterpool -4- S eptem ber 15, 1975 The large daily discharge of cooling and p rocess w ater from our plants still contains a residue of PC B s. The amount has been reduced from a p o ssib le thirty pounds per day a few y e a rs ago to le s s than five pounds today, disp ersed in m illion s of gallons of effluent w ater. This discharge is the subject of continual dim inution. We b e lie v e it is already at the point of no d iscern ib le environm ental im p act. (To be signed by a suitable Company spokesman) I reg ret that I canlt participate in your d isc u ssio n on this top ic, as I w ill be out of town on Monday. V ery truly yours, JS N :cas Jam es S. N elson, Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility 782267 8*229-2287 NOTICE OF PLA N T VISIT J .F . M cA llister E . L . Sim ons - Schenectady R eception Desk V isitor: M r. E rn est J. M osbaek, V ice P resid e n t, Jack F aucett A sso ciates, Chevy C hase, M aryland D ate: O ctober 8, 1975 Tim e: 1:00 F .M . P la c e : Office of J .S . N elson, E l-A Purpose of V isit: To d iscu ss PCB study being conducted by M r. M o s b a e k under contract to the U .S . EPA . JSN :cas Jam es S. N elson, C onsultant P roduct E nvironm ental Com patibility NEL 000420 782268 8*229-2287 SEPTEM BER ACTIVITIES REPO RT l a m e i S. N e lso n ____________________ M r. J. F . M cA llister O ffice O cto b er 3, 1975 3. PCBs PQS w as heavily involved during S eptem ber with PCB m a tte rs at state (NY) an d n a tio n a l le v e l. M e e tin g s w e re h e ld w ith a s u b c o n tr a c to r fo r EPA and a su b co n tracto r fo r ERDAf both seeking to in te rp re t the socio-econom ic and technical im pact of alternative control m easu res. In re fe re n ce to the NYS confrontation, a re p o rt entitled "P o ly ch lo rin ated Biphenyls and T h e ir U se in C ap acito rs" was issued, p resen tin g an overview of considerations involved in the u se of PC B s in the e le c tric a l in d u stry , w ith p a rtic u la r refe re n ce to c ap a c ito rs. A d raft rep ly to a New York T im es e d ito rial on PCB d isch arg es into the Hudson R iver was p repared for the consideration of M asterpool et al (at h is request) but a decision was m ade at G roup level not to reply publicly to the ed ito rial. JSN tcas 782269 NEL 000421 GENERAL GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF O ctober 2, 1975 C enter for P olicy A lternatives M assach u setts In stitu te of Technology 77 M assach u setts A venue C am bridge, M assach u setts 02139 A ttention: D r. A lbert M urray D ear D r. M urray: I have re a d w ith in te re s t and ap p reciatio n your study of PC B s c o n ta in e d in 11T h e Im p a c t o f G o v e rn m e n ta l R e s tr i c tio n s on th e P r o duction and U se of C h em ica ls," F e b ru a ry 15, 1975. It would be helpful in or w ork to have a copy of the com plete In te rim R eport (or F inal R eport, if now available). If you are in a position to send u s a copy, w ell and good; if not, kindly advise the p ro p er channel fo r u s to o rd e r/re q u e st a copy. Thank you fo r your attention to this m a tte r. V ery truly yours. JSN :cas bcc: J. F. M cA llister . N elson, C onsultant E nvironm ental C om patibility NEL 000422 782270 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT DISPOSAL OF POWER CAPACITORS COPIES: W .R . K ruesi - F airfield J. F . M cA llister - Fairfield JVM. P h illip s - Schdy. E . L. Raab - Pittsfield October 9, 1975 M r. George R. M eskart Product G eneral Manager Pow er Capacitor Product Section John Street Hudson F a lls, N .Y . 12839 Dear George: Now that M onsanto has shut off open applications and the electrica l industry as a whole has m ade such p ro g ress in reducing effluent of PC Bs from manu facturing plants, the realization is growing that the m ajor potential in crease of the environm ental burden in volves capacitors retired from se r v ic e , and regulatory agencies are lik ely to be concentrating m ore on th is aspect. In a recent statem ent before the W isconsin Departm ent of Natural R esources, M r. Glenn E . Schw eitzer, D irector, O ffice of T oxic Substances, Environm ental P rotection A gency, W ashington, D. C ., had this to say: "There have been five water sp ills involving FCB leakage from tra n sfo rm ers during the p ast year, and cu rren tly th ere are tens of thousands of capacitors, each containing sev era l gallons of P C B s, awaiting d isp o sa l." In another part of h is statem ent, referrin g to current EPA a ctiv ities, Schw eitzer said: "T echnical a ssista n c e is routinely provided on the storage and d isp o sa l of F C B -con tain in g w a stes. In addition, te st burns of capacitors containing such w astes in a high tem perature in cinerator are planned for early 1976." The quotations are from a statem ent m ade in M adison on A ugust 29, and recently d istrib u ted to those on the R egion II m ailin g lis t. NEL 000423 782271 G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC M r. George R. Menkart 2 - O cto b er 9, 1975 M arv P h illip s, of EPO , te lls m e he is getting in q u iries from GE plants who are w orried about what to do with old cap acitors. P art of the rationale for ''reasonable" effluent standards is the sm a ll discharge fr o m m an u factu rin g p la n ts (2 to n s /y e a r throughout th e country) r e la tiv e to the fluid in retired capacitors that could reach the environm ent each year (estim ated at about 70 ton s), both com pared to the existin g environm ental burden already out th ere, estim a tes of which run from 75, 000.tons to 175,000 tons, depending upon the p r e m ises u sed in the calcu lation . While th is com parison is a valid argum ent for control program s short of "zero d isch a rg e," it does serve to high ligh t the need for our c o lle c tiv e b e st effort approach to both s p ill con trol and ultim ate disposal. A s we d iscu ssed on the telephone, these considerations appear to call for a second look at the ANSI Standard C l07. 1-(1974). You w ill reca ll that the work on this was done a couple of years ago, with GE inputs handled by Ed Raab for tr a n sfo r m e rs and A1 P o zefsk y fo r c a p a c ito r s. T he fin a l v e rsio n of the standard appears to c a ll for lan d -fillin g u sed cap acitors, even th ose containing sev era l gallons of PC B. A reactivated C l07 com m ittee m ight w ell w ish to reevaluate th is recom m endation, perhaps considering the alternative of draining power capacitors, dispatching the drainings to an approved incinerator, and then sending the ca rc a ss.to a dry land fill. C onsideration is a lso needed for those parts of the country that have no dry landfill site s. Is there a m ore econom ical procedure than shipping w hole cap acitors to C hem trol, that can be developed? What "technical assista n ce" is EPA giving on d isp o sa l, and who is working with EPA on the aforem entioned burn te sts? I don't know w hether you w ill w ish to go back through NEMA, who sponsored the p resen t standard, or work d irectly with ANSI, but I think, in any ca se, you w ill w ish to d iscu ss th is m atter with Ed Raab before taking any action, so we can m aintain a coordinated approach for capacitors and tran sform ers. P le a se let m e know what you decide to do. V ery truly yours, JS N :cas . NEL 000424 782272 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT --f 8 * 2 2 9 -2 2 8 7 | October 13, 1975 M r. George B. Farnsworth V ice P resid en t and G eneral M anager E lectronic Components D ivision E lectronics Park Syracuse, N ew York 13201 COPIES; E.Lr. Dobbins, P ittsfie ld L. P . Hart, Hudson F alls W. R . K ru esi, F a ir fie ld J. F. M cA llister " R. C. Osthoff, P ittsfield A .V . Puccini. " J. F . Repko, Syracuse E. L. Sim ons, Schdy. J. F . Young, F airfield Dear George: T h is is to tr a n s m it a cop y o f MFC B C hronology, " O ctob er 13, 1975. T h is ch ronology is d e v ised in four co lu m n s, and is to be read w ith facin g "A" and "BMp a g es open b e fo r e th e r e a d e r . On th e le ft, or "AMp a g e s , a r e lis te d the external events (academ ic research , newspaper reports, governm ent actions) having a bearing on PC B, together with industry actions, such as those taken by M onsanto and by trade organizations as the recognition of a PCB problem began to unfold. On the right, or "B" pages, are found a listin g of GE studies and even ts in flu en cin g the developm ent of GE p o licy , and a lso a colum n for GE activities having a m ore d irect external im pact. T his docum ent is intended to provide background and referen ce m aterial for statem ents that m ay be required as the hearings develop and for other purposes as m ay be appropriate. The document its e lf does not have publication clearance. "PCB Chronology" has been prepared at the request of J .F . Young in respon se to a need ex p ressed at the Septem ber 22 m eeting in C rotonville with M r. W eiss and other in terested p arties. Copies are being sent to th ose receivin g this note, and each recipien t is requested to notify m e-of any erro rs or im portant o m ission s. V ery truly yours JSN:cas E nclosure d a m e s 37s N e is on, C onsultant Product Environm ental Com patibility NEL 000425 782273 1 PCB CHRONOLOGY 8*229-2287 J . F* M c A lliste r J . F . Young O O ctober 14, 1975 D r. John F . W elch, J r . V ice P re sid e n t and G roup E xecutive Com ponents and M ate ria ls Group One P la stic s Avenue P ittsfie ld , M ass. 01201 D ear D r. W elch: Enclosed for your inform ation is copy of m aterial sent out y e sterd ay to those engaged in p rep arin g G E 's position re la tiv e to th e N ew Y o rk S ta te a c tio n on P C B s . T h is "P C B C h ro n o lo g y 11 is intended as so u rce m a te ria l, ra th e r than as a hand-out. V ery truly yours o JSN:cas E nclosures Jam es S. N elson, C onsultant P roduct Environm ental C om patibility NEL 000426 O 782274 o *I O ctober 17, 1975 The Woods H ole O ceanographic In stitu te Woods H ole, M assach u setts 01475 A ttention: D r. G eorge H arvey D ear D r. Harvey: In h is 1974 testim ony In Re: P roposed T oxic P ollutant Effluent S tan d ard s, M r. W. B. P ap ag eo rg e of M onsanto In d u stria l C hem icals Co. included the following statem en t in re fe re n ce s cited: 15. Statem ent obtained from D r. G eorge H arvey, Woods Hole O ceanographic In stitu te 1 /9 /7 4 ; p e rm issio n to quote given. "In th e su m m er and fall of 1972 the su rfa ce w aters of the E a ste rn and W estern N orth A tlantic ocean had an a v erag e PCB co n cen tratio n of 30 p a rts p e r trillio n . By the su m m er and fall of 1973, the av erag e PCB co n cen tra tion in the sam e a re a s had d ecreased to about 1 p art p e r trillio n . "Since the suspended solids fall out and m ixing ra te s of the ocean a re constant, the observed reduction in surface lay er concentrations indicate a reduced PCB input. " # We a re v ery in terested in learning w hether any subsequent surveys have been conducted th at would tend to provide co n firm atio n of the reduction of input of PC B s to ocean w a ters. In replying, it w ill be appreciated if you w ill indicate in broad outline the m ethod of sam pling, sam ple p rep aratio n , and m easu rem en t technioue u sed in providing the inform ation quoted above, and y our e stim ate of the degree of u n certain ty asso ciated w ith the values determ in ed . NEL 000427 782275 \ T he W oods H ole O ceanographic o Institute - A ttn: D r, G eorge H arvey - 2 - O cto b er 17, 1975 .-y A dditionally, it would be helpful to know w h eth er th e re h a s been any noticeable shift in the dom inant hom ologs (or in the com m ercial A ro clo r m o st n early m atched by chrom atogram s) betw een your e a rlie st and m ost recent data. Thank you for any inform ation you can provide on these topics. V ery truly yours. JSN :cas bee: J,F * M cA llister E.L Sim ons Jam es S. N elson, C onsultant P roduct Environm ental C om patibility NEL 000428 o n 782276 8*229-2287 Sports Illustrated A rticle by R. H. Bov ie , 9 *1 - 75 J. F . Young r J .F .- M c A lliste r * -- Repko ' E.L,. Simons O ctober 29, 1975 M r. M ichael M. M asterpool M anager-Corporate Public Information F airfield WID ' D ear Mike: It is our u n d erstan d in g that M r. R. H. B o y le h as r e a u e ste d you to paint out to him any " tech n ica l e r r o r s" contained in the su b jec t a r tic le . On O ctober 20, D r. Ed Sim ons reouested that I supply him with com m ents useful for this pur p ose, for integration with m aterial from other so u rces and eventual forwarding to you. In the in ter e st of saving tim e, Ed and I have agreed that I should w rite to you d irectly . He and I have d isc u sse d the a r tic le on the telephone, and this letter contains points he raised as w ell as m y own observations. The rem arks that follow are keyed to the text by num bers entered into the m argins of the attached copy. Where we cite outside authority, the referen ce is indicated by a letter enclosed in parentheses. -1. " R e sista n c e to heat" is a w o efu lly inad eou ate d e sc r ip tio n o f the r ea so n s industry u ses PC B s. Product safety is the only reason for using PCBs in tra n sfo rm ers, and of considerab le im portance also in cap acitors. N onflam m ability of the fluid and of g a se s lib erated by e le c tr ic arcs; su p erio r d ie le c tr ic p ro p erties and e x c e lle n t h eat tr a n sferen ce are capabilities that should be m entioned even in the b riefest ch aracteriza tion. The F ederal Interdepartm ental Task F orce concluded, in part, that "The u se of PCBs should not be banned en tirely. T heir continued u se for tran sform ers and capacitors in the near future is considered n e c e s s a r y b ecau se of the sig n ifica n tly in c r e a se d r isk of fir e and e x plosion and the disruption of e le c tr ic a l se r v ic e w hich would resu lt from a ban on PCB u s e . A lso , continued u se of PC B s in tra n sfo rm ers and ca p a cito rs p r e se n ts a m in im al r isk of en viron m en tal con tam in ation ." (a) HEL 000429 782277 M r. M ichael M: M asterpool -2- O c to b e r 29 1975 .2 T h e r e i s a c a n t in d ic a tio n th a t P C B s c a u s e " m i s c a r r i a g e s and s t i l l b irth s ." T he only ^recorded in sta n c e of hum an d ise a se a ttrib u te d to PC B s is the Yusho episode in Jap an in 1968 (a). We find no m ention of m isc a rria g e s in the epidem iological study of Yusho published u n d e r the a u sp ic e s of th e U. S; P u b lic H ealth S e rv ic e (b). Two of o the pregnant wom en in the population of l f 000 people exposed had e t i l l b i r t h s ._ O ne ^of th e s e f e ta l.d e a th s w as a ttr ib u te d to k n o ttin g of th u m b ilical co rd ; (c). Kane chio r 400, the Jap an ese fluid involved, h as been shown by te s ts on chickens to be m o re toxic than the PC B s m ade in th is country, and th is h ig h er toxicity m ay have been due to an adm ixture of other com pounds. C hlorinated dibenzofurans are s u s p e c te d ; .......... 3* It i s s ta te d th a t P C B s a r e tu r n in g u p in " d a n g e ro u s a m o u n ts " in th e upper M ississip p i R iv e r, the u p p er Ohio, the Hudson R iv er and sev e ra l of the G reat L akes. "D angerous am ounts" a re not defined, nor is any Bource cited. The ju x tap o sitio n of th is statem en t with the one about m isc a rria g e s and stillb irth s is unjustified, in our view . T h ere is no-instance that we know of in w hich anyone has been m ade illb y P C B s a s f o u n d in the environm ent. "Yusho" was not an environm ental episode, but the g ro ss, d irect contam ination of a food product in daily u se by the v ic tim s, to the extent of 2, 000 p a rts p e r m illion, o r 400 tim es the FDA lim it in fish, flesh. P a rtly because of unsupported statem en ts of this kind, the New York State D epartm ent of H ealth found it n e c e ssa ry to issu e re a ssu ra n c e to the public th at drinking w ater fro m the H udson R iv er is fit for hum an consum ption (d). 4. It Is stated th at'o fficials of the U nited S tates EPA in New York stayed abatem ent plans after G en eral E le c tric requested an adjudicatory h earin g . This te lls only p art of the sto ry . The facts a re that, during the period pending the hearin g , GE has continued w ith its program s, to reduce lo sse s to the environm ent, has w orked with an outside consulting firm to expedite this w ork, and is now exceeding the d eg ree of control sp ecified for this point in tim e by the EPA in the o rd e r that is to be the subject of an adjudicatory hearing. T hus, th e re has been no stay in the im plem entation of the. scheduled plan!.' '{The h e a rin g w ill be co n cern ed p rim a rily w ith the lo sse s to be co n sid ered accep tab le at the end of scheduled im provem ents. ) NEL 000430 782278 u M r. M ichael M. M asterpool - 3- O cto b er 29, 1975 5. GE h a s not "dumped" any F C B s into the r iv e r . Dumping a su b sta n ce is getting rid of it.uncerem onioustjF.or irresp on sib ly--hardly an ap p rop riate te r m fo r the r e s id u a i1l s s e s rem a in in g a fter v ig o r o u s efforts at m inim ization. GE l o s s e s have not a v era g ed 30 pounds a day s in c e 1971. On the contrary, th ese lo s s e s have been reduced sin ce 1971 both in v o lu m e -about th irty -to -o n e- -and in significan ce to the environm ent, by re m ovin g fr o m t h e f o rm u latio n a p p ro x im a tely 9 0% o f the h ig h e r -c h lo r in a te d h o m o lo g s. (It ia the h ig h er-ch lo rin a ted h om ologa, containing 5 or m o re chlorines per m o lecu le, that are b elieved to be p rim arily resp on sib le for the p ersisten ce of som e form s of T CBs in the en viron m en t.) 7. The " la r g e st nonaccidental relea se" of F C B s to the environm ent did not com e from GE's plants, nor did it com e from the e le c tr ic a l industry as a w h o le. It h a s developed from the w orldw ide "open" ap p lication s such as in paints, coatings, p la stic iz e r s, and carb on less copy paper; and from applications as hydraulic fluid s and heat tran sfer fluids in o a v a r iety of in d u strial op eration s. In applications of th ese typ es, a large fraction of the FCBs em ployed are believed to return to the environm ent by weathering, ultim ate disposal of worn-out apparatus, uncontrolled burning and other un sop h isticated d isp o sa l m ethods u sed during the thirty y ea rs when no one suspected any environm ental prob lem s. The quantity of PCBs reaching the environm ent v ia th ese routes has been estim ated at 130, 000 tons and is many tim es higher than the lo sse s from the m anufacture of e le c tr ic a l apparatus (estim ated at not m ore than 2 tons per year). (e, f) 8. It is in c o r r e c t to sa y that the U .S . FDA h as p la ced a to le r a n c e lim it of five parts per m illion of FC B s in fish . The FDA lim it applies to the edible portions of the fish . Since PC Bs tend to concentrate in the liv er and other portions that m ost fish -e a te r s d iscard , this can make a significant difference in interpretation. Depending upon the sp e cie s, the concentration in organs generally regarded as inedible m ay be as high as 98% or 99% of the w hole body am ount. F o r th is r e a s o n , the preparation of fish sam ples for com parison with FDA lim its properly involves rem oving and discarding the head and en trails. 9. The author u se s guideline and c riteria num bers out of context. T hese numbers are not being put forward by the EFA or any other agency as standards to be m et. The figure of one part per trillion is a tentative NEL 000431 782279 M r. M ichael M. M asterpool -4- O ctober 2 9 , 1975 recom m endation for a national goal, yet to undergo interagency review and prom ulgation. Should it be accepted as a criterio n , it would serv e as a goal to be approached within the lim its of p racticality and with due reg a rd for tr a d e -o ffs in1te r m s o f public h ea lth , sa fe ty , and w e lfa r e as prom oted, in ter a lia , by the continued u se of P C B s in tra n sfo rm ers and cap acitors. (To help conceptualize 1 part per trillio n , think of l m in u te in 2 m illio n y e a r s , or l in ch in 16 m illio n m il e s , o r one m ou th ful of all the food serving a m illion people in their whole life tim e s .) In addition, it should be noted that drinking w ater standards need con sid er only the (relatively low) m am m alian toxicity of P C B s, not the bioaccum ulation factors that m ust be considered in protecting the biota. 10. The la st two d igits indicate the chlorine percentage in m ost A roclor designations, but not in the ca se of A roclor 1016. A roclor 1016 is ch lorin ated to about 41%. It i s a sp e c ia l form u lation developed by M onsanto after it was learned that the higher boiling hom ologs of PCBs tend to p e r sist in the environm ent. M onsanto lim its the higher boiling hom ologs in A ro clo r 1016 to 0 .4 p e r c e n t, `m a x im u m (g). T his is the grade em ployed by the e le c tr ic a l industry in the m anufacture of cap acitors sin ce it becam e availab le in late 1971. We b eliev e that the continued u se of th is m a teria l in our plants at F ort Edward and Hudson F a lls, New York, does not constitute a threat to the environm ent. 11. Incineration is not the only way to destroy the higher-chlorinated P C B s. A ctivated sludge te sts have been conducted by the M onsanto Company and clea rly indicate m icrob ial destruction of th ese grad es. F or exam ple, A roclor 1254, the highest-chlorinated grade now being m anufactured in the U . S . , u n d erg o es 15% d egrad ation in one 4 8 -h o u r c y c le . The m ic r o organ ism s u sed are typ ical of those found in a sew age treatm ent plant. During the test the sludge is stirred and aerated, so it m ay be predicted that degradation would proceed m ore slow ly under natural conditions; how ever, it is im portant to note that UV m onitoring ind icates that bacterial ring cleavage does take place. The rate is higher for low er chlorinated grades: m ore than tw ice as fast in the c a se of A roclor 1016 (h). Canadian resea rch also ind icates photochem ical decom position of PC Bs (including A roclor 1254) by both oxidative and reductive pathways (i). How im portant this m ay be in nature is not yet known. A third m eans of destruction is m etabolism . D isappearance half tim es upon feeding rats with a sin gle dose of A roclor 1254 are of the order of 6 - 9. 5 days for m ost organs, clearance being accom plished through a com bination of excretion and m etab olism . Phenolic m etab olites have been identified in som e studies (j). f NEL 000432 782280 M r. M ichael M. M asterpool - 5- O ctober 29, 1975 The relative contribution of these natural m odes of destruction of PCBs is not known, nor is the overall rate; how ever, the Center for P olicy A lternatives has stated the b elief that "perhaps one-third to one4ialf" of the total environm ental r e le a se "m ay have by now been degraded" (k). While th is m ay be little m ore than an "educated g u ess," it is com p atib le w ith the c h a r a c te r iz a tio n o f r e se m b la n c e to the Rojck of G ib raltar. 12. "In 1971, fiv e y e a r s after sc ie n tists recogn ized PC B s as c o n ta m in a n ts..." "Scientists" are not a m onolithic com m unity, and scien tific recognition takes tim e, as does the dissem ination of scien tific findings into the com m unity at large. The principal thing that D r. Jensen: discovered in 1966 was that PC B s had been confused analytically with other chlorinated hydrocarbons (DDT, DDE) in the tissu e of an ea g le. It is a long step from this finding to the determ ination that the potential for ecological damage is real enough and im portant enough*for the d rastic restrictio n of sa les undertaken by Monsanto in 1970 and com pleted in 1972. Nor was industry idle during this period. The Sports Illustrated article om its m ention of a step of com m ensurate significance that reached fruition in the sam e year, with the announcem ent by M onsanto of A roclor 1016 in respon se to data accum ulating during this period that indicated p ersisten ce in the environ m ent 0f the higher-boiling hom ologs of P C B s. A roclor 1016 contains le ss than 1% of th e s e h o m o lo g s, y et r e ta in s the e le c t r ic a l p ro p ertied and non flam m ability e ss e n tia l to the production of safe and r elia b le ca p a cito rs. A fter a rem arkably short period of test and evaluation, the en tire U. S. capacitor industry converted to the new fluid in the .conviction that by so doing they w ere im proving the environm ental com patibility of their products, A lso during th is period the industry had notified u tility and industrial c u sto m e r s o f P C B c a p a c ito r s and tr a n s fo r m e r s of the n eed to kleep w a ste PCBs from the environm ent and had published, through the National In d u stria l P o llu tio n C ontrol C oun cil, its own reco m m en d a tio n s f Jr co n tro l (1). 13. It m ay be p r e m a tu r e , in advance of p u blication and p eer r e v ie w , to: a c ce p t a finding of ca rcin o g en icity in relation to a m em b er of the PCB fam ily. It is also worthy of note that A roclor 1260 is no longer in production (m). 14. See com m ent #2. 15. M r. R eid's proposed order is now the subject of form al h ea rin gs. It should be understood that prom ulgation of a m ore rigid lim it can have no appreciable effect upon the ecology of the Hudson R iver and environs. GE h is already NEL 000433 782281 M r. M icha! M. M asterpool - 6- O cto b'fer 29, 1975 reduced Its lo s s e s to a tr ic k le , and converted its u sa g e to a grade that is alm ost free of the higher-chlorinated fractions known to be relatively p ersisten t in the environm ent. It is also clea r from N. Y. S. and F ed eral data that PC B s from sou rces other than GE's current m anufacturing a ctiv ities are p resen t in the riv er, and that som e pollution identified a s P C B s i s e n te r in g the r iv e r u p str e a m o f GE in s ta lla tio n s (n, o ). V ery truly yours, JS N :cas E nclosure o Jam es S. N elson, Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility NEL 000434 o o 782282 R e fe r e n c e s C ited in J . S. N e lso n 13 C om m en ts on th e Sn orts Illu stra ted A rticle. 'Poisoned F ish , Troubled W aters, ` by Robert H. B oyle, 9-1-75 (a) Interdepartm ental Task F o r c e, 1972-- F C B 's and the E nvironm ent. N ation al T ec h n ic a l Inform ation S e r v ic e , S p rin g field , V a. 22 51 (b) M. K uratsune, et a l, E p id em io lo g ic Study on Y usho. E nvironm ental Health P ersp ectiv es, Experim ental Issu e No. 1, A pril 1972. (c ) P olych lorin ated Biphenyls - E nvironm ental Im pact, by the Pajnel oh H azardous T race Substances, Environm ental R esearch , V ol. 5, No. 3, Septem ber 1972, page 332. (d ) A ssociated P r e ss dispatch from Albany, N. Y ., as printed in the O bserver- Dispatch (U tica, New York), Septem ber 9, 1975 (e) The R ole of Polychlorinated B iphenyls in E le ctr ic a l Equipm ent. GE, February 4, 1972. Note: D is c u s s io n s of lo s s r a te s and en v iro n m en ta l burden a re to be found in three referen ces: e, f, and k. The lo ss rate from e le c tr ic a l m anufactur ing is estim ated from knowledge of the tran sform er and capacitor in d u stries, including a recent E lectronic Industries A ssociation study. if) I. C. T. N isbet and A . F . Sarofim . R ates and R outes of Transe ort of PC Bs in the Environm ent. Environm ental H ealth P e r sp e c tiv e s, E xperim ental Issue No. 1, A pril 1972. .(g) P rod u ct S p ec ifica tio n . M onsanto In d u stria l C h e m ic a ls Co. , A r p c lo r 1016, ode No. 1040-016-16-03, effective June 1975. (h) P resen tation to the Interdepartm ental T ask F orce on P C B s, Washington, D. C ., May 15, 1972 by Monsanto Company. (i) O. H utzinger and S. Safe and V. Z itko, P h otoch em ical D egradation of Chlorobiohenyls (PC B s). NRCC No. 12259, reprinted in Environm ental Health P e r sp e c tiv e s , E xperim en tal Issu e No. 1, A pril 1972, (5) P o ly ch lo rin a te d B iphenyls - E n v iro n m en ta l Im p act, Op. C i t ., h a p ter 4. k) The Im pact of G overnm ental R estrictio n s on the Production and U se of C hem icals, Interim Report Submitted to the C ouncil on Environm ental Q uality and EPA by Center for P o licy A ltern a tiv es, MIT, February 15, 1975, Section 3, Case Studies --Polychlorinated B iphenyls. 782283 NEL 000435 R e fe r e n c e s C ited in J . S. N e lso n 1a C6m m entfl on the Soortg Illu stra ted A r tic le . 'P oisoned F ish . Troubled W aters, 1 by R obert H. Boyl'e, 9-1 -7 5 (Continued) (1) T he U se and D is p o s a l o f E le c tr ic a l In su la tin g L iq u id s. Su b-C ou ncil R eport, June 1971, National Industrial Pollution Control Council, U .S . Government Printing O ffice, Stock Number 5254-0028. (m) P olychlorinated B iphenyls, 3 A p ril 1975, issu ed by EPA as a draft of a proposed Statem ent of B asis and Purpose. (n) G en eral E le c tr ic Company O n-Site E ffluent M onitoring P rogram for P C B 's by R ep resen ta tiv es of R egion U -E P A and N ew York Stabe DEC D ivision of Pure W aters; (o) Investigation of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in the Hudson R iver (Hudson F a lla -F t. Edward A rea) by R. J. Nadeau and R .P . D avis, U .S. EPA. o n 782284 NEL 000436 8* 229.? 2287 OCTOBER ACTIVITIES REPORT J a m e s S. N e lso n ___________________ Novem ber 4l 1975 M r. J .F . M cA llister O ffice IV. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. ANSI Standards for PCBs LA t our su g g e stio n , the C ap acitor P ro d u cts D ep artm en t, through NEMA, plans to bring up the m atter of revision o f the ANSI PC B stan d ard . C l 0 7 ,1 * 1 9 7 4 . One pjoint th at needs reconsideration is the present recom m endation regarding the disposal of large used cap acitors. 2. PCB Chronology A document entitled PCB Chronology w as issu ed to provide background and referen ce m a teria l in connection with the New York State PCB proceedings. It is intended to fill a need exp ressed during the C rotonville m eeting on Septem ber 22 with M r. W eiss and other in terested p arties in attendance. redacted 4 Sports Illustrated A rticle on PCBs In respon se to his req uest, a detailed, annotated com m entary on the recent Sports Illustrated article on PC B s was prepared for M ike M asterpool. REDACTED NEL 000437 782285 I Mr. J. F. M cA llister ii J S N iea s o N ovem ber 4 , 1975 n i J S. N elson o NEL 000438 782286 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E H S H A L ^ ) ELECTRIC FAIHFILD. CONNECTICUT OSttl SUBJECT m P C D F Se P C B s i&m *(q -im-km j} 8*229-2287 | _ , '/7 COPIES: J. F. M cA llister w /o attach. \ N ovem ber 5, 1975 D r. John F . Brown C o rp o ra te RSeD C en ter K1 - 3B35 Schenectady, N. Y. 12345 D ear John: I couldn't r e s is t w riting a thank-you to your team , and I hope no one w ill think m e presum ptuous in having done so . A s agreed in our telephone con v ersa tio n , I am en closin g a p re-p u b lication copy of the M onsanto p ip e r by K aley, et al, on tissu e resid u es. N ote that you can't m ake attribution (u nless you m ake an agreem ent w ith M onsanto), per P apageorge's dote on the cover. A lso enclosed is an extra copy, for your convenience, of the M onsanto note on the difference noted betw een aged sam ples in the environ m ent and the distribution of hom ologs actually m arketed, which we agreed could be u sed in further support of your argum ent on page 17. The clipping from The Japan T im es (July 21, 1973) is offered gratis as a caveat against sw eeping gen eralization s about the total in stan ces of P C B -related I ln e s s e s ! T h e c h lo r in e co n ten t o f K an ech lo r 400 (48%) is noted on page 124 o f E n v ir o n m en tal H ealth P e r sp e c tiv e s , E xperim en tal Issu e No. 1 ,'A p ril 1972J I am intrigued by the hand-w ritten addendum on the bottom of page 7 , in dicating that diatom aceous earth treatm ent m ay have alw ays a ssu red the lack of PCDF in Hudson F a lls' P C B s. I ju st got off the phone w ith Ed Raab at P ittsfie ld , who te lls m e that, after the incom ing A ro clo r 1254 is jblended with chlorinated b en zen es, the blend is "treated with c la y ," i. e . , p a ssed through F u lle r 's ea rth , 100 -3 0 0 m e sh . T his "has alw ays been donej," to m aintain control over tan delta and r e sistiv ity . Perhaps our lossesj to the environm ent from tran sform er m anufacture have also been le s s serio u s than supposed! V ery truly yours, JS N :cas E nclosures Jam es S. N elson , Consultant., Product Environm ental C om patibility NEL 000439 782287 - '- GENERAL ELECTRIC Dr. John F. Brown 2- - N ovem ber 5, 1975 F .S . T im e p erm ittin g, I would appreciate your com m ents on the attached le tte r to M as ter pool, which has not yet been relea sed outsid e the Com pany. O bviously, it could now be strengthened, but we m ay want to 'sa v e that silv er bullet for a true showdown. JSN NEL 000440 782288 8*229-2287' J. F . Young J. F . M cA llister Novem ber 6, 1975 M r. Donald H. M arouis, Staff A sso cia te Technical R esources Staff Building 36, Room 517 Schenectady, N. Y. 12345 D ear Don: John Brown and h is a sso c ia te s have drafted a rev iew paper on the b io accum ulation and toxicity of PC B s w hich m ay w ell becom e the corn er stone of our position in the current N. Y. proceedings and in confronta tion with EPA on the forthcom ing toxic pollutant effluent p rop osals. It clea rly identifies polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF) as the active agent in many of the toxic effects a sso cia ted with P C B s, e. g . , chloracne, liv er n e c ro sis, em b ryotoxicity and teratogen icity in b ird s, and avian edem a d isease. The rem aining pharm acological effects, e. g ., hepatic enzym e induction, porphyria, and hepatocyte enlargem ent, have been shown largely related to the content of PC Bs containing m ore than four chlorines per m olecule. No PCDF has been detected in A roclor 1016. There is a p ossib ility, not yet confirm ed, that the standard F u ller's earth filterin g of PC Bs that we have alw ays u sed in both capacitor and transform er production has the capability of rem oving PCDF from any grade of PCB. It seem s to m e that, in working with M osbaek, we m u st striv e for "benefit" e stim a te s (of PCB control)^ co n sisten t with this new understanding of their toxicity. I am not reproducing Brown's paper because it is currently undergoing revision , but I want you to read it when you are h ere. In the in terim , the enclosed paper from Bow es et a ll- - a key finding in B row n's stu d y-w ill serve as an introduction. A lso in this m ailing are som e additional inputs from M osbaek. I am am used at the statem ent in h is O ctober 29 letter that "things are m oving fast except in the generation of good num bers and the acceptance of good concepts." Is this irony? R egard s, JS N :cas E n clo su res Jam es S. N elson, Consultant Product Environm ental Compatibility 782289 NEL 000441 8*229-2287 C om parison betw een A roelor 1016 and TJnpurified P olych lorob iphenyls (P C B s) in Bioaccum ulation and T oxicity (10-27-75) J. F . Young J .F . M cA llister E. L. Sim ons N ovem ber 5, 1975 Dr. John F . Brown Jr. D r . W. D e x ter B e lla m y Dr. John A. Bergeron Dr. Joel H. Kaplan Dr. Steven L. Rosenberg Corporate R esearch and D evelopm ent Center Schenectady G entlem en: I have read your draft a rticle cited above with a great deal of appreciation and satisfaction . Beyond its im portance in the New York proceedings it would seem to force recognition at long la st that A roclor 1016 cannot be lum ped together with a ll "PCBs" in rule-m ak in g for the national environ m en t. In v ie w of the lik elih ood that to x ic pollutant d isch a rg e lim its on PCBs w ill be proposed early next year it appears to u s extrem ely important that th ese data be presented to key people in the EPA as soon as p ossib le. The Chicago conference on N ovem ber 19-21 would be a natural occasion for the first such exposure. Congratulations for a great job I V ery truly yours JS N ca s Jamie s S, N elson C onsultant Frrocduct E n v iro n m en ta l C om patibility NEL 000442 782290 PROPOSED STATEM ENT O F EDISON ELEC TR IC INSTITUTE N ational Conference on Polychlorinated Biphenyls Chicago, Novem ber 19-21, 1975 ic M y n am e i s __________________ and I am sp ea k in g in b e h a lf o f the E d iso n E lectric Institute. The Edison E lectric Institute i s . . . and r ep re sen ts.. . (brief statem ent of nature and constituency of EEI). We should like to say a few w ords concerning the v ital role played by F C B containing equipm ent in the safe and reliab le tran sm ission and distribution of electric power; the extraordinary precautions undertaken by the u tilities and th eir suppliers to keep PC B s from the environm ent; the consideration of alternatives; and in closin g, we w ish to enter a plea for balance in see k ing the b est o v era ll protection of the public safety, health, and w elfare. E lectric u tilities em ploy two kinds of apparatus that contain PC B s: tran sform ers and capacitors. T ransform ers are used to change voltage to the different lev els required for the m ost efficient transm ission, distribution, and u tiliza tion of e lec tr ic pow er. M ost of our tran sform ers contain m in eral oil that ser v e s as a coolant and as part of the e le c tr ic a l insulation sy stem , or d ielectric. There are certain in sta lla tio n s--in or adjacent to occupied buildings or p rem ises frequented by the public or by em p loyees--w h ere the u se of o il tra n sfo rm ers would constitute a safety hazard. PCB tran sform ers w ere developed for th ese ap^licatjonS^ PCB won't burn and won't contribute to the sp read of fir e . Safety^'is the only rea so n fo r u sin g PC B tr a n sfo r m e r s, and th e ir u s e i s confin ed to about 5% o f a ll tr a n s fo r m e r in s ta lla tio n s , w h ere *& p u b lic safetyM u atifie -o th e ir add ition al c o s t. ! U tilities u se capacitors in a variety of applications, the m ost im portant of which are to im prove the power factor and to im prove voltage regulation. The m ain benefits from the u se of capacitors are econom ic: the reduction of lo s s e s a sso cia ted with the d eliv ery of power to the point of u se , and the reduction of the investm ent required in equipm ent for delivering power to the point of u se . T heir u se m akes an im portant contribution to the saving of fuel that would otherw ise go to supply sy stem lo s se s . The new capacitors in stalled each year save about $ 1 b illion investm ent and m any m illion s of b a rrels of oil. C apacitors, like tran sform ers, once w ere m ade with a m in eral o il d ielectric. The substitution, beginning in 1931, of PC Bs made possib le significant technical im provem ents in the siz e , reliab ility, and life of capacitors, in addition to the im proved safety factor that they share with tran sform ers. We are inform ed O O f U> 782291 2- - by our supp liers that to'return to m in eral o il would quadruple the volum e of a typical pow er-factor correcting capacitor and'overwhelm the industry supply structure for the critica l m a teria ls such as electrica l-g ra d e tissu e paper and alum inum foil. A s the concern for PC B s as environm ental pollutants developed in the late six ties and early sev en ties, the e lec tr ic a l industry form ed a com m ittee with governm ent rep resen ta tiv es to ad d ress the problem , and produced the A m erican N ational Standard C l07. 1 - 1974, G uidelines for handling and d isp o sa l of ca p a cito r- and tra n sfo rm er-g ra d e a sk arels containing p oly chlorinated b ip henyls. The e le c tr ic u tilitie s that m ake up the m em bership of EEI subscribe to this standard and have developed their own im plem enta tion docum ents (cite exam p les, if availab le). In addition, m em ber com panies are cooperating with suppliers in the evaluation of equipment designed for im proved environm ental com patibility. An outstanding exam ple of th is was the ready adoption by all our m em b ers of capacitors made with a new grade of P C B s, A roclor 1016, developed by M onsanto and utilized by a ll our capacitor suppliers to reduce the environm ental im pact of any lo s se s u ltim ately reaching the environm ent. This grade, we are inform ed, is virtually free of the higher-chlorinated constituents believed responsible for untoward environ m ental effects. The u tilities stand ready to participate in the evaluation of a ll reasonable altern atives to the u se of PC B s in tran sform ers and capacitors. We ask only that the substitute technologies be capable of m eeting our operational needs, which include reliab ility, efficien cy, and freedom from undue safety hazard; and that any proven substitutes be available on a tim ely basis to prevent d is continuity in our ability to serv e the public. In the in terim , we see no reason to depart from the conclusion of the Interdepartm ental Task F orce of 1972, nam ely, that the continued u se of PC B s "for transform ers and capacitors in the near future is considered n ecessa ry because of the significantly in creased risk of fire and exp losion and the disruption of electrica l se r v ic e which would resu lt from a ban on PCB u se. A lso , continued use of PCBs in tran sform ers and capacitors p resen ts a m inim al risk of environm ental contam ination." f NEL 000444 782292 782293 NEL 000445 )i ! > -I i N o v em b er 14, 1975 Dr. John L. Buckley, Deputy A ssistan t A dm inistrator for P rogram Integration and C hairm an, N ational Conference on Polychlorinated Biphenyls Environm ental Protection Agency W ashington, D. C. 20460 Subject: National C onference on Polychlorinated Biphenyls Dear Dr. Buckley: We are w riting to explain why G eneral E le c tr ic is not in a position to take an active role in the National Conference on Polychlorinated Biphenyls, to assu re you of our continuing in terest in helping to achieve a proper resolution in the m atter of controlling P C B s, and to advise of the availability at a future date of findings from our com pany's resea rch that we b eliev e to be significant. f Dr. E. L. Sim ons, who m anages our com pany's Environm ental P rotection O peration, w as approached through in d u stry chann els, in behalf of NIH, to le a rn if G en era l E le c tr ic would p a r tic ip a te in D r. R a il's N o v em b er 19 s e s s io n on Health E ffects and Human E xposure. The undersigned was invited by D r. Muir to m ake a statem ent at the N ovem ber 20 m eeting on E conom ics and Substitutes. In addition, we had con sid ered req uesting tim e on the program to present new technical inform ation that our Company is developing. We have been constrained to forego a ll of th ese opportunities for participation because of the prim acy o f claim s on our reso u rces occasioned by concurrently-scheduled hearings before the New York State Departm ent of Environm ental C onservation, ) concerning a com plaint of the discharge of PCBs into the Hudson R iver. We fe e l that the data r e fe r r e d to above m a y be p ertin en t a ls o to the d e lib e r a tions of the Hazardous M aterials A dvisory C om m ittee, which has announced that it w ill be review ing a case study oh PCBs on N ovem ber 19/20 in W ashington-a date that conflicts both with the C hicago con feren ce and with our own New York State hearings. \ NEL 000446 782294 D r. John L. Bckley - 2- N ovem ber 14, 1975 Under the c irc u m sta n c es, our com pany's participation in the Chicago Con* feren ce and the W ashington m eeting m ust be lim ited to the role of observation. H ow ever, we b eliev e that our current studies and the reports we have in preparation m ay be of significant value to the EPA and we trust that arrange* menta m ay be m ade for their tran sm ission to and consideration by the Agency at the e a rliest tim e appropriate. Very truly yours, JSN: cas cc: Dr. David P . R ail Dr. Warren M uir D r. Thomas D. Bath bcc: J. F . Brown' E. L. Dobbins N. E. Evans W. R . Krue s i J. F. M cA llister A .V . Puccini E . L.. Sim ons J. F. Young o Jam es S. N elson, Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility NEL 000447 o 782295 8*229-2287 NOVEMBER ACTIVITIES REPORT J a m e s S. N e l s o n _____________ _ D ecem b er 2, 1975 Mr. J. F. M cA llister - -O ffice-- IV PRODUCT ENVIRONM ENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. National Conference on Polychlorinated B iphenyls. The Conference was characterized, for the m ost part, by sober attem pts to achieve better understanding of a m ost com plex en vironm ental problem . The m ost exciting news to com e from the conference was the announcement (ignored by the p ress) that the PCB grade figuring in the Yusho episode w as heavily contam inated by PCDF (polychlorinated dibenzofurans). It was previously known that the Japanese PCB was m ore toxic than the U. S. grades (see our paper of Septem ber 26, Polychlorinated Biphenyls and Their U se in C ap a cito rs, page 14) and we had recen tly learned that the U. S. capacitor grade (A roclor 1016) appears to be free of PCDF (see the October draft of a paper by John Brown et al. Com parison Betw een A roclor 1016 and Unpurified Polychlorobiphenyls in B io accum ulation and T oxicity, page 8). A s a resu lt, we are in a better position than fo rm erly to proclaim the environm ental accep tab ility of the controlled u se of A ro clo r 1016, and to urge EPA to con sid er both the hom olog m ake-up and the le v e l of contam ination by PCDF in their rule-m aking deliberations. 2. Edison E lectric Institute and the PCB P roblem . Mr. N elson was invited, in behalf of EEI's new environm ental com m ittee, to draft a statem ent view ing the PCB problem from the p ersp ective of the investor-ow ned u tilities; how ever, EEI elected not to m ake a statem ent at the C onference. NEL 000448 782296 M r- J. F . M cA llister - 2- D ecem b er 2, 1975 4. Faucett A ssociates. Faucett A sso c ia te s has a contract to provide a study of costbenefit tradeoffs involved in the banning or control of F C B s, and we have been working with Mr- M osbaek of that organiza tion to provide an elem en t of r ea lism in the estim a tes em ployed. At a m eetin g on N ovem ber 25 in F a irfield , Don M arquis provided a m atrix of alternative control sch em es and cost estim ates for Mosbaek*s consideration- JSNrcas NEL 000449 O 782297 o D ecem b er 4 , 1775 o M r. Richard A. Carpenter Executive D irector, C om m ission on Natural R esources N ational R esearch Council 2101 C onstitu tion A v en u e, N . W. W ashington, D. C. 20418 Dear Mr. Carpenter: Highlights of PCB Conference E nclosed, per our telephone conversation, is a reconstruction from m y notes of the "highlights'1m atrix you presented at the c lo se of the National C onference on P C B s. My colleagu es and 1 w ere im p ressed by the equity and ob jectivity of your sum m ary, and its focus on is s u e s , rather than upon the rh etoric exhibited by a few p a rticip a n ts. We plan to m ake u se o f th is su m m ary to inform our a sso c ia te s who w ere not in attendance, and as an aid in planning /m onitoring our own future program s. Your review and com m ent upon m y reconstruction of your rem arks w ill be m ost helpful. V ery truly yours. JS N :cas E n clo su re bcc: J. F. Brown W .A . F e ssle r J .P . Flynn J. F. M cA llister E. L. Sim ons J. F. Young J a m e s ^ `N e ls o n , C onsultant Product Environm ental Com patibility 782298 8*229-2287 J. F . M cA llister J. F. Young D ecem ber 8, 1975 Mr. W alter L. P ow ell W ashington R epresentative-G overnm ent R elations 777 14th S tr e e t, N. W. W ashington, D. C. 20005 D ear Walt: Pursuant to our telephone conversation, 1 am enclosing three docum ents that w ill help you achieve a feel for the current status of the PCB controversy: 1. U s e of P C B s in C ap acitors &c T r a n sfo r m e r s. T h is i s a o n e -p a g e , c o u n se l-a u th o r iz e d " p o sitio n 11 I c a r r ie d w ith m e to th e C hicago N ational C onference on P C B s, for u se in ca se I was backed into a corn er by the p r e ss , and needed a statem ent. The docum ent w as not u sed in C hicago (and not volun teered, b eca u se of the n e c e s s ity to m aintain a low p rofile on this subject w hile the N. Y. State proceedings are going on). 2. H ighlights of National C onference on P C B s, This is an attem pt to condense onto one page the resu lt of three days of speech-m akin g by som e 70 authors. The issu e s are com plex, and recognized as such by all but the rabid a ctiv ists (of whom few w ere in evidence.at C h ica g o ). 3. PCB Chronology. T his h isto ry of the PCB developm ents was put together as a background docum ent to a s sis t those dealing with the N . Y. State p r o c e e d in g s. It is d esig n ed to be read w ith "A" and "B" pages open before the reader, to display contem poraneous and se auential events to best advantage. On page 8A you w ill find the sta te m e n t, "A new p r o p o sa l is an ticip ated in 1975" (referrin g to T oxic Pollutant Effluent Standards). L atest NEL 000451 782299 o kQ M r. W a lte r L* P o w e ll - 2- D e ce m b e r 8, 1975 inform ation is that EFA is striving for a February 1976 proposal. Any advance warning you can pick up of the probable content of this proposal (with resp ect to the control strategy and lim its pro posed for PCB) w ill be invaluable to u s. P lea se ca ll m e when you have further Questions. JS N :cas E nclosures V ery truly yours, /, _ -------- -- Jam es S, N elson, Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility NEL 000452 782300 (Ri \ NEL 000453 782301 n- 8*229-2287 SEPTEM BER ACTIVITIES REPO RT Jam es S. N elson ^ M r . J .F . M cA llister --O ffice-- S e p te m b e r 30, 1976 V. REDACTED t: NEL 000454 782302 >.vlr . J i? M c A llis te r - 2- S ep tem b er 301 1976 REDACTED ? 8. PCB A lternatives M r. N elson has w ritten M r. Luke Hart* offering a su g g ested agenda for the review of p ro g ress in evaluating the environm ental com patibility of alternatives to P C B s. M r. N elson has also agreed to be a co-chairm an of a technical panel on askarel sub stitutes at the 1977 E lectrica l/E lectro n ics Insulation C onference. r\ JSN:cas J. S, N elson NEL 000455 782303 t 8*229-2287 AUGUST ACTIVITIES REPO RT Jam es S. N elson * o M r. J. F. M cA llister --Office -- A ugust 31, 1976 REDACTED !> NEL 000456 782304 k) M r. j . F . M cA llister -2- A ugust 31, 1976 2. FCB PQS participated in the activ ities of the A ction Team on Proposed PCB Rule-M aking the resu lt being a letter of com m ent to EPA that went out over Dr. Sim on's signature on August 19. A m em orandum was prepared (JSN to JF B , 8 -2 5 -7 6 ) on the reported suspicion of a link betw een exposure to A roclor 1254 and the developm ent of cancer in som e M obil C hem ical Company w orkers. A ssista n ce was provided to E le ctr ic Mutual L iability Insurance Company in connection with litigation concerning a PCB sp ill. REDACTED J5N :cas o Vj J . S. N e lso n NEL 000457 782305 8*229-2287 A PRIL ACTIVITIES REPO RT Jam es S. N elaon A p ril 30, 1976 M r. J. F. M cA llister -- O ffice-- ID. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. P C B s It w as reported la st month that the House of R epresen tatives (Connecticut A ssem bly) had passed a PCB b ill that industry can liv e with; and th is w as tru e. But, due to a p eculiar p ro cess of fin an cial-im p act review , the opportunity for redrafting the b ill a r o se , and the D epartm ent of Environm ental P rotection attem pted to include provision for un ilateral determ ination by the C om m issioner of the availability of a suitable substitute for PC B , upon w hich the u se of PCB would be outlawed. H ow ever, the substitute b ill was amended to strike that provision, on a m otion by R epresen tative Serrani, and the re su it--p ro v id ed that it goes through the Senate in ta ct--is the lea st onerous of the current crop of state b ills on this subject, and the lea st objectionable as a precedent for future environm ental legislation. At the R esearch Laboratory on A pril 12, M r. N elson participated in the second se ssio n of an ongoing review of proposed altern atives to PCB in tran sform ers and capacitors (see M emorandum of A pril 20.). REDACTED NEL 000458 782306 M r. J . F . M cA llister *.___j 2 - A p ril 30, 1976 JSN:cas REDACTED F J. S. N elson NEL 000459 782307 :w - 8*229-2287 MARCH ACTIVITIES REPORT J a m e s S. N e ls o n ___________ J__ " A p ril 2, 1976 Mr. J. F. M cA llister --O ffice-- HI. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. State E nvironm ental L egislation Indiana and M ichigan have recen tly enacted anti-PC B b ills. Both b ills ban m o st u se s of PC B . T hey exem p t cap acitor and tra n sfo rm er u se from the ban, but im p ose burdensom e reou irem ents for w ritten notices of intent to u se, annual rep orts, etc. It appears that th ese reou irem ents are to be placed on parties that u se cap acitors and tra n sfo rm ers in th eir b u sin e sse s. A dditionally, the m anufacturer of the cap acitor/tran sform er m u st place a lab el on each item show ing PCB content and other Inform ation. Such lab els apparently are reouired on sm all industrial capacitors, even though in u se they m ay be buried within the item representing the end-use. M r. Donovan learned from the environm ental com m ittee of the Connecticut House of R epresen tatives that they w ere considering recom m ending a b ill with the sam e p ro v isio n s. We furnished m arked-up v ersio n s of the Indiana and M ichigan b ills for evaluation by the C om m ittee, with the result that the C om m ittee has recom m ended, and the H ouse has p a ssed , a bill with com plete ca p a cito r/ tra n sfo rm er exem ption from notice and reporting, and with la b el ing to be in accordance with ANSI standards (which currently recu ire no label on sm a ll capacitors). New York State is currently holding hearings on a proposed toxic substances act. n REDACTED NEL 000460 78230 M r. J. F. M cA llister -2- A p ril 2, 1976 REDACTED o REDACTED NEL 000461 n JSNrcas J . S. Nelson 782309 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 0S431 SUBJECT I D ECEM BER ACTIVITIES REPORT, J . S. Nelson ;" COPIES. Jan u ary 2, 1976 M r. J . F . M cA llister O ffice IH. PRODUCT ENVIRONM ENTAL CO M PA TIBILITY 1. PC B s- New Y o rk State hearings have ended, and b rie fs have been filed . R eply b rie fs are due Jan u ary 12 , and Sofaer obviously cannot render a decision before that date. H is ruling is anticipated around the end of Jan u ary. In presen tin g its c a se , the Company did not em p h asize the new fin d in gs on P C D F (alluded to in our previous report) because of lack of knowledge about the source of P C D F in P C B s. Not to be outdone by New Y o rk State, the F e d e r a l E P A 's R e gion II has announced the intention to r e v is e G E 's d isch arg e p e rm its to c a ll fo r "z e ro d isc h a rg e " by June 30, 19 77 . M r. F arn sw orth has m et with Region II enforcem ent o ffic ia ls and advised them that the Com pany has no c o m m e rc ia lly availab le substitute and that the only w ay to guarantee zero d isc h a rg e is to shut down the plan ts. The Com pany has until Ja n u a ry 26 to file w ritten com m ents on the p roposed actio n . R u sse ll T rain has invited M r. Jo n es to attend a m eeting in W ashington on Ja n u a r y 14 of " m a jo r m a n u fa c tu re rs and u s e r s of P C B s ." A ccording to p re ss'ac co u n ts, M r. T ra in 's purpose i s to prom ote vo lu n tary c u rb s on the u se o f P C B s . It i s u n d e r stood that M r. Jo n es has asked M r. Welch to re p re se n t him . C o m m e n ta ries on the C h icago m eetin g a re now a v a ila b le fro m B row n and F e s s le r . In addition, M r. C arp en ter of the N ational R ese arch Council has confirm ed N elson's report of C arpen ter's presentation of the highlights of the conference, and favored us w ith a copy of h is own notes on the sam e su b je ct m a tte r. NEL 000462 782310 GENERAL x ELECTRIC M r. J". F . M c A llis te r - -'J* 2w -* Jan u ary 2, 1976 2. Hazardous Substances In a separate action, E F A h as issued (40FR59959) proposed rules on the Designation of-H azardous Substances, with a 60-day period fo r r e c e iv in g co m m en ts.' F C B s a r e included on the b a s is of to x ic ity to aquatic anim als. V arious cadm ium , n ickel, a rsen ic, se le nium and m e rc u ry compounds are also included in the lis t of se v e ra l hundred item s to be controlled under Section 3 1 1 of the F ed eral W ater Pollution Control A ct. Need and opportunity fo r comment is being studied in cooperation with EPO . REDACTED NEL 000463 JSN isdf 782311 PCBs 8*229-2287 Jan u ary 5, 1976 J. F. M cA llister --O ffice-- - Dear Jack: Jim Young has exp ressed interest in the current status of three PC B m atters, nam ely, the New York State h earin gs, the Droposed change in our F e d e ral p erm its, and the forthcom ing m eeting with industry announced to the p re ss by R u sse ll T rain . A ccordin gly, this m em orandum goes into these subjects in a little m ore detail than was thought appropriate for m y m onthly report. New York State Hearings The taking of testim on y in the N ew Y o rk State h e a rin g s on a com plaint brought by the New York State Department of Environm ental Conservation (EnCon) again st C E is com plete and b rie fs w ere filed with M r. S o fa e r, the h earing o ffic e r , on D ecem b er 24, 19 75 . R e p ly b r ie fs have been in vited , and a r e to be filed by Jan u ary 12 , 1976. Conceivably, M r. Sofaer could recuest presentation of these m atters o ra lly by counsel; how ever, it is considered m ore lik ely that he w ill r e ly on the w ritten b r ie fs , re p ly b r ie fs , and h e a rin g re c o rd and ren d er a decision at some tim e around the end of Jan u ary. E 's presentation of its c a se , both in term s of testim ony and b rie f, was reported ly ra th e r sh a rp ly d iscip lin ed to em p h asize le g a l ra th er than sc ie n tific is s u e s . A pparently in line with this philosophy, fo r exam ple. D r. John Brow n w as not put on the stand, nor w as m a te ria l he p rep ared used in G E 's le g a l b rie f. The testim on y he was p re p a red to g ive would have shown (am ong other things) that A r o c lo r 10 16 does not ap p ear, fro m the S ta te 's d ata, to h arm fish in c o n c en tra tions of le s s than 5 p a rts p er b illio n ; that th ere is no evid en ce fo r bioaccum ulation fa cto rs, in this situation, of g re a te r than 50, 000; and la stly , that the nature of the problem of m anaging toxicity is im portantly changed by new evidence relatin g to the role of polychlorinated dibenzofurans. It appears that EnCon anticipated testim on y along th ese lin e s, and w as D repared to keep B ro w n on the stand fo r two days of haggling over scien tific detail. The su b jects avoided by G E in its d ire ct testim ony, and e sp e c ia lly the to xicity is s u e , w ere gone into in som e depth on E nC on1s p art, providing the opportunity fo r GE to p re se n t its s c ie n tific c a se in rebu ttal fthe re p ly b r ie f due Ja n u a r y 12 ), should we d e s ir e to do so , without NEL 000464 782312 J. F. V cA U ister -2-s v y Jan u ary 5, 1976 fir s t h aving' set our c a se uo a s a ta rg e t fo r fir e fro m EnCon. it is not known at this w riting whether M r. Evans w ill'o u r sue this strategy or som e other that seem s m ore appropriate from his vantage point. Federal EPA P erm it Revision The Company has received a form al lette r, followed by a copy of a public notice, setting forth re v isio n s which E P A , R egion II, p ro p o ses to m ake in the N FD ES perm its governing d isc h a rg es from the Hudson F a lls / F o r t Edw ards plan ts. (The o rig in a l copies went to Bob L e w i s .) M e s s r s . F a rn sw o rth and Repko reouested an audience with E P A , which w as granted on Monday, F cam ber 29, The principal representative of EPA present was Skolnik, D irector of Enforcem ent, who was accom panied by legal and techn ical staff. Skolnik rep o rts to G erald H an sler, the Regional A d m in istrator of Region II. Notably absent was Regna, whose office n orm ally provides technical lim its that go into p erm its. Regna has let it be known that he w as not consulted in the present action. The proposed m odifications to the perm its contain stringent in terim lim its, c u l m inating in a reou irem en t fo r z ero d isc h a rg e to be ach ieved by Jun e 30, 19 77 . M r. F arn sw o rth focused the co n feren ce on the m a tte r of the in te rim sp e cifica tio n of 1 - 1 /2 lb s. p er day (reaso n in g that i f we can 't w in ap p ro p riate c o n cessio n s on the in terim leve l, we can't stay open to fight the ultim ate lim it). E P A replied that they se t the 1 - 1 / 2 lb. lim it based on th e ir m on itorin g of our plant fo r ten d ays la st August, and thought it was a level that we could m eet. " I f you feel that you can't, give us a statem ent so we can make a judgment. " The discussion disclosed that E F A can m odify its proposed m odifications without the fo rm ality of a hearing on the changes to the p ro p o sal. The E F A o ffic ia ls gave no eviden ce of any w illin g n e ss to negotiate the ultim ate lim it of zero. Hudson F a lls people a re pulling together a m ass of data, and Ed Sim ons has been asked by F arn sw o rth to help gen erate a counter p ro p o sal. A statem ent p rep ared by Sim ons and Repko w ill be teletyped to B e lle a ir fo r re v ie w on W ednesday, Jan u ary 7 in anticipation of m eeting again with E P A during the following week. T rain 's Meeting R u s s e ll T ra in announced to the p re s s that he would be holding a m eeting of " m a jo r m an u factu rers and u s e r s of P C B s " in W ashington during Ja n u a r y , to prom ote volun tary curb s on the u se of P C B s . M r. Jo n e s received an invitation to the m eet ing, which has been scheduled for Ja n u a ry 14 , and has asked M r. Welch to rep resen t NEL 000465 782313 J. F. M cA llister - 3- Ja n u a ry 5, 1976 him. A fte r talk ins' to a m em b er of M r.. T r a in 's staff, M r. Welch does not . anticipate any opportunity fo r a 'tru e dialogue, but rath er som e public relations exposure for M r. Train.. JSN :cas "'"'--i*S^ K ei's on t: o 1SIEL 000466 782314 F ir s t Toxic Substances T ask F o rc e W orkshop/M eeting E ffluen t Standards and Water Quality Inform ation A d v iso ry Com mittee U .S . Environm ental Protection Agency Washington, D. C. Ja n u a r y 15 8t 1 6 , 1976 Int r odu ction The Effluent Standards'and Water Quality Inform ation A d viso ry Com mittee (ESScWQIAC), under the chairm anship of D r. M artha Sager, has establish ed a T o x ic S u b stan ces T a s k F o r c e to a s s is t E P A in im plem en tatio n of 307(a) (Toxic and Pretreatm en t Effluent Standards) of P L92-500, The F ed eral Water P o llu tio n C o n tro l A c t. The f ir s t m eeting of this ta s k fo r c e w as held on Ja n u a ry 15 and 1 6 . and w as open to the public. The m eeting w as re to rd e d , u sin g c o u rt-ste n o g ra p h e r m ethods, but no publication of a t r a n s c r ip t is contem plated. The notes that fo llow a r e b ased on p e rs o n a l o b se rv a tio n of a m em b er of the invited public, and cover points of in te re st to the author. They a re not o ffered as a re co rd of the m eeting. A ppended to th e se notes a re (1) N otice of M eeting, (2) A gen d a fo r M eetin g, and (3) copy of the registratio n list. Opening R em arks Chairm an S ager announced that the m eeting would be concerned with certain asp ects of the proposed toxic product control legislation , and all the acts listed in the notice of m eeting. T opics of in terest include: labeling-claim perm its requ ired handling param eters perm its for human use efflu en t d isc h a rg e s un d er P L 9 2 -5 0 0 , 307 drinking-w ater standards ocean w a ste s, and relevant clean -air act standards. The protection of the biotic segm ent of the environm ent is re c e iv in g m ore em ph asis than a -b io tic fa c to rs. No one is in terested in protecting sand, or ocean -bottom , per se - - ju s t the c re a tu re s livin g th e re, she sa id . 307 is " a dog' s b re a k fa st" so w e 'll " c a s t out n in es" and r e s tr ic t o u rse lv e s in subject m atter. NEL 000467 782315 - 2- 307(a) M r. Ridgw ay H all, O ffice of the G eneral Counsel, E P A , review ed the h istory and status o f action s under 307(a). *The A c t c a lle d fo r a lis t o f to xic su b stan ces in 90 days',' p ro p o se d .ru le -m a k in g in 180 d a y s, public h e a rin g {another.. 1.80 d ay s), followed by prom ulgation of final standards,. This is an extrem ely tight tim e fra m e to gath er and act upon the n e c e s s a r y information,*--and th e A g e n c y w a s, in the event, unable to m eet this tim e fra m e . H ow ever, the court d irected it to go ahead and nam e a lis t and this w as one (9 su b stan ces), and stan d ard s w ere proposed on D ecem b er.27, 19 7 3 , with h earin g s in A p r il and M ay of 19 74 . It was concluded a fte r the hearings that the EPA data base was insu fficient and contained questionable hydrologic assum ptions and econom ic im pact ap p raisal. E P A re a liz e d that an attem pt to prod uce stan d ard s b ase d on the re c o rd of the h e a rin g s would h ave led to cou rt action . C onsequently, the A g en cy decided to go back and get m o re data on to x ic ity and d is c h a rg e s , reth in k the hydro -assu m p tio n s, and restudy the econom ic im pact. E P A is now proposing standards-on'the sam e nine su b sta n c e s. T h is tim e, it w on't t r y to take c a re of a ll nine in the- sa m e p r o ceedin gs, but w ill divide them into groups: fir s t , the four p esticid e s; then benzine; then P C B , followed by cadm ium , cyanide, and m ercu ry. During the question p eriod , it was brought out that the p esticid e pro p o sals m ay be expected aroui the end of F e b ru a ry ; the PC B proposal, near A p ril 1. C ertain le g a tio n is still in p-rocess,H all noted. The.court d ism issed an action brought by NRDC and E D F calling fo r expansion oi the lis t of nine sub stan ces, but the d e c isio n w as rem an d ed on a te c h n ic a lity and is now b e fo re the D. C. D is tr ic t Court. T here are su its, still pending, brought by NRDC & E D F ,. together with C itizens for a B e tter Environm ent, seeking prom ulgation of standards based on the reco rd of the 1974 h earing. t, E P A V iew s on T o x ic Substances L e g isla tio n Glenn Sch w eitzer of E P A (not a p an elist; p re sen t p a rt tim e; and a spokesm an fo r E P A at T ra in 's m eeting with the P C B in dustry on the previou s day) stated that E P A 's intent is to phase P C B s out of the economy as the fir s t act "when the to xic substances b ill p a s s e s ." C arlos F ette ro lf (of the G reat Lakes F ish e ry C om m ission and a consultant to ES&WQIAC) asked when E P A reached this determ ination and w as r e fe r re d by Sch w eitzer to T r a in 's p re ss conference of D ecem b er 22. A sked what ch em icals m ight be taken up next, a fte r the nine a lrea d y designated, S c h w e itze r re p lie d that th ere is no such thing as an "a g e n c y l i s t ." The o rg a n is m s found in d rin kin g w a te r a r e can d id ates, as a r e o th er " c lu s t e r s of m a t e r ia ls . 11 Ken Mackenthun of E P A (a panelist) has been involved in-the prep aratio n of a new versio n of W ater Quality C rite ria and pre-publication copies are now circu latin g fo r in teragen cy review , after which it is to be published. NEL 000468 782316 - 3- S c h w e itze r re p o rte d that a new m arkup of the H ouse b ill on T o x ic Substances Control (Ekhardt, HR 10 3 18 ) becam e availab le on Ja n u a ry 13 . A lso pertinent a re the M c C o lliste r B ill, HR 7664 and, in the Senate, the Tunney B ill, S776. In d iscu ssin g these b ills , Schw eitzer stated that E P A opposes the '.'list of 300" concept. The requirem ent to have a perpetual list of 300 suspect substances that are under evaluation attaches a stigm a to the m aterials listed , m akes people n ervous. "W hy go through two steps? " (i. e. , the listin g p ro cess and the evaluating p ro c e ss). Schw eitzer endorses the approach taken in a report p rep ared by and av ailab le from the N ational A cadem y of Scien ces, entitled, D ecision M aking fo r Regulating C h em icals in the Environm ent. In an sw er to a question about the apparent o verlap in environm ental law s, Sch w eitzer an sw ered that "the A d m in istrato r m akes a judgm ent as to which law can best solve the problem . " Definition of "T o xic Substances" L lo y d Sm ith, of the U n iv e rsity of M in nesota, c h a ire d a d isc u ssio n on the definition of toxic su b sta n c e s. He c a lle d upon K en M ackenthun, who stated that the o rig in a l d efin ition in 3 07 applied only to aquatic e c o s y s te m s , and that E P A is now applying it to human health co n sid eratio n s. Ridgw ay H all pointed out that the g e n e ra l definition of toxic pollutant, 502 (13 ) r e f e r s to "a n y o rg a n ism " and that the leg islative h istory (Senate report) speaks of this as a "benchm ark fo r e v a lu a tin g .. . e ffe c t on h um an s. " W. W. B a r n e s , of T Y A (M uscle Shoals) o b served that any p ro p e r definition of a toxic substance or carcin ogen would have to take into account the concepts of dose and exp o su re. H all noted that the carcinogen definition is from the National C ancer Institute, rath er than E P A , and that it is c u rre n tly under review . Another pan elist called attention to the fa c t that the definition in the A c t (502) is a definition of a to xic pollutant, not a to xic su b stan ce, and that, in h is opinion, th is is not a u se fu l topic to pu rsu e. A spokesm an fo r F M C C orporation , speaking from the flo o r, offered the opinion that some featu res of the 1965 act should have been retained, as that act provided fo r considering the e ffect in the re ce ivin g w a te rs. D r. Iiartun g, of the U n iversity of M ich igan , noted that the language in 307(a) (2) im p lie s that the e ffects to be con sidered are those in the re ceivin g w a te rs. The d isc u ssio n proceeded to the next topic without an attem pt at achieving a consensus or recom m endation. Identification of Toxic Substances Ken M ackenthun ch aired a d isc u ssio n of the iden tification , o r method of designating toxic su b stan ces. M artha S age r started the p ro c e ss by listin g the following suggested p a ra m e te rs on the blackboard: 782317 NEL 000469 -4- persistence or h alf-life biodegradability chronic toxicity ' . acute toxicity \ c a rc in o g e n ic ity m uta geni city teratogenicity ' * bio accum ulation. r T h ere w as not m uch d iscu ssio n at the tim e, but-later (the follow ing day, under the topic of screen in g tests) there w as consideration of the m eaning of term s such as bioconcentration (ratio of a substance in organism s com pared to the amount in w ater); bio accum ulation (build-up in an o rgan ism o ver tim e); and biom agnification (in crease in body burden.at higher le v e ls in the food chain). Mackenthun com m ented that he avoids the term biom agnification becau se he is not su r e it e x is t s : th e re is no evid en ce that it o c c u r s fo r h e a v y 'm etals.- The Setting of Lim its In an sw er to the qu ery, "m u st th ere be one num ber, n atio n ally, to s a tis fy the la w ? " R id gw ay H all spoke of v a ria n c e c la u se s, con sid eration s b ased on the c h a ra c te ristic s of receivin g w ate rs, and hydrological form ulae as w ays of achieving appropriate tailo rin g to fit p a rtic u lar circu m stan ces; Com puter M odeling Speaking from the flo o r, R o lf Hartung of the U n iversity of M ichigan gave an in terestin g exposition of the u se of p ro ced u ral stan dards, with the com puter a s an in teg ral p art of the system . S im ila r procedures have been establish ed Tor a ir quality. Although presen tly available w ater quality com puter program s m ay not be fully adequate, they are perhaps clo se enough fo r tria l u se . The procedure proposed is iterative: 1 . Set a p rovision al lim it by com puter m odeling. 2. M onitor concentration of the pollutant' in question. 3. R e se t effluent lim it (and adjust p rogram ). In c a s e s w h ere th ere a re m u ltip le d is c h a rg e s (under d iffe re n t m anagem ent) to the sa m e body of w a te r, a llo c a te the efflu en t on som e equitable b a s is . The proposed system should work equally w ell fo r d irect m onitoring of concentration in w ater or in d irect control through b io assay of organ ism s in the w ater ( e. g . , as m ight be d e sirab le to control m ethyl m e rc u ry ). The sy ste m , in H artun g's view , provides a conceptually fe a sib le w ay to m ake the linkage between effluent and ambient w ater quality, and it is self-checkin g. ft NEL 000470 782318 - 5- R id gew ay H all e x p re sse d in te re st in re ce iv in g m o re in form ation on H artung's proposal. Control Methods and Concentration L e v e ls The chairm an fo r this part of the d iscu ssion (1-16 -7 6 ), D r. W esley Eckenfelder of V an d erb ilt U n iv e rsity , posed the question, "Is th ere any w ay to e x e r c is e control other than 'pounds p er day at the end of the pipe' ? " T h ere seem ed to be no b asic d issen t fro m this concept, although one m em ber of the audience did note that h is fir m h as a plan t on an in term itten t s tre a m and th e ir p e rm it is w ritten in term s of pounds per year (John K e lle r, A m erican Can Company), - A s the d isc u ssio n m oved to con cen tratio n le v e ls , C h airm an S a g e r re m a rk e d that she is "s ic k and tired of picking up the new spaper every day and.finding that som ething else is a carcin ogen " (i. e. , without re feren ce to dose or exposure). F e tte ro lf pointed out that c a re fu l distinction should be made b e tween the p ro p erties of acute toxicity and carcinogenity. Then he asked the mo r e - o r - le s s rh eto rical question, why can't d isch arg ers be told, "keep m e rc u ry at a level le s s than 0. 5 m icro g ram s p er gram in livin g o r g a n is m s .. - I don't c a r e how you do it, ju s t do it. W hat's w rong with th at? You can estim ate and u se m odels but you can 't p re d ict it a c c u ra te ly . Why have in d u stry do m ore than n e c e ssa ry ? Why not judge p e rm issib le d isch arg es d ire ctly by the body burden? He received the objection that one does not alw ays know the source of the m ercu ry (or other pollutant) found in the organism . A Screening T ests Lloyd Sm ith, of the U n iv e rsity of M innesota, who chaired the d iscu ssio n of _screening m ethods, proposed a th ree-p art regim en: 1 . A sim ple sc re e n in g te st (bioassay) to segregate elem ents that cause toxicity. This should be a test that can be perform ed using "plant personnel, " such as a 24-hour static test. 2. If it is su sp ected that th e re a r e o th er, m o re subtle in flu e n c e s, go to acute tests, e. g. , LC 5 0 te sts, using trained personnel. 3. Where in d icated , go to a chron ic b io a s s a y , re q u irin g fro m two o r th ree months to 18 m onths. When needed, b ioaccu m ulation t e s ts would be in addition to the p ro g ra m d e scrib ed . F e t t e r o lf com m ented that b io a s s a y s should be p e rfo rm e d on the to tal efflu en t, not som e pure (or selected) component of the stream . NEL 000471 782319 - 6T ask F o rc e Plans and A dm inistrative M atters T his w as a "s e m i-c lo s e d " sessio n and the author did not attend. Jan u ary 23, 1976 XvS. N elso n , Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility General E lectric Company F a irfi ld , Connecticut NEL 000472 782320 NOTICES O .irijL *_*_..;. [F R L 407-1) = ....... - - - c.Toxic effluent approach (toxic efifu- tio n .a t the Enviroumental Protection EFFUIaMT STANDARDS'- AND WATER QUALITY INFORMATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE - - ents having unknown combinations of designated toxic mafirials and uniden tified materials. Bioassay would b used to determine toxicity to flow). . Agency, Room E3-31. East Tower. 401 M Street, SW. W a sh in g to n . DC 20460. * On or before February 6.1976. any per son who (a) is or has been an applicant, Notice of Meeting D. Designation of toxic materials and (b) believes th at data he developed and E S u sat Standards and Water toxic diluents on basis of demonstrated t ty Information Advisory Commit ecological effect in receiving water. One tee nss established a Topics Substances of the above alternatives for designating T.ud: Fsro3 to ansist the Environmental a toxic material or a combination of Protecnan Agency in implementation of these alternatives is to*he considered Section 307(a) of PL 02-600 (Toxic Sub instead of TL50 with arbitrary applica- stances E luent Limitations). - tion factor added. - *. The first workshop/meeting of the task force will be conducted a t Washington, D.C. on Thursday, January IS and >Ti- IV . S etting of T olerance Lim it s v' *- (PL 92-500) ' ' submitted to EPA on or alter October 21. 1972, Is being used to support an applica tion described in this notice, (c) desires to assert a claim for compensation under Section 3(c) (I) CD) lor such use of his data, and (d) wishes to preserve his right to have the Administrator determine the amount of reasonable compensation to which be is entitled for such use of the data, must notify the Admimstrator and day January IG, 19'iG. The workshop/ The mechanism far seating nt toler the applicant named in the notice in the meeting v,*ilL begin a t 0:30 a.m^ Jan u ance limit must be accomplished in one Federal Register of his claim, by ccrti-' ary 15 and 1C. Room 1] 12. Crystal Mall or several of the .following ways and fled mail. Notification to the Administra- Building 2, 1321 Jefferson Davis should be ruscified in terms of concen . tor should be addressed to the Inform a Highway, Arlington. Va. . ' trations i.ithcr than on mass loadings tion- Coordination Section, Technical *The workshop/meeting T7ill.be devoted depending upon circumstances and dilu Services Division (WH-569). Office of .to a discussion and critique of the fol- . lowing: L RelttionshIp and Coverage or Current icrs Petdino T oxic Substances Legis lation and R egulations ^ - *, tion. Where mass loading may be high, Pesticide Programs, 401 M Street. SW, a combination of the two-may be needed.1 Washington, DC 204GO. Every such daim - Theselevelscan'beseton:. ant must include,- at. a minimum,- the .... A. Bioassay.... .. information listed in the.interim policy 'V'-B. Community ecology of the receiving .of November 13, 1973.:.- water. .. * Applications submitted under .2(a), or Interpretation and effective implemen ' C. By taking cognizance of .iAcrmit- 2(b) of the interim policy will be proc tation of Section 307(a) of PL 92-500 tent levels of discharge (monitoring). essed to completion In accordance with requires an understanding of related leg D. Variations of acceptable limits of existing procedures. Applications sub islation and regulations. Accordingly, the discharge based on stream :-ow and mitted under 2(c) of the interim policy following must be c o n s i d e r e d : . . .; stream concentration levels. . cannot be made final until the-GO'day CURREiTLEGISLATIONANDREGULATIONS . .-PL 02-000--Water Pollution Controi V. D evelopment of B ioassy . Tliis bioascay method must Methods ' be devel- period has expired. If no claims are received within the 60 day period.the 2(c) application will be processed according -Act--Sec. 207. "* .. * oped or selected so that it is suitable for . PL 92-532--Ocean Dumping Act. identification of toxic materials and -PL 33--522--Safe Drinking Wafer Act. monitoring toxic flows, i t .should be to normal.procedure.. However, if claims *are received within the 60 day period, the applicants against whom the claims are- . FL 32-516--Federal . Environmental slmpie enougn so that technician level asserted will be advised.of the alterna Pesticide Control Act.'. operators can get reliable results. tives available under the Act. No claims .. PL 92-596--Occupational Safety'and Health Act. . . 7,, .. . . 73--717--'Federal Food, -Drug -and .VI. D iscussion of ES&WQIAC T oxic S ubstances T ask F orce F lans will be accepted for possible EPA adjudi cation which.are received after February ,6. 1 9 7 6 : lV - v aeiicAct. "TL SC--613--Federal Hazardous Sub- ' The meeting will be open to the public and under the overall direction of the .,* DatedL November 25, J 975.. stances Act.,. - t.\.. **L ` - PROPOSECDONTTORXOILCBSIULBLSSTAN'VC;EVS Committee Chairman. Since space- is limited, call or .write to Di. Martha Sager, Chairman, or Mr. Martin BrossRiao, Executive Director, ES&WQIAC. . .- i; - --' *Martin H. Rocorr. "i *. *k: v ` *Acting Director. v . ...: .. Registration Division. . H R . 7564, McCollister; - H Jl. 7458, 'EPA. Crystal Mall Bldg*'# 2 , Washing Afflications R eceived (O p ?-33000/345) Brochesd;- H Jl. 7223. Eckhardt; and ton. D.C. 20460, Telephone: Area Code EPA F ile S ym bol 241-EL N , A m erican C r a n a - . S. 775, Tunney: versions of the new 1' (703) 557-7390: .*/* ?. * - m id C o, A gricultural D lr_ PO B o r 400, and proposed Toxic Substance Controi* - " -- */ . ' * // > / / M artha S ager,*'"~ * P rin ceto n N J 08540. AVENGE W IL D -O A T . Act. -l ----- , ,, ; .... ........ i-i------ . cHairman, ES&WQIAC.' . H E R B IC ID E . A c tiv e I n g r e d ie n ts : 'D U e n z o q u it m ethyl su lfate (U -cliaeth y I-3 .5 - n :'D m N T n o N OF T oxic S ubstances-- V [FBDOC.75-323SB Hied 12-5-75:8:45 nm| dlphenyl-lH -pyrazollum m etnyl sulfate) aquatic life (FL 92-500) - - - *3 1 J 5 . M e th o d o f S u p p o r t: A p p lic a tio n It ^Is'necessary to define toxic sub-' stances In terms of aquatic life relating : p ro ceed s u n d e r 2 ( b ) of in te r im .-poUej*. .'j*'.; . [OPP-S300O/345; F B L <65 G] ' V '1 ] .. PM 23 '* ... . . . . . v . . ..i ... EPA FUe Sym bol 241-EUA* A m erlcsh c y n a - - to population maintenance, diversity, V*:" ' RECEIPT OF APPLICATIONS FOR :* - . a m id Oo.. PO Box 400, P rin c e to n N J 03540. and health. Population maintenance will '-. *- PESTICIDE.REGISTRATION.. .. . / ; . - . 2 S TEM EPH O S ; PRESSDItXZED S P R A T . - be judged an effects related to growth.' reproduction,- species diversity,; and ^ '**-* * * * ** ' r.-survival__..V,.'. .: ` :.,*"'...Data To Be Considered in Support of Applications - , 1 .Active In g red ien ts: Tem ephos (O ,0 -(th io - ^ dl-4,l-phenylne) bls(0.O -dlm etbyl phos.. ` phorothloate) 2.0% . M ethod o i-S u p p o rt: -On November 19,T973, the Environ ** A p p licatio n p ro ceed s u n d e r 2 (b ) -or in te r - ; III. M ethod of D esignating*T oxic - . M aterial (PL 92-500) Alternatives to be considered: , A. Existing data base (literature). 3. Generic similarities in toxicity be mental Protection.Agency (EPA) pub lished in th e F ederal R egister (33 FR 31862) its interim policy with respect to the administration of section 3(c) (1) (d) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and im p olicy. IM15 ........... . . . - .. NPA R eg No. 404--426. D ow C h e m ic a l Co,. AitrTM i D ept.. PO Box 1706, M idlaud LH 4864o! *- 7237L- A N T D .IIC liO B IA I.. A ctiv e I n g r e d i ents: 2.2-D lbrom o-S-nltrllopropionam lde : 20^f. M ethod of S u p p o rt: A pplicadon p ro tween chemicals with known toxicity Rodenticide Act (FIFKA), as amended. ceeds u n d e r 2 ( a ) of In te rim p o lle r. PM 24 levels uud chemicals with unknown bio logical effect (this would be based oh ' available data showing similarity of bio This policy provides that EPA will, upon receipt of every application for registra. tion. publish in. the F ederal R egister a notice containing the information shown EPA -FUe S ym bol 736S-C T . G sorgtA -Pacific Corp., 2425 M a tt Ave,, Los A ngeles CA 00040. SFA-CLOR. A ctive X iifycdlents: S odium cil- - chotor-s-triaslnetrtoue d lh y d rate 10 0 5 *. logical effects from materials with simi^ Lar chemical structures). . . . _ below- The labeling furnished by each . - M ethod of S u p p o rt: R epublished--A ppliw. *c a tio n p r o c e e d s . u n d e r 2 ( b ) m t b e r t h a n applicant will be available for cxnmina- 2 (c) o f in te rim policy. PM34 . " 1 FEDERAL REGISTER, VOL 40, NO. 236--MONDAY, DECEMBER B, 1975 NEL 000473 782321 EFFLUENT STANDARDS AMD WATER QUALITY INFORMATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE (ES&WQIAC) Jan. 15-16, 1976 t \ ^i -^ ! AGENDA FOR MEETING .;rv - CRYSTAL MALL BLDG. #2 WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460 JAN. 15 - Rm. 1112 * (9:30 AM to 12:30 PM) 1. CHAIRMAN'S CALL TO ORDER AND OPENING REMARKS 2. RELATIONSHIP AND COVERAGE OF CURRENT AND PENDING TOXIC SUBSTANCES LEGISLATION AND REGULATIONS 3. DEFINITION OF TOXIC SU3STANCE5 (1:30 PM to.4:30 PM) 4. METHOD OF DESIGNATING TOXIC SUBSTANCES 5. SETTING OF TOLERANCE LIMITS J- --AN. 16--:-*Rnu 1112 (9:30 AM' to 12:30 PM) .. 1. CHAIRMAN'S CALL TO ORDER AND OPENING REMARKS 2. REVIEW OF PREVIOUS D A Y 'S DISCUSSION AND STATUS' 3. DEVELOPMENT OF BIOASSAY AND OTHER EVALUATIVE METHODS tpf (1:30 PM to 4:30 PM) 4. ES&WQIAC TOXIC SUBSTANCES TASK FORCE PLANS 5. ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS " NEL 000474 782322 attendance list for U . s . E N V I R O N M E N T A L p r o t e c t i o n -a g e n c y EFFLUENT STANDARDS AND WATER QUALITY INFORMATION ADVISORY- COMMITTEE JAN. 15 & 16, 1976 FIRST TOXIC SUBSTANCES TASK FORCE V* WORKS IIOP/MEETING CRYSTAL MA L L BLDG. "2 CRYSTAL CITY, ARLINGTON VA.. CONFERENCE ROOM fr 1112 , NEL 000475 782323 attendance list for U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL p r o t e c t i o n a g e n c y EFFLUENT STANDARDS AMD WATER QUALITY INFORMATION ' ADVISORY COMMITTEE JAN. 15 & 16, 1976 FIRST TOXIC SUBSTANCES TASK FORCE W0RKSI10P/MEETIKG. CRYSTAL MALL BLDG. "2 CRYSTAL C I T Y , ARLINGTON VA. CONFERENCE ROOM # 1112 ' NAME _ a i (P , JT> AFFILIATION nr^M aS V (& >!& > tU. IjV-||^^^ Cr*s.~ r-Sr S '!lG r d i/V AMlCa ADDRESS '^ s f i i w k G u ~ ^ H C 4&7FiJ33M& . 5 7 / p?fr dLs#/*s a fWpo ? c l fJi O Q LW& J, ~ I ',/}> G*wjWL*sJ*' 4^ c/ LOtb-z-n<?j^& r \ &\ f ;'.yy*:/ j*A /O -a^ <"v{C? aft*i--- &P U . f-J . A ^ Cxm ivvaKak^t'n h n h ^ f ; a Luml (a J^1 f/tT . UAito^i-' L c / Ac t^\ l,l7"4-p G $ .T 'AC., ASQo 0 /1 '* f d* L j / \L llL CT n . Vi. <c\ , 7 , / / 0" A jt&L M6 s / s ^ gir r r P / / / J : G r ,_ d f[ \iA .jiJ b u - ' f ' i J L , (2c> frjsy w CByi^s>j c-^x o'G y. y* ^-1 ~r`~&k^ JyQ_. ^,4 r~).4^7L r * , / V / L V/;--L*. >1. /\/p A*** L m L 'V nT/oe.tf ` p . - / / , . 1/ .//> - :.i j .-v i c / ; g t L & i FM s/ ;< ( / ?.c. * 1 ? r7? Ri^ j / 1 rf ? i4tT_" J~-1 P>_? M- \f/A A jjjj *. .?' J/\ %*"!. 3/ :v-A? f c u /? V/ /1 /ijz; A *i f t a f ** / --- / V P o o o 782324 O' ATTENDANCE LIST FOR U.S. e n v i r o n m e n t a l p r o t e c t i o n A G ENCY E F FLUENT STANDARD'S A N U W A T E R QUALITY I N F O R M A T I O N ADVISORY-COMMITTEE JAN. 15 & 16, 197 6 FIRST-TOXIC SUBSTANCES TASK FORCE: WOR K 5U0 P/MEETING. ' C R Y S T A L M A L L BLDG. "2 CRYSTAL CITY, A R L I N G T O N VA. CONFERENCE ROOM # 1112 NEL 000477 782325 ATTENDANCE LIST DOR U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY E F F L U E N T S T A N D A R D S A N D VATER Q U A L I T Y I N F O R M A T I O N ADVISORY COMMITTEE f JAN. 15 & 16, 1976 FIRST TOXIC SUBSTANCES C R Y S T A L M A L L DLDG. "2 TASK FORCE . CRYSTAL C I T Y , ARLINGTON VA. WORKSHOP/MEETINC - C O N F E R E N C E R O O M if .1112 NEL 000478 782326 TOXIC SUBSTANCES 8*229-2-207*-; R. C. Osthoff F .D . P rice January 23, 1976 TO: M essrs. J. F . Brown J. P . Flynn W. R . K ru esi J. F. M cA llister E. L. Simons J. F . Young G entlem en: U n less you have sp ecific in terest in the subjects covered, you probably won't profit from wading through the attached account of the fir st m eeting of M artha Sager's Toxic Substances Task F orce. The following are m y personal "gleanings" and evaluation. . e If the Toxic Substances Control Act is passed , it is the intention of EPA (T rain /S ch w eitzer) to "phase PC B s out of the econom y" as th eir fir s t act under the law. By adm inistrative act, they propose, in effect, to preem pt further evaluation of the com plex issu e s left "open" in the form al sum m ary of the Chicago m eetin g. T oxic Pollutant Effluent Standards for PCBs w ill be proposed sep arately from standards for the other substances on the list of nine, and the PCB proposal is to be expected about A pril 1. The first m eeting of this Toxic Substances' Task Force was not only open to the public, but public participation was actively encouraged. Indeed, the only substantive suggestion of any m erit with regard to the control of toxic substances cam e from a m em ber of the audience. (Hartung: com puter m odeling.) o EPA officials in attendance w ere playing their cards v ery clo se to their ch ests. No glim pse was given of the nature of the toxic pollutant effluent standards to be proposed, even though they plan to issu e the fir st group (the four p esticid es) next month. NEL 000479 782327 'z J a n u a r y 3 , IVVb It is difficult to se e how this Taslj F orce, even if it acquires m ore focus and a g g r essiv en ess in its com ing m eetin g s, can have any significant leverage on EFA plans. Tim e is just too short. o o Ji \ .1 782328 NEL 000480 To. l'ir. ,T. F. Young -:f Date 2-2-76 Dear Jim . Around April 1, EPA will be proposing new "Toxic Pollutant Effluent Standards" for PCBs. The proposed discharge limits will undoubtedly be related to the proposed `W ater Quality Criteria" now being circulated within the Government. They are proposing 1 part per trillion as a goal for PC3 in the nation's waters. John Brown says the basis for 1 ppt is "flaky"; that his staff could attack it in a "referee paper" for a couple of days' effort. He wishes to know if he would have Coporate backing for doing so. Hay we discuss? cc: JF McAllister J. S. Nelson 8*229-2287 t/Y) - i W. C. Hart J. F. M cA llister E . L. Sim ons M r. J. H ervie Haufler Manager - Corporate E ditorial Com m unications F a ir fie ld W1D F e b ru a ry 9, 1976 Dear H ervie: The January-February M onogram , transm itted with your tip -on slip of February 3, contains a num ber of m isstatem en ts on the FCB question ("Q&A o n P C B s ," p. 8). e The fir st PCB capacitors w ere introduced by GE in 1931 m anufactured in P ittsfield . The first PCB transform ers w ere introduced about the sam e time a lso by GE at P itts field . not in the 1920s. as stated in the a rticle. The production of capacitors was later transferred to Hudson F a lls and Ford Edward. The w ashing of ca p acitors is p resen ted as "the ch ief sou rce of contam ination." under the heading. "How does PCB get into the en viro n m en t? " We a r e in fo rm ed that the r e c y c lin g of post-treatm ent wash w ater was instituted last year. M ore im portantly, it is doubtful that any capacitor or tra n s form er p rocess or condition of u se has ever been a "chief source of contam ination." M ost of the PCBs in the environ m ent are believed to be derived from the form erly w ide spread "open" applications in such products as paints, coat in gs, p la stic iz e r s, carb on less copy paper, and the lik e, not from sealed u se in electrica l products. The article states that PCB effluent regulations w ere fir st im posed by the U. S. Environm ental Protection Agency in January of 1973. No such regulations have ever been Issued. They w ere proposed in D ecem ber 1973. In the f": N E L 000^82 782330 M r. J. H ervie Hufler v - 2- February 9, 1976 period M arch-M ay 1974 the proposed toxic pollutant effluent standards for PCBs w ere opposed by G eneral E lectric and others in a hearing before an adm inistrative law judge. EFA was forced to withdraw its proposal for lack of a sufficient data b ase. A new proposal is anticipated in 1976. Let m e again a ssu re you that we stand ready to provide pre-publication review of editorial m atter pertaining to product environm ental concerns and Dr. Sim ons authorized the sam e offer to be m ade in h is behalf con cerning environm ental m atters related to Company fa c ilitie s and p r o c e s s e s . V ery truly yours, JS N ica s 0 'James S. N elson , Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility ? NEL 000483 782331 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 05431 SUBJECT Q&A SHEETS ON P C B s COPIES: J . F . M c A llis te r M arch 8, 1976 M r. Laughran S. Vaber F a ir fie ld W1D Dear L arry: It a p p ea rs to m e that a good job h as b e e n done on the Q&A s h e e ts (your le tte r of M arch 5, 1976) and that the o v e r a ll p o sitio n i s sound. I do have a few com m ents, which, factored in with the others you w ill be receiving, should help to p olish up the fin al product. H istory of PCBs #2. By not m entioning tra n sfo rm ers, som e people m ight think you are trying to hide u se of PC B s in tr a n sfo r m e rs. Suggest: "PCBs p o s s e s s a unique com bination of e le c tr ic a l p rop erties and nonflam m ability that m akes them the id eal choice for insulating flu ids in certa in capacitor and tran sform er ap p lication s. It was for the very . . . " etc. , as is . #5. I see two d ifficu lties with this statem ent (even though it has been u sed before). (A) It could be m isu n d erstood b y the rapid read er to m ean ", . .m ak e certain that PCBs are p ersisten t in the environ m ent. " (B) The particular form ulation now u sed in capacitors is significan tly le ss p ersisten t than other w idely distributed P C B s, a fact that is lo st sight of in the p resent answ er. We su ggest: "PCBs are relatively stable, lon g-life, m an-m ade compounds. As a resu lt, their p resen ce in the environm ent is by definition 'unnatural. ' The p ersisten ce and the potential for deleteriou s effect depend upon the sp ecific PCB compound and the p resen ce or absence of contam inantsr " NEL 000484 782332 GENERAL ELECTRIC Mr. Laughran S. Vaber - 2- M arch 8, 1976 GE Containm ent and Abatem ent E fforts #1. We su ggest that you con sid er adding a new secon d sen tence to your answ er, to cover a point not addressed elsew h ere: "There is recent evidence supporting the view that this m aterial is a lso low er in chronic toxicity than other compounds of PCB and rep resen ts, for exam ple, le s s of a threat to fish ." #4. Would suggest: "V ery su c ce ssfu l. At the p resen t tim e, out of thousands of gallons of PC B s u sed daily, le s s than a total of 2 pounds (1 -1 /2 pints) leak into the m ore than 1 -1 /2 m illion gallons of w ater circulated through the plants daily. This is a reduction from a discharge level of approxim ately 30 pounds (2 -3 /4 gallons) per day sev e r a l years ago. #5. Change la s t sen ten ce of answ er to: M ost sc ie n tists would agree that there w ill alw ays be som e lea k a g e, even though v e ry sm a ll, and that no m a tter how sm a ll, instrum en ts w ill be developed that are sen sitiv e enough to detect it. #7. Inasm uch as a number of "substitutes" are being publicly d is cu ssed , the word "finding" sounds like we don't know w hat's going on. How about: ". . . solution m ight be adopting a substitute . . .u n til it is proven acceptable General E lectric wants. . . " Search for PCB Substitute #1. We m u st tr y to p r e se n t the sa fe ty is s u e without boxing o u r s e lv e s in. P erhaps "mandatory" is too strong, as our fail-b ack position m ay have to be a flam m able fluid with greater relian ce on p rotective d ev ices built into the capacitor. We suggest: 782333 GENERAL ELECTRIC M r. Laughran S. Vaber J M arch 8, 1976 ". . . non-flam m ability that the industry has been relyin g upon for the safety of certain applications. " #4. Suggest changing "the fu ll spectrum " to "a g rea t v a r ie ty o f .. . " #5. Change "uses" to " u sers." H ealth Q uestions #2 (last line) change "rem oved" to "rem oval." #4. Change "can cause" to "has caused" in the q u estion . # 5 . I'v e s e e n la r g e r num bers than "500." S u g g e st " is (not i s said" ) sev era l hundred tim es. .. " #6. Suggest change to: "G eneral E lectric is operating under a State certified , F ed eral EPA p erm it... " etc. #7. Change "zero distance" to "zero d isch arge." Omit phrase "at this tim e ." #8. Suggest change to: "No. The hearing o fficer's opinion was that G E's prior d ischarges w ere in violation of law. . . no finding was m ad e, or opinion ex p ressed , w ith regard to current discharge le v e ls. The p r o p o se d .. . ", etc. #9. Suggest (inasm uch as hearing officer lacks authority to m ake fin al leg a l decision) changing the word "determ ine" to " exp lore." JS N :cas P ro d u ct E n viron m en tal Compati'. NEL 000486 782334  ai . V* February 25f 1976 M r. V ictor Botnick O ffice of C ongressm an Koch 26 Federal Plaza New York, N .Y . 10007 D ear M r. Botnick: We understand that you are seekin g background inform ation on the Polychlorinated Biphenyls issu e in connection with proposed legislation . The accom panying document is not in every detail up to date, but does have the virtue of being already in the public dom ain (and th erefore th ere is no problem of public r e le a se ). If you have questions after reading th is, it m ay suggest other categories or other inform ation which we w ill be able to supply. We hope this is resp on sive to your need. V ery truly yours, Jam es S. N elson , Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility JSNscas E nclosure: "The R ole of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in E le ctr ic a l Equipment - Feb. 4 , 1972" cc: W. C. H art J .F . M cA llister 782335 NEL 000487 ) 8*229-2287 J .F . M cA llister M arch 12, 1976 M essrs. T .R . Casey L.. P . H art, J r. W .C. Hart R. C. Osthoff E .L . Sim ons G entlem en: Jack M cA llister and I appreciate your help over the past several days, and that of your a sso cia tes, in preparing an a ssessm en t for staff inform ation purposes of the current PCB status. Enclosed is a copy of Jack's m em o of 3-4-76, ,TPC B R ou n d u p .11 V ery truly yours, ft- JSN:caa E n clo su res Jam es S. N elson , Consultant *^ P ro d u ct E n v iro n m en ta l C om p atib ility NEL 000488 782336 8*229-2287 JAPANESE TRANSFORMERS AND CAPACITORS -J' P .Y . Chu J. F . Flow ers L. P . Hart J. F. M cA llister M arch 31, 1976 M r. W. C. H art F airfield 1VI-B Dear Bill: This is to supplem ent Jack M cA llister's letter of yesterd ay with further com m ent pursuant to your reau est that we evaluate the inform ation con tained in J. F . F lo w er's le tte r of M arch 26 to you. It is d ifficult to com e by reliab le inform ation from Japan on any subject related to P C B s, but on the b asis of present knowledge we recom m end against the u se of either the railroad transform er story or the capacitor voltage story in d iscu ssio n s of the Japanese situation. Transform ers It seem s that the Japan N ational R ailw ay w as once exem pt from the PCB ban, but is no longer. On A p ril 10, 1972, M. J. M o o re, then CR&D's s c ie n tific r e p r e s e n ta tiv e to Japan, rep orted that ''the pow er g en era tin g co m p a n ies and ra ilw a y s y s te m s are exem pt from the recent MITI ban on the u se of PCB in e le c tr ic a l eou ip \ m e n t." H ow ever, Ken MatheB of CR&D v isite d Japan la s t fa ll and talk ed to two of the principal m anufacturers of tra n sfo rm ers. He v isite d T oshiba on Septem ber 29, 1975 and H itachi the next day. The follow ing a re th ree sep arate excerpts from his trip report: 'The Japanese governm ent has com pletely banned the u se of PC Bs in Japan, apparently because of incidents not related d irectly to e lectrica l applications. "C om m ercially, silicon e oil has replaced a sk a rels only to fill tra n s form ers used Inside the e lectric locom otives for the very exten sive, e lectrified railw ay sy ste m in Japan. . . D ry type tra n sfo rm ers have ?fir-. NEL 000489 782337 M r. V\ C. H art - 1- M arch 31, 1976 been used to replace ask arel filled tran sform ers in other a p p lica tio n s.. . The dry type tran sform ers are la rg er. . .In the lo co m o tiv e, space is at a prem ium , so the silico n e oil has been used in this one ca se . "I could not get a s a tis fa c to r y a n sw er as to how the fir e r e s is ta n c e of the silicon e o il had been te s te d ." Subseouent d iscu ssio n with Mr. M athes has d isclo sed that nuestions he posed at the tim e of h is v isit concerning retrofit and repair of P C 5 tran sform ers elicited only eouivocal respon se. We conclude that s o m e tim e betw een A p r il o f 1972 and S ep tem b er of 1975, the Japanese ban was extended to em brace railw ay locom otive tran sform ers. C ap acitors The point that the F low ers m em orandum m akes about v o ltages and corona lev el appears to be valid for Europe, but not for Japan. The referen ce to capacitor voltages presum ably refers to the practice in m uch of the world outside the United States to place the flu o rescen t-b a lla st capacitor a cro ss the term in als of the lighting circu it supply lin es, rather than in s e r ie s w ith the rea cto r. U. S. b a lla st ca p a cito rs are d esign ed to operate at a ca p a cito rterm inal voltage of about 290 to 305 v o lts, depending upon ballast design con stants. A capacitor placed a c ro ss the lin e, follow ing European p ra ctice, would be exposed only to the ligh tin g-circu it voltage, typically 220 volts in Europe. ..One conseau en ce of th is d ifferen ce in voltage is that it is fea sib le to u se unim pregnated, m etalized capacitors for European lighting sy stem s. Such capacitors. If substituted in U. S. sy ste m s, would fa il rapidly b ecau se of corona induced by the higher voltage within dom estic b allast circu its. Thus, w herever ballasts are designed for capacitors at line voltage, there is le s s concern over the problem of adeouate substitute for PCB capacitors. T here is reason to b eliev e, how ever, that the prevailing p ractice in Japan m ay be to follow the U. S. design approach, rather than the European m odel. A s evidence, the B allast B u sin ess D epartm ent cites a recent opportunity to ouote on a large volum e of Japanese rapid-start ballasts. T heir standard U .S . ballast cam e clo se to m atching the Japanese specification. Confirmation of Japanese ballast design practice is being sought through Rudy K oehler (at the reou est of B allast B usiness Department). NEL 000490 782338 M r. vr. C. H art - 3- M a rc h 31f 1976 Apart from the ballast capacitor situation, there is a significant diiference betw een the effect on the capacitor industry of a PCB ban in Japan and a p ossib le PCB ban in the United States. This has to do with the separate cou rses of developm ent of the electric utility pow er-factor correction capacitor designs in the two cou n tries. In the U. S. it has long been the p ra ctice to supply the rem iisite en erg y -sto ra g e capability in units of a few rea ctiv e k ilo v o lt-a m p eres (KVAR) each , up to a m axim um of, say, 200 to 400 KVAR. T hese units em ploy high e lec tr ic a l str e ss in th eir design, to con serve m aterial and m axim ize c o st-e ffe c tiv e n e ss. The relatively sm a ll unit size allow s flexib ility in application, enabling the capacitance to be placed w here needed to cut down n eed less tra n sm issio n of e le c tr ic current. In Japan, by c o n tr a st, it w as the p ra c tic e h is to r ic a lly to build la r g e , "tank. type" ca p a cito rs o f high rating (je. g . , 1000 KVAR), u tiliz in g low e le c tr ic a l s tr e s s to guard against failure, which could p resent serio u s problem s in such large capacitors. P rior to the Japanese decision to stop using PC B s, there had been a trend away from the lo w -str e ss, tank-type, designs toward m odern h ig h -str e ss PCB u n its. When the ban cam e along, this trend cea se d , and the Japanese could continue with their older technology without being faced with as great a ch an ge-over problem as they would have had a few y e a rs la ter (or as we could have in the U . S. 1. A s suggested by Jack M cA llister's letter of yesterd ay, we lack confidence that the Japanese are system atically evaluating the possible safety consecruences of the ^andonment of PCB. V ery truly yours JSN: cas Jam g s ^ fe lS telso n . '_________ _ Product Environm ental Compatibility NEL 000491 782339 3*229-2287 SUBSTITUTE FOR THE SUBSTITUTE CONNECTICUT FCB BILE W .C . Hart J .F . M cA llister A pril 3, 1976 Mr. Frank V. Donovan M gr-Connecticut Public A ffairs F a ir fie ld W1B Dear Frank: The substitute bill now being offered by the Departm ent of E nvironm ental P ro tectio n (your le tte r o f A p ril 7) is in som e r e sp e c ts an im p rovem en t over that previously accepted by the Environm ent C om m ittee. It d eletes the obscure and p ossib ly irrelevan t referen ces to parts per m illion in product. A product with useful amounts of PCB in it w ill not need sophisticated analytical tech niques fo r the d eterm in a tio n of the p r e s e n c e o r a b se n c e o f P C B . We a ls o sym pathize with the d esire of the DEP to stay out of the PCB an alysis bu sin ess: it takes not only expensive chrom atographic instrum ents but highly trained technicians following a very strict d iscip lin e extending even to person al hygiene, to avoid cro ss contam ination from one sam ple to the next. T here are two im portant resp ects, how ever, in which this b ill should be m odified to avoid situations potentially em barrassing to the DEP and the leg isla tiv e so o n so rs of the b ill. We refer to S ection s 5 and 6. Section 5. as w ritten, would require the d estru ction of PCB p rio r to d isp o sa l, without exception. This m eans that even the sm a ll amount in a capacitor buried insid e an old lighting fixture or w orn-out air conditioner or TV set would have to be ferreted out and sent to a sp ecial high-tem perature, program m ed incinerator. It has been dem on strated that PC B s have a m arked affinity for s o il p a r tic le s. H ence. PCBs eventually working their way out of discarded products of the type m entioned are not prone to m igrate after they reach the earth in a landfill site, w h ere th ey m a y be e x p e cted to slo w ly and h a r m le s s ly d is in te g r a te . We reco m m en d returning to the language of Section 5 in the C om m ittee v ersio n (of about M arch 27). This version provides a ll the authority needed to regulate proper disposal from larger sources such as transform ers and electric utility capacitors. Section 6 would require the C om m issioner of DEP to be the so le judge of whether or not an acceptable substitute is available for PCBs in elec tr ic a l apparatus. This requires judgm ents in two areas beyond the purview of environm ental d is- 7 NEL 000492 782340 J M r. Frank V. Donovan - Z..v* A p ril 8, 1976 ciplinea: technical feasib ility, including an evaluation of perform ance ch a ra cteristics and reliab ility of the end products; and, m ore im portantly from a public in terest view point, it would reau ire of the C om m issioner a u n ilateral judgm ent of the adequacy of the substitute to protect against the hazards of fire and explosion. Such a d ecision m ight have to be made in an atm osphere of conflicting com m ercial cla im s, and would find the C om m issioner in a position of having to m ake a technical appraisal without the m eans at his d isposal to m ake his own engineering and scien tific de term inations. A ccordingly, we recom m end retaining only the fir st sentence of the proposed Section 6, A dditionally, we w ish to point out the co rrect way to cite the ANSI Standard (Section 3, a) and to suggest wording that w ill allow for referen cing the la test edition of that standard while at the sam e tim e allowing m anufacturers appropriate lead tim e: . . labeled in accordance with the A m erican National Standards Institute, In c ., guidelines, as incorporated in the edition of A m erican National Standard C 107.1 that 3hall have been in effect for at lea st six months prior to the tim e of m anufacture." V ery truly yours. JS N :cas D J u n e s S. N elson, Consultant Product Environm ental Compatibility f NEL 000493 782341 V 1 8*229-2287 J. F . M cA llister A pril 9, 1976 W .C. Hart F a irfield W1B Dear Bill: It appears that the adm inistrative establishm ent has decided that PC Bs have to go; that no one is in terested in hearing about fir e safety; that evidence concerning the value to the public and the m inim al environm ental risk of carefully-m anaged continued u se falls on deaf e a rs. If this be the c a se , is there any point in continuing to oppose bad le g isla tiv e proposals? f We think there is . F ir st of a ll, the b u sin esses concerned could be im peded by ill-con sid ered state legislation that m ight becom e operative before a nation-w ide resolution is attained. Second, and perhaps of great im portance in the long run, state laws becom e m od els for each other and for national legislation . PC Bs w ere not the fir st, and won't be the la st m aterial to fall a victim to environm ental character a ssa ssin a tio n . The next target could w ell be whatever is selected to replace P C B s, alm ost ir re sp e ctiv e o f its m erits. A ll the leg isla to r has to do is pick up h is red pencil, strike "PCB" and enter the name of the new m aterial. V oilal Instant environm ental legislation . That scenario is perhaps a little fan ciful, but the point is valid . A good b ill, n recognizing com peting values (e. g ., product safety), the com plexity of the is su e s , and the need to p reserv e due p r o c ess, w ill form a better m odel for future legislation. V ery truly yours, t J S N ica s / Jam es S. N elson, Consultant - ^Product Environm ental Com patibility 782342 NEL 000494 8*229-2287 A pril 20, 1976 M emorandum: A lternative D ielectrics: Environm ental . _ Com patibility and Safety R eview A ctivities TO: M r. J. F . M cA llister FROM: M r. J. S. N elson An "environm ental im pact review board" is m eeting at appropriate intervals to evaluate inform ation pertinent to the selectio n of alternative d ielectric fluids for cap acitors and tra n sfo rm ers (on the assum ption that PC B s w ill not be a v a il able for the long te r m ). T his group m e t on M arch 18 and A p r il 12 and w ill m e e t again on M ay 18. The Chairman is Luke Hart and other m em b ers are Bob Stenger (Hudson F a lls Laboratory), Bob Osthoff, John E ge, Ed Sim ons, and Jim N elson . Roy Moody attended the first m eeting. The purposes of this activity m ight be defined as (1) avoiding another "FCB episode;" (2) insuring the adequacy and quality of resea rch to support operating d ecision s. N eed less to say, the "board" won't m ake operating d ecisio n s, but w ill help a ssu re that appropriate m atters have been considered. Two National Academ y of Sciences publications have recently becom e available .and are con sid ered im portant r e fer en ce s for rev iew work: D e cisio n Making for Regulating Chem icals in the Environm ent and P rin cip les for Evaluating C hem icals in the Environm ent. The form er focu ses on d ecision making at the F ederal lev el, w hile the latter is a technical and scien tific a sse ssm e n t of m ethods for evaluating nisks and hazards associated with chem icals that m ay pose environm ental th reats. Among the topics addressed in the second volum e are: Human Health E ffects A cute and subchronic toxicology Chronic toxicity Chem ical carcinogenesis Reproductive Hazards E ffects on Behavior 782343 NEL 000495 M r. J. F. M cA llister - 2- A p ril 20, 1976 Nonhuman B iological Effects Environm ental toxicology Sim ulated system s F ield studies of populations and eco sy stem s Episodic exposures Inanimate System s E ffects of chem ical w astes on the atm osphere E ffects of chem icals on inanim ate m aterials, e. g . , building and construction m a teria ls The "board" agreed that m ethodologies can be view ed in term s of the three "R 's, " routes, ra tes, and reserv o irs; i. e . , environm ental transport, p ersisten ce and h isto ry . In addition to the human health effects liste d above, the group w ill con sider other attributes associated with product sa fe ty --e sp e c ia lly fire resista n ce. (P erform ance of a candidate d ielectric in the end product, to the extent it affects relia b ility and safety, would a lso be a pertinent con sideration. ) Osthoff reported that the T ransform er D ivision has settled upon two fir e -sa fe ty te s ts, in con su lta tio n w ith G eorge M oore (CR8cD): fir e point and sp r a y fla m m a b ility t e s t s . A t the second m eeting of the group, m ovies of the perform ance of sev e r a l can didate transform er and capacitor fluids undergoing a spray flam m ability teat w ere view ed. S ilic o n e s The O ffice of Toxic Substances (EPA) has issu ed a report (E P A -560/2-75-004) ca lled " A ssessm en t of Liquid Siloxanes (S ilicon es)," dated Septem ber 1975. M icroorganism s and plants that have been tested show no toxic e ffe cts. F ish , according to the report, seem quite tolerant to rela tiv ely high concentrations of silico n e. T esta on daphnia (water fle a s) show som e m ortality, but it is acknow l edged that this could be attributed to the effects of the em ulsion, independent of the sp ecific properties of siloxane. The report appears to lean over backwards to avoid "approving" silo x a n e s, u sin g phrases' such as "no indication of aquatic innocuity" and the "conclusion that further stu d ies a re not required becau se of the high LCgQs is Q uestionable. " Dow Corning m et with Schw eitzer (EPA) on M arch 23 to "aualify" silic o n e s. No inform ation has com e back to us from that m eeting. Silicone Products Depart m ent was considering the sam e approach at the tim e of the group's la st m eeting, and it has sin ce been learned that a date of A pril 29 has been estab lish ed . NEL 000496 782344 M r. J .F . M cA llister - 3- A p ril 20, 1976 A fire point'greater than 550 F and the passing of the spray flam m ability te st (ASTM) are ten tative c r ite r ia fo r.a ccep ta b le fir e r e sista n c e . F acto ry Mutual u s e s a s im ila r t e s t to the ASTM sp ra y treat. SF97 h as " p a ssed '1 once and ''failed" on ce on the F a c to r y M utual t e s t . C r ite r ia a r e so m ew h a t su b je c tiv e , and it is planned to repeat the te sts using encoded, rather than labeled, sam p les. Dr. T orkelson (W aterford) advises that a sm a ll-sca le retrofit experim ent is planned w ith B . F . G oodrich C o ., which is d esirou s of changing the fluid in existing tran sform ers from PCB to silico n e. A lso, P ittsfield has an ERDA contract to evaluate som e 40 flu ids, including "carbon functional" silico n es with d ielectric constants in the capacitor range (but at som e sa cr ific e in th erm al stability). Dioctyl Phthalate (D .O .F . ) C apacitor D epartm ent has "paid its dues" ($4, 000) and join ed the MCA panel on phthalates for ready a c ce ss to sponsored resea rch findings. The City o f D etroit has proposed a set of ordinances for lim iting industrial effluent into the city 's sew ers to 100 ppt for PCB and DOP. No other ch em icals w ere the subject of such lim its . Hatco Co. (a vendor to C apacitor D epartm ent) is seeking to learn the background for the D etroit action. Trichlorobenzenes (T. C. B .) T rich lorob en zenes, being com m on to the evaluation plans of both T ransform er D ivision and Capacitor Departm ent, w ere singled out for priority attention by "CR&D. T he attach ed V u e-g ra p h s su m m a r iz e D r. John B ro w n 's p r e se n ta tio n of the environm ental com patibility of T. C. B. relative to som e other d ielectric m aterials. T .C .B . has already passed the A m es T est (bacterial m utagenicity as an indicator of carcinogenicity or the lack thereof). T est Protocols The Capacitor Departm ent has prepared a form al "Environm ental Impact A s s e s s m ent P rogram for Capacitor Fluids" which was review ed by the board on A pril 12. D istrib u tio n of c o p ie s w as h eld up pending r e v ie w by D r. W elch. We u n d erstan d this has now taken place and copies w ill be available shortly. MEL 000497 782345 M r. J*. F . M c A lliste r - 4- A pril 20, 1976 Some resou rces for data on toxicity in aquatic system s include B ionom ics, with a proposal for LC te sts on the Dow fluid, the M onsanto fluid and th ree GE flu id s (blends); W a r rln stitu te (D. Q. F . ); B lo te st (C h icago), w h ich did M o n sa n to ^ 1016 evaluation; and the MCA program (U niversity of M issou ri) m entioned e a r lie r . A rough estim ate of co st to estab lish environm ental com patibility is $300, 000 to $400, 000 per fluid. The group consensus appears to be that it is im portant to test the actual blend, with sta b ilizers, e t c ,, that w ill appear in final products. The T ransform er protocol is sim ila r, but w ill probably include som e estuarine studies on trichlorobenzene because of questions that have been raised . L egislative /R egulatory Issues M r. N elson has distributed sum m ary charts on Toxic Substances Control le g isla tion, the Solid W aste leg isla tiv e p rop osals, the F ed era l W ater P ollution C ontrol A ct, and copies of the PCB rider on theToxic Substances b ill recently passed by the Senate. JSN:cas E n clo su res NEL 000498 782346 8*229-2287 J. F. M cA llister D. H. M arquis-Schdy, A pril 23, 1976 Dr. J. F . Brown Dr. E. L. Sim ons Dear John and Ed: E nclosed is a m em o by Jack M cA llister entitled "Sim plified PCB Degradation M odel. " It can be understood m ost readily by referen ce to the antecedent d iscu ssion s and back-of-th e-en velop e estim ates of environm ental burden factors contained in "The R ole of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in E lectrica l Equipm ent," 2 -4 -7 2 and "Polychlorinated Biphenyls and T heir U se in C a p a cito rs," 9 -2 6 -7 5 . The p resent paper is the fir s t w e've seen to incorporate, ex p licitly , assum ptions concerning ra tes of degradation in quantifying environm ental burdens of PC B. You w ill recognize Appendix H as one of the charts John used in Schenectady on A pril 12. In addition to su b stitu tin g a dynam ic m o d el of the burden fo r the sta tic deposit used to illu strate the d iscu ssio n s referen ced above, Jack has (rightly, I think) d iscard ed the notion that the replacem ent capacitor m arket is significant in calculating additions to the burden, because endu se eouipm ents are discarded at end of sy stem life without regard for the failure of the capacitor com ponent. H is cu rves m ake no allow ance for the likelihood of im proved so lid -w a ste d isp osal p ractices in the next decades. If we had a b asis for quantifying such im provem ents, it m ight not be n ecessa ry to show the ultim ate burden trending up-after th irty y e a rs or so. We would like to have your observations on the m ethod of calcu lation p re sented here, and also your opinion as to whether this approach could be used effectively in opposing "zero discharge" concepts and heroic clean up proposals at fed eral and state le v e ls. V ery truly yours JS N :cas J a m e s S. N e lso n ' C^ o*nssuuilctaannct Product E nvironm ental Com patibility 782347 NEL 000499  PRODUCT REPORT FOR INCLUSION--IN - 1976 REPO RT ON PO LICY 2 0 .1 3 J. S. N elson June 21, 1976 782348 NEL 000500 PRODUCT REPORT 1. P o licy .Fulfillm ent"-M easurem ent Indices T his is the fifth year of operation under P o licy 2 0 . 13, Environm ental P rotection , a y e a r notable, among other fe a tu re s, as m arking the f ir s t occasio n fo r m aking a m a jo r product d ecisio n p rim a rily on the b a sis of predicted environm ental co m p atib ility.* In the m ore typ ical c ase , product environm ental com patibility is recognized as one of the m any q u alities re q u isite to product in te g rity . The continuing nature of such accom plishm ent is im plicit in the Statement of P olicy, quoted on the facing page, (Table ) together with m an agerial elem ents deem ed e sse n tia l to estab lish in g and m aintaining product environm ental com patibility. R eports w ere received from all dom estic product-determ ining com ponents- - 120 as of A p ril 1976. In addition, reports w ere provided by the o v e rse a s components (37 in number) of the International and Canadian Group. E ach reporting component audited its e lf with resp ect to the eleven item s of environm ental m anagem ent and provided, in addition, inform ation concerning noteworthy problem s and accom plish m ents. p NEL 000501 * The d ecisio n re fe rre d to is the choice of fluids to re p lace P C B s in capacitors and tra n sfo rm e rs. Candidate fluids a re being subjected to rigo ro u s environm ental, to xico lo gical, and sa fety testin g in a p ro gram m onitored by an interdepartm ental review board. -2 - 782349 T able at left su m m arizes the inform ation reported. It 'will be observed that the table provid es in form ation to derive-.an index of the applicability to d ifferen t product situations of the suggested m an a g e rial elem en ts, as w e ll as an index of im p lem entatibn>LJirhe^ a p p lic a b ility in d ex is 83% (123 components making 110 0 judgments of applicability in consideration of 1320 cases). The o v e rall im plem entation index fo r dom estic components of the Company is 97% (item s in p lace and functioning a s opposed to being planned fo r file future). T h is s c o r e is down s lig h tly fro m la s t y e a r 's 98%, but, the drop is accounted fo r p rin cip ally by three components reportin g fo r the f ir s t time * without whose influence the sc o re would have rise n instead of declined. Note that three Groups achieved an im plem entation index of 100%. P- . - fi NEL 000502 * Lok Ceiling System s (Lighting System s B u siness Departm ent); Brazilian In d u strial System s O peration (D rive System s Departm ent); and P ro jects E n g in e e rin g O peration (In stai. & S v c . E ng. B u s . D iv. ). -4 - 782350 A tw elfth elem en t of the annual re p o rts, not am enable to the s ta tis tic a l su m m arization accorded the eleven m an a g erial item s, is the opportunity provid ed to lis t sign ifican t accom plish m en ts o r p ro b lem s. A com pendium of such reports,^' fo rr;.each G roupi isrp 3*ovided on th e fa c in g -p a g e . There are sev era l product-related environm ental problem s that-require comment. The P C B situation is too w ell known to re ce iv e in-depth re v ie w in this re p o rt. F ro m what we now b eliev e to be tru e, i f it w ere p o ssib le to get a h earin g fro m a duly-constituted scien tific board of re v ie w , the P C B form ulation now used in capacitors would probably receive endorsem ent fo r continuation of such u se . The ris k s asso ciated with continued u se in tra n sfo rm e rs would be regard ed as som ewhat g rea ter b ecau se the h ig h erchlorinated fraction s o f the tra n sfo rm er form ulation appear m ore lik ely to be associated with contam ination by toxic polychlorinated dibenzofurans and because the much higher p er-u n it liquid content p resen ts a potential fo r sp ills caused by accidental dam age. B e that as it m ay, decision-m aking in the c ase of P C B s long ago m oved fro m the sc ie n tific to the p o litic a l a re n a , with E P A , FD A , and other F e d e ra l and se v e ra l State agen cies assum ing adam ant opposition to any fo rm of P C B s . The only p ra c tic a l c o u rse now open to the Com pany is the q u a lific a tio n of en viro n m en tally a cc e p ta b le altern ative m a te ria ls, accom panied by a sse ssm e n t (and, to the d egree p o ssib le , containm ent) o f the additional f ir e r i s k that ap p ea rs to be a Jijin e vita b le a c c o m p a n i ment of the u se of altern ative m a te ria ls. Such a program is being vigo rou sly pursued in a tim e fram e consistent with developing legislation and regulation. A le ss dram atic, but m ore ubiquitous problem is product n o ise.' ' M ost ob s e r v e r s would agree with the F A A p re m ise that opposition to a ir c r a ft noise is the m ajo r obstacle to the continuing developm ent of c iv il aviation. In addition, a growing body of OSHA and E P A regulations is im pacting such a broad spectrum of Company products that a Technical R eso u rces Inform ation L e tte r w as publish ed in 1975 to help p ro d u ct-d eterm in in g com ponents to cope with this new challenge. T h e o rie s about th re ats to the ozone la y e r posed by stra to sp h e ric je t engine exhausts and by escaping re frig e ran ts or aero so ls containing fluorocarbons c a ll for carefu l m onitoring; but it appears that the m ost significant concern affecting product environm ental com patibility m ay be the th esis that a leading cause of cancer is contamination of the environm ent by tra ce s of industrial chem icals. This w ill be discussed further under "L egislative F ram ew o rk," as w ill also the potentially v e ry troublesom e m atter of p re se rv in g the "p ristin e " a ir quality in undeveloped p arts of the country. NEL 000503 -6 - 782351 L e g is la tiv e arid R e g u la to ry F ra m e w o rk T ech n ical R eso u rces reports sem i-an n u ally to the C orporate P o lic y .Committee on leg islative and regu latory in itiatives with product im p licatio n s. The law s of sp e cia l re le v a n ce to the subject of prod uct en viron m en tal co m p atib ility a re shown at le ft (T ab le ), w ith illu stra tio n s of th e ir in fluen ce on the p ro d u ct d esig n s o f each Group. The Clean A ir A ct affects d irectly the p erm issib le em ission of gases from products that burn fo ssil fuels (aircraft engines, d iesels, gas turbines) and ind irectly affects products that depend upon extern al com bustion (steam turbines). A co n tro v e rsia l featu re of the p ro posed amendments to the Clean A ir A ct is the designation of non degradation a re a s, including buffer zones, around national parks and .fo re sts and re g io n s w hose p re se n t a ir q u ality is su p e rio r to the stan d a rd s prom ulgated under the act. The stan d ard s applied to such " p ristin e1a ir " zones could bring about a change in product m ix fro m giant turbine g e n e rato rs, w here GE technology is preem inen t, to sm aller units, where it is le ss so. Turbine Operations is actively focusing the issu e s fo r trade associations and con gression al com m ittees. The .im pact on product d esign of the F e d e r a l W ater P o llu tio n C on trol ~A c t, arid that of the O ccupational H ealth and S a fe ty A c t, is in d ire c t, * operating irrs'om e instances to re s tric t the choice of m a te ria ls and p ro c e sse s oth erw ise availab le to the design engineer to those whose w astes and toxic effects can be adequately controlled. Product noise is controlled d irectly through the Noise Control A ct and in directly through w o rk -p lace noise requirem ents placed under OSHA. Another potential instance of direct control over products is the p ro posed T oxic Substances Control A ct, which has about an even chance of becom ing law in 1976 (having passed the Senate at this w riting). T h is le g isla tio n would em pow er the E P A to control the production and use of any chem ical substance and require prem arket testing of new chem icals and new u se s. T rade groups (with GE participation) gen e rally support the need fo r legislation in this field but a re encountering d ifficulty in guiding the legislation tow ards m oderate and p racticab le sp e c ific a tio n . The b a sic le g is la tiv e p rob lem is to s a tis fy the public concern o ver "carcin o gen s in the environm ent" without pricin g innovation out of existen ce. 1SIEL000594 -8- 782352 F u tu re Outlook The environm ental challenges'and opportunities asso ciated with protectlhg-the-obyious featu res of.the-environm ent^*the sw eetness o f a ir and w a te r, the a b ility to go about our b u sin e ss without undue in terferen ce from the ^activities. of o th e rs--a re fa ir ly w ell set as to co u rse and direction by existin g and proposed le g isla tio n . It is e a s y to p re d ic t that new products m ust em it le s s n oxious gas than th e ir p re d e c e sso rs, m ust give r is e to-.less w aste and w aste of low er toxicity, and m ust be quieter. The cost-effective realization of such product im provem ents, at a rate in keeping with public expecta tion s, is quite c le a rly a v e ry great challenge. Is m ore to be expected o f u s 7 ' '-v---;. ; - The selected quotations from the current rep ort of the P re sid e n t's C ou n cil on E n viro n m e n ta l Q uality on the facin g p age (T ab le ) su ggest that there is m ore to the o v e ra ll environm ental challenge than achieving increm ental product im provem ents of the type c h a ra c te riz e d above. F acin g up to the fu ll im p licatio n s of the en viron m ental carcinogen theory w ill requ ire at the v e ry le a st new, rapid, inexpensive assessm en t protocols. Design review s w ill involve con sid eration s and disciplin es once the p re se rv e of m ed ical re se a rc h . New technologies ("genetic engineering;" "G eniponics") w ill develop new. orodpct^pppo rtunitie s fo r high-technology food production. And en ergy;system s capable of supporting new methods of food production together with other burgeoning needs m ust be brought along in a m anner com patible with other environm ental requ irem en ts. G eneral E le c tric is fo rm a lly com m itted to "o fferin g products and p ro c e sse s which w ill help solve environm ental problem s. " V iew ed in the broad context of developing world problem s, this policy statem ent comes into focus as a m a tte r-o f-fa c t recognition of a b u sin e ss n ecessity . NEL 000505 - 10 - 782353 SU PPLEM EN T - GROUP REPO RT SUMMARIES CO VLFOv 782354 NEL 000506 1976 AEROSPACE GROUP ENVIRONM ENTAL PROTECTION - PRODUCTS .............. ' " ^ ^ N N T JA L R E T O R T SU M M A R Y % I, by Years 1976 Item s 1972 1973- 1974 1975 1976 L #P #N A IR C R A F T EQ UIP. PROD. DIV. A e r o . C on trol & E le c t r i c a l Syg. |J; P ro d s. Dent. .. ~ A e ro . Control S y s. P ro g . (BingHamton) 100 100 100 100 100 1 1 0 A ero. Electronic Sys. Prods. Dent. (Utica) 100 100 100 90 100 9 0 A ero . Instr. P rod . Supp. P rods. Dent, n vto n ) 100 100 100 100 100 1 1 0 A rm am ent Syst. P ro d s. Dept. (Binsham ton) 7,0 80 80 100 10 0 10 0 0 2 0 1 DIVISIO N T O T A v lo-win 95 97 97 98 100 41 0 3 ELEC TR O N IC SYST EM S PRODS. DIV. Syracu se Components le ss E -L a b * Ordnance System s Products Dept. Electronics Laboratory 91 91 82 DIVISION T O T A L . - ,, 88 R E -EN T R Y & ENV. SYST. PRODS. DIV. 100 100 100 100 100 100 109 100 100 10 100 100 100 100 ^ 100 100 100 11 100 11 100 11 0 0 0 100 33 0 100 10 0 0 0 0 0 1 M ajor R adar E lectron ics P rogram s Surface-based Electronics Program s U ndersea Electronics Program s H eavy M ilita ry Equipm ent Dept. E lectron ic System s Applications Operation (Continued) n e l 000507 782355 1976 AERO SPACE GROUP ENVIRONM ENTAL PROTECTION - PRODUCTS AN N U AL R E P O R T SUM M ARY (Continued) SP A C E PRODUCTS DIVISION ' \, . V alley F o rge Operations - Daytona Beach. Operation B e ltsv ille Operations Houston Operations % I, by Y ears 1976 Item s 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 #1 #P #N_ 91 1 902 209 10 1 0 DIVISION TO TA L 79 84 84 86 94 30 2 12 GROUP TOTAL ,1 k " COMPAZnY T O T A L (D O M ESTIC) 90 97 94 94 98 114 2 16 71 93 96 98 9 7 1 0 6 2 38 220 NEL 000508 - 2- 782356 1976 A IRCRA FT ENGINE BUSINESS GROUP ENVIRONM ENTAL PRO TECTIO N - PRODUCTS .. .,,A N N U A L R E P O R T SUM MARY %! b y Y e a r s 1976 Item s 1972 c o \ : m : l e n g i n e -p r o j e c -t s d i v . 100 M ILIT A R Y ENGINE P R O JE C T S DIV. 100 GROUP M ANUFACTURING DIV. A viation Service Department GROUP EN G IN EERIN G DIVISION 100 C F M 56 P ro g ra m DeDartment Marine &: In d 'l P r o je c t s Dept. 100 1973 1974 1975 1976 J L fP _ 100 100 100 100 l i 0 0 67 100 100 100 9 0 2 100 100 100 100 11 0 0 100 100 100 100 11 0 0 100 100 11 0 100 100 100 100 1 1 0 0 0 GROUP TOTAL COM PANY TO TAL ){DOMESTIC) 100 94 100 100 100 64 0 2 71 93 96 98 97 1062 38 220 NEL 000509 782357 I 197 M AJOR A PPLIA N C E BUSINESS GROUP ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION - PRODUCTS ANNUAL REPO RT SUMMARY A IR , CONDITIONING PRODS. DIV. Room A /C P ro d s. Dept. C e n tra l A / C P ro d s . 'Dept,u " *- % I, by Year - 1976 Item s 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 4L #F . R. 030 100 100 100 10 0 10 l 60 100 100 10 0 10 0 10 0 i DIVISION TO TA L 43 D ishw asher L D isposali Prod. Mgt. L o u isv ille M ilwaukee jj; 30 100 100 100 100 20 0 2 100 100 j 100 100 100 100 10 0 1 10 0 1 Group Tech. Support Operation { )lvlv- itth n Systein s'- K is s iiiiitie e , F la . Home Laundry Product Mgt. 89 Range Product Mgt. 100 R efrig erato r Product Mgt. 50 50 100 100 11 0 0 90 100 100 100 10 0 1 100 100 100 100 10 0 1 100 100 1.00 10 0 1 1 0 0 GROUP TO TAL' COMPANY TO TAL (DOMESTIC) 55 71 99 92 100 100 82 0 6 93 96 98 97 1062 38 220 NEL 000510 782358 1976 COMPONENTS AND M ATERIALS GROUP ENVIRONMENTAL, PR O TEC TIO N - PRODUCTS ANNUA L R EPO R T SUMMARY % I, by Years 1976 Item s CHEM ICAL & M ETA LLU RG ICA L DIV. Silicone Products B usiness Dept. C arboloy System s B u sin ess Dept. Lam inated & Ins. Mat. B u s. Dept. Specialty M aterials B u s. Dept. B attery Business Department 1972- 1973 1974 1975 1976 #1 #P #N 10 0 100 100 100 91 10 100 100 100 100 100 11 90 86 100 100 100 1 1 100 100 100 100 100 1 1 20 50 50 100 100 10 10 00 00 00 01 DIVISION TO T A L # 97 95 100 100 98 53 APPLIA N CE COMPONENTS BUS. DIV. G eneral Purpose Motor bus. Dept. 25 25 100 100 100 A p p lian ce C o n tro l P ro d u c ts Dept. 10 86 100 100 100 Appliance M otor Products Dept. 100 100 63 63 63 H erm etic M otor Products Dept. 90 100 100 100 100 Specialty M otor Products Dept. 100 100 100 100 100 9 7 5 9 9 11 02 04 33 02 02 DIVISION TO TA L 52 88 93 93 ELECTRO N IC COMPONENTS 3 US. DIV. C apacitor Products Dept. Sm all Industrial Capacitors 100 Pow er Capacitor Product Sect. 100 Capacitor M at'ls P ro d s. Sect. 88 73 100 100 73 100 100 73 100 100 E le ctro n ic C apacitor P ro d s. Set.. 10 50 50 100 Sem iconductor Products Dept. 100 100 100 100 Tube Products Dept. - Owensboro 77 100 100 100 M icrowave D evices P ro d s. Set. 100 100 100 M icrow ave Tube Operation 100 100 100 Im aging &: D isp la y D ev. P ro d . Set. 100 100 100 DIVISION TO T A L 66 81 90 100 T o tals fo r p rio r y e a r s do not in clud e B a tte ry B u s in e s s . 93 39 3 13 100 10 100 10 100 10 100 10 100 3 100 10 100 10 100 10 100 8 01 01 01 01 03 01 01 01 03 10 0 86 0 13 (Continued) 782359 NEL 000511 1976 COMPONENTS AND M A TERIALS GROUP ENVIRO NM EN TAL.PRO TECTIO N - PRODUCTS AN NUAL R E P O R T SUM M ARY (Continued) % I, by Y ears 1976 Items 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1 1 #P #N M E D IC A L SY ST E M S BU SIN ESS DIV. R ad io lo g y Systems-.'Eng.- Dept. S p e cia l -Health P ro d s. Operation Pacem aker System s Dental System s Op. N uclear Diagnostic ^ect. M. V .O . - M embrane 100 100 1 1 0 100 100 88 100 100 100 100 11 75 6 100 11 100 11 0 2 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 DIVISION T O TA L PLA ST IC S" BKNS&VISION Sheet Products Section Lexan Products Section N oryl Products Section V alox Products Section `Genal Products Section DIVISION TO TA L 42 88 100 93 96 50 2 3 100 100 100 100 100 1 1 0 0 100 100 1 1 0 100 100 11 0 0 0 91 91 10 1 0 100 80 4 1 6 100 100 100 98 96 47 2 6 GROUP TOTAL COM PANY TO TAL (DOMESTIC) 64 38 95 98 97 275 8 36 71 93 96 98 9 7 1 0 6 2 38 220 - 2- NEL 000512 782360 1976 SPECIA L SYSTEMS AND PRODUCTS GROUP ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION - PRODUCT ANNUAL REPO RT SUMMARY ' % I, by Y ears 1976 Items 1972 COMM UNICATION SY ST E M S "BU S. DIV. Data Com munication F rod sID ep t. M obile Radio P ro d s. Dept, 60 1973 ! 1974 1975 1976 4 L #P l i L 100 6 0 5 85 100 100 100 10 0 1 DIVISION T O T A L CONSTRUCTION M A T 'LS- DIV. E a lia s t B u sin ess Dept. Tood S e rv ic e Equip. B u s. Dept. in d u strial Heating B u s. Dept. S p ecialty T ra n sfo rm e r B u s. Dept. 60 55 89 25 50 85 100 100 100 16 0 6 82 73 100 100 11 0 0 89 75 88 100 8 0 3 77 86 100 100 3 0 3 50 100 100 100 9 0 2 DIVISION T O TA L 72 TRAN SPO RTATIO N SY S. BUS. DIV. Locom otive Production Dept. T ran sit Vehicle P ro d s. Dept.' T ran sportation Equip. P ro d s. Dept. 100 89 18 DIVISION TO TA L GROUP TOTAL COM PANY TO TAL (DOMESTIC) 68 68 71 79 83 97 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 91 100 97" 87 93 97 100 92 99 96 98 100 36 0 8 100 11 0 100 11 0 100 11 0 0 0 0 100 33 0 0 100 85 0 14 971062 38 220 NEL 000513 782361 1976 CONSUMER. PRODUCTS GROUP ENVIRONM ENTAL. PR O TEC TIO N - PRODUCTS ANNUAL REPO RT SUMMARY % I, by Years 1975 Item s 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 #1 #N TELEVISION BUSINESS DEPT. T elev isio n Bus. Dept. (R eceiver Opers. ) ......... T elev isio n Components P rod s. Section DIVISION TOTAL 91 100 100 100 100 11 0 0 91 91 100 100 100 11 0 0 91 97 100 100 100 22 0 0 HOUSEWARES Se AUDIO BUS. DIV. 100 70 100 100 100 9 0 2 LAM P BUSINESS DIVISION M iniature Lamp P rods. Dept. 100 Photo Lamp Dept. Incandescent Lamp Dept. F lu orescen t Lamp Dept. H igh Inten. D isc h . Sc Q u artz Lam p - D ept. 90 ( 90 I 100 Lamp M arketing Dept. 67 R efractory M etals P rods. Dept. 100 Lam p Sc E le c tr o n ic P a r ts P r o d s.D p t. 100 Lamp G lass P rods. Dept. 100 Q uartz Sc C h em ical P r o d s .S e c tio n O verseas Lamp Dept. 89 100 100 100 91 90 90 382 91 ]1 100 ! 100 100 75 100 100 100 iqcT 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 90 100 100 100 11 90 9 100 10 100 10 100 10 100 4 100 9 100 3 100 4 90 9 100 8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 1 7 2 3 7 1 3 DIVISION TOTAL 94 94 98 98 98 92 2 27 GROUP TOTAL COMPANY TOTAL (DOMESTIC) 95 93 98 99 98 123 2 29 71 93 96 98 97 1062 38 220 NEL 000514 782362 1976 INDUSTRIAL AND POW ER DELIVERY GROUP ENVIRONMENTAL PRO TECTIO N - PRODUCTS ANNUAL REPO RT SUMMARY % I, by Y ears 1972 1973 1974 1975 CONTRACTOR EQUIP. BUS.DIV. C ircuit P rot. Dev. Dept. 90 95 97 95 D istributor A ssem b lies Prod. Dept. 100 100 100 100 G en era l P u rp o se C ontrol P ro d . Dpt,.1 0 0 100 100 100 Ind'l Control P rods. Dept. 25 100 100 100 Lighting Syst. B us. Dept. 33 90 100 100 W iring D evices P rods. Dept. 36 100 100 100 1976 Items 1976 P #N 95 19 1 2 100 20 0 35 100 7 0 4 100 32 0 12 53 10 9 3 100 70 4 DIVISION TOTAL MOTORS DRIVES BUS. DIV. DCM&cG D ept. LM&G Dept. D rive System s Dept. M e te r &c I n s tr . B u s. D ept. _ M eters Instrum ent Prod. Oper. SAC MS=G D ept. W ire &: C able B u s. D ept. 73 98 99 99 90 95 10 60 90 100 100 100 100 80 100 100 100 100 100 80 25 100 100 100 50 11 11 32 100 100 100 100 90 60 100 100 100 100 90 100 100 100 100 100 80 100 100 100 100 100 17 0 3 3 0 2 2 3 5 DIVISION TOTAL 80 100 100 100 86 70 11 18 LARGE TRANSFORMER BUS.DIV. P ow er T ransform er Dept. M ed. T ransf. Dept. 60 70 60 70 100 100 89 100 100 100 90 90 2 2 DIVISION TOTAL * 65 75 85 100 100 18 0 4 ~ R ecast to present organization NEL 000515 782363 1976 INDUSTRIAL AND POW ER DELIVERY GROUP ENVIRONM ENTAL PRO TECTIO N - PRODUCTS ANNUAL R EPO R T SUMMARY (Continued) % I, bv Y ears 1976 Item s &SWITCHGEAR D ISTRIB. TRANSFORMER DIV. * Switchgear B usiness Dept. D istrib. X form er Bus. Dept. 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 S L P _ #N 65 95 95 95 100 ii 82 100 100 100 100 10 00 01 DIVISION TOTAL 74 98 98 98 100 21 0 1 GROUP TOTAL 71 95 94 99 91 204 21 33 COMPANY TOTAL (DOMESTIC) 71 93 96 98 971062 38 220 A NEL 000516 * R ecast to present organization 2- - 782364 1976 POW ER GENERATION BUSINESS GROUP ENVIRONM ENTAL PROTECTION - PRODUCTS ANNUAL REPO RT SUMMARY. % I. by Y ears 1976 Item s 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 #1 #P #N TURBINE OPERATIONS LSTG Turbine O perations L5TC- G enerator O perations Heat Transfer Prods. Oper. E ngineered Cast Products Dept. M ech. D rive Turbine Dept. Medium. Steam Turbine D ept. & M a r in s, N avy, c G ear O p e r s. 91 90 100 60 100 100 100 67 100 Not A pplicable 9 90 100 100 100 100 100 55 100 100 100 100 8 100 10 100 2 0 100 10 100 9 03 01 09 0 11 0l 02 TOTAL \ GAS TURBINE DIVISION 54 91 NUCLEAR ENERGY DIVISIONS * BiV?. P ro jects D ept. )BWR S y ste m s D ept. N uclear Energy Control Sc In stru 1n. )100 Dept. ) F u e l R e c o v e r y S: Irr a d ia tio n P r o d s . Dept. N uclear Fuel Departm ent 55 International Operations 30 94 100 100 100 100 91 100 100 100 100 82 100 100 100 100 100 100 39 100 11 100 11 100 11 100 11 100 10 0 27 00 00 30 00 01 DIVISIONS TOTAL 77 ENERGY SYSTEM S 8c TECHNOLOGY DTV. F a si Breeder Reactor Dept. Neutron D evices Dept. 100 97 130 130 100 100 100 100 100 43 100 9 100 9 01 02 02 DIVISION TOTAL 100 100 18 04 (Continued) NEL 000517 7R2365 1976 POWER GENERATION BUSINESS GROUP ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION - PRODUCTS ANNUAL REPORT SUMMARY (Continued) %I, by Years 1976 Item s 1972 INSTALLATION & SERVICE ENGR. BUSINESS DIV. (P roj. Eng. O per. ) 1973 1974 1975 1976 i L 44 4 #P 5 #N 2 GROUP TOTAL 69 96 100 99 96 115 5 34 COMPANY TOTAL (DOMESTIC) 71 93 96 98 97 1062 38 220 t- li * Combined tabulation for the N uclear Energy P rogram s D ivision, the N uclear E nergy System s D ivision, and the p red ecesso r, N uclear E nergy Products D ivision in 1975. NEL 000518 -2- 782366 1976 INTERNATIONAL. AND CANADIAN GROUP ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION - PRODUCTS ANNUAL REPORT SUMMARY % I, in Y ears 1976 Item s EUROPE BUSINESS DIVISION Compagnia G enerale di E lettricit GE E spano la GE P o rtu g esa (S erv ice Shop) 1972 0 50 NA 1973 100 50 NA 1974 1975 1976 IL | F 100 100 100 100 NA 100 100 33 100 55 100 8 0 0 0 iL 0 0 3 DIVISION TOTAL 4 97 100 100 100 96 0 3 FAR EAST BUS. DIVISION A ustralian GE (Appliances) 100 100 100 100 100 9 0 2 G E -K irb y (A p p lian ces & E le c tr o n ic s ) 18 100 100 100 100 18 0 4 G E -R ickard Svc. Shop - - - NA NA 1 0 10 E lpro Int'l (India) 100 100 100 100 100 6 0 5 GE Philippines - - - 100 100 21 0 12 So. A frican G. E. Co. - 100 100 100 100 8 0 3 DIVISION TOTAL 48 100 100 100 100 63 0 36 LATIN AMERICA BUS. DIVISION G. E . A rgentina GE do B r a z il GE do M exico GE de C olom bia G E S .A . (Uruguay) GE de V en ezu ela 59 100 100 100 100 32 0 12 55 100 100 100 100 77 0 0 0 100 100 100 100 39 0 5 9 100 100 100 100 10 0 1 - 100 100 100 100 7 0 4 - 83 100 100 100 10 0 1 DIVISION TOTAL 41 INTERNATIONAL BUS. SUPPORT DIV. International P rojects Dept. 20 GROUP TOTAL * COMPANY TOTAL 29 68 * E xcluding Canadian C om ponents. 99 100 100 100 175 0 23 30 80 80 80 8 2 1 98 99 99 99 342 2 63 94 97 98 97 1062 38 220 782367 NEL 000519 GENERALES) ELECTRIC SUB J: B a lla st B u sin ess Departm ent Appropriation Request: , . M exican A ffiliate cc: J. F. M cA llister June 14, 1976 M r. J .F . Young E2E B a lla st B u sin ess D epartm ent p rop oses to esta b lish a new corporation in M exico to operate a 100%-owned m anufacturing plant to provide com ponents for U .S . a ssem b led b a lla sts. P o licy 20. 6, In vestm en ts in F a c ilitie s , and P o licy 4 .8 , A uthority for A cquisition or D isp osition of Investm ents, are both applicable. T his letter responds to your request for joint study of the proposal by M essrs. N elson and K ruesi. Of the ob servations that follow , those pertaining to interaction with the environ m ent w ere supplied by M r. N elson and those pertaining to other aspects of the plan by M r. K ruesi, with each endorsing the findings of the other in the in terest of arriving at a joint appraisal from the viewpoint of T echnical R esources. Two points of interaction with environm ental trends are perceived: the effect of abandonment of polychlorinated biphenyl as a capacitor im prgnant and the supply situation w ith regard to p etroleu m fu els. A s to the fir s t, it is co n ceiv able that P C B -sub stitutes in b allast capacitors w ill cause sufficient concern about in crea sed risk of fire originating in or fed by ballast a ssem b lies to hasten the adoption of substitute b allast technology that w ill not em ploy liq uid-filled --c a p a c ito r s . One su c h su b stitu te is the p ro p o sed s o lid - s t a t e e le c tr o n ic b a lla s t. It is noted (p. 20) that a jointly-funded tech n ical program with the F lu orescen t Lamp D epartm ent and Corporate R esearch and D evelopm ent Center was initiated in D ecem ber 1975, for the developm ent of a solid -state b allast. B allast B usiness D epartm ent estim a tes (pp. 5, 20) that th eir so lid -sta te b a lla st w ill not be com m e rcia lized before the ea rly n in eteen -eig h ties. Such a date would not have to be advanced v ery m uch to m eet the 1980 term ination of the 3. 3 year payback period estim a ted for the req u ested appropriation. In appraising the p o ssib le effect of th is developm ent upon the soundness of the plan, it is reasonable to consider that com petitors are also working on electron ic b allasts (Sylvania has patents). E ither co n cern o v er fir e r isk , or p r e ssu r e induced by a GE p ro p rieta ry solution to the fir e q u estion , or other com p etitive advantage ach ieved by GE in conventional b a lla sts , could cau se m ore r e so u r c e s to be applied to s o lid -sta te electro n ic b allast developm ent. If, for any of th ese reason s, so lid -sta te should becom e com p etitively advantageous ea rlier than anticipated in the plan, the tendency NEL 000520 782368 M r. J . F. Young -2 - June 14, 1976 wouLd be to sh o r te n the p e r io d a v a ila b le fo r r e c o v e r in g in v e stm e n t in that portion of the fa cility dedicated to the production of com ponents for conventional b a lla s ts . H ow ever, as noted on page 71 of the plan, th e a ffilia te to be e sta b lish e d is considered suitable potentially for the m anufacture of labor-intensive electronic products. This feature of inherent,adaptability appears, in our view , to sa fe guard the proposed in v estm ent against the contingency of early o b so lescen ce. An im portant param eter in the evaluation of alternative locations for foreign sourcing was transportation co sts. The M exican border-zone location was s e lected , in part, because of favorable transportation c o sts, based on trucking raw m a teria ls from presen t departm ent locations to Juarez and returning fabri cated coils in the sam e trucks. Transportation costs are analyzed in tables on page 26 and page 52 of the plan booklet. While it is not evident that the an alysis provides for any contingent jump in transportation co sts that m ight be occasioned by petroleum shortages or OPEC m anipulations, it is clear from the figures p resen ted that the s u c c e s s of the p rop osed plan is not unduly se n sitiv e to this factor. F or exam ple, a doubling of trucking co st would reduce the savings on a 40-w att rapid start b allast c o il from 10. 6/un it to 9. 2/unit, a reduction in s a v in g s of 13%. M oisture absorption by the insulation during the tim e betw een c o il winding in M exico and coil im pregnation after assem bly in the present plants is a concern recognized by the B allast D epartm ent and m entioned in the proposal. We concur in th eir b e lie f that the ex istin g vacuum bake should a ssu r e product in tegrity , and are assured this w ill be carefully watched. The proposal is ju stified econ om ically by the savings accruing to the technically lo w e st-r isk altern ative. T his in volves not attem pting to make the connections to the co il in M exico. Many of the co ils are of alum inum .w ire. The T echnical -R esou rces Staff has. held four con feren ces on connections to alum inum conductors to prom ote understanding of the d iffic u lties. Thus we applaud th eir d ecision to retain the connection operations in the present plants, pending additional under standing of the technology expected from a study in which the Corporate R esearch and Developm ent C enter is a ssistin g . In sum m ary, from a carefu l reading of the appropriation request, we p erceiv e no reason , from a T ech n ical R eso u rces standpoint, not to recom m end approval. NEL 000521 JS N / WRK: c a s ' W. R. K r u e si, C onsultant - N a tio n a l and I n te r national Standards 782369 8*229-2287 RETROFIT OF TRANSFORMERS TO B E AVO ID ED _________________ R . C. Osthoff June 15, 1976 W .C. H art *W. R . K r u e e i J. F . M cA llister E . L. Sim ons A s s ta t e s c o n s id e r le g is la tio n to b a n th e " u s e 11 o f F C B s , th e q u e s tio n keeps a risin g as to w hether existing FOB tra n sfo rm e rs can be drained and refilled w ith a substitute fluid, such as dim ethyl silicone. Bob O sthoff tells m e that B ruce R oberts w ill sh o rtly be com m unicating an official position on this question. In b rief, the answ er is to be " n o ," fo r the follow ing reaso n s: 1. The environm ental ris k asso ciated with the draining and refillin g of thousands of tra n sfo rm e rs, on a national scale, is considerable. 2. Silicones a re v irtu ally insoluble in FCBs and the re v e rse is tru e . A ttem pts to d rain and re fill lead to a tw o-phase, d ie le ctric system . E le c tric a l s tre s s e s , dividing in in v erse ratio to the d ie le ctric con stan ts, can cause lo calized high s tre s s a re a s within an im p erfectly flushed tra n sfo rm e r, leading to breakdow n. 3. The cost of draining and flushing repeatedly to rid the tra n sfo rm e r of a ll tra c e s of F C B b would be p ro h ib itiv e. It would be ch eap er to buy a new tran sfo rm er. JSN :cas J . S. N elson ? NEL 000522 782370 a ILLINOIS PCB LEGISLATION 8*229*2287 W .C . H art F a irfie ld T . L. Mayes Rom e J . F . M cA llister, Office R .C . Osthoff P ittsfie ld J .F . Repko, Syracuse J u n e 24 1976 M r. C .A . W illsey, M anager* Illinois Public A ffairs, G eneral E lectric Company I.N . B. C e n te r, Suite 504 1 N orth Old State C apitol P la z a S pringfield, Illin o is 62701 D ear Chuck: It is understood from our telephone conversation th is m orning th at the ap p ro p riate strateg y for Illinois PCB leg islatio n ap p ears to be to Induce the p assage of a b ill that we can live w ith ra th e r than to ru n the risk of a " v in d ic tiv e 11 b i l l b e in g in tr o d u c e d n e x t J a n u a r y . In th is c o n n e c tio n , y o u m a y w ish to rev iew the enclosed C onnecticut law , re c e n tly en acted . W hile we do not believe the C onnecticut b ill was needed, in view of voluntary in d u stry in itiativ es and the strong fed eral p resen ce, it does have the v irtu e of com plete exem ption of tra n sfo rm e rs and cap acito rs fro m re stric tio n s as to m anufacture and use and also exem pts th ese products fro m annual p erm its for continued u se. You inquired specifically about the Com pany p o stu re w ith re sp e c t to retro fittin g PCB tra n sfo rm e rs with altern ativ e d ie le ctric/c o o la n t flu id s. The enclosed le tte r a d d re s s e s th is p ro b lem (JSN to WC H a rt, e t a l, 6 -1 5 -7 6 ). Since y o u r c a ll, I have talked w ith TL M ayes to m ake su re th at Rom e is in acco rd w ith the position enunciated by P ittsfield . Tom ag rees w ith the points m entioned by Bob O sthoff, and adds the follow ing considerations: If you d rain and re fill a tra n sfo rm e r, it is doubtful th at you could get rid of PCB com pletely enough so th at hypothetical fu tu re leaks o r eventual disposal could be handled a s fo r a non-PC B tra n sfo rm e r. A lso, the c h a ra c te ris tic s of the altern ativ e fluid m ay affect the e le c tric a l and th erm al c h a ra c te ristic s to the extent that the tra n sfo rm e r should be retu rn ed to the m an u factu rer fo r testin g and re -ra tin g . The coils them selves m ight req u ire m odification. If, as seem s likely, the substitute fluid recom m ended is to be dim ethyl silicone, m o re a ir NEL 000523 782371 M r. C .A . W lllsey - 2- June 24, 1976 fL-L' - 7 pace for th erm al expansion is req u ired than fo r the PCB blend now used. In sum m ary, fo r a com bination of ecological and tra n sfo rm e r technical c o n sid e ra tio n s, n e ith e r of the G e n era l E le c tric div isio n s th a t m a n u fa c tu re s PCB tra n sfo rm e rs considers retro fittin g of PCB tra n sfo rm e rs w ith a sub* titute fluid to be feasib le o r recom m endable. R eg ard less of the fin al outcom e of national deliberations on the continued u se of PC B s in new ap p aratu s, the PCB tra n sfo rm e rs and cap acito rs now in serv ice should be allow ed to rem ain in u se throughout th e ir n a tu ra l product life, without any annual p e rm its, exem ptions, o r sim ila r p ap er w ork. Upon eventual d isposal, ANSI guidelines should be follow ed. Follow ing such p ractice w ill introduce less ris k of environm ental contam ination than any m assiv e re* placem ent p ro g ram . Laws sim ila r to the C onnecticut law w ill serv e to prevent the open application o r heedless disposal of PC B s in ways th a t m ay read ily re a ch the environm ent, w hile at the sam e tim e not in te rfe rin g w ith th e firs re sista n c e afforded by the u se of PC B s in tra n sfo rm e rs and cap acito rs. V ery tru ly yours, - ' -y-\ys \ JSN :cas E nclosure Jan ies S. N elson, C onsultant P roduct E nvironm ental C om patibility NEL 000524 782372 COMPANY CONFIDENTIAL SYNOPSIS OF MEETING #2 ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY PROJECT: ACTION TEAM ON PROPOSED PCB RULE MAKING CRD, SCHENECTADY, JULY 30, 1976, 9:00 a .m . Present: J. F . Young, CES, Chairm an R. E . B ro o k s, CR&D J . F . B row n , CRScD E . N. D eck , CASE . W, F eu erstein , ASBD J. F . Flynn, COSLO L. F . H art, CPD C opies also to: A . M . B u e c h e , CRScD J. F . E ge, CAS S. K. Galpin, CAS J. F. M cA llister W. C. H art, CAS E . L ifsh in , CR&D M. M. Modan, PBD L . S. M oody, CRScD J. S. N elson, CES R. C. Osthoff, PDTRO E. L. Sim ons, EPO Agenda Item No. 1, Introduction M r. Young review ed the background and purpose of the m eeting and advised that th ere had b een le g a l a c ce p ta b ility of the Syn opsis of M eetin g #1 (p rev io u sly d istr ib u te d ). Agenda Item No. 2, E PA P roposed Rule Making Status Dr. Sim ons d is c u s s e d and d istr ib u te d a d ocum en t co -a u th o red w ith G. J . P o w e ll com paring the draft of the proposed toxic pollutant effluent standards for PCBs w ith the o fficia l docum ent that appeared in the F ed era l R eg ister for July 23, 1976. Significant changes are: the o m issio n of the allow ance of PCB content in steam condensate from jet ejecto r pum ps; deletion of the m a ss lim it concept; addition of a statem ent on econom ic im pact; incorporation of a table displaying w a stew ater sources v s. technology for control; and revision of the d iscussion of biom agn ification . The 100-fold safety factor is no longer e x p lic it, but th ere has been no change in proposed lim its. D r. Sim ons and M r. F lynn subm itted a m em orandum "On the Q uestion of P o ssib le GE C om m ents on P ro p o sed T o x ic P ollutant E ffluent Standards fo r P C B s." It is noted that the proposed regu lation s, w hile osten sib ly com plying with S ec. 307(a), are rea lly patterned after the consent agreem ent. A ccordingly, the treatm ent afforded PC B s could be regarded as a pattern of what to expect when EPA produces standards for the other item s on the lis t of 65 subject to the consent agreem ent. NEL 000525 782373 - 2- D isc u ssio n produced the con sen su s that com m ents on the record (e. g . , on m easu rab ility) would not be harm ful and m ight be of aid in NPDES negotations.. Mr. Flynn com m ented that the date for proposing pretreatm ent standards cannot be pinned down any m ore narrow ly than the period betw een the end of this year and 1980. No new test data are yet available for further illum ination of PCDF im purity c o n sid e r a tio n s. It has been learn ed fro m c u sto m ers that W estinghouse h a s announced it w ill take no orders for A skarel transform ers to be delivered after January 1# 1977. Agenda Item No. 3, EPA W ater Quality C riterion D r. Brown produced a m em orandum dated July 26, on the proposed EPA W ater Quality C riteria for P C B s, w hich su m m arizes h is presentation at M eeting No. 1. (It should be noted that th is w a s p rep a red fr o m the draft docum en t, b efore elim ination of the explicit 100-fold safety fa c to r .) The Brown m em o ca lls attention to undue relian ce upon the position of the M assach u setts Audubon Society, the u se of extrem es of the G aussian curves on toxic phenom ena, lack of hom olog differentiation, disregard of background PCB burdens, and ex cessiv e safety fa cto rs. The criterion appears to be arbitrary in light of its scien tific incom petence. Agenda Item No. 4, EPA P rop osed D isch a rg e L im its - 40 CFR P art 129 With the aid of view graphs (co p ies of w hich w ere distribu ted to th ose p resen t). D r. E ric L ifshin critiqued analytical considerations in the m easurem ent of P C B s in w ater at the one part p er b illion le v e l. A fter d iscu ssio n , it w as concluded that the Company would not challenge the 1 ppb standard on the b a sis of availab le m easu rem en t technology, but would point out that toleran ce lim its should be included in the d escrip tion of the p rescrib ed analytical m ethod, and that the tolerance lim its should be based on good data, including as-a consideration the degree of reproducibility between qualified la b o ra to ries. NBS m ay be proposed as the agency to develop the analytical m easurem ent technology. N either transform er nor capacitor rep resen tatives see any particular problem w ith taking this stance. M r. Luke Hart pointed out that NPDES perm its m ust be m odified for the new d ielectric fluids. M r. Ed F eu erstein see s no conflict w ith the p olicy on se le c tiv e rep a ir. The S ervice Shops w ill plan to cease rep air of PCB tra n sfo rm ers in th ree or four y e a r s. At p r e se n t, only two 782374 NEL 000526 - 3- lo ca tio n s scheduled for such rep air w ork req u ire NPDES p e r m its, but sim ila r p ro v isio n s w ill probably get into the language of pretreatm ent standards. New language is being worked out with counsel to cover agreem en ts with d isp osal com panies, including title tran sfer and lia b ility considerations pertaining to transportation accidents. Agenda Item No. 5, E m ployee Health C apacitor D epartm ent has brought its ex p o su res into com p lian ce w ith OSHA interpretation s and see no need to challenge form ally the b a sis for th eir citation. OSHA o ffic ia ls have indicated a ccep tan ce of a d m in istra tiv e co n tro ls coupled w ith im provem ents in ventilation. N either T ransform er nor S ervice Shops fo r e se es difficulty in com pliance w ith p resen t OSHA regu lation s. P rop osed rule m aking d oes not s e e m to a ffect p r e se n t OSHA reg u la tio n s. Agenda Item No, 6, Company Response Trade association response w as reported by M essrs. Osthoff and Flynn. NEMA is unsure of its p ossib le action. M r. Flynn w ill attend a proposed NEMA m eeting on this subject, if it is held. W ith the exception of GEr Sangam o, and M cGraw, m o st capacitor m anufacturers are contributing to an EIA Section 307(a) D efen se Fund, and the W ashington law f ir m of C ovington Sc B u r le y h a s b een en g a g ed . S erv in g on the EIA d e fe n se com m ittee are Roger W ills (W estinghouse), Dave Woods (M onsanto), B ill C a rrier (M allory) and R ichard R ollin s (Jard). It would appear that a goal is to achieve m odification of the effective date of the proposed regulations, som e s ix m onths or a year after the probable effectiv e date in the absence of objection. The issu e s to be ad d ressed are virtually the sam e as those being considered fo r c o m m e n ts by GE, and the s u g g e stio n w a s m ad e that th o se CRScD tr a c ts that a r e in the p u blic reco rd be supplied to EIA w ith p e r m issio n to a b stract the argum ents and incorporate them in their own docum ents. A fter d isc u ssio n , it w a s concluded that GE should file com m en ts but not p articip ate in the hearings as an objector. Supporting rea so n s include general ab ility to m eet 1 ppb d isch a rg e, inapplicability of the standards to m anufac tu re r s no lon ger using PC Bs (which w ill be our status at the estim ated effective date), and the d eleteriou s effect on the corporate im age of the p r e ss n otices we would receive if we defended further u se of PC B s. Agenda Item 7, Preparations The follow ing notes outline the p rop osed GE le tte r of com m ent. 1. Introduction. No participation in hearings. Not seeking "party" sta tu s. Would lik e to r a ise poin ts n e c e ssa r y to c la rify application of proposed rule and w hich w ill be u seful in future ru le m aking. f NEL 000527 782375 -4- 2. 1 pub Rule (a) A n a ly tica l m e a s u r e m e n ts: R e v is e c r ite r io n p ro ced u re: EPA m ethodology to include to lera n ces for repeatability and separate m easu rem en ts needed to a ssu re com pliance. (b) S o u rce d is c r im in a tio n . In a p p ro p ria ten ess o f d isc rim in a tin g betw een p ro c ess sou rces as to which w ill be allowed som e effluent. D ifficu lty in old plants of identifying so u rces. (c) BAT vs B PC TC A , M eaning not c le a r . (Is the intent to anticipate deadlines m andated by the Act? ) (d) R egulation s co n cern in g contam inated input w a te r. R egulations allow input contam ination to be subtracted only in ca ses w here the plant draw s from and discharges to the sam e body of w ater. 3. Am bient W ater C riterion (a) D ifferen tia tio n (hom ologs) (b) B ack grou nd burden (c) T oxicity determ ination (d) S a fety fa c to r s : b io a ccu m u la tio n & b io m a g n ifica tio n . Recom m end em ploym ent of the National Bureau of Standards in arriving at a scien tifica lly ju stifiab le criterion . E xp ress the hope that these com m ents w ill receive recognition before EPA publishes 1 ppt as a criterion and as a m atter of diligence in setting toxicity criteria. 4. Conclusion C onsider the appropriateness of including, perhaps in a cover letter, a statem ent of w illin g n ess to d iscu ss th ese com m ents for clarification w ith EPA sta ff. C onform ity to exparte ru les w ill be checked in developing the C onclusion. Agenda Item 8, Action Item s and A ssignm ents Flynn: O verall guidance of letter of com m ent. L egal im plications. Sim ons: Draft "rule" portion of letter with a ssista n ce of E ric L ifshin. Brown: L etter paragraphs 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d. Flynn: L etter paragraphs 3e and 4. All: Contribute any com m ents to F lynn/Sim ons. 782376 NEL 000528 - 5- L etter signature: To be determ ined. Probably RECO or JFY . Young: E xplain rationale and status to the E nvironm ental Q uality P roject R eview Board. All: R efer any p r e ss inq uiries relative to GE's stance on the proposed regulations to M r. Young as the agreed-upon spokesm an. Schedule: - L etter draft to A ction T eam m em bers by August 9. - C om m ents, by phone or le tte r , to M e ssr s. Flynn, Sim ons, Brown, Galpin and Y oung by August 13. C onsolidation by phone by Young by August 16. - Environm ental Quality P roject R eview Board approval by August 17. - F ilin g with E PA before August 20. 1976 t: Synopsis prepared by: Jam es S. N elson, Consultant-Product Environm ental -Com patibility August 2, 1976 /r s s NEL 000529 782377 V/ 8*229-2287 W. D. B ellam y, CR&D J. F . M cA llister D r. J . F . Brown, J r . CRficD Schenectady, NY 12345 D ear John: Thank you fo r sending m e Dex B ellam y 's PCB bibliography. I'm su re the c lassific atio n schem e he em ployed adds g re a tly to the u se fu ln e ss. E nclosed a re copies of two p a p e rs by G eorge H arvey th a t escap ed D ex's net b ecau se of th e ir date and th e fa c t th a t they w ere not yet published in Jan u a ry of 1976 (when re c eiv e d h e re ). B est regards. Jam es S. N elson, C onsultant P roduct E nvironm ental C om patibility JS N rcas E nclosures: D istribution of DDT and PCB Compounds in A tlantic Ocean W ater G eorge R . H arv ey and 'W illiam G. S tein h au er Woods H ole O ceanographic In stitu tio n m a n u sc rip t, Jan u a ry 1976 D istribution of PCB and DDT Compounds in A tlantic Ocean Sedim ents G eorge R . H arvey and W illiam G. S teinhauer Woods Hole O ceanographic In stitu tio n m a n u sc rip t, January 1976. NEL 000530 782378 1977 E le c tric a l/E le c tro n ic s Insu latio n C onference Tentative Outline of T opics to be D iscu ssed by P an el on Environm ental Is su es, Capacitor and T ransform er Fluids 1. D escription of a com plete program for a ssessm en t of environm ental com patibility. 1.1 Literature search 1 .2 M ovem ent and fate 1 .3 Acute toxicity 1 .4 Bioaccum ulation 1 .5 M odes of degradation; degradation products 1 .6 Chronic toxicity, carcinogenicity, etc. 2. How to determ ine appropriate scope of environm ental a sse ssm e n t in a particular case. 2 .1 R outes to the environm ent from capacitor and transform er m anufacture, u se , and disposal; am ounts anticipated. 2 .2 H istory of prior use of sam e or related fluid T oxicity and epidem iology E xisting environm ental burden v s. increm ents expected 2 .3 Sequential d ecision points and trig g ers for further investigation 2 .4 L egal and regulatory fram ew ork 3. Industrial p ractices for the m inim ization of environm ental im pact. 3 .1 R ole of voluntary standards and trade asso cia tio n s 4. O n-going evaluation of the efficacy of environm ental a sse ssm e n t and industrial precautions. J .S . N elson 9-30-76 782379 NEL 000531 FCB ALTERNATIVES 8*229-2287 J. F . M cA llister R . C. Osthoff S e p te m b e r 29 1976 M r. L. P . H art, J r. G eneral M anag er-C ap acito r P ro d u cts Dept. John Street Hudson F a lls, N. Y. 12839 D ear Duke: We feel th at an e a rly m eeting of the E n v iro n m en tal Im p act R eview B oard w hich you c h a ir would be ap p ro p riate to rev iew p ro g re s s and developm ents since la st spring. O ffered fo r your co n sid eratio n a re the following agenda ite m s. The lis t is not Intended to be exhaustive, but is indicative of the need we perceive to get the group to g eth er again. Topic for D iscussion K now ledgeable Individual 1. S ta tu s o f E P A H e a rin g s & D e lib e r a tio n s on Toxic P ollutant D ischarge L im its fo r PCBs Sim ons 2. Im plications of the New York State Settlem ent H art 3. E n v iro n m e n tal A s s e s s m e n t P ro g ra m fo r C apacitor Fluids S te n g e r 4. Environm ental A ssessm ent P ro g ram for T ransform er Fluids O sth o ff 5. F lam m ab ility A sse ssm e n t: C ap acito rs P rice 6. F lam m ability A ssessm en t: T ra n sfo rm e rs O sthoff 7. Hum an C arcinogenicity E valuation, A ro c lo r 1254 B row n 8. T e sts fo r PC D F in Aged T ra n s fo rm e r B row n 9. Status of F e d e ra l L egislation N elson 782380 L. P . H art, J r. - 2- Septem ber 29, 1976 Topic fo r D iscussion Know ledgeable Individual 10. P o licy on R e tro fit of T ra n s fo rm e rs (a) Silicones (b) OU O sth o ff PoU cy on R ep air of PCB T ra n s fo rm e rs , with special referen ce to ra ilro a d appU cations F euerstein 12. Status of O utside E valuation P ro g ra m s: (a) NEMA T ran sfo rm er/P C B T ask F o rce (b) EIA Ad Hoc C om m ittee on P C B s (The Super Six) (c) U L /B allast M an u factu rers/C ap acito r M anufacturers T ask Group on Evaluation of Non-PCB Substitutes (d) U L T e sts O sth o ff H art P rice P ric e , Osthoff E lectrical/E lectro n ics Insulation C onference, plans fo r a P anel on the R eplacem ent of A skarela N elson 14. Update on Jap an ese P ra c tic e s/E x p e rie n c e M organ, Osthoff V ery truly yours, JSN:cas U Jam es S. N elson, C onsultantp ro d u ct E nvironm ental C om patibility * NEL 000533 782381 8*229-2287 J . F . Brown Li. P . H a r t J. F . M cA llister R .C . O sthoff E . L. Sim ons M''* O ctober 26, 1976 M r. J. F . Young V ice P resid e n t and Staff E xecutive- T echnical R esources F a irfie ld E2E D ear Jim : A ccom panying th is note is a copy of the PCB a rtic le in Sunday's New Y o rk T i m e s . Zt s e e m s to m e th a t t h e r e a r e tw o m a jo r d e f e c ts in H eilm an 's a rtic le : 1. F a ilu re to T ell the A ro clo r 1016 Story. In A ugust, 1971, M onsanto announced the co m m ercial availability of A ro clo r 1016, a new PCB form ulation to m eet the req u irem en ts of the cap acito r in d ustry. This new m a te ria l was substantially fre e of the h ig h er-ch lo rin ated hom ologs and was developed specifically in answ er to the ecological concern then a risin g . T h ere is m uch evidence of h ig h er ra te s of degradation, low er chronic toxicity, and freedom fro m toxic contam inants. The en tire capacitor in d u stry sw itched prom ptly to the new m a te ria l. The industry, by this u n ilateral action (i. e . , unforced by governm ent), m ay substantially have reduced the th re a t of ecological dam age fro m c ap a c ito r production and u se . Why is th e re no m ention of this outstanding effo rt by priv ate in d u stry to recognize and c o rre c t an environm ental h azard ? Even if one disputes the efficacy of the m e asu re , as som e do, honest reporting re q u ire s recognition of the effo rt. 2. P reju d icially Selective R eporting of the Yusho F indings. In re p o rtin g the Yusho incident, H eilm an w rite s (2nd colum n, p. 4 of the photocopy): "E ven today, alm o st nine y e a rs a fte r eating tiny quantities of F C B ^ s--a ad long a fte r all tra c e s have p a sse d fro m th e ir NEL 000534 782382 0 M r. J .F . Young 2 , ./ O ctober 26, 1976 bodies--the sym ptom s of m any Yusho. v ictim s p e rs is t. " The p assag e quoted im plies a t le ast som e fa m ilia rity w ith the re p o rt delivered by Kur&tsune a t C hicago la s t N ovem ber. If th at is the c a se , the author, m u st also have learn ed of K u ra tsu n e's finding th a t explains w hat. In the n ear-ab sen ce of FC B s in the body, can be causing sym ptom s to p e rsist: nam ely, the continued p resen ce in tissu e of polychlorinated dlbenzofurans (P C D F's). H eilm an failed to m ention th is. F u rth e r m o re, he failed to point out, w hat he could have learn ed had he checked his sto ry w ith unbiased e x p e rts, th at A ro c lo r 1016 is significantly d ifferent from the Jap an ese fluid, and does not contain significant am ounts of the higher chlorinated fractio n s w hich can be re la ted to the penta-and hexachlorodlbenzofurans found in the Yusho p a tie n ts. A dditionally, H eilm an shows his bias (or, charitably, that of h is m en to rs) in c h aracterizin g the m assiv e ingestion by the Yusho group as "eating tiny am ounts. " The ric e oil was contam inated w ith 2000 to 3000 ppm of the K anechlor 400 h eat exchanger fluid and w as u sed daily in the p rep aratio n of food in the hom es affected. T h ere a re o th er m a tte rs th a t would re q u ire atten tio n in any lin e -b y -lin e an aly sis, e. g ., the quotation attrib u ted to M r. Jo nes, the d elib erately am biguous statem en t fro m Sellkoff, the re fe re n ce to Jam e s A llen 's m onkey re se a rc h w ithout atten tio n to its in te rn a l in consistency, the referen ce to "lifetim e lim its" set by FDA (there a re none, to m y know ledge, except as m ay be in fe rre d illeg itim ately fro m the lim its on specific foods). In addition, th ere a re som e statem ents that appear doubtful, bat th at I d o n 't have the knowledge to refu te, such a s "10, 000 pounds of PC B s m ay p ass o v er the T roy dam " during high flow , and a num ber of m o re -o r-le s s triv ia l in accu racies ("cap acito rs a re u sed in everything fro m to a ste rs to huge g e n erato rs") and question-begging epithets ("the stuff that still resid e(s) m enacingly on the riv e r bottom "). A dditionally, any attem p t a t fu ll and u nbiased coverage would have r e flected the voluntary developm ent of an ANSI standard for the control of PC B s and the w idespread w arnings and advices to cu sto m ers to exercise care in disposal. To his cred it, the author recognizes that GE operated under the te rm s of its p e rm its; but the o v e ra ll effect is to m inim ize the d eg ree of GE and industry concern and voluntary initiatives throughout the h isto ry he is recounting, and to e x ag g e ra te the public p e ril. V ery truly yours. NEL 000535 JSN :cas E n c lo su re J .S . N elson 782383 8*229-2287 N ovem ber 10, 1976 M r. J .F . M cA llister -O ffic e - Dear Jack: M r. Young has asked m e to check out M r. S la ter's N ovem ber 3 proposal for the briefing book and to let m e have his. recom m endations. In m y opinion, the proposed questions can be dealt with m ore c lea rly if they are broken into their elem en ts. A ccordingly, I have separated the fir st question into th ree p arts, and m y proposed language is attached. With regard to the orig in a l second q u estion , D r. Sim one in form s m e that the proposed answ er is incorrect, in that leaching has not been the only path for FCBs to reach the Coosa. F urtherm ore, "highly disciplined factory procedures" are pow erless to affect resid u al discharge from form er m anufacturing and d isp osal p ra ctices. A su ggested rev isio n is attached. In the rep ly to the question on PCB su b stitu tes, "paid" should be changed to "com m itted. " The m oney paid to New York in cash w ill be u sed for r ese a rc h and clean -u p (if indicated) of the Hudson R iv er and any m oneys le ft ov er, for gen eral environm ental resea rch . A sse ssm e n t of the environm ental com patibility of substitute capacitor fluids w ill com e prim arily from the m oney GE is com m itted to spend for its own research . *' V e r y tru ly y o u r s , JSNtcas E n clo su re J. S. N elson 782384 WHAT WAS A T ISSUE IN THE N. Y. S T A T E /F C B DISCHARGE SUIT? The point at issu e was not the am ount of G E 's d isch arg e, which w as w ithin p erm itted lim its, but the possible effect of that d isch arg e. In the w ords of the H earing G fficer, P ro fe sso r A braham Sofaer of the Colum bia U n iv ersity School of Law, (quote ),;_W henGE began usin g P C B s, the ch em ica l d an g ers w ere unknow n. "P C B s w e r e v a lu e d , in f a c t, f o r t h e i r h ig h r e s i s t a n c e to fire , which m ade them safe fo r u se as a d ielectric.- GE requ ested and obtained a p e rm it from the fe d e ral and state governm ents to disch arg e up to'30 pounds p e r day of PC B s into the H udson R iv er. The perhufc^arsb contained the statem e n t th at no d isch arg e would _ --- <*** ------ i l l . :^ be allow ed th a t "violated th e w ater quality ^standards of New Y ork State. But until ju st before this proceeding w as com m enced, no one h a d e v e r c la im e d th a t G E 1a P C B d is c h a r g e s v io la te d s ta te w a te r quality stan d ard s, (close q u o te s.) SINCE G E 'S DISCHARGE WAS W ITHIN PE R M IT T E D LIM ITS, WHY DID GE AGREE TO A SETTLEM EN T, INCLUDING CASH PAYM ENTS? The H earing O fficer determ ined th at G E 's actions did not re p re se n t "any w illful d is re g a rd fo r r u l e s ," y e t he did find th at the C om pany's p a st d isch arg es, even though w ithin the lim its specified in state and fed eral licen ses, had violated the state w ater quality stan d ard s. The altern ativ e NEL 000537 782385 -2- to accep tin g an o u t-o f* co u rt se ttle m e n t w as to te s t th is finding in a court of law . The s ta te 's w ater quality stan d ard s, dating back to 1949, are difficult to in te rp re t, and com plex questions of law and technology would be involved. We could fo re s e e a long d raw n -o u t tr ia l, w ith an inescapable accom panim ent of ad v erse publicity, w hether o r not we prevailed on the m e rits of the case. Thus, for our own re a so n s, we ag reed w ith the H earing O ffic e r's recom m endation th a t the proposed ag reem en t be accepted. In h is recom m endation, P ro fe sso r Sofaer said th at acceptance would su b stitu te tang ib le advantages fo r legal u n certain ty and delay. G overnor C arey of New Y ork c h a ra c te riz e d our agreem en t on PC B s as ''an ex cellen t exam ple of w ays th at in d u stry and the state can w ork to g eth er to solve com plex and difficult so cial and environm ental p ro b le m s ." ISN'T GE SE TT IN G A BAD P R E C E D E N T BY AGREEING TO PAY MONEY FOR THE CONSEQUENCES O F PA ST ACTIONS THAT W ERE CONSIDERED ACCEPTABLE AT THE TIM E? In his m em orandum recom m ending th at the ag reem en t be adopted, P ro fe sso r Sofaer voiced the opinion th at "c la u se s such as the w ater-q u ality provision in GE's p e rm its should be co n stru ed as they w ere intended: to a le rt the p e rm ittee of the p o ssib ility th a t a ctiv itie s thought by everyone to be h a rm le ss at one point in tim e m ay la te r be proven d estru ctiv e and rem ed iab le." 782386 NEL 000538 - 3As Scfaer acknow ledged, the c o rre c tn e ss of h is judgm ent in th is reg ard would not be fin ally re so lv ed if a se ttle m e n t w as m ade out of co u rt. Thus, in a legal sense, no precedent has been set. P ro fe sso r Sofaer did u se the te rm , preced en t, in ch aracterizin g the agreem ent. He pointed out that our legal sy stem lacks devices for req u irin g agencies to p a rtic ip a te in rectifying th e ir own fa ilu re s. The notion of sh ared resp o n sib ility betw een the reg u lato r and the regulatee which fo rm ed a b a sis fo r the ag reem en t m akes the a g re em e n t, in his w ords, "an attractiv e p reced en t fo r dealing w ith situations of joint c u lp a b ility ." The agreem ent its e lf begins with language that should reso lv e our co n cern about estab lish in g an unw onted p reced en t: (quote) T his ag reem en t is based upon the m utual conviction th at It is in the public in te re st to term in ate this proceeding and voluntarily undertake forthw ith the cooperative p ro g ram s provided fo r in th is agreem en t w ithout fu rth er delay, (close q u o te s.) WHAT IS THE STATUS O F THE COOSA RIVER CLASS ACTION SUITS? G eneral E lec tric intends to defend vigorously the law suits reg ard in g alleged pollution of the Coosa and asso ciated w aterco u rses. O ur G eorgia plant Is o p eratin g in s tric t com pliance w ith EFA re q u ire m e n ts. Highly disciplined factory procedures serv e to control any m a te ria l lo sses from on-going facto ry o p eratio n s. In addition, te st borings a re u tilized to 782387 NEL 000539 t locate the m ig ratio n path of any contam inated underground w ater; trenching ie u sed to in tercep t underground w ater flow s. Paving and catch basins control surface runoff. Surface and subsurface w aters are p ro cessed through oil and w ater sep a ra to rs, and incineration and other approved disposal techniques a re em ployed. WHAT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE TOWARD FINDING PCB SUBSTITUTES? P a rt of the m oney GE com m itted in th e New Y ork ag reem en t is fo r the purpose of confirm ing the environm ental com patibility of a p ro p rieta ry PCB su bstitute which the Com pany plans to u se in its cap acito rs when we o cease using PCBs in 1977. R egarding tra n sfo rm e rs, we have elected to m anufacture and a re now accepting o rd e rs for silico n e-o il filled units fo r shipm ent daring 1977. o o 782388 NEL 000540 c 8*229-2287 J .F . M cA llister o M r. J .F . Young F airfield E2E N ovem ber 5, 1976 The accom panying m em orandum confirm s our telephone conversation and fu rth er ch aracterizes polybrom inated biphenyls (FBB s). JSN:cao E nclosure J. S. N elson NEL 000541 o u 782389 Memorandum -- PBBa Polybrom inated biphenyls (FB B s) are (or have been) used as fire retardant*. They are structurally sim ila r to P C B s, with brom ine substitutions instead of chlorine atom s on the biphenyl structure. Some hom ologs are persistent and tend to concentrate in the environm ent. They have never been w idely used , and w idespread environm ental contam ination has not occurred, but an episode of anim al feed contam ination caused death and illn e ss among dairy cattle in M innesota and W isconsin. D om estic production of P B B s was term inated in 1974. * Dow C hem ical was once a producer, and M ichigan Chem ical Company form erly offered a PBB compound (hexabrom obiphenyl). A quick check with the m ajor p la stics producers and u se rs around the Company has d isclosed no present or form er u se of P B B s. Several years ago, the u se of PBB was briefly con sidered by rum inated and Insulating M aterials Departm ent, but w as rejected on the grounds of sim ila rity in stru ctu re (and thus, predictably, in environm ental p ersisten cy) with the higherchlorinated PC B s, which, at that tim e, w ere being elim inated fr o m L&ZM p ro d u cts. J .S . N elson 11-5-76 * E ffects of Chronic E xposure to L ow -L evel Pollutants in the Environm ent. C ongressional R esearch S ervice, Library of C o n g r e ss , N o v em b er 1975 (known a s (rT he B lo d g ett R ep o rt11) 782390 -NEL 000542 8*229-2287 J. F . M cA llister N ovem ber 10, 1976 M r. J. F . Young Fairfield E2E Dear Jim : This is in respon se to your request to check out M r. S later's N ovem ber 3 proposal for the briefin g book and to le t you have our recom m en d ation s. In m y opinon, the proposed q u estion s can be dealt with m ore c le a r ly if they are broken into their elem en ts. A ccordingly, 1 have separated the fir st question into th ree parts, and m y proposed language is attached. The proposed rev isio n s have been d iscu ssed with Jack M cA llister and contain som e m a teria l that he p rop oses. With regard to the o rig in a l secon d q u estion , D r. Sim ons in form s m e that the proposed answ er is in co rrect, in that leaching has not been the only path fo r P C B s to rea ch the C o o sa . F u r th e r m o r e , `'h ig h ly d isc ip lin e d factory procedures" are p ow erless to affect residu al discharge from form er m anufacturing and d isp o sa l p ra ctices. A su ggested rev isio n is attached. In the reply to the q u estion on FCB su b stitu tes, "paid" should be changed to "com m itted." The m oney paid to New York in cash w ill be used for resea rch and clean-up (if indicated) of the Hudson R iver and any m oneys left over, for general environm ental research . A ssessm en t of the environm ental com patibility of substitute capacitor fluids w ill com e p r /m a r ily from the m oney GE is com m itted to spend for its own r ese a rc h . M r. S la ter's o rig in a l le tte r to you is attached. V ery truly yours. JSNrcas E nclosures / 'J.S. NelBon NEL 000543 782391 WHAT WAS AT ISSUE IN THE N. Y. ST A T E /F C B DISCHARGE SUIT? The point at issu e was not the amount of GE's discharge, w hich was w ithin p e r m itted lim its , but the p o s s ib le effect of that d isc h a r g e . In the words of the H earing O fficer, P ro fesso r Abraham S ofaer of the Colum bia U n iversity School of Law, (quote), When GE began using P C B s, the ch em ical dangers w ere unknown. PC B s w ere valued, in fact, for th eir high r e sista n c e to fire, which made them safe for u se as a d ielectric. GE requested and obtained a perm it from the fed eral and state governm ents to discharge up to 30 pounds per day of PC Bs into the Hudson R iver. The p erm it a lso contained the statem ent that no d ischarge would be allow ed that violated the w ater quality standards of New York State. But until ju st before this proceeding was com m enced, no one had ever claim ed that GE's PCB discharges violated state water quality standards. (clo se quotes. ) SINCE G E 'S DISCHARGE WAS WITHIN PE R M IT T E D LIM ITS, WHY DID GE AGREE TO A SETTLEM ENT, INCLUDING CASH PAYM ENTS? The H earing O fficer determ ined that GE's actions did not rep resen t "any w illfu l d isregard for r u le s," yet he did find that the C om pany's past d isch a rg es, even though w ithin the lim its sp ecified in state and federal lic e n ses, had violated the state water quality standards. The alternative 782392 -NEL 000544 If - 2- to accep tin g an o u t-o f-co u rt settlem en t w as to te s t th is finding in a court of law . The sta te 's w ater quality stan d ard s, dating back to I949a a re difficult to in te rp re t, and com plex questions of law and technology would be involved, ^ e could fo re se e a long d raw n-out tr ia l, w ith an inescapable accom panim ent of adverse publicity, w hether o r not we prev ailed on the m e rits of the case. Thus, fo r our own re a so n s, we ag reed with the H earing O fficer's recom m endation th a t the proposed agreem ent be accepted. In his recom m endation. P ro fe sso r Sofaer said th a t acceptance would su b stitu te tangible advantages fo r le g al u n c ertain ty and delay. G overnor C arey of New York ch aracterized our ag reem en t on PCBs as "an excellent exam ple of ways that industry and the state can w ork together to solve com plex and difficult so cial and environm ental p ro b le m s." t. ISN 'T GE SETTIN G A BAD PR E C E D E N T BY AGREEING TO PAY MONEY FOR THE CONSEQUENCES OF PA ST ACTIONS THAT W ERE CONSIDERED ACCEPTABLE A T THE TIM E? Many environm ental activ ists have claim ed th at the settlem en t constitutes an im p o rtan t p reced en t, and th at a ss e rtio n too h as been em p h asized in coverage of th e ir opinions by the m ed ia. F ir s t of a ll, it does not constitute a legal p reced en t, because the m a tte r was not resolved by legal determ ination. But if the precedent they a re talking about is the notion th at resp o n sib ility can be im posed today fo r discharges that w ere legal in the p ast, we believe NEL 000545 782393 1 o o -3- that even in th is sen se the settlem en t is in no way precedental. The entire b asis for the Hearing O fficer's a ssertio n of GE respon sib ility was his finding of violation of existing State Law, and th ere is nothing p recedental in the notion of enforcing existing law. WHAT IS THE STATUS OF THE COOSA RIVER CLASS ACTION SUITS? G eneral E lectric intends to defend vigorou sly the law suits regarding alleged pollution of the C oosa and a sso cia ted w a terco u rses. ur G eorgia plant is operating in str ict com pliance with EPA requirem ents. Highly disciplined factory procedures serve to control any m aterial lo sse s from o on-going factory operations. In addition, te s t borings are u tilized to locate the m igration path of any contam inated underground water; trenching is u sed to intercep t underground w ater flow s. Paving and catch basins control surface runoff. Surface and subsurface w aters are p ro cessed through oil and w ater sep a ra to rs, and incineration and other approved d isp osal techniques are em ployed. o WHAT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE TOWARD FINDING PC B SUBSTITUTES? P art of the m oney GE com m itted in the N ew York agreem ent is for the purpose of confirm ing the environm ental com patibility of a proprietary PCB substitute which the Company plans to u se in its capacitors when we o cease using PCBs in 1977. 000546 782394 o -4Regarding tran sform ers, we have elected to m anufacture and are now accepting orders for silic o n e -o il filled units for shipm ent during 1977. O o o 782395 NEL 000547 8*229-2287 RETROFILLING FYRANOL TRANSFORMERS Q E . W. F eu erstein - Schdy R. W. Frahm - Rome W .R . K ruesi - Ffld. J. F . M cA llister " T . 1. M a y es - R om e R* C. O sthoff - Ffld N ovem ber 17, 1976 Mr. D. M. H oselton, Manager Industrial and Contractor Sales & S ales S erv ice M edium T ransform er Departm ent Rom e, Georgia D ear Don: .__ Thank you fo r in clu d in g m e in the d istr ib u tio n o f your draft m a r k e tin g inform ation le tte r on retro fillin g of tran sform ers* In g en era l, 1 think it strik es just the right tone in explaining to custom ers why retrofillin g is not a good undertaking. I understand from d iscu ssio n s with technical people in Rom e and F ittsfield that there is an additional difficulty with the silicon e retrofit, and you m ay ^ wish to consider working it into your letter: S ilicon es are virtu ally insoluble in P C B s and the r e v e r se is true. A ttem pts to drain and r e fill w ill thus lead to a tw o-phase d ielectric sy stem . E lectrica l s tr e s se s , dividing in in verse ratio to the dielectricfponstants, can cause lo ca lized high str e ss a rea s within an im p erfectly flushed tra n sfo rm er, leading to breakdown. With r e sp e c t to the d isc u ssio n beginning at the top of page 4 of your draft, I would prefer to see you substitute concern for entanglem ent with sp ill regulations, rather than to em phasize the effect on the environm ent. I think it is unlikely that the retro fill activ ities of an individual cu stom er, even supposing a sp ill takes place, w ill cause dem onstrable ecological dam age. The real threat to his b u sin ess is that h e 'll run afoul of the law and have to clean up the m e ss and pay a fine. I've en closed a markup of your draft with suggested rewording at this point, together with som e other, le s s im portant, editorial suggestions. NEL 000548 782396 3 M r. D .M . H ose Iton - 2- N ovem ber 17, 1976 We assu m e that you w ill be review ing your fin al draft w ith appropriate people in P ittsfield and in the Apparatus S ervice B usiness to a ssu re that everyone is on the sam e w avelength in this im portant m atter. Luke Hart probably would appreciate a cou rtesy copy, although capacitors are not Q directly affected. V ery truly yours. / JS N :cas E nclosure Jam es S. N elson , Consultant Product Environm ental Compatibility r' I NEL 000549 O J 782397 r\ 3*229-2287 NOVEMBER ACTIVITIES REPORT Jam es S. N elson ___ _ ___ Mr. J. F . M cA llister --O ffice-- D ecem ber 2, 1976 REDACTED i \. ) 2. PCBs Com m ents w ere provided on a set of PCB qu estion s and answ ers for the briefing book being prepared for the shareow ners' m eet ing, and also on a draft Rome m arketing letter concerning custom er requests for retrofilling of PCB tran sform ers. A m eeting of the steerin g com m ittee for the panel on ask arel sub stitu tes, 1977 E lectrica l/E lectro n ics Insulation C onference, was held in F airfield . Re d a c t e d NEL 000550 782398 o M r. J. F . M cA llister - 2- D ecem ber 2, 1976 energy m andates, natural gas curtailm ent, and FC B -containing com ponent elim ination. In a sep arate action, the attention of MAL has been ca lled to the opportunity to feed inform ation into the new ly-form ed EFA C hlorofluorocarbon W orking Group. Q redacted J5N :cas J. S. N elson NEL 000551 o u 782399 J "? A L1 NEL 000552 782400 } 8*229-2287 DECEMBER ACTIVITIES REPORT' Jam es S. N elson Mr. J. F . M cA llister --O ffice-- January 4, 1977 REDACTED f NEL 000553 5. Toxic Substances Law A sem inar on T oxic Substances Law and R egulations, sponsored by G overnm ent Institutes, I n c ., was attended in W ashington on D ecem ber 9 and 10. A report covering the highlights of each p resentation has been sent to the com ponents m o st in terested . 782401 8*229-2287 FORMATION OF EFA WORKING GROUPS ON TOXIC S U B S T A N C E S __________ J. F . M cA llister, Office L .S . M oody, CRStD E . L.. S im o n s, EPO January 5, 1977 M essrs. O rville E. Enders, A erospace R alph W. S troy, AEG Donald W. M ohrm an, A ppliance Com ponents M ichael Modan, P la stics A lfred R. G ilbert, CR&D W illiam C. B roeffle, Consumer Products W illiam M . N ave, CEBD and MScDBD R ichard L. R einhart, DTBD and S&DTD Harry A. Downs, ASBD Edw ard W. C onnors, M ajor A pp liance H arold B . G ordon, S p ec ia l S y ste m s Sc P ro d u cts Daniel F . Huebner, Pow er Generation A lfred M. H urley, Candan GE G entlem en: In a recen t public m eetin g. D r. Glenn S ch w eitzer, D irector of E P A 's Office of Toxic Substances, announced plans for the form ation of five w orking groups w ithin EPA to ad d ress the im plem entation of the T oxic Substances Control Act: (1) P olychlorinated biphenyls (2) C hlorofluorocarbons (3) Initial inventory of co m m ercial ch em icals and prem arket notification (4) T estin g p o lic ie s, p roced u res, and req uirem en ts (5) H ealth Sc sa fe ty study req u irem en ts and r ec o r d k eep in g . T hese working groups, as form ed, are holding m eetings and solicitin g com m ent relative to their particular in terests. N otices pertaining to the NEL 00555 782403 - 2- January 5, 1977 o fir st three of th ese working groups have already appeared in the F ederal R egister and copies are appended to this letter for your inform ation, along with a short sum m ary of the A ct. V ery truly yours. J5N :cas E nclosures f Jam es S. N elson, Consultant ^Product Environm ental Com patibility o o NEL 000556 782404 ! \ ;^ 8*229-2287 PROPOSED LETTER TO EPA ON PC B DISPOSAL b LABELING Jan u a ry 14, 1977 M r. J. F . M cA llister --O fflce-- D ear Jack: W hile you w ere aw ay, EPA resch ed u led th e h e arin g on PCB la b e l ing and d isp o sal reg u latio n s to Jan u a ry 24. I d rafted a le tte r and c irc u lated it to our ad hoc group (F e u e rste in , Flynn, G ooley, M cK enzie, Osthoff, and Sim ons). This has alread y gone through one ite ra tio n , E d Sim ons and Jim F lynn having responded with "D raft # 2 ," a copy of which is attached. The second d raft accom plished som e sim plification and sharpened the argum ent fo r providing re p a ir serv ice a fte r the deadline fo r m anufacture. Jim Flynn is in the p ro cess of polling those m ark ed for copies as to th e ir ag reem en t w ith th e content of the le tte r and the p ro posed sig n atu re. A ssum ing they ra ise no problem s, I believe th is is now read y to show to Jim Young. I am holding open the date of Jan u ary 24 to attend the EPA h earin g u n le ss you o r J im w ish to atten d . V ery truly yours, JSN :cas E nclosure J .S . N elson NEL 000557 782405 PCB CHRONOLOGY UPDATE VO' U' N ovem ber 19*21, 1975 N ational C onference A N ational C onference on P C B s, sponsored by E P A , w as held in Chicago. The "Y usho" poisonings w ere shown to be PC D F re la te d . M any questions w ere left on the tab le, e. g ., w hat is the ro le/effect of PC D F as im purities a n d /o r m etab o lites? What a re the p a ra m e te rs of tro p h ic lev els? R elative to x ic ity a s a function of c h lo rin atio n ? Is PCB c a rc in o g e n ic ? Do P C B s change in u se? How "closed" a re "clo sed sy ste m s? " Why is 1 ppt reasonable as a w a ter quality guideline; o r p if not, what is ? Is a ban n e c e ssa ry ? In th e sum m ation, D r. C arp en te r (NRC) recom m ended ex p erim en tal w ork th at includes carefu l replication of te s ts , and the perform ance of laboratory w ork involving lev els ty p ical of th o se found in th e en v iro n m en t, a s c o n tra ste d to high dose levels (among oth er m a tte rs). (N ote: N one of th is ap p eared to have any effect on ensuing le g isla tiv e and reg u lato ry actions, a s judged m ore than a y ear la te r. JSN 1-25*77.) 1975-1976 State L egislation A nu m b er of sta te s (notably Indiana, M ichigan, W isconsin, C onnecticut) p assed prohibitions against PC B , but w ith exceptions fo r u se in closed system s such as capacitors and tran sfo rm ers. B urdensom e reporting requirem ents w ere included in som e of th ese law s. A p ril 1976 A ltern ativ es to PC B s An E nvironm ental Im pact R eview B oard, w ith L ucas H a rt as C hairm an, w as form ed to evaluate and stim ulate activ ities d irected tow ard docum enting the environm ental and product safety acceptability of proposed!H CB >.alternatives. Ju ly 23, 1976 New Effluent P ro p o sal Renew ing an e ffo rt abandoned in M ay 1974, EPA again proposed toxic pollutant stan d ard s fo r P C B s. H earings began with a conference on A ugust 20. U nder the p ro p o sal, cap acito r m an u factu rers w ith existing plants w ere to be allow ed to disch arg e an average of 1 m ic ro g ra m p e r lite r, or 1 ppb. Industry opposi tion centered In the PCB Ad Hoc C om m ittee of The E lectro n ic Industries A ssociation. An E nvironm ental Q uality P ro je c t A ction T eam , chaired by J .F . Young, led GE response w hich resu lted in filing a le tte r of com m ent w ith EPA and p ro v id in g te c h n ic a l su p p o rt to the EIA PC B Ad Hoc C om m ittee that represented the industry at the hearings. NEL 000558 782406 - 2- S eptem ber 8. 1976 New Y ork Suit Settled The New Y ork State D epartm ent of E nvironm ental C onservation brought suit against GE in O ctober of 1975. The point at issu e was n o t the am ount of G E 's discharge which was ag reed to be w ithin p e rm itte d lim its but the possible effect of that discharge and its relationship to state w ater quality s ta n d a rd s . An o u t-o f-c o u rt s e ttle m e n t w as re a c h e d on S e p te m b e r 8. 1976 w ith both GE and the DEC contributing to a fund fo r re s e a rc h and cleanup of the H udson. Septem ber 1976 R om e. G eorgia Suits Xn S e p te m b e r 1976 th e f i r s t o f fo u r c l a s s - a c t i o n s u its w a s b ro u g h t a g a in s t GE at Rome G eorgia concerning PCB pollution of the C oosa R iv er. The suits (th ree in G eorgia and one in A labam a) ask fo r dam ages totaling $ 1 .5 b illio n . King and Spaulding (A ttorney G en eral B e ll's fo rm e r firm ) is rep resen tin g GE in these suits and also in a com plaint brought by the city of R om e alleg in g contam ination of two d ig e s te rs in th e m u n icip al s e w e r age treatm en t plant. The architect-engineering firm of Lockwood G reene has been selected to m ake a study and recom m endation concerning the control of both types of problem . R esearch p ro g ram s at CR&D on cleanup of Hudson R iv er sedim ent m ay possibly be p ertin en t to the d ig e ster sludge problem . It is rep o rted that CR&D h as found a stra in of b a c te ria th a t can live and reproduce in a culture containing PC B s as the sole n utrient. O ctober 11, 1976 TOSCA Bans PC B s P u b lic L aw 94-469 the T oxic S u b sta n c e s C o n tro l Act w as sig n ed in to law providing fo r the p retesting and control o r prohibition of toxic chem ical s u b s ta n c e s . S e c tio n 6(e) p h a s e s o u t th e u s e o f P C B s by J u n e 1 1979. O ctober 1976 M onsanto to End PC B P ro d u c tio n M onsanto announced that it w ill com plete d istrib u tio n of a ll in ventories an d w ith d ra w c o m p le te ly f r o m th e P C B m a r k e t no l a t e r th a n O c to b e r 31 1977. O ctober 1976 Sangam o Suit D ism issed A c la s s a c tio n s u it fo r $ 1 b illio n b ro u g h t a g a in s t S angam o in S e p te m b e r 1976 was d ism isse d "w ithout preju d ice" on grounds of insufficient evidence. NEL 000559 782407 > -3 N ovem ber 1976 ANSI Standard R evision ANSI S tandard C 107.1 (1974) w as the su b ject of a re v isio n effo rt aim ed a t tightening disp o sal p ro v isio n s. The com m ittee draft issu ed in N ovem ber 1976, failed to achieve accep tan ce. Jan u ary 19. 1977 EPA Bans PCB D ischarge A t the conclusion of the Toxic P ollutant Effluent D ischarge H earings, EPA issued a total ban on PCB discharges from plants m anufacturing capacitors and tra n sfo rm e rs. The decision is being appealed, fo r sep arate reaso n s, by the E n vironm ental D efense Fund and the EIA Ad Hoc C om m ittee. A lthough the ban (under 307 of the W ater Q uality A ct) is not effective u n til Jan u ary 19, 1978, it is feared th at it m ay influence in te rim negotiations fo r N .F .D .E . S. p erm its fo r d isch arg es (under 402). Jan u ary 24, 1977 EPA H earing on Labeling k D is p o s a l_______________ EPA held a public p articip atio n m eeting on Jan u ary 24, 1977 fo r the purpose of obtaining additional inform ation on the developm ent of regulations for the m arking and disposal of PCBs and PCB products. M r. Young subm itted a le tte r of com m ent in behalf of the Com pany. T h ere w ere indications a t the hearin g of EPA concern o v er the adequacy of controlled landfill disposition of contam inated solids and the acceptability of m aking no specific regulations concerning sm all in d u strial capacitors d isp ersed in end products such as ballasts and a ir conditioners. A ttached is a copy of M r. Y oung's le tte r and the agenda lis t of to p ics fo r discussion at the m eeting. JSN :cas A ttachm ents J .S . N elson 1-26-77 TSTEL000560 7Q240Q o TOPICS OF IN TEREST FROM EPA AGENDA FOR JANUARY 24, 1977 o 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. o 6. 7. W hich ch em ical com pound should be reg u lated as P C B s? W hat 1 th e d e fin itio n o f P C B s f o r m a rk in g d is p o s a l a n d m anufacturing fo r regulations? How should PCB item s be classifie d fo r specific reg u lato ry provisions under the d isp o sal and m arking regulations. What im plem entation schedule should the m arking regulations re q u ire ? What m ethod(s) of disp o sal should be req u ired fo r each c la ss of PCB item s ? What p ro ced u res should be follow ed to achieve satisfa c to ry decontam ination of PCB containers and casings? What w ill be the econom ic im pact of the m arking and disposal regulations ? NEL 000561 o o 782409 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF * *s Products Containing PC B C0PIF.S: J . F . M c A llis t e r M arch 17, 1977 M r. Eugene W elsh Industrial Sales Division 1015 Locust Street St. Louis, M issou ri 63101 D ear M r. W elsh: It is understood that your cu sto m er (Monsanto) d e s ire s guidelines to help him identify equipment purchased fro m GE that m ay be filled with poly ch lo rin a ted biphenyl fo rm u latio n s o r contain com ponents so m ad e. We cannot g ive a com plete l is t , as we h ave no in fo rm atio n as to M on san to's p u rch ases fro m GE over the y e a rs , but we can give som e application notes and exam ples. I. T ransform ers PC B ("Pyranol") transform ers have been used w herever m ineral-oil tra n sfo rm ers m ight constitute a fire hazard, esp ecially indoors, under ground and near buildings. A . Distribution T ran sform ers 1. N etw ork, up to 2500 KVA 2 . S in g le -p h a se and th r e e -p h a s e , up to 2500 KVA 3 . P o le-m o u n ted and station , up to 500 KVA 4 . P re cip itatio n tra n sfo rm e rs, as part of the h igh -voltage DC pow er supply fo r electro static p recipitators used in reducing a ir pollution by particulates. B. Power Transform ers 1. Secondary Substation: load center units, secondary substation u n its, switchboard units, integral tran sfo rm ers and m otor control tra n sfo rm e rs. Secondary substation tra n sfo rm e rs com p rise the la r g e s t group of a sk a rc l (PC B) insulated tra n sfo rm e rs, and a re used in the chem ical industry as w ell as in textiles, steel, paper, cement, etc. 2. In d u strial F u rn ace T ra n sfo rm e rs: used for high current, low voltage supply to induction fu rn ac e s, g la ss-m e ltin g fu rn ac e s, etc. NEL 000562 Ill asaai'lisLicraic M r. Eugene Welsh -2- M arch 17, 1977 3. R e c tifie r T ra n sfo rm e rs: used for large rollin g m ills and other -- d irect current in d ustrial pow er supply applications. G en erally m o re than 2500 KVA and not m o re than 1 3 .8 KV - - s im ila r to furnace tran sform ers. 4 . E le c tric U tility Substations: m a ste r units, p rim a ry units, and lim ited am pere substations. 5. Transportation Equipment: Locom otives, m ultiple-unit c a rs, etc. II. C apacitors F o r sev era l decades, 95% or m ore of all liquid-im pregnated, alte m ating cu rren t cap acito rs, re g a rd le ss of m ake, have contained P C B (for which the GE trade name is P yran ol). P C B capacitors are gen erally m etalencased, rectan gu lar, oval, or c irc u la r in cro ss section, painted or alum in um fin ish , with te rm in a ls on the top. A n y m e ta l-c a s e d c a p a c ito r i s lik e ly to contain P C B , with the excep tio n of lo w -v o lta g e e le c tro ly tic cap acito rs fo r DC application, which m ay be distinguished by p o larity m ark in g s on the term in a ls (among other d iffe ren ces). A . High V oltage Pow er C apacitors Used principally by electric u tilities for pow er-factor im provem ent and the im provem ent of voltage regu lation in distrib ution c irc u its . . B. Low Voltage Pow er Capacitors C ap acitors in stalled in in d u strial plants at the demand site (typically la r g e m o to rs and w e ld e rs) a r e d esign ed fo r 2 3 0 - to 575 - v o lt s e r v ic e . A lso applied in induction-heating applications, typically at frequencies of 960 or 9600 Hz. C. Lighting U sed as p art of the b a lla st c irc u itry for flu o rescen t lights and highintensity discharge lam ps for area or street lighting system s. The capacitor m ay be inside a m etal case containing other components of the b a lla st. D. A ir Conditioning A lm ost a ll a ir conditioner pump m otors are of the split-w inding type on which the cap acito r p ro vid es phase d iffe ren tia l fo r startin g torque . C apacitors a re also used fo r p o w e r-fa cto r correctio n while the m otors are running. NEL 000563 782411 M r. Eugene Welsh 3 M arch 17, 1977 E . M otor-start and Pow er F acto r im provem ent C ap acito rs are mounted on o r n e a r m any AC m o to rs. See note above on a ir conditioning. Look fo r them on pum ps, fan s, d riv e equipm ent, etc. F . Industrial Electronics In addition to the m o to r-ru n ap p licatio n s, ele ctro n ic pow er supplies are prim ary u sers of AC capacitors. They are used for wave shaping, filterin g , p o w er-facto r co rrectio n , and a r e found in both AC and DC (inverter) electronic power supplies. We understand that s e r v ic e and rep lacem en t in form ation is a v a ila b le through norm al chanels fo r a ll of the above c la sse s of apparatus. V ery truly yours. JSN icas suit ant Product Environm ental Com patibility NHL 000564 782412 i D 8*229-2287 MARCH ACTIVITIES REPO RT J a m e s S. N e ls o n ______ o. M r. J. F . M cA llister --O ffice-- A p ril 5, 1977 REDACTED NEL 000565 782413 o M r. J . F . M cA llister - 2 A pril 5, 1977 o 3. PCB A pplications A ssista n ce was given to I5D in identifying G E -fu rn ish ed c u sto m er equipm ent th at contains P C B s. In a se p a ra te action a proposed position on inventory m aintenance and re p a ir of PC B -containing equipm ent w as p rep ared fo r discussion. JSN :cas J .S . N elson o o NEL 000566 782414 8*229-2287 E. L. Dobbins J . P . Flynn W. R . K ru e si J. F . M cA llister R . C. O sthoff E . L . Sim ons JO " y ^. J A p ril 26, 1977 M r. D .M . H oselton, M anager I n d u s tr ia l Sc C o n tr a c to r S a le s & S a le s S e r v ic e M edium T ra n sfo rm e r D epartm ent Redmond C ircle R om e, G eorgia 30161 D ear Don: Thank you fo r sending m e the C rouse-K inney paper on Silicone T ra n s fo rm ers. T his is an in terestin g paper and should answ er m any of the questions th at m ay be in the m inds of the re a d e rs of In d u strial Pow er System s. You have re q u e ste d m y review w ith re s p e c t to en v iro n m en tal re fe re n c e s in the a rtic le . My c ritic ism concerns the ch aracterizatio n of the situation with re g a rd to a sk a re ls, on the f ir s t page, and the b asis fo r claim ing environm ental acceptability for silicones, on page four. It m ay be argued that we are beating a dead h o rse in in sistin g on careful w ording w ith re s p e c t to P C B s. N e v erth ele ss, th e re re m a in good re a so n s fo r being co n sisten t w ith the m any re p re se n ta tio n s th a t we have m ade to EPA in th e p a s t th a t d ifferen t g ra d e s of P C B s Bhould not be lum ped to gether in the d iscu ssio n of toxic o r environm ental effects. As you know, CR&D has identified In the lite ra tu re su b sta n tia l evidence fo r la rg e differences in toxicity, bioaccum ulation, and environm ental p ersisten ce among different com m ercial grades of PC B s and am ong different te st sp ecies. In addition, som e of the effects blam ed on PC B s a re m o re likely the consequence of PC D Fs p re sen t as contam inants or possibly derived from the P C B s. The authors presu m ab ly do not w ish to re -fig h t this b attle in th is p a rtic u la r fo ru m , and w ould p re fe r to get on w ith the ta sk of d escrib in g silico n e fluids. One way to do th is m ight be the following: fi 1SIEL 000567 782415 M r. D. M. H oseiton - 2- A p ril 26, 1977 A sk arel, w hich has been used by tra n sfo rm e r m an u factu rers u n d e r s e v e ra l b ran d n a m es, c o n sists, to a la rg e d e g re e , of polychlorinated biphenyls, fh rth e r application of w hich has been the subject of specific prohibitions in the Toxic Substances C ontrol A ct, enacted O ctober 11, 1976. In anticipation of such a resu lt, m anufacturers have intensified th eir s e a rc h .. A nother approach, p erh ap s c lo se r to the au th o rs' o rig in al in ten t, is the fo llo w in g : A sk a re l, w hich h as been u sed by tra n s fo rm e r m an u factu rers under sev e ra l brand nam es, co n sists, in p art, of the higher hom ologs of polychlorinated biphenyl. It has been found that, if allow ed into the environm ent, th ese substances w ill p e rs is t fo r a long p erio d of tim e and m ay give ris e to a d v erse effects on the environm ent. A s a re su lt, m an u factu rers have intensified their se a rc h ... On page fo u r, the only evidence cited by the authors fo r the environm ental com patibility of silicone fluids is th e ir long tim e use w ithout known ad v erse effect. The sam e thing could have been said of PC B s. W hat is needed h e re is re fe re n ce to te s ts m ade u n d er co n tro lled conditions to v e rify acceptable lev els of chronic toxicity, bio accum ulation, e t c ., etc. V ery truly yours. JSN :cas - Jam es 5. N elson, C onsultant "P ro d u ct E nvironm ental C om patibility NEL 000568 782416 t 7 " <~ JA M E S r. YO UN G VICE NUIOCNT-TCCMNICM . N C 3 0 U IK U . .^ - 'V . / / / ( . g e n e r a l | | ELECTRIC GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY PAINPIELQ.eONNCCTieur 00*31 .o ' JS/J rj- 5- Nel so n / MAY 3 l 1977 j May 25, 1977 -I D r. Glenn Schw eitzer D irector, O ffice of T oxic Substances U. S. E nvironm ental P rotection Agency401 M S treet, S. W. W ashington, D. C. ~,Uv rST"4* Dear Dr. Schw eitzer: The G eneral E lectric Company w as represented at the M anufacturing C h em ists A sso cia tio n con feren ce on E PA and OSHA com p lian ce h eld on M ay 5, 1977. We found your rem ark s on TOSCA to be e sp e c ia lly in ter e stin g . Continued exchanges of inform ation and view points betw een E P A o fficia ls and rep resen tatives of ind ustries affected by TOSCA w ill be n e c e ssa r y if the A ct is to be im plem ented in a reasonab le and effective m an n er. We w ere p articu larly in terested in your resp o n ses to qu estion s from the floor regarding the status of equipm ent containing PC B s or com ponent p a rts that co n ta in P C B s , a fte r th e TOSCA S e c tio n 6 (e)(3 ) (A) (ii) d e a d lin e o f J u ly 1, 1979. A s w e u n d ersta n d it, y o u in d ic a te d that it w a s E P A 1s in te n tio n n ot to - h asten the phaseout of such equipm ent p rio r to the end of its n o rm a l s e r v ic e life and that the A gency's goal is to a ssu re that proper p roced u res are follow ed during storage, repair and d isp osal of such equipm ent. T his approach is con sisten t with the intent of C ongress in enacting Section 6(e) and it w ill fa cilita te an equitable and orderly phaseout of P C B s. A ccordingly, G eneral E lectric Company urges E PA to adopt this approach w hen it prom u lgates ru les to govern the phaseout. The relevant p ro v isio n s of TOSCA (which w as enacted on O ctober 11, 1976, and becam e e ffe ctiv e on January 1, 1977) indicate: 6(e)(3)(A)(i) - no p erson m ay m anufacture any polychlorinated biphenyl after two y ea rs after the effective date of the Act (i. e . , after January 1, 1979). NEL 000569 782417 D r. G lenn S ch w eitzer -3- M ay 23, 1977 this ban. S im ila r ly , any PCB substance in e x isten ce would a lso be exem pted from the ban on p ro cessin g and distributing in c o m m erce if sold or u sed to m ain tain ex istin g equipm ent or tra n sp o rted fo r p u rp o se s of d is p o s a l. " (H. 11344; u n d erlin in g add ed .) F in a lly , the text of the Joint Explanatory Statem ent of the C onference C om m ittee (H. R . R ep . N o. 9 4 -1 6 7 9 , at p . 77) in d ica tes: So that ex istin g F C B s m ay be r eu se d rather than d isp o sed o f. the p rohib ition s do not apply to distribution in com m erce of PC B s sold for pu rp oses other than resa le before the effective date of the prohibition on distribution of P C B s. (Underlining add ed .) In view of the foregoin g, the A gency should a ssu re that the regu lation s im plem enting the p h aseou t c le a r ly ind icate that PC B s and com ponent p a rts containing PC B s purchased p rior to A pril 11, 1979 m ay be sold or used to m ain tain or rep a ir equipm ent a fter Ju ly 1, 1979. In th is w ay e x istin g PCB equipm ent could be efficien tly u tilized until the end of its norm al serv ice life. IVe a p p r e c ia te y o u r h a v in g d is c u s s e d E P A 's p o s itio n on th e a b o v e su b je c t at the con feren ce, and take th is opportunity to ex p ress our endorsem ent th er e o f. V ery truly you rs, f Jam es F . Y oung:rss BCC: Hershner Cross H.A. Downs E.W. Feuerstein J.P. Flynn L.C. Maier J.F. McAllister D. W. Mohrman J.S. N e l s o n ^ C.E. Reed R.L. Reinhart E. L. Simons NEL 000570 782418 PCB Regulations under TOSCA 83229-2287 J. F . Young J. F. M cA llister July 1, 1977 M e s s r s . E . L. D obbins E . W. F e u e r ste in J. P . Flynn A .B . Gough L. P. Hart L. L. M acM onagle W .R. M cKenzie G .R . Menkart R .T . M orris R. C. Osthoff J. F . Repko E. L. Sim ons R .A . Stenge r G entlem en: E nclosed is a copy of the M anufacturing C hem ists A ssociation letter of com m ent to EPA on la b e lin g and d isp o sitio n o f P C B s. We p a rticip a ted in the w riting of this letter and b eliev e you w ill find it supportive of the position taken by M r. Young in h is letter on the sam e subject which we distributed on the 21st. M eanw hile, EPA is proceedin g to con sid er another a sp ect of PCB reg u la tion, nam ely, ru les for the phased bans on P C B s. In the F ed eral R eg ister for June 27 (copy enclosed). EPA lists what they consider to be the general is s u e s , s o lic its inform ation, and a d v ertises public m eetin g s. We propose to recom m end that the Company supply argum ents sim ila r to those in M r. Young's two previous le tte r s, favoring p rovision s to fa cilita te the servicin g of existin g PCB equipm ent (tran sform ers), and oth erw ise perm it continued u se of existing equipment for its norm al serv ice life. We w ill app reciate hearing from anyone who has additional top ics to recom m end for incorporation in such a letter. The d iscu ssion of general principles seem s appropriate at this stage. M ore sp ecific com m ents w ill have to await E P A 's action in issu in g proposed ru les. V ery-truly yours, JSN:cas E n clo su re Jam es S. N elson , Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility 782419 NEL 000571 782420 N E L 000572 j* i i NEW PCB RULES 8*229-2287 J .F . M cA llister J . P. Flynn M a r c h i, 1978 Dr. E . L. Sim ons EPO 36 - 120 Schenectady, NY 12345 Dear Ed: A ttached, as agreed in our recen t conversation, is a draft of a letter p roposed to be sen t to a num ber of com ponents in te r e ste d in the product im pact of the new EPA ru les for d isp osal and m arking of P C B s. I w ill appreciate suggestions from you or your staff concerning this draft and its proposed distribution. By copy. I'm asking Jack M cA llister and Jim Flynn for th eir su ggestions a ls o . L et m e h ea r by 11retu rn m a il11 if fe a s ib le , so w e can get th is out in a tim ely fashion. Thank you. V ery truly yours. JS N :cas Attachm ent Jam es S. N elson i ! ; MEL 000573 o 7ft 9 4 9 1 1 }1 8*229-?287 FEBRUARY ACTIVITIES REPORT ______ J a m e s S. N e lso n _____ o Mr. J .F . M cA llister -O ffice-- M arch 2, 1978 Re d a c t e d 2. EPA R ules for PCB M arking and D isp osal Final PCB rules for labeling and disposal have issu ed , and are som ewhat lib eralized along lin es suggested in M r. Young's com m ents on the proposed r u les. M essrs. Sim ons and N elson have exchanged drafts of inform ation letters to be sent to their respective constituencies. x-r NEL 000574 redacted 4. EPA Strategy Document: TOSCA A dm inistration M r. N e lso n h a s a g reed to d ev elo p for MCA a c r itia u e o f the con cep t of "unreasonable risk" as related to a draft docum ent of EPA strategy for adm inistering the Toxic Substances Control A ct. -- JSN:cas J. S. N elson 782499 A L tii A- 8*229-2287 PRODUCT IMPLICATIONS OF NEW PCB RULES FOR DISPOSAL AND MARKING o E . L. Dobbins py* * - i- J. F . Flynn JC W. S. Gray J. F . M cA llister J.^.rR epko E . L. Simona J. F . Young W. R. K ru esi 3 -1 0 -7 8 M arch 7, 1978 TO: DISTRIBUTION G entlem en: O T he EPA h a s is s u e d fin a l r u le s , 40C F R 761, en titled 1'P o ly ch lo rin a te d B ip h en y ls (PC Bs) - D isposal and M arking," published in the F ed eral R eg ister for February 17, 1978 (43FR 7150ff). This letter is add ressed to the principal Company com ponents that m arket, or have recently m arketed, products containing P C B s, products in corporating PC B -containing com ponents, o r se r v ic e s related to such products, to ca ll attention to the highlights of the product-related im pact o^ these ru les. C opies * of the pages cited h erein are attached. A full reprint m ay be obtained by calling E PA 's Industry A ssistan ce O ffice, 800-424-9065. Additional im plications for w aste disposal involving PCBs or PC B-contam inated w aste and other m atters relating to continued plant use of PCB equipm ent are being addressed in a separate letter from the Environm ental P rotection Operation (RECO) to those resp on sib le for environm ental control o f fa c ilitie s /a c tiv itie s . 1. 0 Product Labeling 1. 1 T ran sform ers and L arge C apacitors Even though GE is no longer m anufacturing PCB tra n sfo rm ers or ca p a cito rs, the labeling p rovision s have effect on som e Company op eration s. For exam ple, as of July 1, 1978, when a transform er or a large capacitor is rem oved from serv ice, it m ust receive an E P A -designed label if it doesn't already have one. The sam e applies to equipm ent containing tra n sfo rm ers or large high voltage cap acitors. P resum ably, m any u se r s w ill look to the supplier/m anufacturer as a source of such labels. There are provisions regarding the labeling of storage areas and trucks or freight cars that w ill presum ably apply to S erv ice Shops rep airing and handling PCB tra n sfo rm ers. A gain, a ll GE com ponents, as u se r s of PCB tra n sfo rm ers and la rg e highvoltage capacitors (if any), w ill have to label them before disposal. NEL 000575 782423 - 2- M *rch 7, 1978 A s of January l v 1979 a ll PCB tr a n sfo r m e rs and la rg e high voltage capacitors--includ ing such a rticles that are in use or storage anywhere in the U .S . -- w ill have to m eet labeling requirem ents. 1 .2 Sm all C apacitors and Equipm ent Containing Them A s o f January 1, 1979* a ll equipm ent containing a s m a ll PCB ca p a cito r at the tim e of m anufacture sh all be m arked with the statem ent "This equipm ent contains PCB capacitor (s)" in a label of designated siz e and durability* 1. 3 N on-PC B C apacitors and F lu orescen t B allasts Containing Them Each large low voltage capacitor* each sm a ll capacitor norm ally u sed in alternating current circuits* and each flu o rescen t light b allast m anufactured a fte r Ju ly 1* 1978* and u n til Ju ly 1* 1998* that d o es not con tain F C B s sh a ll be m arked by the m anufacturer at the tim e of m anufacture with the state ment* "No PC B b," (This reauirem ent m ay or m ay not have statutory authority* but is not lik ely to be challenged by industry*) The com plete ru les for m arking are found in Subpart C on page 7159 of the rules* and in Annex V on page 7163. 2* 0 G en era l P r o v is io n s - O v erv iew and A s s e s s m e n t The final ru les are se le c tiv e ly respon sive to GE and other industry com m ents and le s s burdensom e in certain im portant resp ects than the ru les previou sly p ro p o sed (M ay 24* 1977* 4 2 F R 2 6 5 6 4 ). T he p r o p o sa l r ea u ire d that* b efo re a tr a n sfo r m e r cou ld be d is p o se d o f in a landfill, it had to be drained and flushed until no m ore than two percent of the original d ielectric fluid remained* T his has been replaced with a req uirem en t to drain out all fr e e-flo w in g liquid* fill w ith so lv en t, and drain out a fter 18 h o u rs or m ore* b e fo r e p la cin g the tr a n sfo r m e r in a c h e m ic a l w aste landfill. Originally* only occupants of private housing units w ere allowed to dispose of sm all capacitors and equipm ent containing them as m unicipal solid w aste. Now* any p e r so n m ay doseo* ex cep t the m an ufacturer o f the ca p a cito r or the m anufacturer of equipm ent using the capacitor. (H ow ever, the pream ble ind icates that EPA is continuing to look for a way to tighten ru les on the d isp osal of sm all capacitors and equipm ent containing th e m .) L arge ca p a cito rs (and sm a ll cap a cito rs belonging to m an u factu rers) m ay be d isp o se d of b y in c in e r a tio n o r - - u n t il January 1* 1 9 8 0 --b y la n d fillin g . A fter that date* a il m ust be incincerated* but they m ay be stored w hile awaiting incineration* as described in Annex m* p. 7162. NEL 000576 782424 - 3- M arch 7, 1978 The final ru les are gen erally p erceived as being m ore lib era l In allow* ing landfill disposal of various w a stes than the proposed rules had been, and as giving EPA region al adm in istrators m ore d iscretio n in w riting perm its for exceptions. V ery truly yours. JSNtcas E nclosures Jam es S. N elson, Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility K NEL 000577 782425 o o o DISTRIBUTION LIST (Components with PCB P rodu cts ) A ir Conditioning B u sin ess D ivision Jam es R. B ritt, L ouisville Joseph A. P ietsch, Tyler Apparatus Service B usiness D ivision E dw ard W. F e u e r ste in , Schenectady - A ppliance Components B usiness D ivision Donald W. M ohrm an, F o rt Wayne D aryl Patton, Fort Wayne Contractor Equipment B usiness D ivision W illiam M. Nave, Hartford Data Com m unication Products B u sin ess D epartm ent Javier U rioste, Waynesboro ^ E lectronic System s B usiness D ivision Robert Q. R ichards, Syracuse E lectronic Components B usiness D ivision Jam es F . M adole, Owensboro Capacitor Products Departm ent Frank D. P rice, Hudson F a lls Installation and S ervice E ngineering B u sin ess D iv isio n Ronald E . Brandon, Schenectady Large T ransform er B usiness D ivision Andrew G lassanos, P ittsfield Robert C. Osthoff, P ittsfield W illiam M. R odgers, Rome Lighting B u sin ess Group W illia m B a rr o n , ^Group C o u n se l, N e la P a r k ft ^ ^__ Pij^r -A lfred B. Gough, D anville, Illinois Lighting System s B u sin ess Departm ent Reuel L. D avis, J r . , H endersonville V 782426 NEL 000578 ft o O - 2- DISTRIBUTION LIST (Continued) M ajor A ppliance B asinas* Group Edw ard C onners, Louisville Range Engineering D epartm ent R o b e rt V . Chou L o u isv ille M otors and D rives B usiness D ivision D ale R . C ochran, Schenectady Joseph L. Y osafat, Salem , V a, Sw itchgear B usiness D epartm ent C harles H. T itus, Philadelphia T elevision B usiness D epartm ent A lford E , A llen, P ortsm outh, V a, T ran sp o rtatio n System * B usiness D ivision L or ne L. M acM onagle, E rie J a c k Cm A lto n , E r i e f f IX A A u .O - O U I l/ VU f a j J M j i ji f>0 Otnf H y yiu X ) h// $2>2o) ^ !pt NEL 000579 782427 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF SUBJECT MARCH MONTHLY ACTIVITIES _____ J a m e s S. N elson. COPIES: March. 29, 1978 M r. J. F. M cA llister - - O ffice- - III. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. PCB R ules for D isp osal and M arking The EPA has issu ed final ru les, 40CFR761, "Polychlorinated B iphenyls (P C B s) - D isp o sa l and M arking." C om pared to the proposed ru les, the final v ersio n was som ew hat lib eralized along lin es suggested in com m ents by GE and other industry spokesm en. A letter of interpretation was sent to a selected lis t of GE b u s in e s s e s . 2. "U nreasonable Risk" in TQ5CA In support of a p roject o f the M anufacturing C h em ists A s s o c ia tion to develop com m ents on E P A 's draft strategy docum ent for the im plem entation of TOSCA, a statem ent critiq u in g the concept of "unreasonable risk" as used in the strategy docu m ent has been drafted. A final version w ill be prepared, taking advantage of the exam ination of the le g isla tiv e h istory of the phrase, as prepared at PQS' request by G eneral L egal O peration. 3. TOSCA Inventory W arranty Statem ents Im proved language for GE Com ponents to u se in req uesting w arranty sta tem en ts fro m ven d ors has been su g g e ste d to G eneral L egal Operation. REDACTED NEL 000580 78242s GENERAL ELECTRIC M r. J. F. M cA llister -2- M arch 29, 1978 REDACTED 7fr JSN:cas S. N elson NEL 000581 782429 8*229-2287 APRIL. MONTHLY ACTIVITIES ______ J a m e s S. N elso n M r. J .F . M cA llister --O ffice-- May 2, 1978 ^ b d a c te ,T ) ?Pi- NEL 000582 O 782430 M r. J. F. M cA llister - 2- M ay 2, 1978 5. PCB Products Correspondence between EPA and EIAf reflecting E FA 's lib eralized interpretation of PCB m arking ru les, has been d isse m in a te d to in te r e s te d GE co m p o n en ts. In a separate action, a situation that has a risen concerning the im pact of new M innesota rules for continued u se of PCB products was assessed . redacted o JS N :cas J .S . N elson NEL 000583 o o 782431 8*229-2287 EPA FORMULATING NEW PCB RULES ^ MINNESOTA RULES May 2, 1978 E. L. Dobbins W. S. G ray J. F. M cA llister J. R. M ackenzie J. F . Repko E. L. Sim ons W. R . K r u e si TO: DISTRIBUTION ZPA is now planning to redefine a PCB fluid as a m ixture containing 50 ppm (instead of 500 ppm). It a lso appears to be in terp retin g "totally en closed ap p lica tions"--a phrase form erly in general u se as a description of capacitors and tra n s f o r m e r s ^ m ake it appear that C ongress intended som ething e ls e . A lso , w hereas Schw eitzer gave h is assurance that EPA had no intention of restrictin g the u se of existin g equipm ent, EPA is now proposing a fiv e -y e a r lim it on "routine servicing" Q of PCB transform ers in general and a fiv e -y e a r lim it on the u se of PCB tra n s form ers in locom otives and transit ca rs. f The above and other developm ents are reflected in a draft rule now circulating within EPA and reported in the A pril 26, 1978, issu e of P esticid e and T oxic Chem ical N ew s. ^ R.ecent com m unications from the M innesota P ollu tion Control A gency indicate that a new regulation im plem enting that s ta te s 1 PCB law went into effect on N ovem ber 1, 1977. This regulation "requires anyone who u se s, p o s s e s s e s , s e lls , p u rch ases, or m an u factu res PC B or p rod u cts contain ing PC B to apply fo r a c e r tific a te of e x e m p tio n .11 We are aw aiting a copy of the reg u la tio n s; m ea n w h ile, w e have lea rn ed that they do not apply to a rticles containing le s s than 1 kilogram of PCB. This would appear to O exem pt the great m ajority of sm a ll industrial cap acitors and apparatus containing such, but precautions should be taken by a ll concerned against the application of any "left over" large capacitors, tran sform ers, or equipment incorporating them in the state of M innesota, without a properly p ro cessed certifica te. JSNscas E n clo su res Jam es S. N elson, Consultant Product Environm ental Com patibility NEL 000584 782432 8*229-2287 MAY MONTHLY ACTIVITIES J a m e s S. N e lso n ________ M r. J. F . M cA llister --O ffice-- June 2, 1978 f NEL 000585 3. FCBs A ssistan ce was provided to Apparatus S ervice B u sin ess D ivision in reconciling a regulatory problem with resp ect to uncertificated use of PC Bs in M innesota. Other interested components w ere advised of provisions of the new M innesota regulations and also warned of changes in FCB ru les .being considered at the F ed eral le v e l that would r e str ic t serv icin g of tran sform ers and railroad equipm ent, am ong other m a tters. 7fl?d33 Q M r. J. F . M cA llister -2- June 2, 1978 REDACTED JSN :cas J .S . N elson f; NEL 000586 O o 782434 & June 23, 1978 M em orandum : P roposed R egulations to Im plem ent the Ban on PC B s To: J .F . M cA llister Cn W ednesday, June 7, EFA published in the F ed eral R egister proposed rules applicable to 4 0 C F R 7 6 1 , "P olychlorinated B iphenyls (P C B s)-M anufacturing, P ro cessin g , D istribution in C om m erce, and U se B ans. " A copy is attached, together with an outline sum m ary prepared by John C laussen, EPC attorney (Jim Flynn's replacem ent). At m y suggestion, Ed Sim ons convened a m eeting in Schenectady yesterd ay for rep resen tatives of the Company components with the g reatest involve m ent to analyze the proposed ru les and determ ine what action should be recom m ended. Present w ere Ed Sim ons, M arv P h illip s, Ann Toothaker and John C la u sse n (EPO ); John B row n , CRScD; R upert H enry, C apacitor; Ed F eu erstein and Larry A yer, Apparatus Service B usiness Division; Bob C sthoff, Pow er and D istribution T ran sform ers, and m e. Issu es Identified The follow ing issu es w ere identified as of particular in terest to the Company and the a ssig n m en ts indicated w ere agreed upon. Changing the operation definition of PCB m ixture from an entity containing 500 ppm (as in the p resen t ru les for labeling and d isp osal of FC B s) to an entity containing only 50 ppm. This fundamental change has subissues: - Ratio of increm ent (pounds of PCB) brought under control to existin g environm ental burden N elson - How much of the increm en t (between 500 ppm and 50 ppm) would be destroyed by ordinary com bustion and other existing industry disposal p ractices, in the absence of the proposed ru les? C sth off Cost to com ply with proposal that all tran sform ers (in cluding those that are nom inally o il-filled ) be labeled to indicate presence or absence of PCBs F eu erstein 782435 NEL 000587 M em orandum to: J .F . M cA llister - 2 - June 23, 1978 a C ongressional intent: in banning "PCBs" did C ongress intend extending the definition to em brace item s with tra ces of PCB? C lau esen o Developm ent of a GE counter proposal to perm it convert ing a failed PCB transform er to a non-PCB transform er (using for exam ple the new d ielectric called Iralac, developed by R hon e-P oulenc on a joint venture giving GE two y e a r s exclusive license) F eu erstein o Im pact on diecasting system s that at any tim e in the past used PCBs in the hydraulic sy stem s C sth off o F ire safety of R ailroad equipm ent conversions O sthoff o Im pact of proposed rules on ability to handle analytical sam ples Brown Schedule F ir s t input on above assign m en ts to Sim ons by 7 -7 -7 8 ; next m eetin g July 26 or July 27; com m ents due to EPA 8-7-78; hearing, A ugust 21, 1978. R esnonse Cotion a In the opinion of the ad hoc group, no in d u stry a sso c ia tio n s e e m s to be a v ery good p ro sp ect for p resen tin g our in te r e sts. MCA and EIA have little in terest; EEI is slow; NEMA is not m eeting until July 19; furtherm ore, we have little confidence in the spokesm an they probably would u se . In view of these con sid eration s, the sen se of the m eeting w as that GE should develop its own letter of com m ent and decide prior to the deadline of July 31 w hether the GE co m m en ts should be p r e se n te d in p e r so n at the h e a r in g s. JSN: cas A ttachm ent J .S . N elson NEL 000588 782436 8*229-2287 FCB MANUFACTURING AND' ' USE BANS: 43 FR 24807 J. F. M cA llister Attached D istribution List July 21, 1978 Dr. E, L. Sim ons 36 - 120 Schenectady, NY 12345 Dear Ed: Xwas asked to review the Corporate im pact of the rem arks m ade at the bottom of 43 FR 24807 and the top of 43 FR 24808 (reproduced herew ith) relative to inform ing the distribution chain with regard to products con taining PCB that are still entering the pipeline. A sum m ary follow s: Central A ir Conditioners: The phasing out of PCB capacitors was com pleted during the la st half of 1977. !/' Room A ir Conditioners: No PCB capacitors now used. Major A ppliances: Only product using sm a ll industrial cap acitors is m icrow ave oven. PCB capacitors no longer in u se. Data Com m unication Products: T here m ay be som e.PC B capacitors still going through. H ow ever, the products are ser ia lly num bered, and the PC B -containing products could be identified if n ecessa ry . Drive System s: \} M ost control equipm ent is m arketed d irect to the custom er. PCB components are still being used. They are tellin g custom ers that any equipm ent shipped prior to January 1, 1979, should be regarded as possibly containing a PCB component. Inasm uch as equipment is not required to be labeled until January 1, 1979, D rive System s fee ls that establishin g an e a rlier date for notification would be an im position. NEL 000589 782437 ** * D r. . L. Sim ons - 2- July 21, 1978 B a lla st: B a lla st d e liv e r s about 12 m illio n b a lla sts per year containing capacitors. They still have in stock about 2t 000 PCB capacitors that they are trying to u se up. B allasts using the new capacitors (the great m ajority) are m arked "no PCBs" and a lso ca rry a d istin ctive ca ta lo g num ber (w ith a "W" at th e end). T hey f e e l that this differentiation in m arking should take care of the problem . Lighting System s: Fifty percent of the production goes through distribu tors. They have changed over to non-PCB capacitors, but there m ay be a few in transition. M edical System s: Only dental equipm ent is sold through distribu tors. Change notices have been w ritten for the use of non PCB capacitors in a ll M .S. products, but effectivity dates have thus far perm itted using up existing stock. C lsson fe e ls that distributor notification would not be a m ajor undertaking. E lectronic System s: No sa les through distributors. Ordnance Department: No PCB capacitors now in u se . No sa les through d istr ib u to r s. T elevision: PCB capacitor stock practically exhausted by May, 1978; definitely so by July 1, 1978. Typical period from m anufacture to sale by d ealer is 3 m onths, but in isolated in stan ces, a set two or three y ea rs old w ill be sold. Recom m endation: In g en era l, GE is m aking v e r y little u se of PC B com ponents at this point in tim e, and does not appear to be generating any problem s for people in the d is tr i bution chain, except in a few iso la ted in sta n ces. Additionally, it does not appear that mandatory rules for n otification , should they be prom ulgated, would im pact se r io u sly on the Company. T h erefore, I would suggest om itting any discussion of the subject paragraphs in our testim ony. V ery truly yours. JSN:cas E n clo su re J. S. N elson 782438 NEL 000590 DISTRIBUTION: L>. G. A y e r Schenectady, NY J o h n F . Brown, Jr. Schenectady, NY J .H . C laussen Schenectady, NY E . W, F eu erstein Schenectady, NY R. F. Henry Hudson F a lls, NY W. R. K ru esi Fairfield, CT C .B . Lewis E rie, PA L. L. M acM onagle E rie, PA Ra Ca C sthoff P ittsfield , MA JaM. Phillips Schenectady, NY NEL 000591 782439 24807 24808 In order Co minimize an? problems . which wholesalers and retailers might I have In complying with the ban. KPA i encourages manufacturers of PCB equtpmeot, to Inform all participants In the distribution In commerce chain. (eaz~ wholesalers. Jobbers, retailers) of the Identity of all PC 3 equipment manufactured after July 1. 1378. Farttdpants In th e distribution In com* merte chain should be made aware of the consequences of not selling this ! equipment by July 1, 1379, and should : he able to receive help, as needed, to ; segregate FCB equipment from nonf PC5 equipment. If voluntary efforts to inform the distribution chain do not work. EPA may consider adopting regulatory requirements that manu facturers adequately inform the distri bution chain. Comments are requested on the need for mandatory notifica tion requirements, the information th at should be distributed, and the costs th a t would be involved in such an information dispersal system. v i . O , NO. 7. W a 000592 782440 8*229-2287 EPA PROPOSAL TC IMPLEMENT 6 (e ) C F TSCA____________________ J. H. C laussen W. R. K rueai J. F. M cA llister W. F . M cM anus E . L. Simone J. F . Young August 4, 1978 M r. E .M . Foley F ed eral A dm inistrative Relations Operation W ashington Corporate O ffice 777 - 14th S tre e t, NW W ashington, DC 20005 Dear Ted: Pursuant to our telephone conversation, I am enclosing three copies of M r. Young's com m ents to EPA on Proposed R egulations to Ban P C B s, 43 FR 24802. B ill McManus should alread y have received three copies m ailed to him yesterday by B ill K ruesi. It is our thought that you m ay be able to arrange for a copy to be placed before C ongressm an Jim B royhill, R -N C , whom we quote with regard to establishing C ongressional intent; and perhaps, in addition, other copies in the hands of appropriate'm em bers of the Environm ent C om m ittees of both cham bers. While the im m ediate purpose of GE's com m ents is to com bat "over kill" in the regulations to ban F C B s, the testim on y a lso serv es to highlight a number of proposed regulatory abuses that should be of in terest to C ongressm an B royhill, m em bers of the Environm ent C o m m ittees, and participants in any TSCA o v ersig h t a c tiv itie s . T hese points of general in terest are indicated in the attached memorandum. V ery truly yours. JSN:cas *. E nclosures Jam es S. N elson, ConsultantProduct Environm ental Com patibility TQ24A`1 NEL 000593 GENERIC ISSUES RAISED BY PROPOSED REGULATIONS TC BAN FC B b, 43 FR 24082 (R eferences are to page num bers in G eneral E lectric Comments subm itted by Jam es F. Young, V ice-P resid en t,, August 1, 1978) /'"'n o EPA , contrary to exp ressed C ongressional intent, is proposing restrictio n s on the servicin g of tran sform ers that w ill have the effect of forcing prem ature retirem en t from u se of such equip m ent containing the regulated ch em ica l (pp 1 -3 , 11-12). o EPA , by including a rticles containing only trace amounts of the regulated chem ical in their definition of "PCB a rticles," is broadening the scope of the regulations to reach m illio n s of m in eral oil transform ers that are not dem onstrably a significant part of the p rob lem a d d ressed by C o n g ress in enacting 6 (e) of TSCA* (p 5) o EPA is proposing to regulate on the b asis of adm inistrative or regulatory fea sib ility , without relationship to the p resen ce or ab sen ce o f "unreasonable risk" (p 3 ff). o EPA , in mandating "procedures m inim izing worker exposure," appears to b e e x e r c isin g statu tory authority r e se r v e d to CSHA. (p 13) o EPA is acting without leg isla tiv e authority in proposing that certain m a tte r s be c e r tifie d to by a r e g is te r e d p r o fe s s io n a l engineer* (p 14) Ip-* KJ J S N ica s JSN 8-4-78 NEL 000594 782442 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT 8 2 2 9 -2 2 7 ] COPIES' JULY MONTHLY ACTIVITIES ____ J a m e s S . N e lso n August 7, 1978 73 M r. J. F. M cA llister - -O ffice-- n i. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. EPA P roposed R ules to Im plem ent TOSCA 6(e), Banning PC Bs ________ ______ PQS participated in a task fo rce to prepare com m ents on E P A 's proposed ru les to im plem ent the banning of P C B s. The com m ents w ere filed by M r. Young, August 1, 1978. In resp on se to a request from the staff of the Manu facturing C hem ists A ssociation , assistan ce was given in identifying issu es raised by the EPA proposal that would be of concern to MCA*s general corporate m em b er ship, including those com panies with no sp ecific in terest in PCBs. A som ewhat sim ila r letter was sen t to T ed F oley, with the suggestion that the W ashington O ffice take step s to inform appropriate m em b ers of C ongress of the direction taken by EPA, running counter to C ongressional intent and statutory authorities. redacted NEL 000595 782443 G E N E R A L ELECTRIC M r, J. F. M cA llister - 2- August 7, 1978 REDACTED JS N :cas ----J. S. N elson F NEL 000596 782444 8*229-2287 UNICN OIL COMPANY INQUIRY R. C. Csthoff E. L. Simons J .F . M cA llister T .O . Rouse C .E . W elsh August 29, 1978 M r. C .H . T itus, Department Consulting Engineer Switchgear B usiness Departm ent 6901 Elmwood Avenue Philadelphia, PA 19142 Dear Charlie: I am forwarding for Switchgear B usiness D epartm ent's reply a letter received from the M arine D ivision of Union O il Company of C a lifo rn ia inq uiring w h eth er " oil N o. 6" u se d in GE c ir c u it breakers is contam inated with PCB. Apparently this designation co v ers m in eral oil used in the 19401950 period. Dr. R ouse r a ise s the p o ssib ility that, depending upon the place and tim e of circu it breaker m anufacture, there could have been som e cross-con tam in ation . R egard s, JS N :cas E nclosure Jam es S. N elson Consultant - Pr oduct Environm ental Compatibility p NEL 000597 782445 - ' ' l T' yj : *w -<j r >v ti ,* . , ; u . ./f/- 1 Or X V .u . i * V ' 7 i/r T. J. Kerans Manager. Marine Operations I7//: Union 76 Division: Eastern Region Union Oil Company of California Marine Division P. O. Box 1407, Nederland, Texas 77627 Telephone (713) 722-6461 August 21, 1978 E r ~TIVED Aug 2 8 1978 E. L. SIMONS r. General Electric 1 River Road Schenectady, New York 12345 Attention: Environmental Service Department Gentlemen: We have on board our vessel, the S/S David D. Irwin, a quantity of General Electric circuit breakers which use a G. E. insulating oil N o . 6 as a dashpot ingredient on our main switchboard. Would you kindly advise this office if any of this oil is contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). This is being written in response to new U. S. government NEL 000598 782446 o 8*229-2287 CANADIAN RULES FOR PC B s M ~ * f P er Distribution L ist o Septem ber 25, 1978 M r. L om e L. M acM onagle M anager-Product and System s Safety Transportation System s B usiness D ivision 2901 E ast Lake Road E rie, PA 16531 Dear Lom e: This note confirm s our telephone conversation of today and w ill serv e to inform others who are in terested in the subject of forthcom ing Canadian regu lation s on products containing p olych lorin ated biphenyls (PCB; P y ra n o l). I talked with M r. David P a sco of Environm ent Canada (a governm ent agency sim ilar to our EFA). At the present, it is legal to m anufacture/im port/ serv ice tran sform ers, associated sw itchgear, and capacitors containing PCB (but not any other ca teg o ries of products using PCB, such a s , presum ably, hyd rau lic s y ste m s or ca rb o n le ss du plicatin g p a p er, e t c . ). H ow ever, a ru le has been prepared for publication during October that w ill have the effect of term inating all " n e v u s e s," The rule w ill be printed in the Canada Gazette (a publication analagous to our F ed era l R eg ister) and w ill b ecom e e ffe ctiv e 60 days after publication. Thus, as of a date predicted to be approxim ately January 1, 1^79> it w ill not be perm itted to m anufacture PCB tran sform ers or capacitors in Canada or to Import them into Canada, and after that date no "topping up" of tr a n s fo r m e r s w ith PCB during s e r v ic in g w ill be p erm itted . Canadian firm s with PCB com ponents in stock w ill be perm itted to s e ll their existing stocks. V ery truly yours, f JSN:cas Jam es S. N elson, ConsultantProduct Environm ental Com patibllit NEL 000599 782447 G E N E R A L ^ ) ELECTRIC DISTRIBUTION LIST (Components with h isto ry of PCB Products) A ir Conditioning B usiness D ivision Jam es E. Britt, L ouisville Stanley A. Gorski " C harles M. M adanick " Apparatus Service B usiness D ivision Edward W. F eu erstein , Schenectady ' Appliance Components B usiness D ivision D onald W. M ohrm an, F o r t Wayne D aryl Patton " Contractor Equipment B u sin ess D ivision Raymond C. A llen, Bridgeport W illiam M. Nave " Data Com m unication Products B usiness Dept. John W. Sw ett, W aynesboro Javier U rioste " D istribution T ransform er B usiness Dept. D elb ert L. W illiam son, H ickory, NC E lectronic System s D ivision R ichard C. Hatch, Syracuse R obert O. Richards " E lectronic Components B u sin ess D ivision Jam es F . M adole, Owensboro John F. Repko, Syracuse Capacitor Products Departm ent Donald F . C ro ss, Hudson F a lls George R. Menkart " Frank D. P rice " In sta lla tio n &c S e r v ic e E n g in eerin g B u s in e s s D iv is io n Ronald E . Brandon, Schenectady (Continued) 782448 j& L 000600 f -2- D istribution L ist (Continued) Large T ransform er B usiness D ivision Edward L. Dobbins, P ittsfield R aym ond W. F ra h m , R om e Andrew G lassanos, P ittsfield R obert C. Osthoff " W illiam M. R odgers, Rome Lighting B u sin ess Group Thomas P . Segerson, N ela Park A lfred B. Gough, D anville, Illinois Lighting System s Departm ent D ouglas B . A b ram s, H en d erson ville, NC R euel L. D avis, Jr. 11 M ajor A ppliance B u sin ess Group Edward Conners, L ouisville Philip V. Otero Range Engineering Department R obert V. Chou, L ouisville M obile Radio Products Departm ent L. Keith E lrod, Lynchburg M otors and D rives B u sin ess D ivision Paul G. Cum m ings, Schenectady Joseph L. Y osafat, Salem , VA Switchgear B usiness Departm ent C harles H. T itus, Philadelphia T elevision B usiness Department A lfo rd E . A llen , P ortsm ou th , VA Transportation System s B usiness D ivision Jack C. Aiton, E rie Leonard B. Gezon " Copies a lso to: W. F . F a iso n W .R . K ruesiJ .F . M cA llister J.M . Phillips E. L. Sim ons A . M. Toothaker J. F . Young 782449 NEL 000601 T/ 229-Z2S7 SEP TEN D ER A CTIYITIES REPORT ________.Tames S. N elson____________ Mr J. F . M cAllister -O ffice-- Septem ber 29 , 1978 REDACTED N E L 000602 PCB Ban Rules _As a follow -up to the public h earin g on the ru les fo r banning P C E s , a m eeting was held in Schenectady of the ari hoc grouD. Additional inform ation and recom m endations to E F A a re beine p ro c e sse d fo r su b m ission in two ch an n els--th ro u gh NEMA and d ire c tly by C E . A suggested le tte r fo r Ivrr. Y ou n g's con sid eration is being p reo ared for his re v ie w on F r id a y , O ctober 6 (with C 'a u ssen and Sim ons the orinciDai authors). I. r . I'e lso n w as on vacation the fir s t h alf of Septem ber. 782450 JSN:cas o - 2- REDACTED Septerr.be r 29, 1 :7S J .S . Nelson NEL 000603 / 782451 8*229-2287 PC B s AT WA TER FC RD J. H. Claus sen O ctober 23, 1978 M r. J .F . M cA llister - -O ffice-- Dear Jack: You w ill r ec a ll that in m y m em orandum of June 23, I m entioned the likelihood that GE would be fined for operation of a PCB d isp o sa l facility in advance of receiving EFA approval for its u se. A ccording to the en clo sed news item in P e s tic id e & T oxic C hem ical N ew s, O ctober 18, 1978, this has com e to p a ss, and GE has agreed to a c iv il penalty of $25,000. W aterford is now operating its incinerator on a perm it valid for two or three y e a rs, but lim ited to burning PC Bs generated in the plant's own w aste strea m s. No reason for this restriction was stated nor is it apparent from the resu lts of the test burns why it should be appropriate. V ery truly yours, JS N :cas E n clo su re J. S. N elson J .H . Claus sen: Dr. Joe W irth, M anager-T echnology D evelopm ent at SPBD, has seen the P esticid e & Toxic C hem ical N ew s item , and a g rees that the p re sentation therein is not dam aging. There has been no coverage in the local general p ress. E nclosed for your inform ation is a copy of the m em orandum referenced aboV- JSN 782452 October 18, 1978 Page 5 PESTICIDE & TOXIC CHEMICAL NEWS requirem ents tor States under cooperative enforcem ent agreem ents; S tate-[V iera 1 enforcem ent referral procedures; and other enforcem ent m atters. November 8 ,9 , the R egistration and C la ss ific a tio n W orking .Committee will m eet and d is c u s s : th e new FIFRA am en d m en ts; d e v e lo p m e n t o f new S e c tio n 24(c) s p e c ia l lo c a l n eed c rite ria ; d raft fin a l S ectio n 5(f) and (g) S tate ex p erim en tal u s e perm it re g u la tio n s ; c la s s if ic a tio n ; and EPA p la n s for c o n d itio n a l r e g is tr a tio n . November 14, 15, the C ertificatio n W orking C om m ittee and the Training Working Committee w ill meet jointly to d iscu ss: p esticid e ap p licato r training options; record keeping by State lead ag en cies for certificatio n ; recertificatio n requirem ents and EPA g u id a n c e on them ; EPA g u id a n c e on F e d e ra l fu n d in g of S ta te tra in in g an d c e r tif ic a tio n p ro g ram s; new FIFRA a m en d m en ts; a n d o th e r c e r tif ic a tio n and tra in in g m atters. Q GENERAL ELECTRIC AGREES TO $ 2 5 ,0 0 0 CIVIL PENALTY FOR PCB DISPOSAL In th e fir s t c iv il p e n alty a c tio n in itia te d under the T oxic S u b sta n c e s C o n tro l L i (TSCA), G e n e ra l E le c tric C om pany o f W a te rfo rd , New Y ork, a g re e d to a n Environm ent*^ Protection Agency asse ssm e n t of $25,000 (See Sept. 27, Page 2). The penalty was a s s e s s e d based on the firm 's v io latio n of the reg u latio n s governing the d isp o sal and m arking of poly ch lo rin ated b ip h en y ls (PCBs) w hich p ro scrib ed th e d is p o sa l of PCBs a s of April 18, 1978 ex cep t a t d is p o sa l fa c ilitie s w hich had been approved for ^ th is p u rp o se by th e EPA A d m in istra to r for th e re g io n in w h ic h th e f a c ility w a s lo c a te d . The co n sen t agreem ent and final order contained the following findings of fact con cerning the violation: -- R espondent m a in ta in s, a t its W aterfo rd , N.Y. fa c ility , an in c in e rato r w hich h a s been* used since 1974 for the in cin eratio n of w a ste s containing m ono- and dichiorobiphenyls generated a t th at fa cility a s an e ss e n tia l part of a w ater pollution abatem ent program under th e ju risd ic tio n of New York S ta te . -- R esp o n d e n t f ir s t inform ed EPA by l e t t e r d a te d A pril 1 0 , 1978 th a t i t w a s e n g a g e d in the d isp o sal of PC B-containing w astes a t the W aterford in cin erato r. -- R esp o n d en t su b m itted an a p p lic a tio n d a te d April 12, 1978 re q u e stin g th e a p p ro v a l o f th e EPA R egion II R eg io n al A d m in istra to r for o p e ra tio n o f th e W aterfo rd in c in e ra to r for th e disposal of PCBs. -- On June 5, 1978 R espondent re c e iv e d a sh o rt-term ap proval from the R egional A dm inistra a u th o riz in g R esp o n d e n t (for a 9 0 -d a y p eriod) to d is p o s e of PCB c o n ta in in g w a s te s w ith a n a c tu a l PCB c o n c e n tra tio n of o n e p e rc e n t (1%) or l e s s g e n e r a te d a s a b v -o m rin c t nf m a n u facturing p ro cesses conducted at the W ateriord fa c ility . -- O n April 2 7 , 2 8 , 2 9 , an d 30, 1978, p rio r to th e EPA R eg io n al A d m in is tr a io r s s n o rt-te rn ; ap p ro v al of th e W aterford in c in e ra to r for PCB d is p o s a l, R esp o n d en t u tiliz e d th a t in c in e ra tor for the d isp o sal of PC B -containing w a ste s. The EPA c o n s e n t a g re e m e n t n o te d th a t G e n e ra l E le c tric v o lu n ta rily p ro d u c e d it s reco rd , of the period and said th at th e se records show ed th a t only th e more d ilu te of two 782453 Page 6 O ctober 18, 1978 PESTICIDE & TOXIC CHEMICAL NEWS PC B -containing w aste stream s generated a t the W aterford facility w ere d isposed of on the April d a te s . The more co n cen trated PC B -containing w aste stream w as n o t incinerated but stored, the agreem ent said. The a g re e m e n t a ls o s tr e s s e d th a t EPA h a s n o e v id e n c e to in d ic a te th a t a n y harm to human h e a lth or th e environm ent re su lte d from R esp o n d e n t's in c in e ra tio n o f PCBcontaining w astes on those d a te s. lMIDAN TOLERANCE FOR KIWI FRUIT ESTABLISHED The E nvironm ental P ro tectio n Agency O c t. 10 e s ta b lis h e d a to le ra n c e fo r re s id u e s of N -(m ercaptom ethyl)phthalim ide S -(0,0-dim ethyl phosphorodithioate) and its oxygen analog N -(m ercaptom ethyl) phthalim ide S -(0 , 0-dim ethyl pho sphorothioate) of 25 p .p .m . in or on kiw i fru it. The EPA-proposed to leran ce for resid u es of the in sec tic id e -- which is known a s im idan -- w as based on a p etition subm itted by Stauffer C hem ical (See Aug. 23, Page 11). The Food and Drug A dm inistration is ex p ec te d to re le a s e kiw i fru it from N ew Z e a la n d d e ta in e d b e c a u s e of im id an r e s id e s now th a t EPA h a s e s ta b lis h e d the tolerance. T em porary to le r a n c e s w e re g ra n te d by EPA O c t. 15 to S h ell C h e m ic a l fo r r e s id u e s of cyano(3-phenoxyphenylm ethyl-4-chloro-a-(l-m ethylethyl)benzeneacetate. The to leran ces for re sid u es of the in se c tic id e , w hich is known a s pydrin, are 1 p .p .m . in or on pears; and 0.02 p .p .m . in or on soybeans, p ean u ts, and p o ta to e s. The tem porary to leran ces expire Sept. 19, 1979. EPA on th e sam e d a y g ra n te d te m p o ra ry to le r a n c e s to M o n sa n to fo r r e s id u e s o f glyphosate of 0 .2 p .p .m . in or on sugar b eet roots and to p s, and p o tato es and 0.1 p .p .m . in liver and kidney of c a ttle , g o a ts, h o g s, h o rse s, poultry, and sh eep . The te m p o ra ry to le r a n c e s fo r r e s id u e s o f th e h e rb ic id e -- (N -p h o sp h o n o m e th y 1)g ly c in e and its m etabolite am inom ethylphosphonic acid -- expire Sept. 5, 1980. Aldicarb Tolerance For C offee Beans Proposed The ag en c y O c t. 16 p ro p o sed e sta b lis h in g a to le ra n c e fo r re s id u e s of a ld ic a rb of 0.1 p .p .m . in or on coffee b e an s. The proposal for the in sec tic id e and nem atocide -- 2-m e th y l-2-(m eth y lth io ) p ro p io n ald h y d e 0- (me th y lcarbam oyl) oxim e and its c h o lin e sterase-in h ib itin g m etabolites 2-m e th y l-2 -(m ethylsulfinyl) propionaldhyde 0-(m ethyl" carbam oyl)oxim e and 2-m ethyl-2-(m ethylsulfonyl)propionaldehydq 0-(m ethylcarbam oyl) oxime -- w as b ased on a p etitio n subm itted by Union C arbide. In m aking the p ro p o sal, w hich is open for com m ents a n d /o r advisory com m ittee r e q u e s ts u n til N ov. 1 5 , EPA s a id i t c o n s id e re d tw o - y e a r r a t a n d dog fe e d in g s tu d ie s w ith a no-observable effect lev el of 0 .3 m g /k g /d ay and 3 .3 p .p .m . resp ectiv ely ; an 18-m onth m ouse feeding study with a n o -observable effect lev el of 0 .7 m g/kg; a rat teratology study w hich w as negative a t 1 m g /k g /d ay ; hen neurotoxicity study which w as negative a t 4 .5 m g /k g /d ay ; and a th ree-g en eratio n ra t reproduction study with a n o -o b serv ab le effect lev el of 0 .7 m q /k a. 79AKA n e l 000606 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF PC B BAN EX EM PTIO N '` - la rtjm iP sT * ~i 7 . COPIES^ * J. H. C laussen _W;F.`' F a iso n J .F . M cA llister E l `LI S im on s .J.-F*.- Young Novem ber 7, 1978 TO: DISTRIBUTION R ule s pe r ta in in g to th e banning o f PC B a r e --st i l l *in th e p rop os a l ..stage, and a fin a l ru le w ill not be p ro m u lg a ted u n til e.a r ly -next 'ye a r , Janua ry ,' 1 9 7 9 , the s ta tu to r ily p r e s c r ib e d d a te ta s.th e^ ta rg etr ' N e v e r th e le s s , r u le s for., ex em p tio n to the ban on m anufacturing PCB item s h ave.b een published and are now in effect. F or pu rp oses of determ inin g w hether to file a PCB exem ption petition, affected parties should act on the assum ption that the final regulation w ill be p r o m u lg a te d a s p ro p o sed in 43 FR 2-4802* (June 7, 1978). P e titio n s are to be filed by individual m an u factu rers.. No petitions w ill be. accepted from trade a s s o c ia t io n s . P e titio n s m u st be received,,at^E PA by D e c e m b e r 1,* 1978,- in o r d e r to be c o n s id e r e d , asr'EPA'iritends. to -co n so iid a .te -a ll a p p lica tio n s-a n d hold one h e a r i n g l e ad*in.g .t-o.'o; n eA--.r.u,,-l-.es jrriaki --- n g< u` ~ *-'' V . L'; : cyi.'-.- >'-........ T h ose w ishing only to p r o c e ss or d istrib u te in co m m erce after th .date for banning such a c tiv itie s 'are n ot to file petition s at this tim e. The d istribution and p r o c e s s in g ban1w ill not take e ffe c t b e fo r e the sta tu to ry date o f July 1, 1979, and the rules for applying m ay be changed before that tim e. Inform ation on how to apply for an exem ption to the m anufacturing ban is con tain ed in the F e d e r a l R e g iste r fo r N ovem ber. 1,,1.978 (43 FR 50907-), and a copy of that docum entors rattached............ .... ' :: ` - " __ A pplicability C ap acitors. Inasm uch as GE is no lon ger m anufacturing PC B ca p a c ito r s, it is assum ed that Capacitor Products D epartm ent w ill not be applying.in its own behalf, but m ay w ish to notify its cu sto m ers who are th em se lv e s m anufacturers of "PCB equipm ent" o f the opportunity to seek exem ption to c o v er le ft-o v e r inventories of PCB capacitors. - `` ' B a lla sts and L ighting F ix tu r e s. We understand that B a lla st P roduct Section has already worked through its inventory of PCB cap acitors. H ow ever, BPS m ay w ish to notify its cu sto m ers who a ssem b le b a lla sts into lighting fixtu res NEL 000609 782455 GENERAL ELECTRIC -2- N ovem ber 7, 1978 that E P A tre a ts them as ''m a n u fac tu rers" and it a p p ears that they w ill not be p erm itte d to m anufactu re ligh tin g fix tu re s containing P C B b a lla s ts without an exem ption a fte r the ban goes into e ffe ct. C hem ical Substances. In w riting the p rocedures fo r applying fo r exem ptions, E P A is assum ing that the ru les for banning w ill apply to any chem ical substance which contains 50 ppm or g reater of P C B s (including pigm ents and p re c u rso rs). It is ru m ored in the in d u stry that the ban cutoff definition is to re v e r t b ack to the 500 ppm figu re used in the labeling ru le . Be that as it m ay, anyone intending to m an u factu re a c h e m ic a l containing m ore than 50 ppm o r to m an u factu re an item containing such ch em ical would be w eLl-advised to apply fo r an exem ption now, as th ere w ill be no opportunity to do so a fte r the c lo sin g date o f D ecem b er 1 , 1978. E xam p les of m a te ria ls that should be checked out and v e rifie d as under 50 ppm P C B a re silico n e products and Ira le c . T elev isio n se ts, radio equipment, m icrow ave o ven s, and a ir conditioners. No equipment of this type m ay be m anufactured or im ported with P C B capacitors a fte r the ban goes into effect, u n less an exem ption is obtained. O ther Equipm ent. In effect, P C B equipment m eans m anufactured item s that contain P C B a r t ic le s p e rfo rm in g a function in the equipm ent. In addition to the item s in the p re v io u s p a ra g ra p h , this definition would ap p ear to apply to such things as m ajo r applian ces, m otors and d riv es containing P C B c ap a cito rs; and locom otives and com m uter c ars embodying PC B tra n sfo rm e rs. M anufacturing such item s after the ban goes into effect w ill req u ire an exem ption. P ro b ab ility of Su ccess in Obtaining Exem ptions The w h olesale granting of exem ptions is not anticipated. The stand ard s to be applied ap p ear in 6(e) (3 }(B) of the T o x ic Su b stan ces C on trol A c t and include la c k of "u n rea so n ab le r is k " and "good faith e ffo r t s " to develop su b stitu te s. E P A is expected to rem in d p e titio n e rs who a re stuck with in v e n to rie s of P C B components that the term ination date for m anufacture was announced in the act itself, October 11, 1976. Labeling P e titio n e rs who a re s u c c e s s fu l in obtaining an exem ption p erm ittin g them to m anufacture o r assem ble P C B equipment after Jan u ary 1 , 1979, m ust abide by the regu lation s fo r d isp o sa l and m ark in g , F R 43 7150 (F e b ru a ry 17, 1 9 7 8 ). These rules state that any a rticle o r equipment m anufactured after that date m ust be m arked with a caution label as described therein. p NEL 000630 782456 G E N E R A L ELECTRIC '- 3 - N ovem ber 7, 1978 C oord in ation It w ill be ap p reciated if any GE com ponent planning to file a p etitio n or participate in the hearing w ill let us know, so that we m ay arrange for suitable coordination of the various affected in ter e sts. V ery truly yours. JS N :cas E nclosure / J Jam es S. N elson, Consultant( j/ P ro d u ct E n v iro n m en ta l C o m p a tib ility f*i/ \ 19000 T 3H 782457 GENERAL f i p ELECTRIC D ISTRIBU TIO N L IST (Components with h isto ry of P C B Products) A ir Conditioning B u sin ess D ivision Jam es E. B ritt, Louisville Stanley A. G orski Ir -i C h a r le s M . M ad an ick 11 Apparatus S ervice B u sin ess Division E d w a rd W. F e u e r s t e in , Sch en ectad y A ppliance Components B u siness D ivision Donald W. M oh rm an , F o r t Wayne D aryl Patton " C ontractor Equipment B u sin ess D ivision Raymond C. A llen, Bridgeport W illiam M. Nave " D ata Com m unication P rod u cts B u sin e ss Dept. Jo h n W. Sw ett, W aynesboro Ja v ie r U rioste ,f D istribution T ra n sfo rm e r B u sin ess Dept. D elbert L. W illiam son, H ickory, NC E lectron ic System s Division R ichard C. Hatch, Syracu se R o b e rt O. R ic h a rd s 11 E lectro n ic Components B u sin ess D ivision Ja m e s F . M adole, Owensboro John F . Repko, Syracuse C apacitor Products Department Donald F . C r o s s , Hudson F a lls George R . M enkart " F ra n k D. P r ic e " In sta lla tio n Sc S e r v ic e E n g in e e rin g B u s in e s s D ivisio n Ronald E . Brandon, Schenectady (Continued) NEL 000612 782458 -2- D istribution L ist (Continued) Large T ransform er B usiness D ivision Edward L, Dobbins, P ittsfield R aym ond W. F r a h m , R om e Andrew G lassanos, P ittsfield R obert C. Osthoff " W illiam M. R odgers, Rome --/ - ^-- ^ Lighting B u sin ess Group Thomas P. Segerson, N ela Park A lfred B. Gough, D anville, Illinois Lighting S ystem s D epartm ent D ouglas B. A bram s, H en d erson ville, NC R euel L. D avis, Jr. " M ajor A ppliance B u sin ess Group Edward Conners, L ouisville Philip V. Otero " Range E ngineering Department R obert V. Chou, L o u isville M obile Radio Products Departm ent L. Keith E lrod, Lynchburg _ . , 3. oissom. v w . SHi*. - 1-wiU^ M otors and D rives B u sin ess D ivision Paul G. C um m ings, Schenectady Joseph L. Y osafat, Salem , VA Sw itchgear B usiness Departm ent C harles H. T itus, Philadelphia T elevision B usiness Departm ent A lfo rd E . A lle n ,* P o r tsm o u th ,* VA Transportation System s B usiness D ivision Jack C. A iton, E rie Leonard B. Gezon " L om e L. M acM onagle M ~\ T 1 * Copies also to: W. R . K ru c s i J . M. Phillips A . M. Toothaker NEL 000613 782459 RULES AND REGULATIONS 50905 mined that this regulation will protect the public health. Any person adversely affected by this regulation may. on or before De cember 1. 1978, filf written objections with the Hearing Clerk. Environmen tal Protection Agency, Room M-3708, 401 M Street SW.[ Washington, D.C. 20460. Such objections should be sub mitted and should -specify both the provisions of the rgulation deemed to be objectionable and the grounds for the objections. If aVhearing is request ed. the objectionsNpmst state the issues for the hearing. A hearing will be granted If the objections are sup ported by grounds legally sufficient to justify the relief sought. Effective on November 1, 1978, part ISO, subpart C, section 180.337 Is amended by adding a tolerance for re sidues of oxytetracycline on peaches at 0.1 ppm as set forth below. (Section 403(e) of the Federal Food. Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 ^J.S.C. 346a(e>>.) Dated: October 28j. 1978. Edwin L. J ohnson, Deputy Assistant Administrator /o r Pesticide Programs. Part ISO. subpartjc section 180.337 is amended by adding the following new paragraph at the ehd of the section to read as follows: j 130.337 Oxytetracyciin tolerances for residues. j A tolerance of O.j part per million is established for residues of the pesti cide oxytetracyclink in or on the raw agricultural commodity peaches. tCFR Doc. 78-30790 Filed 10-31-78: 3:45 am] [6560-01-M ] SUBCHAPTER R-- TOXIC SURSTANCES CONTROL ACT C FR L 998-31 PART 750--PROCEDURES FOR RULEMAKING UNDER SECTION 6 OF THE TOX1C SUBSTANCES CONTROL act Interim Procedural Rules for Polych lorinated Biphenyls (PCB**) Ban Exemption AGENCY: Environmental* Protection Agency. ACTION: Procedures for filing and processing certain PCS exemption pe titions under section 6(e)(3)(B) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA1. SUMMARY: Section 6(e)(3)(B) of TSCA authorizes the Administrator to grant, by rule, exemptions to the bans on the manufacturing, processing, and - For purposes of determining wheth distribution in commerce of FCB*s es er to file a PCB exemption petition, tablished pursuant to section affected parties should assume that 6(e)(3)(A) of TSCA. Since the PCB the final regulation will be promulgat manufacturing ban will become effec ed as proposed. Only persons affected tive by regulation in early 1979, EPA by the 1979 PCB manufacturing ban wishes to inform affected parties now should file petitions for exemptions at of the procedures which will be fol this time. Persons affected by the July lowed for the filing and processing of 1, 1979, PCB processing and distribu petitions for exemptions from the tion'bans should not file petitions for PCB manufacturing ban imposed by exemptions until issuance of the final section 6(eX3XAk As this notice is PCB ban regulation. The Agency is de strictly procedural, notice and public laying, processing of petitions for ex comment are unnecessary, and it i3 ef emptions from the July 1. 1979, bans fective November 1,1978. because the scope of the final PCB DATES: Petitions for exemption from the 1979 PCB manufacturing ban must be received by December 1, 1973. These procedures are effective on No vember 1, 1978. ban regulation will determine which persons might wish to seek exemp tions from those bans. These procedural rules require indi vidual submission of petitions by man ufacturers affected by the 1979 h*n_ ADDRESS: Send petitions for exemp EPA is imposing-this requirement be tions to Office of Toxic Substances cause: (1) The number of such manu (TS-794), Environmental Protection facturers is small: and (2) the Agency Agency, 401 M Street SW., Washing needs the identity and location of each ton. D.C. 20460, attention: Ms. Joni T. source of PCB's. Rcpasch- Comments on these proce All petitions for exemption from the dures may be sent to the same address. 1979 PCB manufacturing ban imposed FOR FURTHER' INFORMATION CONTACT*. by section 6(e)(3)(A) of TSCA must be received by the Agency within 30 days after publication of this notice. This John W. Lyon. Office of General Counsel (A-132). Environmental Pro deadline is being imposed to permit consolidation of all rulemaking on tection Agency. 401 M Street SW., 1979 PCB manufacturing exemptions Washington, D.C 20460, telephone and the holding of one informal hear 202-755-0870. ing on all petitions covered by the con SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: solidation. In the absence of consolida On June 7, 1978, EPA published a pro posed regulation (43 FR 24802) to im plement the PCB manufacturing, pro cessing. distribution in commerce, and use bans of section 6(e) of TSCA EPA stated in the proposed rule at page tion, the Agency would not be able to complete action on individual petitions in early 1979. In determining whether to grant a petition for exemption to the PCB ban. EPA will apply the standards 24807 that: The final rule will describe the require ments for filing (exemption) petitions and enunciated in section 6(eX3XB) of TSCA Section 6(e)(3)(B) reads in per tinent part as follows: for the information to be provided in the * * * the Administrator may grant by rule petitions. such an exemption It the Administrator EPA expects to issue its final rule concerning the PCB bans about Janu finds that-- (i) An unreasonable risk- of injury to health or environment would not result, and ary 1, 1979. However, if the regulation (it) Good faith efforts have been mad* to is promulgated as proposed, certain develop a chemical substance which does manufacturing and importing activi not present an unreasonable risk of injury ties will- not be able to continue after to health or the environment and which the effective date of the regulation unless the Agency grants exemptions may be substituted for such polychlorinated biphenyL .. for them. These activities include,' but Although EPA is not issuing a form are not necessarily limited to, the fol for petitions, petitions should Include lowing: Manufacture of PCB small ca the information described in pacitors. manufacture of PCB equip 750.11(d) of the procedural rules. ment (Including such Items as fluores Due to the need to grant or deny pe cent light ballasts, television sets, air titions on an expedited basis as early conditioners, and microwave ovens), in 1979 as possible, the Administrator manufacture of chemical substances is delegating final Agency authority to which contain 50 ppm or greater of grant or deny petitions under section PCB's (Including pigments and precur 6(e)(3)(B) of TSCA submitted pursu sors). and importation of PCB's. EPA ant to these interim procedures to the is issuing these procedures at this time Assistant Administrator for Toxic Sub to allow individuals who may be af stances. The Assistant Administrator fected by the 1979 manufacturing ban will rule on petitions subsequent to op to file exemption petitions at ones so portunity for an informal hearing. that the Agency may act on these peti The procedural rules to be applica tions as early as possible in 1979. ble to section 6(e) exemption proceed- FEDERAL REGISTER, V O L 43, NO. 212-- WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 1978 782460 8*229-2287 NOVEMBER ACTIVITIES REPORT J a m e s S. N e ls o n ___ D ecem b er l, 1978 Mr. J. F . M cA llister --O ffice-- III- PRODUCT ENVIRONM ENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. PCB L itigation In the G oodrich suit over leakage from a cap sized PCB tran s form er, the Company*s confidence in its position and w illin gn ess to proceed with the trial resulted in an o u t-of-cou rt settlem en t at no co st to GE. PQS has received a letter of thanks for inform ation supporting its ca se from M edium T ransform er. 2. Exem ptions from PCB Ban Components with a h istory of PCB component application w ere alerted to a tran sien t opportunity to apply for exem ption to the forthcom ing ban on such m anufacturing. In conjunction with Corporate O perating S erv ices Legal O peration, PQS a ssiste d in the preparation of a joint petition signed by Mr. Young in behalf of four com ponents. A ss is ta n c e w as a lso provided to the Com ponent S a les D epartm ent in preparing one o f its cu stom ers to respond to this opportunity. REDACTED NEL 000615 782461 o M r. J, F . M cA llister -2 - D e c e m b e r 1, 1978 O REDACTED O JSNrcas O O J. S. Nelson 782462 NEL 000616 o 8*229-2287 OCTOBER ACTIVITIES REPORT ________ J a m e s S. N elson _________ N ovem ber 1, 1978 Mr. J .F . M cA llister --O ffice-- Iff. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. PCBs A ssista n ce was provided in the generation of post-hearing reply com m ents on regulations banning PCBs and in the drafting o f a transm ittal letter from Jam es F . Young to the EPA. A NEMA le tte r on the sam e subject was review ed and com m ents furnished through Mr. K ruesi. Silicone Products B usiness Department is now operating its PCB incinerator on a long-term perm it; how ever, they agreed to a civ il penalty o f $25f 000 to cover a short period during w hich they had to op erate without a p erm it. EPA has lim ited the W aterford authorization to burning PCB w a stes generated on site, despite the great need, nationally, for PCB destruction fa cilities. No reason is apparent for this-lim itation. B F G oodrich has brought su it against GE in connection with a PCB sp ill from a transform er in Alabam a in 1974. A ssista n ce has been provided to the M edium T ransform er engineer who is handling technical liaison with outside counsel. 2. Iralec Iralec is a late entrant in the search for askarel substitutes. A product of P ro d elec (Rhone Poulenc), it co n sists m ainly of chlorinated b en zen es and hydrogenated terphenyl. It has no fir e point, is com patible with P C B s, low in co st, and appears to be an excellen t cooling fluid and d ielectric for serv icin g existin g PCB tran sform ers and also for new tran sform ers, provided health, safety, and ecological param eters can be m et. PQS is participating with in terested departm ents, CR&D, and EFO in evaluating the clim ate for acceptance. f NEL 000607 782463 U Mr. J. F , M cAllister - 2- November 1, 197a JSNscas J Nelson A NEL 000608 782464 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL | || ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287 PCB EXEMPTION L. J. Cam panella M. F . Connor R. L. D avis, Jr. W. F . F a iso n T .H . Fitzgerald J. C. Flynn E. M. Foley A .B . Gough W. R. K ruesi T .J . Managhan A .A . Mathews P. R. M ilroy J .H . Nair J .R . Olin J .F . Repko D .A . Ross E . L>. Sim ons COPIES J. H. C la u ssen J. F. M cA llister J. F. Young Novem ber 29, 1978 W ashington, DC F a irfield Salem , VA F a irfield W aterford, NY D anville, IL W ashington, DC D anville, IL F a irfield Salem , VA P itts fie ld , MA H e n d e r so n v ille , NC W aterford, NY Salem , VA S y ra cu se, NY S a lem , VA Schenectady, NY * 'l'S G entlem en: E nclosed is a copy of the consolidated petition for exem ptions from the PC B m anufacturing bans filed in behalf of four Com pany com ponents. The o rig in a l was sen t to EPA by F ed era l E xp ress U .S . m ail (guaranteed n e x t-d a y d e liv e r y ) on N o v em b er 29. We sh a ll in form you prom ptly of any w ord r eceiv ed from the A gen cy with r esp e c t to this m atter. NEL 000617 JSN: cas E nclosure y JyS. N elson, ConsultantProduct Environm ental Compatibilit- 782465 3*229-2237 PCB St CHLORINATED BENZENE DERIVATIVES J .F . McAllister R .C . Osthoff R .A . Gtenger D ecem ber 7 , 1978 ; D r. John F. Drown, J r. M anager-Life Sciences B ranch Physical Chem istry Laboratory K - l, 3B35, CR&D S c h e n e c ta d y , NY Dear John: T h a n k y o u fo r y o u r le tte r o f N ovem ber 30, 1978, b rin g in g me up to d a te on th e h isto ry of th e efforts to analyze used tran sfo rm er oil and related m atters. I have relayed to Mr. Young th e inform ation th a t two laboratories looked for PCDF (polychlorinated dibenzofuran) in used transform er fluid an d d id n 't fin d i t , an d m entioned th e role you p la y ed in g u id in g th e NIEHS interpretation of th eir findings. Beyond th a t, I share your feeling th at it is still desirable to have som ething more th an a "relu ctan t negative" to p u t this m atter to re st. Your le tte r to Bob O sthoff, November 27, 1978, su g g ests a s tra te g y m eeting to discuss the next step on PCDF and PCDPE (polychlorinated diphenyl e th er) stu d ie s. E xpanding upon o u r telephone co nversation, I would like to p u t down some considerations th a t I th ink are p e rtin e n t to such planning: 1. C hlorinated benzenes are involved, making fu tu re stu d ies of in te re st to C apacitors as well as to T ran sfo rm ers, and we su g g est you seek Bob S tenger's participation. 2. McKinney has e x p re ssed a belief th a t th e diphenyl e th e rs which he found in transform er oil are more likely to be deriv ed from th e chlorinated benzenes th an from th PCBs. He th en proceeds to conjecture th at th e e th e rs could be converted photochem ically to PCDF o r dioxins (both highly toxic) after disposal into the environm ent. To the extent th at such a scenario is valid, it is a potential problem for both c u rren t product lines (transform er Iralec and capacitor D ielektrols). 3. As you point out in your letter, the fate of tri- and te tra chlorinated benzenes in the environm ent becomes of increased in te re st now th at these substances have been added to th e _. p rio rity lis t o f TSCA 4 (e ), N E L 000618 7R94RR o S r. John F. Brown, J r. - 2- D ecem ber 7 , 1978 4. In o rd er to get the assessm ent of PCDF in used transform er all into publishable form , it may be appropriate as you s u g g e s t, to utilize CRaD's newly acquired h ig h-resolution equipm ent to make th e analyses. I t would be d esirab le, th is time around, to have well-documented samples both for th e used fluid and the control. Perhaps Feuerstein could be of assistance in sample collection, for th e used ail. The control, Ideally, should be fresh fluid th at has gone through our m anufacturing processes, including the fullers1 earth filtratio n . One of th e Service Shops might also be a source fo r unused tran sfo rm er PCB flu id . Failing th a t, fluid draw n from a tran sfo rm er th a t was one of th e last to be m anufactured and consequently has seen little service, might be an acceptable su b stitu te . 5. If a sample is available, it might help to give a complete sto ry if we also analyzed A roclor 1016, as processed for o u r most re c en t PCB capacitor p ro d u c tio n , fo r th e p resen ce of PCDF, at th e same tim e. 6. The fluids to be analyzed for PCDPE content should possibly include: o aged tran sfo rm er ask arel fluid from a tran sfo rm er of known history o "new" transform er askarel fluid equivalent to factory-processed o new pow er capacitor dielectric from c u rre n t p ro duction o new small in d u stria l capacitor dielectric from cu rren t production o new Iralec o com m ercial-grades of chlorinated benzenes used h i formulation of th e above o samples of th e same fluids analyzed b y NIEHS. A gain, Jo h n , le t me e x p re ss o u r th a n k s fo r y o u r en lig h ten in g re p o rt of the very substantial progress th at has been made in achieving under stan d in g of th is complex m atter. JSN :cas Very tru ly y o u rs, / James S . Nelson 782467 NEL 000619 o 8+229-2287 DECEMBER ACTIVITIES REPORT James S. Nelson December 20, 1978 Mr, J .F . McAllister --OfB e e -- REDACTED V- 3, PCS and Chlorinated Benzene Derivatives A fter completion of stu d ies by two outside laboratories, there is still no evidence of the production of chlorinated dibenzofuran during the aging of transformer Pyranol. However, tri- and tetrachlorinated benzenes have been added to the TOSCA priority list (along with the glycidyl ether mentioned in item 2) and the conduct of further studies is being discussed, with the object of fuller under standing of the fate of th ese materials and their degradation products. 782468 NEL 000620 o Mi* J* F McAllister - 2- December 20, 1978 redacted JSN:cas J .S . Nelson NEL 000621 o o 782469 8*229-2287 J. Claussen B . Dunn t J .F . McAllister December 19 > 1978 Mr. Donald W. Mohrman Appliance Components Support Operation 1635 Broadway, B ld g, 8-2 F ort, Wayne, IN 46804 Dear Dont This note is to confirm our telephone conversation relative to in terDretation of the rule for labeling certain item s, "No FC Bs," under 761.20(a) (6) of the Disposal and Marking Requirements for PCBs, 40 CFR 761. This ru le, in its entirety, appears as follows in the Federal R egister of February 17, 1978, 43 FR 7150: "(6) Each large low vota ge capacitor, each small capacitor normally used in alternating current circu its, and each fluorescent light ballast manufactured between July 1, 1978 and July 1, 1998 that does not contain PCB's shall b e marked by th e manufacturer at th e time of manu facture w ith th e statem ent, 'No PC B 's1. The mark shall be of similar durability and readability as other markings that indicate electrical information, part numbers, or manufacturer's name." Additional interpretations of this rule are to be found in th e Federal R egister for A u g u st 2, 1978, 43 FR 33918: (1) "Manufacture" (the 20th word in the definition) is to be in terp reted (in th is ru le only) to mean "built" and to exclude the meaning, "imported." (2) Only Items specifically listed in the rule are subject to it: i . e . , certain capacitors, and fluorescent ballasts. (3) "The definiton o f "Small Capacitor" (761.2(c) (1 ))is 'a capacitor which contains less than 1.36 k g (3 lb s .) of dielectric f lu id .1 EPA did not in ten d to include in this definition dry capacitors ( i .e ., those capacitors which have never contained any dielectric flu id ). A lso, the definition of 'Fluorescent Light Ballast1 (761.2(1)) does not apply to those ballasts which do 782470 o o Mr. Donald W. Mohrman - 2- December 19. 1978 not contain a capacitor. Accordingly the negative labeling requirements in 761.20(a) (6) do not apply to those small capacitors which contain no detectable amounts of dielectric fluid nor do they apply to those fluorescent light ballasts which do not contain a c a p a cito r.11 Conversation with Beraie Dunn established that the capacitors you inquired about, which are used as m otor-starting capacitors, are electrolytic capacitors. They contain no dielectric fluid. The fluid saturating the paper is an electrolyte, not a dielectric. In both construction and appearance, such capacitors are easily distinguish able from small capacitors of the ty p e once made with P C B s. and need nc label of any ty p e under th e PCB r u le s. Very truly yours JSN :cas James S . Nelson* C onsultantProduct Environmental Compatbili NEL 000623 o o 782471 W 7f NEL 000624 782472 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT EFFECTIVE-DATE OF"PCB BA N-1 ' r- . COPIES: J .H . C laussen Vf.F . Faison J .F . McAllister E .L . Simons J .F . Young / "" ' A^ January 4, 1979 * 7 r:,t, ; " TO i ` DISTRIBUTION n~. .... GentlmeiX " `.`7.V''" T he Toxic S u b stan ces Control A ct contains th ree Statutory PCB pro hibitions: " Statutory Date Prohibition Section of Law January 1, 1978 . General prohibition against . non- t ot al l y enclosed a ctiv it... .it-fi r u r s , ties 6(e)(2) :ill nr^ K*'A i - - January..! y<1979 No manufacturing for pommer- 6(e) (3) (A) (i) L-'ifcT.'---- dal purposes J u lyJ 1, 197T9'^S^-'j-S-I No processing or dis tribution in commerce 6(e) (3) (A) (ii) C u rren tly, EPA is operating under an announced policy of not enforcing any o f th ese sta tu to ry p rovision s. A year ago (42 FR 65264 , D ec. 30, 1977), EPA announced that it would not enforce th e gnral prohibition against non totally enclosed activities (which they were having trouble defining) u n til the ban regulation is e ffe ctiv e, which at that time was expected to be not before July 1, 1978. The effective date has not yet been pinned-down. A new announcement appeared in the Federal Register for January 2, 1979 (44 F R T 0 8 ', copy e n c lo se d ), w hich reitera tes the policy on the Section 6(e) ( 2). enforcem ent and makes an equivalent statem ent with r esp e c t to 6(e) (3) (A) ( i ) . Enforcem ent is to begin 30 days after th e regulation is promulgated in final form. T h u s, it will be sometime in F ebruary, at the ea rliest, before the manufacture of PCB transform ers, PCB capadtorsy' and equipment incorporating su ch articles will be prohibited. The sale of such articles or equipment, manufactured prior to the effective date of the ban on manufacturing them , may continue until the date to be established for banning distribution in commerce, which will not be before midyear. The same applies to renewal parts or modules and to chemical su b sta n ces containing enough PCB to qualify as PCB su b sta n ce s. */*/ NEL 000625 782473 GENERAL ELECTRIC - 2- J a n u a ry 4, 1979 In addition, it should be noted that those components participating in th e GE consolidated petition for exem ption under th e ban may continue whatever activity is the subject of the petition until the petition has been acted upon, whether or not such action occurs after the effective date established as above. It will be appreciated if each recipient of this letter will suitably inform any person with an in terest in the subject in his component or organizationally-related components, whose name does not appear on the distribution list. Very truly yours, J5N :cas Enclosure W i S. Nelson, Consultanttod u ct Environm ental Com patibility 9Z9000 IH N 782474 GENERAL ELECTRIC DISTRIBUTION LIST (Components w ith h istory of PCB Products) Air Conditioning B usiness Division James E. B ritt, Louisville S tanley A . Gorsk i " C harles M. Madanick " Apparatus Service B usiness Division Edward W. F eu erstein , Schenectady Appliance Components B usiness Division Donald W. Mohrman, Fort Wayne Daryl Patton " Contractor Equipment B usiness Division Raymond C. A llen, Bridgeport William M. Nave " Data Communication Products B u sin ess D ept. John W. S w e tt, Waynesboro Javier Uxioste " Distribution Transformer B usiness Dept. D elbert L . Williamson, H ickory, NC Electronic Systems Division Richard C. Hatch, Syracuse Robert O. Richards " Electronic Components B usiness Division James F. Madole, Owensboro John F. Repko, Syracuse Capacitor Products Department Donald F . C ross, Hudson Falls George R. Menkart " Frank D. Price " GESCO E .J. Reich, Bridgeport Installation & Service Engineering B usiness Division Ronald E. Brandon, Schenectady Large Transformer Business Division Edward L. Dobbins, Pittsfield Raymond W. Frahm, Rome Andrew Glassanos, Pittsfield Robert C. Osthoff " William M. R od gers, Rome Andrew A. Matthews, Pittsfield G E N E R A L ELECTRIC - 3- Distribution List (Continued) Copies also to: L . J . Campanella, W ashington; DC M. F . Connor, Fairfield,CT E.M . F oley, W ashington, DC W.R. K ruesi, Fairfield,CT J.M . P h illip s, S ch en ecta d y , NY A.M . Toothaker " " ? NEL 000629 782477 108 NOTICES I 109 [6560-01-M ] ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY [Pin. 1031-5} OIYCHIORMATEO BIPHENYLS (FCB> T ask S u k h m n Contra! Act; Policy for h ip U o i m oli an d f a f a m w i r t AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ACTION: Policy for Implementation and enforcement of Sections 6(e)(2) and 6(e)(3) of the Toxic Substances Control .Act (TSCA). SUMMARY: EPA will not implement or enforce the prohibitions on PCS manufacturing (including importa tion), processing, distribution in com merce or use established by Sections 6(e)(2) and 6(eX3) of TSCA. 15 U.S.C. 2605(e)(2) and 2605(e)(3), until thirty days after the proposed regulation im plementing Sections 6(e)(2) and 6(e)(3) of TSCA (43 FR 24802-17. June 7. 1978) Is promulgated in final form. With respect to PCB manufacturing activities (including importation) for which petitions for exemptions have been filed pursuant to Section 6(e)(3)(B) of TSCA, enforcement will not occur until EPA has acted on the pertinent petition. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION contact: ` Peter P. Principe, Office of Toxic Substances (TS-794), Environmental . Protection Agency. 401 M Street SW,, Washington. D.C. 20460, tele phone: (202) 755-0920. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 6(e)(2) of TSCA (Pub. L. 94469, 90 S ta t 2003, 15 U.S.C. 2601 et setj.) prohibits PCB manufacture (in cluding Importation), processing, dis tribution In commerce and use on any manner other than in a totally en closed manner on or after January 1, 1978. However, Section 6(e)(2)(B) of TSCA allows the Ageney to authorize continuation of PCB activities in other than a totally enclosed manner. The final regulation for Sections 6(e)(2) and 6(eH3) will define key terms, such as "PCB" and "totally enclosed manner", which will affect the scope of the 6(eX2) prohibitions. The regula tion Is also expected to authorize some PCB activities which are not totally enclosed pursuant to Section 6(eX2)(B). Therefore, enforcement of Section 6(e)(2) Is not considered ap propriate by EPA until It has promul gated the forthcoming regulation. EPA announced on December -30, 1977 that it is not implementing and en forcing Section 6(e)(2) until 30 days after the regulation for that section is promulgated by the Agency. See 42 FR 65264, December 30,1977. Pursuant to Section 6(e)(3) of TSCA. all PCB manufacture (including im portation) is prohibited effective Janu ary 1, 1979. However, under Section 6(eX3)(B). persons affected by the Section 6(e)(3) PCB prohibitions have the right to petition EPA for exemp tions -from the prohibitions. On No vember 1,1978, EPA published interim .procedures for th e filing of petitions for exemptions to the' prohibition on manufacturing. (43 FR 50905). Numer ous exemption petitions have been re-' ceived by the Agency. The Agency does not consider enforcement of the manufacturing prohibition of Section 6(e)(3) against a particular activity ap propriate (1) until EPA has issued the regulation for Section 6(e)(3). 'and (2) If a petition for an-exemption for the particular activity has been filed, until EPA has ruled on th a t petition. The Agency expects to promulgate the regulation implementing Sections 6(e)(2) and 6(e)(3) of TSCA in the near future. To accomplish that objec tive. EPA published its proposed regu lation oir June 7, 1978 (43 FR 24802). A comment period followed, and the Agency held ten days of informal hearings and one day of cross-exami nation of an Agency contractor by hearing participants. The Agency also provided a ' reply `comment period ; which closed on October 10,1978.' j Although EPA expects to issue the : TSCA 6(eK2)*and^6(eK3) regulation > shortly, the regulation, will not be i ready for promulgation by January 1, 1979. Therefore, EPA will not imple- | ment and enforce Sections-6(e)(2) and 6(e)(3) until thirty days after promul gation of the regulation. Persons who have filed petitions for exemptions from the forthcoming Section 6(eX3> prohibition on PCB manufacturing j (including Importation) may continue the activity for which exemption is i sought .until EPA has acted on the particular pending petition. The ques tion of whether petitions may be filed on a class basis is expected to be ad dressed in the forthcoming Notice of Proposed Rulemaking concerning the exemption petitions. . Dated: December 26,1978. J ohn P. D eK any. Acting Assistant Administrator ' /o r Toxic Substances. (FR Doc.73-36361 Filed 12-29-78:8:45 ml KOEXAL REGISTER, VOL 44, NO. 1--TUE50AY, JANUARY 2, 1*7 782478 NHL 000630 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287 r (a COPIES: J . F . M cA llister /. {(s J a n u a ry 9, 1979 Mr. J .F . Young E2E D ear Jim: Y our n o te of J a n u a ry 8, attach ed to a copy of th e EPO Inform ation L e tte r of December 21, 1978, asks some questions about communication to p ro d u c t people on PCB m arking req u irem en ts and in q u ire s g en erally into the subject of letters covering m atters of in te re st to specialists in p ro d u ct d esign, plant facilities, and employee health. While th e re is alw ays room fo r im proved p ra c tic e s , we b eliev e th a t in th is in s ta n c e th e r e has b een a d e q u a te com m unication. We w ro te to th e components on our PCB list in M arch, 1978, pointing out th e p ro d u ct im plications of th e ru les for m arking and disposal th a t had been issued b y EPA in F e b ru a ry . S im ultaneously, Ed Simons w rote an inform ation le tte r to those with responsibility for facility environm ental considera tio n s, pointing out the things they would be resp o n sib le fo r. Each le tte r made re feren ce to th e o th e r, in A p ril, a fte r EPA liberalized its in te r p retatio n of th e m arking ru le s , a le tte r of explanation w ent to th e PCB products people, together w ith inform ation about a source of p rin ted labels. In November, our letter soliciting participation in a consolidated petition for exem ption u n d e r th e PCB b a n , again rem inded th e p ro d u c t people th a t successful p etitio n ers would need to abide b y the labeling ru le th a t would become effective J a n u a ry 1, 1979. T he EPO Inform ation L e tte r th a t gave ris e to y o u r comments is an o th er su ch rem in d er, b u t with special emphasis on the m atters of in te re st to facilities people. In g en eral, EPO and PQS d iscu ss com m unications of th is ty p e in ad v an ce, agreeing who should do th e prim ary d raftin g . Y our suggestion of jointly issued le tte rs is a sound one, and we have used th a t technique on occasion--for example, in communicating th e im port of th e Noise C ontrol A ct to people in both engineering and m anufacturin g. The developm ent and prom ulgation of a program for handling the rep o rtin g of su b stan tial chemical risk inform ation was th e su b ject of close coordina tion w ith C orporate Medical as well as with EPO, and th e sam e m aterial went to distribution lists m aintained by each s ta ff com ponent. f N E L 000631 782479 GENERAL ELECTRIC Mr. J .F . Young 2- - January 9 1979 O ccasionally, other corporate sta ff components may be involved , as was the case last year when we assisted the Material R esource and Traffic Operation and Corporate Legal in the preparation of bulletins concerning warranty statem ents related to th e TOSCA Inventory. To sura up , it is our feeling that th e occasions for joint communication of the same information to different functions or specialized groups within Operations are rare enough for handling each instan ce on an ad hoc b a sis, and that the coordination among sta ff with respect to such communications can be accomplished without further formalization. Very truly yours, JSN :cas NEL 000632 782480 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF SUBJECT 1------------- * J . S . Nelson Memo on proposed NIOSH PCB criterion JF Brown JT Coe COPIES: j S 'r '; ` 1 HD Pococlc, J r . , M.D Jan u ary 23, 1979 Mr. James F . Young E2E Dear Jim : I asked Jim Nelson to update me with respect to implications of the NIOSH recommendation on maximum w orker exposure to airborne PCB (one micro gram p e r cubic m eter, or about 0 .7 p arts per billion b y w e ig h t). He p re p a red the attached memo a fte r discussion with knowledgeable s ta ff colleagues. ' * A lthough the prim ary th ru st of the NIOSH recommendation is employeehealth d irected , and the burden of dealing with it on that account falls mainly on D r. C a se y and his s t a ff, I thought you would like to be informed and, should need or opportunity arise, be supportive of a program being considered to establish a scientific basis for a less drastic criterion. Sincerely JFMcA :rss Attachment NEL 000633 782481 GENERAL ELECTRIC Jan u ary 22, 1979 Lf".' * i MEMORANDUM: IMPLICATIONS FOR CE OF THE PROPOSED OSHA STANDARD FOR P C B s IN THE WORKPLACE B ack gro u n d . In Septem ber, 1977, the National Institute fo r Occupational S a fe ty and Health (NIOSH) issued "C riteria for a recommended sta n d a rd ... Occupational E xp osu re to Polychlorinated Biphenyls (P C B s ). " This "C rite ria Document" recommends to OSHA a workplace stan dard of no more than 1 microgram PCB p er cubic meter of air. Having already gone out of the business of m anufacturing products containing P C B s, GE paid relatively little attention to this proposal--regarding it as "beating a dead h orse." R ecent developments su g g e s t, h ow ever, that the proposal is v e ry much "alive" with respect to possible GE impact and response. These developments are (1) Ege's finding that our plants which formerly p rocessed PC Bs have-- today--PCB in the air in excess of the proposed limit-- despite exten sive cleanup and refurbishing activities and (2) CR&D's acquisition of new equipment and proposal of a research approach that could conceivably p lay a sig n ifican t role in counteracting the NIOSH proposal. This memorandum is the re su lt of discussion with a number of interested s ta ff and operations people and is intended to point the way towards a consensus. Continuing Vulnerability Former discharges and existing products carry the potential for lawsuits that could be encouraged b y the tightening of OSHA, FDA, and EPA standards and made more difficult to defend. C u rren tly, there exists little solid data, and almost none in published lite ra tu re , that clearly separates GE use of PCB from the materials and circumstances that brought about the Yusho incident and the w idespread characterization of the PCB family, as "highly toxic" and "carcin o gen ic. 11 What appears to be needed to achieve such separation is a program that would develop more solid support for the thesis that the under lyin g cause of the Yusho poisonings and at least the worst of the toxic and oncogenic effects reported in the scientific literature is not the intrinsic properties of P C B s, but rath er, the polychlorinated dibenzofuran (PCDF) present as an im purity in PCBs under certain conditions that are not u n iv e rsa l- For several y e a rs , John Brown has been calling attention to indications that this thesis is valid, and there are indications that the number of scientists read y to accept it may be growing. Prior efforts at substantiation have in clud ed , for exam ple, attempts at three laboratories to prove that our PCBs (new or aged) contain no PCD F. None of these resulted in finding PCDF in new or used P C B , y et none of these effo rts really proved to everyo n e's satisfaction that no PCDF is presen t. HEL 000634 782482 G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC - 2- J a n u a r y 22, 1979 Among the incentives for getting a better data base are the following continuing vuln erabilities that p e rsist despite our exit from the manufacture of PCB capacitors and transform ers: (1) T he proposal b y NIOSH, in its criteria document, to limit PCB in the workplace to 1 microgram p er cubic meter of a ir. I f this standard, or one near to it, is adopted by OSHA, E g e 's data indicate in ability to comply, even in plants where PCB has not been used at all for a long period. (2) Law suits brought b y people who have used or serviced our products ( e .g ., a recent out-of-court settlement involving the servicing of PCB transform ers). (3) Law su its b y employees who in the fu tu re may claim illn ess due to PCB expo su re (one employee is now claiming illness due to his purchase and use, around his farm, of scrap P C B ). (4) L aw su its brought on b eh alf of fishing in terests and other users of the Hudson, the Housatonic, and other bodies of water. (5) Law suits conceivably to be brought by those experiencing product failure with accompanying release of PCB. (The c rite ria document rep o rts an instance of the b urn -out of an unspecified number of fluorescent lamp b allasts. T hree d ays la te r, the air in the room contained 2 micro grams PCB per cubic meter--twice the proposed standard.) Research Needed What re se a rc h is needed to protect against these threats? Evidence, that the reputed toxicity/tumorigenicity of PCB is explain able in terms of the amount of polychlorinated dibenzofuran present as an im purity. 1 . Controlled experim ent. Inasmuch as most of the data m arshalled in support of the NIOSH proposal consists of animal feeding stu d ies, an elegant defense would be a controlled experim ent in which half a group of test animals was fed a PCB m ixture known to be free of PCDF and the oth er h alf fed the same m ixture laced with a measured amount of PCD F. To c a rry out such an experiment would take perhaps two years and cost at least several hundred thousand dollars. B efo re such an experiment could be carried out, it would be n ecessary to develop and validate a means for quantifying PCDF as a constituent of PCB m ixtures. NEL 000635 782483 G E N E R A L ELECTRIC - 3- J a n u a r y 22, 1979 2. Epidemiological studies. It has been stated that D r. Selikoff's studies of GE workers at Hudson Falls/Fort Edward have failed to reveal either excess carcinogenicity or statistically significant classical symptoms of PC B -related illn ess. These findings su g g e st that the expo su re of GE employees is not as serious as read in g the C riteria Document would lead one to b elieve. These findings could be related to the PCDF thesis and their impact on the scientific establishment increased if it can be shown that the GE mixtures were relatively free of PCDF. It is understood that the laboratory in Hudson Falls has a collection of samples of incoming PCB supplied with each shipment by the vendor for quality control purposes. Given a method reliably measuring the PCDF content of these sam ples, p ast w orker exposure to PCB in these plants could b e related to PCDF exposure. 3. Reexamination and reinterpretation of published studies. The scientists upon whose findings NIOSH largely re sts its case--such as Renate Kimbrough and Jam es Allen--could be asked to supply samples of the fluids that they used in their rodent and primate te sts, and these samples could be analyzed fo r PCDF content. To do this would requ ire first the develop ment and validation of a method for measuring the quantity of PCDF presen t as an im purity. Once a method is p ro ven , the individual tests would be inexpensive. 4. Development and validation of a method fo r quantifying PCDF against a background of a much larger quantity of PCB m ixture. It will be observed that each of the prior research possibilities depends critically upon this one. John Brown sees a possibility of success in developing a good PCDF measurement technology, as su g g ested b y his le tte r of Ja n u a ry 16 to D r. C a sey . One approach he has in mind is perchlorination. All the P C Bs in a sample would be converted to decachlorbiphenyl, and all the PCDFs would become octochlorodibenzofuran. Thus there would be an easier job of quantification, compared to the almost hopeless task of separating out and standardizing the many overlapping peaks resu ltin g from chromatographic analyses of such complex entities. The cost of this w ork, assuming early su ccess, would be under $ 1 0 0 ,0 0 0 and might be a lot le ss. D iscu ssio n A frontal attack on the proposed stan d ard would be su ccessfu l, if OSHA should accept the notion that carcinogenicity attributed to PCB is due to PCDF and that some PCBs ( e . g . , GE capacitor and transform er formulations and their d erivatives in service) do not contain PCDF. A first step in this attack is to develop a sound, creditable method fo r PCDF quantification. HEL 000636 782484 GENERAL) ELECTRIC - 4- J a n u a r y 22, 1979 T he developm ent of a PCDF analytical method might also enable us to generate data to strengthen the defense of the types of law suits enumer ated above, pending acceptance of the whole proposition on the part of OSHA , FDA, and EPA. JSN :rss S . Nelson f NEL 000637 782485 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT SUBJECT f. V- V 'JVI M-vIV-vIj i1I 8*229-2287 j COPIES: J . F . McAllister M - '$ January 29, 2979 Mr. J .F . Young E2E Dear Jim: At Ja c k M cAllister's su g g estio n , I am enclosing two communications from John Brow n, in fu rth e r explanation of the research proposal discussed in my memorandum of Ja n u a ry 22 about the OSHA PCB standard. Very truly yours JSN :cas Enclosures n e l 000638 782486 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT JANUARY ACTIVITIES REPORT James S. Nelson COPIES: January 31, 1979 Mr. J .F . McAllister --O ffice-- H I. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. PCB Bans A letter describing the status of implementation of the three statutory bans on PCBs was sen t to interested com ponents. 2. D efensive Research on PCBs A memorandum on the implications for GE of the NIOSH criteria document proposing rig id OSHA standards for PCBs in th e workplace, and discussing proposed defensive research, was prepared to facilitate staff deliberations. NEL 000639 JSNrcas J .S . Nelson 7R24R7 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL J H ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT CASE R eport on PCB 8*229-2287 iL / COPIES: J .F . Brown w /r ep o rt copy E .L . Simons n W.C. Hart R .L . Reinhart J *;+ February 13, 1979 J .F . McAllister --O ffice-- Dear Jack: A s you know , in p assin g along th e copy of PCB and the H ousatonic R iver (Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering) that he received as a member of the Academy, Jim Young asked if we can endorse th e position and the recommendations. I have discussed this matter with Dick R einhart, who heads a Program Manage ment Team on the Housatonic R iver problem. The report evolved from a watch dog committee effort established b y Congressman Toby M offett (6th D istrict, Connecticut) and the principal author is Dr. Charles R. Frink, of the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, and Vice-Chairman of the ad hoc Technical Committee on Housatonic River Pollution of the Academy. By means of plant v isits and project aid (bibliographic sea rch es, e t c .) , Reinhart was able to establish a good working relationship and an open-m inded attitude on the part of Dr. Frink and his associates. The result is that the report, on th e w hole, is favorable in its treatm ent of GE in volvem en t, and th e recommendations do not call for any heroic measures to be taken with respect to cleaning up the Housatonic. Some of th e PCB application description is out of d a te, and th e scien ce rep ort in g m isses some of th e su b tleties o f PCDF relationship s--m ost im portantly, what 1 m ust still call our p rivate conviction that GE PCBs do n ot contain PCDF. If there are particulars in which we would like to try to set the record straight, Reinhart believes the way is open to offer new data or new interpretations of old information to the Academy through D r. Frink. The Housatonic Program Management Team is familiar with the Academ y's rep ort, and has not assumed in the past that they would be called upon for an assessm ent or endorsem ent. However, if circumstances w arrant, Dick says they would be pleased to take a closer look. Very truly you rs, s JSN :cas S'. Nelson NEL 000640 782488 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT O iU jl SUBJECT I FEBRUARY ACTIVITIES REPORT James S . Nolson Mr. J . F . McAllister --O ffice-- COPIES: Feb ru ary 28, 1979 REDACTED NEL 000641 782489 GENERAL ELECTRIC M r.J . F . McAllister - 2- REDACTED February 28, 1979 4. PCB Incineration Some background material has been sent to Mickey Anderson who is making inquiries about the suitability of PCB incineration as a business venture for the Apparatus Service Business Division. JSN :cas V / . S . Nelson 782490 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ; ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT MARCH ACTIVITIES REPORT James S. Nelson Mr. J.F. McAllister Office COPIES: ly If April 2, 1979 Re d a c t e d !Pr NEL 000643 4. PCB Dr. Osthoff sought our views on the appropriateness of Large Transformer's Technical Resources Operation increasing its PCB sample testing activities for customers in accordance with the increased demand they are experiencing. We endorsed this activity after consultation with John Claussen. 782491 GENERAL ELECTRIC Mr. J.F. McAllister - 2- April 2, 1979 In the aftermath of EPA's finding of violation of PCB storage regulations at Hudson Falls and Fort Edward, Dr. Simons has recommended that other components handling PCBs initiate a critical review of facilities and procedures. REDACTED JSN:cas J.S. Nelson A NEL 000644 782492 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF g e n e r a l ! ! electric FAIRFIELO. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT.. t ion ( . umif --^ ^ V - -- -.. ........8*270-7787 1 PCB -B an : .-~Finai *R ule Product Implications- ... / COPIES-, j . h . C laussen W.F; Faison - E.M . Foley. J . F . McAllister E .L . Simons J .F . Young . April 23, 1979 To: DISTRIBUTION Gentlemen:^ 1 'inder * : -';v~r, : i i {. i l v'f* s'? i l C i i ........... ... . l On A p ril 17-a*t'ab out~3:00'p.m . , Mr. Costle signed 40 CFR P art 761, "Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PC B s)--M anufacturing, Processing, Distribu tion in Commerce* and Use Prohibitions, Final R u le ." Publication in the Federal R eg ister is expected at some time during the period A p ril 25 through May "2y 'w ith-an effective date 30 days from publication. Through the good o ffic e s-o f Ted Foley, advance copies have been received here and at EPO. Th document,- in ty p e sc rip t, ru n s to 142 pages in t h e .preamble, 14 pages--devoted to the record of rulemaking and b ib liograph y, and 88 pages for the rule itself. - -- ---- J - b h v ^ IlC t iJ v b L(-IF- ,^ In this letter we add ress the h ighlights of product implications as .we p re sen tly _ u n d ersta n d .them so that you may get a feeling fo r the probable impact of th is *document on y o u r various b u sin esses as soon as possible. Definitive interpretations will evolve more slowly , a fte r detailed analysis by all concerned.. To facilitate the gaining of in-depth understanding, a meeting is planned fo r May 8 in Schenectady under the auspices of Ed Simons and John C la u sse n , withuattendance in vited ,by those who participated in the gen era tion of Corporate^ Comments on the proposed rules and/or petitions for exemption from the-m anufacturing ban. RECO will distribute copies of the Rule in conjunction with separate notice of that meeting. Scope. This rulemaking addresses all three of the statutory prohibitions in the Toxic Substances Control Act affectin g P C B s. NEL 000645 782493 To: D istribution - 2- April 23, 1979 Statutory Date Prohibition Section of Law E ffective Date Estab lished by the Final Rule 1-1-78 No non-totally en closed activities 6(e)(2);; ; 30 days after publication, i . e . , about May 27, 1979 1-1-79 No manufacturing: 6(e) (3) (A) (i) now interpreted to mean no production of the chemical itself - 30 days a fter publication, i . e . , about May 27, 1979 7-1-79 No processing--now interp reted to mean no production ot trans formers , capacitors, e tc . , or equipment containing such--and no distribution 6(e) (3) (A) (ii) July 1, 1979 Exemptions and Petitions Petitions for exemption that have already been filed will be the subject of a separate "Notice of Proposed Rulemaking" scheduled for the same issu e of the Federal R egister. No advance copy of this Notice is extant at th is writ in g . More than 70 p etitions for exemption were received b y EPA. T he notice wiH id en tify each petition an d , "in most c a se s , the action that EPA proposes to take on individual petitions." Rules establishing procedures for subm itting petitions for exemption from the p rocessin g and distribution prohibitions will be pu blished "in th e near fu tu r e ." In view of the fact (noted in "Scope," above) that EPA has changed defin i tions so that certain activities formerly deemed "manufacturing" are now "processing," EPA may conceivably req u ire the refilin g of some of th e petitions they have already received, adopting the new terminology. It could turn out that the policy with respect to processing exem ptions will be more liberal than some of us have anticipated, in view of the following statem ent appearing in the Summary of Economic C onsequences (XV, B) : " . . . this regulation could potentially have a very costly impact on sellers of electrical equipment containing PCB capacitors if EPA does not provide exem ptions from the prohibition on distribu tion in commerce of PCB Equip ment. These costs will be carefully considered in the separate rulemaking concerning exemptions to the July 1, 1979, distribution in commerce ban." Applicability Section 761.1, A pplicability, provides (among other things) that, "unless it is otherw ise sp ecifically p ro v id ed , the terms PCB and PCBs are u sed in this rule to refer to any chemical substances and combinations of substances NEL 000646 782494 To : D istribution 3 - A pril 23, 1979 that contain 50 ppm or g reater of P C B s, as defined in 7 6 1 .2 ( s ) , includ ing any byproduct; intermediate, or impurity manufactured at any point in a p ro c e ss;"" The rules for labeling and disposal have been rew ritten and incorporated in the p re se fti ru le , .-with applicability extended to 50 ppm; how ever, the 500 ppm 'concept reapp ears in a new form, the establishment of a category known a s :--^PCB-Contaminated T ran sfo rm ers11--see definitions, below. Definitions Selected significant new definitions are reproduced below: 761.2 Definitions (s) "PC B*-1^nd'1-"P C B s11 mean's :ahy chemical substan ce that is limited to the b ip h en yl''rifblectile'that has been chlorinated to v a ry in g degrees or any combination of substances which contains such su b stan ce." . =. --_ t u i u 5'; (t) "PCBr Article" means any m anufactured article, other than a PCB Container, that contains PCBs and whose su rfac e (s) has been in direct contact with P C B s. "PCB Article" includes capacitors, transform ers, electric motors, pumps, pipes and any other manufactured item ... (w) "PCB Equipment" means any manufactured item, other than a PCB Con tainer or a PCB Article Container, which contains a PCB Article or other P C B Jequipm ent, -and fluorescent light :ballasts and fix tu re s . N.M. N easi- ! (x) "PGB--Item&^'S*defined as any PCB A rticle , PCB A rticle Container, PCB Container:/!ior PCB Equipment, that deliberately or unintentionally contains or has as a p art of it any PCB or P C B s at a concentration of 50 ppm or greater. (y) "PCB T ransform er" means any transform er that contains 500 ppm PCB or g re a te r. (This definition is in terp reted as applying to the fluid in the tran sform er, and--.not its total b u lk .) (z) "PCB-Contaminated T ransform er" means any transform er that contains 50 ppm or g rea ter of PCB b u t less than 500 ppm PCB (See 7 6 1.3 1(a )(4 ) for provisions permitting reclassifying PCB Transform ers to PCB-Contaminated T ransform ers ;) " P r o c e s s ." The EPA has dropped its definition of "P rocess fo r Commercial Purposes" and re verte d to the definition contained in the Statu te, verbatim : (bb) "Process" means the preparation of a chemical substance or m ixture, after its m anufacture, for distribution in commerce: (1) In the same form or physical state a s , or in a different form or-p h ysical state from, that in which it was received by the person so preparing such substance or mixture, or NEL 000647 782495 To; D istribution - 4- A p r il 23, 1979 (2) As .part of an article containing the chemical substance or m ixture. "Manufacture. " : The EPA has dropped its definition of "Manufacture for Commercial P u rp o ses'1 and re verte d to the definition contained in the Statu te, w ith editorial changes only: (n) "M anufacture" means to produce, manufacture'," or import into the customs territory of the United S tate s." The use of the statutory definitions for "processing" and "m anufacturing," combined with the new. definition of "P C B " is consistent with the rein terp re tation of the statutory bans previously noted. The new definitions of PCB T ransform ers and PCB-Contam inated Transform ers appear to answ er in d u stry 's principal "objection to the 50 ppm applicability ru le , as discussed below. Implications for GE-.Product Lines' and Company Components Capacitor Products Departm ent. No su rp rise s noted h ere. The m anufacturing ban ,' 6 (e) (3) (A) (i) no longer is considered applicable to the production of capacitors, but such a ctivity is banned n everth e less under 6(e)(2) as a non-totally-enclosed a c tiv ity , 30 days after printing of the Notice in the Federal R e g iste r, because the manufactur ing processes are themselves not "totally enclosed." As in the. proposedirule*; small capacitors may be disposed of in municipal solid waste (diless the capacitors are owned by manufacturers of capacitors or capacitor-containing equipment). Large Transformer Business Division: Trans formers (except Railroad T ransform ers). As with the case of capacitors,, manufacturing of PCB transform ers is banned under the "non-totally enclosed" provision , 30 days a fte r the Rule is promulgated in the Federal R e g iste r. This determination is not based on the degree to which the transform er is sealed , but depends upon the fact that the manufacturing processes are not themselves "totally enclosed." Under the final ru le, transform ers are in effect classified into three g ro u p s: those whose fluid contains 500 ppm PCB or more, termed "PCB T ran sfo rm ers"; those containing from 50 ppm to 500 ppm, termed "PCB-Contam inated T ra n sfo rm ers," and those containing less than 50 ppm. T h ere are d ifferen t rules fo r each class to govern se rv ic in g , rebu ildin g, and disposal. A PCB Transform er is one that contains 500 ppm or more P C B . 7 6 1.3 1( a ) ( 3 ) provides that "any servicing (including rebuilding) of PCB Transform ers that requires the removal of the transform er coil from the transform er casing is prohibited. PCB Transform ers may be topped off with PCB dielectric fluid ." NEL 000648 782496 To: D istribution - 5- A p r il 23, 1979 At ultimate disposition, the coolant requ ires disposal in an approved incinerator. A fter flushing and draining, the PCB Transform er carcass may be disposed of in a Chemical Waste L an d fill. A PCB--Transform er may be drained and refilled with new dielectric of a non-PCB typ e, placed back in service for three months, and then tested for possible reclassification as a PCB-Contam inated Transform er 150--50 0 ppm) or a s-a non-PCB transform er (less than 50 ppm ). A PCB-Contam inated T ransform er (50-500 ppm) may be serviced or re built as desired. Drained fluid need not go to an approved incinerator, but may be added in quantities of less than 1 0 % to the fuel of a highefficiency boiler, such as a utility boiler, under specified controls, or disposed of in an approved chemical waste landfill. I f you are willing to assume that yo u r oil transform er is contaminated ( i . e . , contains between 50 ppm and 500 ppm of P C B ), there is no re quirement to test it. You may test it, optionally, to seek statu s as a non-PCB transform er, containing less than 50 ppm, and subject to less burdensome disposal requirem ents. EPA's presumption is that every large fluid transformer is either a PCB Transform er or a PCB-Contaminated T ransform er. We shall have to determine w hether this concept will continue to be applied to new production of oil transform ers in facilities that have n ev er been used fo r PCB , and w hether the EPA will apply this concept to such apparatus as silicone fluid transform ers or chlorofluorocarbon vapor-cooled transform ers. These matters are not discussed in the Rule or its Preamble. No labels need be applied to PCB-Contam inated T ran sform ers. The disposal of a drained PCB-Contaminated transform er body is not regulated. "N on-PCB11 transform ers come under the ru le in one re sp ect. Even if tests show less than 50 ppm of PCB in the flu id , the waste fluid may not be used for dust-control, as a sealant, or as a coating, if it contains any detectable amount of P C B . O therwise, the term "Non-PCB T ra n s form er" is not defined in the R u le, and no restriction s ap p ly. Transform er S ervicin g b y S e rvice S h o p s. Adding PCB to a custom er's transform er in servicin g the product is considered by the EPA to be "distributing PCBs in commercc"and cannot be performed unless the EPA gran ts an exemption to the service shop. The discussion in the Preamble of how to recategorize a PCB transform er as a PCB-contaminated transform er (see explanation under "T ransform ers," above) seems based on the assumption that such work will be done b y the owner/operator rather than by a service shop. The requirement for three month's operation before testing and reclassification would obviously make it difficult to perform such conversion in a service shop. NEL 000649 782497 To: D istribution - 6- A p ril 23, 1979 Testing and A nalysis in Company Laboratories. Our interpretation has been that a Company laboratory may receive and analyze a specimen of transform er dielectric belonging to a client without requiring an EPA authorization or exemption. However, it appears that such samples obtained after the effective date of the Rule must be originally packaged inr'STo mL containers^, herm etically sealed , to conform with the definition of "small q u a n titie s' for research and developm ent,11 a concept that includes samples for an alysis. ' c7 'w GESCO In v e n to ry . In o rd er to sell equipment such as fluorescent ballasts known or presumed to contain PCB capacitors, a fte r 7 -1-7 9 , an exemption must be obtained from EPA, from the ban on distribution in commerce. Rules for applying for such exemption are to be published in the near fu tu re, as previously noted. Silicone Products Business Department. EPA has changed the ban regulation proposal under which we sought to establish that we do not need an exemption to m anufacture phenylchlorosilanes. Note that the A pplicability ru le , quoted above, re fe rs specifically to "any b yp ro d u ct, interm ediate, or impurity manufactured at any point in a p ro c e ss." A pp aren tly, annual exemption from the PCB manufacturing ban will be required for the manufacture of phenylchlorosilanes. This point is addressed directly in the Preamble. "All manufacturing or processing operations must be adequately controlled so that PC Bs are not presen t at concentrations g reater than 50 ppm at any point in the manufacturing process except when concentrating waste stream s." -m * ,. ^ : 1- ! ' Transportation Systems Business Division: Railroad Transform ers. Railroad transform ers and railroad transformer manufacturing are both regarded as not meeting the criteria for being "totally enclosed." However, EPA has recognized that the 1000-odd electric locomotives and self-pow ered cars could not have their trans formers immediately replaced without an unacceptable curtailment of railroad se rv ic e . They initially proposed a phased reduction in PCB content of RR transform ers. In the final ru le, both the percent PCB resid ue and the timetable have been liberalized in response to in d u stry comments. EPA is requ irin g that railroad transform ers contain no more than six percent PCB by Jan u ary 1, 1982. B y Jan u ary 1, 1984, the concentration of PCBs in the transform ers must not exceed 1,000 ppm. o B a lla sts, D rive System s and Outdoor Lighting F ix tu re s . See comments above on "Exemptions and P etitio n s." Generic Issu es Commented upon b y GE In extending applicability to 50, ppm, EPA is still being guided by regu latory feasibility rather than any showing of "unreasonable r is k "; how ever, the new rule is far less burdensome than the proposal: transform er testing and labeling NEL 000650 782498 To : D istribution - 7- A pril 23, 1979 is not required, additional disposal options have been introduced for PCBcontaminated transform ers in the 50-500 ppm ra n g e , and w aste stream s from p rocesses individually containing less than 50 ppm may be concentrated to a value g rea ter than that fo r purposes of d isp o sal, without an exemption being required. JSN cas i^James S . Nelson, ConsultantProduct Environmental Compatibility NEL 000651 782499 GENERAL ELECTRIC DISTRIBUTION LIST (Components with history of PCB Products) Air Conditioning Business Division James E. B ritt, Louisville Stan ley A . G orski 11 C h arles M. Madanick lf Apparatus Service Business Division A . Melcher Anderson, Atlanta Edw ard W. F eu erstein , Schenectady , '"* "1 v- Appliance Components Business Division Donald W. Mohrman, F ort Wayne D aryl Patton ,r Contractor Equipment Business Division Raymond C . Allen, Bridgeport William M. Nave 11 Data Communication Products B u sin ess Dept. John W. Sw ett, Waynesboro Ja v ie r Urioste " Distribution Transform er Business Dept. N.M . Neagle, H ickory, NC P .L . Waldon " Delbert L . Williamson " Electronic System s Division Richard C . Hatch, Syracuse R ob ert O. R ichards 11 Electronic Components Business Division Jam es F . Madole, Owensboro John F . Repko, Syracuse Capacitor Products Department Donald F . C ro ss, Hudson Falls ''G e o rg e R . Menkart " Frank D. Price 11 GESCO H .F. Boyer, Bridgeport W.S. Gray " Installation & Service Engineering Business Division --RjonakI E . B rand onj Schenectady U {, iTJtA'** /' Large Transform er Business Division Edward L . Dobbins, Pittsfield Raymond W. Frahm , Rome Andrew Glassanos, Pittsfield Robert C . O sthoff 11 William M. R o d g e rs, Rome _ ^ Andrew - A-.--Matth-ewsT ~Pittsiield 782500 NEL 000652 G E N E R A L ELECTRIC - 2- Distribution List (Continued) Lighting Business Group Thomas P. Segerson, Nela Park Lamp Products Division Alfred B . Gough, Danville, Illinois Jam es C . Flyn n ^ 11 " - Lighting Systems Department Douglas B . Abram s, H endersonville, NC Reuel L. Davis, J r . 11 Philip R . Milroy 11 Major Appliance B u sin ess Group Edward Conners, Louisville Philip V. Otero 11 Range Engineering Department Robert V. Chou, Louisville Medical System s J . Olsson, Milwaukee Mobile Radio Products Department L . Keith Elrod, Lynchburg ^ - t v Motors and D rives Business Division Paxil G. Cximmings, Schenectady Donald A . R o ss, Salem, VA Malcolm Olson, E rie, PA Randolph L . Houlton, N ashville, TN Joseph L . Y osafat, Salem, VA Thomas J . Managhan, Salem, VA Jam es R . Olin, Salem, VA Silicone Products Department n John H. N iu r--Water-ford---NY -^ Thomas H. Fitzgerald " BL 7T -, J jLr**'' Switchgear Business Department Charles H. T itus, Phila. Television Business Department Alford E. Allen, Portsmouth, VA r Transportation System s Business Division g-Jack G i Alton , Kne " L om e L . MacMonagle " r* '1 i- " !fit 782501 NEL 000653 G E N E R A L ELECTRIC 3- Distribution List (Continued) Copies also to: L . J . Campanella, Washington, DC 0 F P,fln>oy) P r CT ^W.R. K ru e si, F a irfie ld , CT ' *J.M . P h illip s, Sch en ectad y, NY . A .M . Toothaker M M 7R2R02 % ta o oo o\ ,Ty PHODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E M F R A L ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT APRIL ACTIVITIES REPORT -- James S. Nelson- Mr. J.F. McAllister -- Office-- COPIES: May 2, 1979 Vi REDACTED f NEL 000655 4. PCB Ban: Final Rule A pre-publication copy of the 244-page PCB ban rule was obtained from EPA by Ted Foley and reviewed. An interpretive summary was prepared by Mr. Nelson and distributed to 60 people in the 23 components with an involvement in PCB products. Federal Register appearance of this document is now estimated to occur the week of May 14. A meeting of interested parties will be held in Schenectady in cooperation with John Claussen and Ed Simons. JSN:cas ^nOCAO PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT May A c tiv itie s R e p o rt COPIES: J u n e 1, 1979 Mr. J. F . McAllister Office III. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY (J- S . Nelson) 1. PCB A m eeting w as h eld in S c h e n ec ta d y on May 8, s p o n so re d jo in tly w ith Environm ental Protection O peration, to review th e impact on operating com ponents of th e PCB ban rule to be published in th e F e d e ra l R e g is te r of May 31. In a re la te d a c tio n , ad v an ce copies of a rule for petitioning for exemptions (to be published in the same Federal R egister num ber) were d istrib u ted to in te r ested operating com ponents, together with the outline of a plan fo r c o o rd in a ted GE p e titio n s (J . S . N elson le tte r of May 31, 1979). Re d a c t e d JSN :sd f 782504 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT I A .L 1 x1C_:Vo_*M- M : i* I 8*229-2287 * Petitions for Exemption from PCB Rules '- ... COPIES-. JH Claussen WF Faison EM Foley JF McAllister EL Simons JF Young May 30, 1979 TO: Distribution Gentlemen: The EPA has written a new rule for petitioning for permission to continue to process and distribute in commerce certain PCB articles and equipments and to perform certain servicing operations. This rule, entitled "Interim Procedural Rules for Exemptions From the Polychlorinated Biphenyl (PCB) Processing and Distribution in Commerce Prohibitions," was signed on May 11, 1979 by the Acting Assistant Administrator for Toxic Substances and is expected to appear in the Federal Register of May 31, 1979. An advance copy is enclosed. Any GE component requiring an exemption under this new rule must arrange for filing a petition with EPA by July 1, 1979. The act of filing will permit the requested activity to be performed at least until EPA acts upon the petition and issues a Final Rule in January, 1980; Those components that have already filed a petition [under the old definition of "manufac turing") need not re-file. Silicone Products' petition is being handled as a "manufacturing" petition under the new definition of manufacturing. The other components' petitions will be treated as "processing" petitions and require only reaffirmation. NEL 000657 782505 G E N E R A L | P ELECTRIC To: Distribution -2- May 30, 1979 The following is a tabulation of our present understanding of the status of existing petitions and a list of those that may be needed, supplementing John Claussen's letter of May 18: Component Activity Requiring Exemption EPA Code** Action Needed ** Silicone Products Business Dept. The production of phenylchlorosilanes with PCB as unwanted byproduct. N.A. EPA, is reserving decision on previously filed petition; Department to supply more information upon receipt of request from EPA. **Ballast Product Section Processing ballasts with PCB capacitors (if such permission is granted to others), and importing capacitors for such purpose. 7 Reaffirm original petition. For this purpose, EPA will apparently treat importation in the same manner as domestic assembly, so the petition, as filed, is suitable for con sideration as a "processing" petition. **Lighting Systems Department Building ballasts and fixtures with PCB capacitors and im porting capacitors. **Motor and Drives Business Division Assembling capacitor motors and equipment incorporating capacitor motors, utilizing existing stock of capacitors. .Apparatus Service Servicing of transform Business Division ers with PCB fluid, (See also last railroad transformers, item in tabulation) mining equipment. Servicing PCB trans formers with Iralec, in present situation of Iralec contaminated with more than 50 ppm PCB. Transportation Systems Business Division Joint petition with ASBD for Metroliner overhaul contract completion. 7,8 7,8 N.A. 1 7 Same as above Reaffirm petition. P File petition on individual basis, as no "class petition" code is applicable. NEL 000658 Petition must be filed if contaminated Iralec is to be used. File petition with ASBD. 2S Lj " O o o Si OO GESCO Distribution of PCB equipment in inventory. 9 File petition for equipment sale. Distribution of PCB articles (capacitors) in inventory. 4 Consider filing a petition under Code 4 to cover distri bution of capacitors by GESCO and its customers for servicing equipment. * B a s is fo r p e t it io n as lis t e d on page 3-7 o f . advance copy o f P ro c e s s in g R u le , w ith p ro v is io n fo r coverage o f o th e rs in th e d is t r ib u t io n c h a in . N .A . = n ot a p p lic a b le . **In c lu d c d in consolidated n c tir io n f il e d Nnv. 79. 197R. 7 Qocnc G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC To: D is trib u tio n -3- Component Major Appliance Business Group Activity Requiring Exemption Continued sale by GE's distributors and retailers who have PCB appliances in inventory. EPA Code 9 Television Bus. Department Same Air Conditioning Same Bus. Division Capacitor Products Department, Large Transformer Bus. Division, Corpo rate Research and Development, and ASBD. Process and distribute small quantities for research and develop ment; receive and analyze customer samples. 9 9 5 May 30, 1979 Action Needed File petition for each type of appliance, to cover each person in the distribution chain, [without need for naming each distributor or retailer). Same. (Considering class petition with EIA). Same as MABG. Petition may (or may not) be needed to authorize sending fluids to researchers such as Dr. Selikoff or the EPA at Research Triangle Park. Clarification should be requested from EPA. A written statement should alsc be requested on whether samples for analysis of 7 customer problems require exemption. John H. Claussen, Counsel-Environmental Protection and the undersigned are avail able to give such help as may be needed to produce coordinated petitions. If your component requires a petition, and wishes to have it consolidated with other Company petitions and forwarded with a common cover letter (as was done for the first round of "manufacturing" petitions), adherence to the following very tight schedule will be necessary: Draft of component petition or reaffirmation statement, with supporting information as specified in the enclosure, to Claussen Nelson June 13 Draft of consolidated petition assembled from Component drafts June 20 Final document mailed to EPA June 27 Please call me at 8*229-2287 or John Claussen at 8*235-9058 to signal your intention. VeryK truly yours, NEL 000659 JSN:rss les S. Nelson. Consultant Abduct Environmental Compatibility 782507 GENERAL @ ELECTRIC DISTRIBUTION LIST (Components with history of PCB Products) Air Conditioning Business Division James B. Britt, Louisville ... o Stanley A. Gorski " Charles M. Madanick " - Apparatus Service Business Division A. Melcher Anderson, Atlanta Edward W. Feuerstein, Schenectady David Hecker " Appliance Components Business Division Donald W. Mohrman, Fort Wayne Daryl Patton " Contractor Equipment Business Division Raymond C. Allen, Bridgeport William M. Nave " Data Communication Products Business Department John W. Swett, Waynesboro Javier Urioste " Distribution Transformer Business Department N. M. Neagle, Hickory, N.C. P. L. Waldon " Delbert L. Williamson " Electronic Systems Division Richard C. Hatch, Syracuse Robert 0. Richards " Electronic Components Business Division James F. Madole, Owensboro John F. Repko, Syracuse Capacitor Products Department Ruth Arisman, Hudson Falls Frank Price " GESCO H. F. Boyer, Bridgeport W. S. Gray " Installation Service Engineering Business Division George N. Bull, Schenectady 099000 THM 782508 GEN ERAL ELECTRIC -2- Distribution L i s t (continued) Large Transformer Business Division Edward L. Dobbins, Pittsfield Raymond W. Frahm, Rome Andrew Glassanos, Pittsfield Robert G. Osthoff " William M. Rodgers, Rome Lighting Business Group Thomas P. Segerson, Nela Park Lamp Products Division Alfred B. Gough, Danville, 111. James C. Flynn " Douglas E. Duffies, Mela Park Lighting Systems Department Douglas B. Abrams, Hendersonville, Reuel L. Davis, Jr. " i&rtip-R Milroy--- " N.C. Major Appliance Business Group Edward Conners, Louisville Philip V. Otero " Range Engineering Department Robert V. Chou, Louisville Medical Systems J. Olsson, Milwaukee Mobile Radio Products Department Raymond E. Baker, Lynchburg L. Keith Elrod " Motors and Drives Business Division Paul G. Cummings, Schenectady Donald A. Ross, Salem, Va. Malcolm Olson, Erie, Pa. Randolph L. Houlton, Nashville, Tenn. Joseph L. Yosafat, Salem, Va. Thomas J. Managhan " James R. Olin " Silicone Products Department Thomas H. Fitzgerald, Waterford, N. Y. Edward M. Jerum " 1ri 782509 OS as G E N E R A L ELECTRIC -3- Distribution List [continued] Switchgear Business Department Charles H. Titus, Philadelphia Television Business Department Alford E. Allen, Portsmouth, Va. James P. Flynn " Transportation Systems Business Division Lome L. MacMonagle, Erie Roger Boucher " Copies also to: L. J. Campanella, Washington, D. C. W. R. Kruesi, Fairfield, Conn. J. M. Phillips, Schenectady A. M. Toothaker " J. F. Brown, CR&D " PHODUCT QUALITY STAFF SU8JECT 8*229-22S7 PC'g xl *yr*- COPIES: J . H. C laussen R . L. D avis, Jr. bcc: J. F. McAllister May 31, 1979 Mr. Jim Wilcoxson M anager-Distributor Sales Lighting Systems Department Hendersonville, N. C. Dear Jim: In our telephone conversation o f May 4, you ex p ressed concern that some of your distributors may have unsold equipm ent in sto c k , containing PCB capacitors. A rule published in today's Federal R egister provides several options to take care of such situations. An advance copy of this rule, together with a cover letter on the subject mailed to a number of people including three at Lighting System s, is enclosed. Depending upon the circum stances, a trade association may req uest an exemption in behalf of its members, a distribu tor may petition in his own b eh alf, or the manu factu rer (LSD) may petition in behalf of its distributors and retailers down the line. If you feel that a GE petition is in order for your situa tion, it is suggested that you get together with Reuel Davis and coordinate with us as described in the afore mentioned letter. Very truly yours JSN :sdf NEL 000663 782511 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A LVIO E L E C T R I C FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT PCB P etitions Status COPIES: L .J. Campanella J.H . Claussen W.F. Faison E.M. Foley J .F . McAllister J.F . Young June 18, 1979 To: M essrs. Reuel L. D avis, Jr Thomas H. Fitzgerald Alfred B. Gough Edward M. Jerum Thomas J. Managhan James R. Olin Donald A. Ross Thomas P. Segerson Gentlemen : Enclosed for you r information is a letter from EPA relative to the p reviou sly filed petitions for exemption from the PCB ban ru le, and Mr. Young's rep ly. A s you are aware, a new round of petitions and reaffirmation statement is being prepared by the components involved and coordinated through John C laussen's office, with participation by the undersigned. Very truly yours JSN :cas Enclosures ([d>mes S . N elson, C onsultantProduct Environmental Compatibility NEL 000664 782512 J A M E S F. Y O U N O VICE FHCSIOENT-TCCM NICAL R ESO U R CES GENERAL ELECTRIC GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY FAIRFIELD, C O N N E C T IC U T OOA3| June 18, 1979 Mr. John P . DeKany Deputy Assistant Administrator for Chemical Control Office of Toxic Substances United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D. C . 20460 Dear Mr. DeKany: T hank you for y o u r letter and its enclosures relative to General Electric petitions for exemption from the PCB Prohibition Rule. We understand th at, of the four petitions previously submitted, only the one dealing with an exemption to continue to manufacture phenylchlorosilanes with unintentional PCB impurities is to be evaluated as a part of the rulemaking for manufacturing exemp tions. We shall undertake to provide answers to the five ques tions contained in you r letter within the th irty-d ay time period requested. Inasmuch as your letter was undated and received here on Ju n e 12 , 1979, we tru st it will be satisfactory to reply b y the time of the hearing on Ju ly 9, 1979. We are in the p ro cess of restu d yin g the other three petition s, now classified as processin g and distribution, to determine what modification, if an y, is appropriate under the new rule govern ing such subm issions and other developments. We shall communi cate sep arately with respect to this group and additional petitions of this nature that we plan to submit. Sincerely JF Y :sd f cc: Harold J . Sn yd er F NEL 000665 782513 W\ PROJ'& UNITED STATES EN VIRO N M EN TAL PROTECTION AGENCY W A S H IN G T O N . D.C. 20460 O FFIC E O F TO X IC SUBSTANCES Mr. James F. Young, Vice President Technical Resources General Electric Company 3135 Easton Turnpike Fairfield, CT 06431 J UN 1 i 1979 JAMES F, YOUNG Dear Mr. Young: This letter is a follow-up to a conversation that Ms. Lucy Sibold of my office had with Mr. Lewis Campanella of your company on May 17, 1979. Ms. Sibold informed Mr. Campanella of the results of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) evaluation of your requests for exemptions from the PCB Prohibition Rule. EPA has decided that it will not evaluate, at this time, three of your company's four exemp tion requests, but will evaluate them during the processing and distribution in commerce exemption rulemaking. These three exemptions dealt with the manufacture of equipment, ballast transformers, lighting fixtures, and motors that contain PCB capacitors. EPA has redefined the term "manu facture" such that the production of equipment that contains PCB components is no longer considered "manufacture" but is considered "processing". As a result, this activity is no longer subject to the January 1 ban on manufacture but is subject to the July 1, ban on processing and distribution of PCBs. (See the enclosed notice of manufacturing exemptions (44 FR 31564)). With respect to your fourth exemption request to continue to manufacture phenylchlorosilanes with unintentional PCB impurities, EPA has not proposed a disposition on your petition due to -the technical complexity of your exemption request. NEL 000666 782514 -2- I would like to emphasize that this is not our final dis position on your petition on phenylchlorosilanes. As a matter of fact, it has been determined that more information is needed before EPA can make a decision- In order to assist EPA in making an adequate assessment of this request, the Agency asks that you answer the following questions: 1. Please state whether there is any worker exposure to PCBs in the manufacture of phenylchlorosilanes. If so, what is the extent of the exposure? Also, please indicate any procedures that have been taken to minimize worker exposure. 2. Please describe in detail how PCBs are removed and concentrated for disposal during the phenylchlorosilane purification process. 3. Please state the quantity of PCB water effluents and air emissions resulting from the manufacture of phenyl chlorosilanes . 4. What would the economic impact of a denial of this exemption request be on both you and your customers? 5. Please explain specifically what efforts you have made to find a substitute which does not result in the production of PCBs. Please furnish two copies of the request information within thirty days from the date of this letter to the Hearing Clerk at the following address: Ms. Linda Thomson (TS-794) Office of Toxic Substances Environmental Protection Agency 401 M St., SW Washington, DC 20460 If you wish to claim confidential status for a portion of this response, please see Section 750.16 of the Interim Procedural Rules for PCB Exemptions (43 FR 50905, November 1, 1978) which explains how confidential material may be filed. We welcome your comments and invite you to participate in our hearings on these petitions. We anticipate that the hearing will be held beginning July 9, 1979 in Washington, DC. The exact location will be made available through our Industry Assistance Office at (800) 424-9065. 782515 NEL 000667 -3 - Also enclosed with this letter are two other pertinent Federal Register notices. The first is a copy of the procedural rules governing the rulemaking and hearing process for PCBs manufacturing exemptions (43 FR 50905). The second is a copy of rules describing the procedures for filing for an exemption from the processing and distribution in commerce bans (44 FR 31560). If you have any questions about this letter, please contact Harold J. Snyder at (202) 755-1188. Sincerely bhn P. DeKany J eputy Assistant Administrator for Chemical Control cc: Lewis J. Campanella, Esq. Counsel - Regulatory Affairs General Electric Company 777 14th Street, NW Washington, DC 20005 i NEL 000668 782516 GENERAL ELECTRIC CENERAI. ELECTRIC COMPANY FAIRFIELD, CO N N ECTICU T OB43I J A M E S F. Y O U N G V IC C PRCSIDKM T-TCCM NICAL RCSQ U RCCS 3une 29, 1979 Docum ent Control O fficer (TS-793) O ffice of Toxic Substances U.S. EnvironrhentaI:Pr6tection Agency 401 M S tre e t, SW Washington, DC 20460 A ttention: Docket Number OTS/066002 D ear Sir: In accordance.w ith interim procedural rules prom ulgated by th e Agency on May 31, 1979 (44 FR 31558), th e General E lectric Company submits the enclosed petition for individual and class exem ptions from th e bans on processing and distribution in com m erce of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). A ctivities for which exemptions are requested have been grouped into the following categories: 1) D istribution of PCB Equipment (individual and class); 2) D istribution of PCB C apacitors fo r Purposes of R epair (individual and class); 3) Distribution; of O ther PCB C apacitors (individual); 4) Processing of PCB C apacitors into PCB Equipm ent and Subsequent D istribution (individual); 5) Processing of PCB Equipm ent into O ther PCB Equipment (class); 6) Processing and D istribution w ith resp ect to Servicing of T ransform ers (individual); and 7) Processing and D istribution with re sp ec t to T est Samples and R&D (individual). Of the four "m anufacturing" exem ptions requested in our 1 1/28/78 le tte r, only one is classified as a "m anufacturing" a c tiv ity under th e definitions set fo rth in the 5/31 /79 final rule. Our petition for this manufacturing exem ption, which applies to the m anufacture of phenylchlorosilanes with unintentional PCB im purities by our Silicone Products D epartm ent n W aterford, New York, continues to be activ e. (In this connection, it is our interpretatio n fh a t the final ban regulations do not require a processing exemption for this activity. If the Agency considers a processing exemption necessary for continuation of this activity, please consider the pending petition amended to include processing.) The th re e o th e r requests contained in our 11/2S/78 le tte r, now classified as involving processing a n d /o r distribution a ctiv itie s, are included in this petitio n in modified form in accord an ce w ith the 5/31/79 interim procedural rules applying to processing and distribution. NEL 00b669 782517 PETITION BY THE GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY FOR PROCESSING AND DISTRIBUTION EXEMPTIONS UNDER SECTION 6(e)(3)(B) OF THE _____TOXIC SUBSTANCES CONTROL A C T _____ In accordance with P art 750, Subpart C, of T itle 40 of the Code of Federal R egulations (44 FR 31558; May 31, 1979), th e General E lectric Company hereby petitions the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for th e following processing and distribution exem ptions under Section 6(e)(3)(B) of the Toxic Substances Control A ct (15 USC 2605(e)): NO. 1 - DISTRIBUTION OF PCB EQUIPMENT (Individual and class exemptions) (1)* Identification of P etitioner The name, address and telephone number of the petitioner for all exemptions requested in this petition are: James F. Young, Vice-President-Technical Resources General Electric Company Fairfield, C onnecticut 06431 Telephone (203) 373-2406 (2), (5) & (9) Exemptions R equested, E stim ated Amounts of PCBs and D istributor Information (confidential in part) Individual exem ptions are requested to continue distribution in com m erce of PCB equipm ent from existing inventories by several organi zational components of General E lectric including but not limited to the General E lectric Supply Company Business Division, Television Business D epartm ent, Motors and Drives Business Division, Major * Inform ation is supplied in the fo rm at specified in 40 CFR 750.31(d). Item s (I) and (4) apply to all requests in this petition, and are not repeated. 782518 NEL 000670 t: EXHIBIT C DISTRIBUTION OF PCB CAPACITO RS FOR PURPOSES OF REPAIR Type of Capacitor Estimated Number to be D istrib u ted Countertop Microwave Oven Room A ir Conditioners Central Air Conditioners, Packaged Terminal A ir Conditioners, F urnaces 206 6 ,4 15 796 TOTAL 7,597 Estimated Total Amount of PCBs (lbs.) 39 2,245 833 3 ,117 Economic Consequences of Denial $ 1,040 1 68,600 2 7.2003 $76,840 1 B ased upon replacement cost of $400 disposal cost fo r PCB capacitors of $400 shipment costs of $40 and administrative labor and other costs of $ 2 0 0 . 2 B ased upon replacement cost of $36000 disposal cost for PCB capacitors of $13000 shipment costs of $ 3 , 600, and administrative labor and other costs of $16 0 0 0 . 3 B ased upon replacement cost of $4000 disposal cost for PCB capacitors of $2,000 shipment costs of $ 2 0 0 , and adm inistrative, labor and other costs of $ 1 , 0 0 0 . NEL 000671 782519 CONFIDENTIAL EXHIBIT PAGES CONTAINING CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION TO ACCOMPANY PETITION B Y THE GENERAL ELEC T R IC COMPANY FOR PROCESSING AND DISTRIBUTING EXEMPTIONS UNDER SECTION 6 (e )(3)(B ) OF THE TOXIC SU BSTAN CES CONTROL ACT June 29, 1979 782520 NEL 000672 EXHIBIT A DISTRIBUTION OF PCB EQUIPMENT JQ NFIDEKTIAL Type of Equipment Number to be D istributed GE Other Total Fluorescent lighting fixtures 44,000 not available 44,000+ High intensity discharge (HID) lighting fixtu res 4,000 not available 4,000+ Fluorescent & HID light ing ballasts (95% are fluorescent) 33,000 400,000 433,000 Electric motors, frac tional to 5 hp (majority are frac tional hp) 600 not available 600+ Exhaust and circulat ing fans (1 / 3 hp motors) 100 not available 100+ Television receivers (25 inch color) 600 4,300 4,900 Electrical Drive Systems equipment 3 400 not applicable^ 400 Room A ir Conditioners not avail- able5 5 not available 24,500 Packaged /Terminal Air Conditioners it n 1,000 Number of D istrib u to rs 30,0007 30,000 Estimated Amt. of PC B s p er Item (lb s.) .06 .50 31,6008 . 06 - .50 30,0007 30.0007 6,000 not applicable 8 18,000 200 .55 .18 .10 .25 .35 .35 Estimated Total Amt. of PCBs (lb s.) 2,640 2,000 35,560 330 18 490 100. 8,575 350 t-oaooz. U 9000 'Tgivt ' CONFfDENT// ex h ibit b econom ic c o n se q u e n c e s of d en ia l DISTRIBUTION OF PCB EQUIPMENT ' Type of Equipment Cost of Denial GE Other Total Fluorescent Lighting Fixtures ^ High Intensity Discharge Lighting Fixtures ^ F lu orescen t & HID B allasts ^ Electric Motors ^(fractional to 5 hp) Exhaust &Circulating Fans^ (with 1/3 hp motors) Television Receivers^ (25 inch co lo r) Electric Drive Systems Equipment 3 4 Room Air C onditioners Packaged/Terminal Air Conditioners 5 Central Air Conditioners^ 7 Furnaces (home heating) g Microwave Ovens 9 Control Equipment Transportation and Drilling Operations $ 725,000 not available 225,000 330,000 not available $ 4,000,000 55,200 10,000 not available not available 27,000 193,500 20,000 not applicable not available not available not available not available not available not available not available not available not available not available 120,750 not applicable $ 725,000+ 225,000+ 4,330,000 55,200+ 10,000+ 220,500 20,000 2,352,000 55,000 62,100 18,750 2,868,400 120,750 TOTAL $1,512,950+ $4,193,500+ $11,062,700+ 782522 PROOUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 0643! SUBJECT PCB Processing and Distribution Exemptions tA- Un i^C .S0 .>M1 ~MT I! 8*229-2257 COPIES: L . J . Campanella J.H . Claussen W.F. Faison E.M. Foley J . F . McAllister E .L . Simons J .F . Young Sector Technologists Ju ly 2, 1979 TO: DISTRIBUTION Gentlemen : Enclosed is a copy of the consolidated petition for PCB processing and distribution exemptions delivered to EPA today. A copy is being sent to one or more individuals in each component participating and mentioned in the petition. K indly sh are your copy with others who have a need to know, bearing in mind, of cou rse, that confidential information pertaining to other components is included. Mr. Young has indicated his appreciation of the cooperation that made it possible to produce this statement in the short time available, to which John Claussen and I add our thanks, also. Very truly yours, f JSN :cas Enclosures James\S.^Nelson, ConsultantProduct Environment Compatibility NEL 000674 782523 G E N E R A L w E LE CTR IC DISTRIBUTION J.F. Brown, Jr. R. Boucher C . R. Breese G .N . Bull R.L. Davis E.L. Dobbins E.W. F euerstein J.P. Flynn A . B . Gough W.S. Gray D. Hecker B . Hunter E . M. Jerum L. L. MacMonagle T. J. Managhan R.C. Osthoff P. V. Otero F . Price J.F. Repko J.K. Restrick D.A. Ross J.P. Slattery J.M. Trani 782524 NEL 000675 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT * June Activities Report COPIES: 3uly 3, 1979 Mr- J.F . McAllister O ffice III. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. T5CA Ban on Processing and D istributing PCBs A ssistance was provided in the development of a consolidated petition for exemptions to the PCB ban rule on processing and distribution, in behalf of seventeen departm ents and divisions. This document was forwarded to EPA by Mr. Young, with a cover le tte r, and receipt was acknowledged by EPA on July 2, to Mr. Foley. Record copies were mailed to all participating components. 2. TSCA Ban on M anufacturing PCBs As a consequence of EPA's in terpretation th at the ban on m anufacturing PCBs applies also to the form ation of monochlorinated and dichlorinated biphenyls as unwanted byproducts not appearing in the end product, Silicone Products was constrained to petition for exemption last November. As a m eeting in W aterford on June 19 and by other means, Mr. Nelson has participated in the development of a follow-up strateg y for this petition. Included in this e ffo rt is the developm ent of answers to five specific questions posed by EPA and consideration being-given to litigating the issue of applicability of the ban to inadvertent byproducts stripped from the product and destroyed. REDACTED NEL 000676 782525 2- - July 3, 1979 4. Information L e tte r on PCBs Jointly with EPO, an inform ation le tte r on the new PCB rules was distributed throughout the Company. Responses revealed two applications of the chemical previously unknown to EPO or PQS: the use in pigments a t the Chelsea paint plant of Laminated and Insulating Products and the use in pigments for certain plastics. (The Chelsea application will be covered by a class petition filed by the N ational Paint and Coatings Association. Plastics Division elected to destroy its small inventory of pigments containing PCB and make use of available substitutes.) redacted Very truly yours, JSNxras NEL 000677 782526 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 .SU8iiflVActivities Report Jam es 5. Nelson COPIES: July 30, 1979 Mr. J.F. M cAllister Office III. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 1. PCBs At the request of Silicone Products D epartm ent, Mr. Nelson participated as a resource person with the team testifying before EPA with regard to SPBD's petition for an exemption from the PCB m anufacturing ban, and later provided comments on their draft of Reply Comments. At this writing, a final determination has not been made as to the advisability of SPBD challenging in court the applicability of the manufacturing ban to its inadvertent byproduct situation. The issue hinges on legal advice as to the likelihood of success. redacted JSN:cas J.S. Nelson *- 782527 000678 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL -gp ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT 9 August Activities Report James S. Nelson Mr. J.F. McAllister - Office - COPIES: U 1 - i * \ ^**Jw September 7, 1979 redacted !fii 3. PCBs As a companion strategy to their petition for exemption from the PCS manufacturing ban, Silicone Products Business Department has filed suit to test EPA*s interpretation of the PCB ban in TSCA as applying to unwanted byproducts not appearing in the final product. JSN :cas U.S. Nelson NEL 000679 782528 V `- n SIEL 000680 782529 1 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL! I ELECTRIC FAIHFIELD, CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287 ------ "WEEPING" TRANSFORMERS COPIES: T . L. Mayes J. F. McAllister R. L. Reinhart E. L. Dobbins N. M. Neagle hj - March 21, 1980 D r. R. C. Osthoff, Manager Large Transformer Technical Resources Pittsfield Dear Bob: In our telephone conversation of March 21, 1980, we agreed that responsibility for determining what response may be appropriate to EPA's req uest for information on the phenomenon of PCB transform er "weeping" (45 FR 14232, copy attached) lies w ith LTBD. While EEI's letter referen ced in the Federal R egister may have triggered this req uest for inform ation, the attached new s item from Air/W ater Pollution Report also seems pertinent. Jellinek has taken the position before the House Commerce O versight Subcommittee that transform ers generally do not leak and are not a major source of environmental contamination. I am su re he would welcome any data th at we could su p p ly in support of his contention. Very truly yours JSN:dem A ttach . NEL 000681 782531 Federal Register / Vol. 45. No 45 / Wednesday. March 5. 1980 / Proposed Rules 2. What is the average rate of fluid less (as well as the largest rate of loss observ ed] from a "weeping" transformer? 3. How can this phenomenon be reduced or eliminated? 4. Is this phenomenon associated with all transformer gaskets, or are there particular gaskets that do not "weep'* dialectic fluid even under pressure and after years of of use? 5. When or under what conditions does a "weep" became sufficiently large to impair the performance-of the transformer? How long does this take * after "weeping" begins? 6. When does a transformer begin to "weep"? Does it occur at a particular age. or under severe conditions of. operating temperature or electrical load [as a percentage of maximum rated load)? 7. What is the usual industry response to "weeping" transformers when they are identified? (Le, is the "weeping" ignored, or are the "weeping'* transformers scheduled for maintenance)? Persons are also encouraged to submit any other data or information that is relevant or might be helpful to EPA in understanding the "weeping" problem. EPA will evaluate the responses and data submitted to determine if any amendments to the PGB regulation (44 PR 31514. May 31.1979) should be proposed. [Sftlion o of the Toxic Substances Control Act (90 Slat. 2020; 15 ILS.C. 2605]) Ujle; February 25,1980. SlevenD, Jellinek, Assistant .4dministratorforPesticides and Toxic Substances. IFRDoc.SWOOTFiMS-MOtMSsm| BlLLlMO C O M 6M0-01-M APARTMENTOF HEALTH. EDUCATION, AND WELFARE O fttceW Civil Rights 45 CFR PaH* 37 summary: The Office for Civil Rights (OCR), U.S. Department of Health, ducation. and Welfare (HEW), is eopening the comment period on the oposed rules far the administration of the equal opportunity in employment provisions under the Public Telecommunications Financing Act of 1978. Pub. L 95-567,92 StaL2405.47 U.9lC. 398. The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) was published in the Federal Registec on December 21 1979144 FR 75678). Comments on the NPRM were to be submittedby February 19.1980 in order to receive full consideration. Few comments were received by OCR during the original comment period and numerous requests to extend the comment period were received bom parties affected by the- , proposed rules who were unable to prepare comments by February 19198Q. In order op allow all interested parties to participate in the rulemaking,process the comment periodisreopened-until Aprill,1980.Itshouldhenoted,' . however, tnat all of the comments received thus far are still on file and will ha revieweaand considered along with any new or amended comments. OATES: The comment period is reopened and comment? should be submitted on or before Ap 1,1980. Comments which have already een submitted should not be resubmitte address: Co ents should be filed with: Director Jffice for Civil Rights, U.S. Departmenqof Health, Education, and Welfare, P.OL Box 8219, Washington D.G120024. ~ FOR FURTHER INFORMATIONCONTACT? Wendy B. Pailen, (202) 472-3213. Dated: February 2211980. Roma ). Stewart, Director, Officefor CiM Rights, Department o fHealth,Education,aod Welfare, Dated: February 28,1^ Nathan). Stark. Actict&Soeretacy. DeparirneneatHeaittr. " Educatiomaad Welfares I IFXDaoo --M R bes >aan m um cooi aiifrta- - \ 5 Equal Opportunity In Employment Provisions Applicable to the Public FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS. Broadcasting Service, National Public COMMISSION Radio, and Public Telecommunications Entities Receiving Federal Funds from 47 CFR Part 15 he Corporation for Pubt Broadcasting. [Gen. Docket No.78-39I t accncy: Office for Civil R ig h \u .S . DAeepiMarrtme.ent of Health. EducatiohwXand Improvements to UHF Television Reception; Order Extending Time for Filing Comments and Repm Com ments Reopening of Comment Perii on Previously Published Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. agency: Federal Communications Commission. action: Order. it 782532 14233 P O 00 U) March 10,1980 Ny ___ AIS/WATSS pollution report________ Page 97 H EALTH COUNCIL STR1SWGLY CRITICIZES The contribution of airborne industrial chemicals PROPOSED AIR CARCINChH^N POLICY to cancer in the U.S. has been "seriously** over- stated by the Environmental Protection Agency in its proposed air carcinogen policy, the American Industrial Health Council charged recently. Proposed pol icy "reflects an unrealistic peispectivebqon the incidence and causes of cancer,'*AIHC said in comments submitted to the agency. x. The carcinogen policy is designed to idehttfy and regulate hazardous air pollutants. Under the pro posal, pollutants are to be classified as hazardousifEPA determines they " present a significant carcinogenic risk to human health'* as a result of emissions from one or more stationary sources. After classification, in dustry would be required to install best available techn&qgy to control hazardous pollutants. However, AIHC charges that the EPA policy fails to establish the need for such a "sweeping, extensive regulatory program'* because the agency fails to "establish thahmibient air exposure to industrial chemicals is a significant cause of cancer.** In addition, the council objects tbvEPA's intention to include the risk cri teria as part of the regulations and urges the agency to issue the criteHqas separate guidance. AIHC warns that inclusion of risk criteria as regulations will make modifying the crireqa a cumbersome, formal rulemak ing proceeding. x^ In related news, a study commissioned by AIHC estimates that costs associated with the hazardous pollutant policy being considered by EPA are "likely to exceed" SI 00-million pery^ar, thus making the proposal subject to an economic impact analysis. The agency has said the proposed mies would not be that expensive, however EPA is directed by the Gean Air Act to ignore costs when setting ambient air standards. *** X REP. DINGELL CONDEMNS EPA Phase-out regulations for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) is- `MISHANDLING* OF BAN ON PCBs sued last year by the Environmental Protection Agency repre sent a " flagrant breach of the intent of Congress to protect pub- lie health and the environment from future exposures to PCBs," Rep. John Dingell (D.-Mich.) told the House Commerce Oversight Subcommittee Feb. 28. Ban on PCBs was mandated by Congress under the Toxic Substances Control Act of 1976 and the manufacture of PCBs not intended for " totally enclosed" uses was banned by EPA last year (AAVPR, June 18,1979, p. 247). However, Dingell argued that those EPA regulations actually exempt 9 9 % of PCBs currently in use. Dingell strongly urged EPA to require the phase*out of electric utility transformers using PCBs. These transformers are not "totally enclosed** uses of PCBs, he charged, adding that they leak regularly. Dingell cited a General Se: vices Administration survey which found that over 50%of PCB transformers in the Wash ington, D.C., area *are now leaking, or show signs of past leaks." EPA is guilty of "regulatory illiteracy'*in allowing the continued use of PCBs in transformers, he told the subcommittee. Author of the TSCA provi sions on phasing cut PCBs, Dingell classified EPA's classification of PCB transformers as a "totally enclosed" use, a "broad and invalid interpretation" of Congressional intent that "flies in the face of common English and common sense." EPA*s Steve Jellinek, Assistant Administrator of the Office of Pesticides and Toxic Substances, " re spectfully disagreed" with Dingell's accusations and argued that the transformers generally do not leak and are not a major source of environmental contamination. The agency is now seeking information on how often PCBs condense on the outside of transformers. *** ? 782533 BACTERIA INHffilTI&N'KEY TO CONTROL Inhibiting the bacteria that promote acid formation O F ACID MINE DRAINAGETlNTERIOR SAYS is the key to tackling the problem of acid mine drainage, an extensive stream pollutant, according to the Interior Department's Bureau of MinSsNRecent research indicates that raising the iron content of mine water to 100 parts per million cuts acid profcretiQnsubstantiaUy. According to a paper prepared by a BuMines contracfer^-sulfuric acid solutions containing iron are formed when pyrite is exposed to oxygen and water in the mineTThe^hemical reaction is greatly enhanced by two kinds of abundant bacteria, which operate in sequence. The presehee.gfa soluble iron compound in concentrations of 100 ppm inhibits the first species of bacteria, thus breakingute^jcid-producing chain of events, research has shown. To date, chemical treatment of mine effluents -- which have polluted thousands of miles oYXppala- chian streams --or burial of waste piles, were the least costly ways to combat the problem. Under this ne\*r t k a -------------- .'-- I f . . -- . . 1-1 -------------1 ---- ------- NEL 000684 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF ( J riU P -m FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUSJECT 8*229-2287 WEEPING TRANSFORMERS c o p i e s : J. H. Claussen E. L. Dobbins E. W. Feuerstein E . M . Foley W. R. Kruesi J. F. McAllister E. L. Simons March 31, 1980 Dr. Robert C. Osthoff Large Transformer Business Division 100 Woodlawn Avenue Pittsfield, M A 01201 Dear Bob, Attached is a copy of the EEI letter on "weeping" transformers and EPA's reply. Contrary to what I was told on the telephone by EPA's Dr. Barber (whose name was given in the March 5 Federal Register request for information), this letter was not unsolicited, but was requested by EPA following two meetings on the subject last November. The initiative for the first meeting remains unclear. It appears from the exchange of correspondence that the focus is less on transformers designated "PCB Transformers" than it is on oil transformers, the weeping of which may give rise to a presumption of PCB leakage due to contamination. Both could be involved. Bill Kruesi, who obtained the correspondence for us, tells me that N E M A plans to comment, but is looking for guidance as to what to say. Dr. Barber assured me that any information we can provide will be accepted and considered, even though not within the official comment period noted in the register (ending April 4). I will appreciate it if anyone having background information on this subject will forward it to you (with copy to me) to assist in the development of appropriate comments to be sent either by N E M A or GE. It would appear that the industry comments should be well documented to forestall efforts by the Environmental Defense Fund to use the "weeping" phenomenon to destroy EPA's regulatory stance on transformers as "closed systems". Very truly yours JSN :dem Attach. James S. Nelson NEL 000685 782534 h - H- o tiw ; ir 3 fr n to ti y h * m h * *tp h p 'o H' pi rr i M lu ft- iy K? > nwoo H* rt O a c1i5r (U p<ii O ho rh io- H a rt- oa* h *a I- tt u Ci a a t a ft IOI h til ft O er ft 'i p, jft lu g *x Zi ho 3 *n0 unii rr'-J- idr fot H4tai- mh * u ft rh i-r ta ntu O H O (1) H'O O r Ol O H I H iJ i - ri a ft j ri la K h * o id O <1* H H fi-'*; a -i i-;| t in O ! ' i< rtK 3 fu o n -in ht aID*Df aH- 0 * 101- C1) IUD oi - 2ft o< rt e t a a l* rr t - lo *t h - o (r o rf>t....H....*.M.. l H* H* O a j'd iidfM y0t0j S P * ' H* rt r b C rf . ft.*rSrt 3 a ci> * \wE If ft O O P* K W t ft 3 O t a tr* i o a * i - o P i ft N H- O O U V M h t r a m a p a a -* O 'O n t U lo M* r-** tv w >-* r t h -O- t - o o c a n - e o o* r - a rt*i M ft H IU i t o*l>inDoHi KP p rt ft i l* p O tir i H I) O Hi a* H* ft H t O Oi Iti M ar*tu l reOita: w it > >*rr ft a ft tr s <t f t cl* ft ID rt- p p r] [ ro w a t a P 11 f t (U (3 a ft ft h m il et ci rr o y Q a a rt m m c ft ID r t p H H- I t 1 `O 1 tv ft- H O' i-*- rr O cr a P i-1 o id oi V" <M \*Jo a id o h co ttir a* a a * a H* f t i h rti) a rr n> w *t i n- ft p M iu o O S. n 45 IT rt C id n p c *0 id h o a P ft Hft* ft* ft fl h - M ID ' tu lU IDlu ti- O rr f> cr ft. H i-' 1 li rt t H a cu aiV rfot ino HU (mOsi Ir-*r* o. fot in in Utili n c < ft n o H* a id *d ID ft in to ID rr s* rr n, h ni a f - o Hi a to it O i( O rt it a aIDH*Oai r-t-PHrtH* ir r( tr si rt to p h H- cr a H* H* HI t Cl H i rt ft ft idid h ft n cr id a* o .H -a n a o o :rn to H ID 't t Lt ft ft ft '< T N l| H 'tt H H ID ft o a*oi ut id n ^ h a p Dj t oi in ihr* r* v? p oid a|! ft Ha1*id in if r r o a n id i-* o idrr t n ah o a n > o* id U r t H f t r r H* rt i dOi rt OJ> -I n o rrps. a h u i n s ; H* H O !* U M t ft h u >1 id -3 h - tr Ho r:j a* h h a* ; t a o y rt s c n c k i -anr1t a h -* o o a o " to n* U o r* oa idn< ID ft o HH- * S3 M P hO* a*. ir H- tr ft n , a w n a a n* o rr a fi. ftcr ;r r-n> ID h lrif fJ- S- ft IP-1*O0 q rt h a w a*o a* Cf H ` H i E ft O f t 111 ft rJ H tr N ft ft 41 t atv s id aft tt oai icl: > eat tPi si a oi rr *< is hi p <r a ^ a >fli a IT- rf O " H - n a h m < in M o n P ft rt a Q ft .a m a r: O i-* w o id [1 c p i - n a o idM a ft rr ft a 1 |uft id it rt rr H- ft * h* a < ir !i :r :r p t t o o tO ^ is 3j H. h ft E r a rt ni ID ft H - n n ft C >`*ID O I< < a H K SI oc0ro0o en n in h a* a te o H M n a HOi af t I.D|< rr a rl o tIrD n M !J st H- cr o i h >1 p n n ida tr ti ;i tu tu i - ft rt ct it ft tr (- | i - 3 r; H -M a * n H f t ^ tr to ft i*1* o < o p Dj*- a a a rr cloi rf 4 n id *i mi a*tr'iJ tr a* m oi n rr tU ft0 IP O rr * 1 p. Hi v i s ID :r rr i t p n i< j a rj* o ft h ->1 id ci : f* :j I - H i h r- h mi wo n IP a o ID 989000 IHN j.lii *.:/i f'i >r CP tt SHOghJH2'iOr 3 n rt 0 Iu* ui QV aft C_ Q (OH II* + rr rM o ft w O M " fl*erIr 3 O .H*-fj< > d sro a t> ,,Itro i 3 u* w u rt y* w H?,af.i w j ww Q < I S3 I* c IoJ*. U C*i o O M t* W3 n* m M co vo $ > r p I > 31 r *5 31 Q >; 0 m il 31 [H 31 0 W in 3sSS** C.J |:-t Un t 3*/* 1S*5 * u t O u c u* X ro l' o ^/O1 N1f2i* *i i <1*1 .* o4 [' 0ir *. 1 ^T u t nti *Sbi .c. II r* * c j ( il c 4 u n r> o ,*i V $ 1 * ;i* _1 :vii *:v 3 a ii John w. Lycn, Esquire N o v e m b e r 23, 1979 Page Two During the normal caursa of cusraticn of trancfcrmars# miner "weeps" cr "sweats" may develop, primarily at tha gasket seals of the bushing terminals. These "sweats" are the result of age, weather conditions and temperature chances which taka place within thg equipment as the demand for electricity increases and decreases over time. The resulting amount of oil appearing on the outside surface of the tank is quite small and dees not affect the performance of the transformer. The actual quantity of PC33 which may be on the surface of the transformer is extremely minute, since in most cases the con centration of PC3s in the transformer ail is less than 50 ppm. Thus, we are talking about a very low concentration of PC3s in a very minute quantity of oil* on the surface of a small percentage o f transformers currently in use. I t i s te c h n ic a lly im possible to e lim in a te th e s e m inor " s w e a ts ." U t i l i t y com panies*w ould be fo rc e d to in s p e c t o v e r 35 m illio n tra n sfo rm e rs to in su re th a t a l l "sw ea tin g H eq u ip m ent-- though o n ly a sm all p o rtio n o f th e t o t a l tra n sfo rm e rs in u se -- was rem oved from s e rv ic e . Even i f a l l e x is tin g "sw ea ts" co u ld be e lim in a te d , th e re i s no way to g u a ra n te e t h a t equipm ent w hich i s n o t "sw eating" today w ill a ls o n e t be "sw eatin g " tom orrow . -Furtherm ore, rem oval c f even a sm all p o rtio n o f t r a n s f o r m e r s fro m s e r v i c e c o u ld h a v e a s e v e r e im p a c t On t h e o p e r a tin g c a p a c ity o f a u t i l i t y . I n many c a s e s , i t w ould fo rc e u t il i ti e s to c u rta il the a v a ila b ility o f e le c tr ic ity , r e s u l t i n g in power o u ta g e s, and in some c a se s i t c o u ld cau se s'v$ten shutdow ns. f Aa we indicated to you on November 30th, in cur view the minor "weeps" and "sweats" from a small percentage of transformers posa essentially no risk to health or the environ ment. As you and others from SPA stated at our meetings, the 1 ^ matter appears to be d* minimis. In accordance with our discussion, we are sending copies of this latter to counsel in the pending litigation. Sincerely# NEL 000687 Toni k. Allen cc: Richard Denney, Ssq. Ruth Bell, Esq. Mr. William Gunter Angus MacBcth, Esc. Jacqueline M. Warren, Esq. John W. Ubincsr, J r . , Esq. J. Roy Sprsdiey, Jr., Esq. Steven Rosenthal, Esq. 782536 .;'> . / , tiliij!i n ii v UNITED STATES ENVIRO NM ENTAL P R O T E C T IO N A G EN C Y WASHINGTON. D.C. 3Q*6 Decmber 5 , 1979 orrtcf GE*EA*(. SO^tMV, T oni K. A lle n , EsgW ald, H ark rad er $ ftoss 1300 N in e te e n th S t r e e t , W,w* . W a s h in g to n , D .C# 236 D ear Hs* A lle n : The Agency a p p re c ia te s re c e iv in g your l e t t e r o f November 23th* However, th e re h a s a p p a re n tly been & ^ i n u n d e rsta n d in g o f th e A gency's p o s itio n as ex p ressed a t th e m e e tin g s on November 9 th and 2 0 th . At th e November m eetin g s, ve d id not have enough inform ation concerning PC3 "w eeps" o r "sw eats'* from tra n s fo rm e rs to ta k e any p o s i t i o n on t h e s t a t u s o f su ch e q u ip m e n t u n d e r th e PCS r e g u l a t i o n . I t was f o r t h i s r e a s o n t h a t we r e q u e s te d t h e l e t t e r which you fu rn ish ed on November 2 3 th . We e x p e c t t o u se y o u r l e t t e r a s a b a s i s f o r g a t h e r i n g f u r t h e r in fo rm a tio n on t h is m a tte r in th e n e a r f u tu r e . Sincerely, f Attorney T oxic S u b stan ces D iv isio n [A-132T) c c z Jocaveline H. Warren, Esq. Peter J. Mickles, Esq. Jefiery o. Cerar, Esc. Lawrence A, Demase, Esq. Angus Macbeth, Esq. itj t . .J1U!'iiia u u . ; * NEL 000688 782537 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT * March A ctivities Report -J.S.N elson- . . i t o fa'.'fc : Mr. J. F. McAllister - Office - A p ril8 , 1980 LB z s REDACTED NEL 000689 782538 GENERAL wgi ELECTRIC -2 - 4. "Weeping" Transformers Prompted by a disclosure from Edison Electric Institute, EPA has requested information on a phenomenon of "weeping" or Sw eating" transform ers. The concern is th at dampness on the exterior of some transform ers may indicate seepage of PCB or PCB-eontammated oil from the interior and could strengthen the hand of the Environmental Defence Fund in litigation seeking to prove that transformers are not "totally enclosed applications" within the meaning of TSCA. PQS has arranged for Medium Transform er and Power Delivery Service representatives to consult with NEMA on the developm ent of industry comments. JSNidem J. S. Nelson NEL 000690 782539 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT Inventory A udit, Toxic Substances Control Act i! U lU COPIES: Ju n e 4, 1980 Mr. J . F. M cAllister O ffice On Ju n e 3, 1980, EPA R egion II in s p e c to rs co n d u cted an a u d it of CR&D's compliance w ith th e ru les for re p o rtin g su b stan ces for th e TSCA in v en to ry of chemical su b stan ces in commercial u se . A dvance notice was about one week. P reparation for the audit was conducted by D r. R einhard Sidor, M anager-O ccupational S afety & H ealth, CR&D, and R obert L. G ran t, C ounsel, R&D L egal O p e ra tio n , in c o n su lta tio n w ith EPO . EPA to o k th e o ccasio n to do an audit of compliance w ith th e ru les for handling PC B s, as well. I have req u ested Bob G rant's help in answ ering four questions with resp ect to the in ventory audit: (1) How m any in v e n to r y su b m issio n s w ere filed b y CR&D? (2) How m any of th e s e h a v e b e e n q u e s tio n e d b y th e a u d ito rs ? (3) What d oes CR&D n o w .h a v e to do to s a tis f y EPA? (4) What in tern al review is planned of th e inform ation to be supplied to EPA to satisfy th e audit? Mr. G rant advised th a t prelim inary answ ers are: (1) A pproxim ately 27, two o f w hich w ere late su b m issio n s, w hich c irc u m sta n c e may h a v e tr ig g e r e d th e a u d it. (O v e r 350 w ere subm itted by the Company as a w hole.) (2) One of th e subm issions was an interm ediate sold to Medical System s B usiness D ivision, which in tu rn made a sale to a medical device p ro d u cer. Such a tran sactio n is u n d er th e jurisdiction of th e Federal Food, D rug and Cosmetic A c t, th erefo re does not involve a "chemical substance" as defined in TSCA, and should not have been subm itted for the inven t o r y . CR&D p e rs o n n e l re c e iv e d th e im p re ssio n th a t EPA will not tre a t th is as a major in stan ce of noncom pliance. ? NEL 000691 782540 GENERAL ELECTRIC Mr. J . F. M cAllister 2- - J u n e 4, 1980 V irtu a lly all th e o th e r CR&D su b m issio n s a re la c k in g in sufficient docum entation of commercialization to satisfy th e a u d ito r s . In a ty p ic a l c a s e , CR&D d e v e lo p e d a chem ical, sold it to an o p eratin g com ponent, which resold to a cu s tom er, b u t th e invoice will not sta te explicitly th a t the u lti mate sale involved th e p a rtic u la r chemical su b sta n c e. (3) W ithin th e n e x t tw o to th r e e w e e k s , CR&D m u st assem ble a dossier confirm ing th a t all subm issions have indeed been ncom m ercialized ." (4) No specific p lan s w ere m entioned fo r in te rn a l rev ie w , b u t th e seed h as b een p la n te d . M r. G ran t ad v ised th a t CR&D's h ealth and safety people are p rep arin g a rep o rt on th e au d it, and he will see to it th a t we receiv e a co p y . T here were no problem s with the PCB au d it, th an k s in p a rt, p erh ap s, to a p re -a u d it last F riday b y EPO, which had learned from an o th er company to expect a PCB au d it in conjunction w ith th e announced in v en to ry au d it. JSN :sd f NEL 000692 782541 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT * August Activities Report -J. S. Nelson- Mr. J. F. McAllister - Office - V L 53 C0P1ES: September 2, 1980 REDACTED NEL 000693 4. PCB Product Quality Staff has been requested by Dr. Osthoff to convene a review panel to assist in the Company's response to an invitation from Electric Power Research Institute to bid on the development and assessment of a method of destroying PCBs in transformer oil. .TRN * Hm 782542 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N E C TIC U T 06431 SUBJECT # September Activities Report -J. S. Nelson- Mr. J. F. McAllister - Office - s* n COPIES: September 29, I9 8 O jB D ^ c r iP 3 . Service Shop Handling of PCB At the request of the Service Shops, Mr. Nelson participated in the EPO audit of PCB practices at the Houston Service Shop, September 30 and October 1. 5 . PCB Detoxification Project A meeting was held in Schenectady on September 12 to review plans for responding to EPRI's invitation to bid on a process for removing PCBs from transformer oil. J5N:dem . J. S. Nelson J 782543 NEL 000694 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L bj E L E C T R I C FAIRFIELD. C O N N E C TIC U T 06431 SU8JECT PCB STATUS 8*229-2287 COPIES: J . F . Brow n J . F. M cAllister Septem ber 25, 1980 Mr. J . T . Coe EIA Dear Jerry , We c o n c u r w ith y o u r p ro p o sa l to call E PA 's a tte n tio n to th e D. B row n, M. Jones epidemiological stu d y of PCBs in capacitor plants and think your draft letter excellent. N evertheless, we believe it is unfortunate that the section of th at study labeled "Conclusions" conveys, by itself, a disto rted im pression of support for the idea th at occupational exposure may cause deaths from liver cancer and cirrh o sis of th e liv er, failing entirely to take note of the lack of excess cancer m ortality among exposed capacitor w orkers and the finding of no increase in m ortality with increasing len g th of ex p o su re. It is su g g ested th a t, in your proposed communication w ith th e a u th o rs , th is m atter be b ro u g h t to th e ir atten tio n so th a t they may make appropriate changes before publication. Very truly yours, ? JS N :d em NEL 000695 782544 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT Er5 WR 2 *229-2287 PIERCE PACKING COMPANY CASE: PCB C f-^ COPIES: J. F. Brown J . T . Coe J. F . McAllister H. D. Pocock October 3, 1980 John C. Dutton Consultant-Engineering Standards Medium Transform er Products D ept. Rome, Georgia Dear John, Y esterd ay you inquired about the status of GE's "white paper" on the toxicity of PCBs, in the belief that it will contain information useful in protecting the Company's in terests in the chicken feed episode (Pierce Packing Com pany). I am en closin g a draft labeled 7-17-80. T his document has not been cleared for publication; hence I su g g est that you make no copy for anyone outside the Company or any citation in external communications without permission from the authors. It stands to reason that, if n ecessary, a document specifically addressing technical points at issue in the Pierce Packing Company case could be produced. For example, I understand that a large number of chickens was destroyed because of exposure to contaminated feed. Dr. Brown te lls me that chickens are esp ecially sen sitiv e to PCDF and if the feed had contained important amounts of that contaminant, the chickens would have died and no-one would have needed to order their destruction. Very truly yours, ^ =; JSN :dem Enc. J/. Si Nelson NEL 000696 782545 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF FAIRFIELD. C O N N E C TIC U T 06431 SUBJECT Of toi/.t) COPIES: J.F. McAllister October 9 1980 Mr. J. R. Donnelley, Vice President Corporate Environmental Issues Project E3A - Fairfield Dear Mr. Donnalley: Jack- McAllister suggested you might wish a copy of the enclosed. Mr. John Dutton, Medium Transformer Department, is serving as technical liaison to the lawyers in preparing GE's defence in the Pierce Packing Company case. Some 400 parties are involved in this PC8 case, with estimated claims about $30 million. Anticipated claims include "failure to warn", a possible allegation of faulty welding on the transformer involved, and a general allegation of "defective design." I understand that Electric Mutual currently assigns a reserve of $300,000 to this file. The incident has been described to me as follows: Pierce bought an old, used General Electric PCB transformer and had it stored in an area where they also stored unusable byproducts. A pick-up truck backed into a compressor that toppled over and struck the transformer, puncturing the cooling tubes and releasing a quantity of the coolant. This, in turn, drained into process water used in the preparation of bonemeal feed. September 29 was the deadline set by the court "for affirmative pleadings, with responses due October 29* Very truly yours JSNidem Enc. NEL 000697 782546 PROOUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT I * O ctober A c t iv it ie s Report - J . 5. N e lso n - 8*229-2287 j COPIES: J* U t z ig November 6, 1980 Mr. J. F . M c A llis t e r - O ffic e - IV . PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL CO M PATIBILITY ( J. S . N e lso n ) 1. P ie r c e P a ck in g Company Case (PCB) I n f o r m a t io n was p r o v id e d to Medium T r a n s fo rm e r D e p a rtm e n t to a s s i s t them in b u ild in g a d e fe n se in th e P ie r c e p a c k in g Company c a s e , in v o lv in g a s p i l l o f PCB t h a t c o n ta m in a te d c h ic k e n fe e d . --<~Ct 'r. / NEL 000698 5. PCB Program M r. N e ls o n r e p r e s e n te d PQS in a r e v ie w o f CR & D 's p ro p o s e d PCB re s e a r c h p ro g ram , h e ld in S c h e n e c ta d y f o r Mr. D o n n e lle y . 7. S e rv ic e Shop A u d it Mr. N e lso n p a r t ic ip a t e d in th e E?0 a u d it o f PCB h a n d lin g p r a c t ic e s a t the C in c in n a ti S e rv ic e Shop. 782547 GENERAL ELE-CTRIC -2 - REDACTED JSNrdem J. S. Nelson fi NEL 000699 782548 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT * EDF Suit 8*229-2287 COPIES: J . F . M c A l l i s t e r bcc: L. J. Utzig November 10, 1980 Dr. James R. Donna1ley, Jr. Vice President, CEIP Dear Jim: I have received a telephone call from Dr. Fred Hoerger, Director, Regulatory & Legislative Issues, Health & Environmental Sciences, Dow Chemical Company (whom I know through CMA and AIHC activities) that may be pertinent to efforts to strategize industry/Company response to the situation created by the Washington Appeals Court decision in the EDF suit against EPA. Dow Chemical, of course, has the same interest as our Silicone Products Division in EPA*s regulation of chlorinated biphenyl as an incidental byproduct or intermediate in the production of certain silicones -- complicated, in their case, I believe, by failure to apply for an exemption. (O*** a &a*j/** Dr. Hoerger stated that Dow Chemical had been considering ways in which to get out from under EPA's position that monochlorinated biphenyl is a polychlorinated biphenyl as governed by TSCA. They lost their hearing before an administrative law judge on this point, and have been considering filing a citizen's petition, to be followed by litigation if the petition were not granted. They do not feel confidant of success by this means, and are now contemplating the possibility of remedial legislation -- or, at least, wondering aloud if such might be appropriate and feasible. As I see it, the rationale of such a legislative effort, which might take the form of an amendment to TSCA 6 (e) is that Congress intended to legislate against the production of PCBs as a prime product so.that all products using it would eventually be phased out of the economy. As the judge acknowledges in a footnote on p. 29 of his decision, it is at least possible that Congress did not intend to regulate the incidental manufacture of PCBs. The legislative history indicates that Congress intended transformers and capacitors to be used throughout their natural life. Apparently, Congress never contemplated the complications arising from attempts to define PCB liquids in terms of parts per million. The present situation has become circular, in that the judge used EPA's own (exaggerated) description of the harmful effects of very small NEL 000700 782549 GENERAL ELECTRIC 2- quantities liberated into the environment to invalidate their rule that PCBs "begin" at 50 pppm. The Brown/Coe/Pococlf paper on Human Health Effects of Electrical Grade PCB's introduces new epidemiological evidence that might serve to reopen the whole question of just how much regulation is needed to protect the public. Should you be interested in pursuing this subject with anyone at Dow, please advise if there is any way we may be of service. Very truly yours, JSN:sdf NEL 000701 782550 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287 NEMA RESPONSE TO EDF DECISION bcc: L. U t z i g COPIES: R . Blume W. K ru e si J . M cAllister S. Read . Simons N ovem ber 11, 1980 Dr. J. R. D onnalley, J r. E 3A D ear Jim: In a recent conversation you expressed in terest in the in terpretation a ttr ib u te d to NEMA (N ational E le c tric a l M a n u fa c tu re rs A sso c ia tio n ) s ta f f of th e im pact of th e EDF decision on electric u tilities an d o th e r u se rs of tra n s fo rm e rs a n d c a p a c ito rs . Bill K ru e si h a s b e e n in to u c h w ith NEMA sta ff, which is su p p o rted b y a w orking group of in d u stry re p resen tativ es a n d a tto rn e y s (in c lu d in g S u sa n R e a d ). The NEMA o u ts id e c o u n se l is a Mr. R o senthal. As I u n d e rsta n d it , th is g ro u p 's concern is th a t the decision, b y itself, at least technically, removes the basis for continued use of non-railroad transform ers and capacitors. Because transform ers and capacitors (if in ta c t and nonleaking) w ere classified b y th e EPA in its May 19 ru le as " to ta lly e n clo sed " th e y w ere th u s ex em p t from th e b a n regulation and were never the subject of "use authorizations". The use a u th o riz a tio n s u p h e ld b y th e ju d g e a re fo r 11 sp ecific n o n - to ta lly - e n d o s e d u se s, such as railroad tran sfo rm ers, hydraulic system s, and heat tran sfer system s. U tility and industrial transform ers and capacitors are th u s le ft, at least u n til EPA c a rrie s out th e ju d g e 's in s tru c tio n , w ith n e ith e r an exemption n o r an authorization for continued u se. This lack of legitim acy ap p ears to affect oil tra n sfo rm e rs as well as PCB tra n sfo rm e rs, because of th e presum ption th a t oil tran sfo rm ers are contam inated to some degree b y PCB a n d th e 50 ppm c u to ff h a s b e e n s tr u c k dow n. To rem edy th is situ a tio n , NEMA, a ctin g in c o n c e rt w ith EEI (E dison E lectric In stitu te ) has filed motions w ith the object of allow ing EPA to co n tin u e to ap p ly th e May 19 ru le s u n til th e y come o u t w ith new ru le s o r new ju s tific a tio n fo r th e old r u le s . We u n d e r s ta n d th a t s u c h m otions a re unlikely to be opposed in principle by EDF or the co u rt; in fact, this is th e outcom e p ro b a b ly a n tic ip a te d b y all p a r tie s . N o-one re a lly w ish es to tu rn out the nation's lig h ts. Verjr tru ly y o u rs, NEL 000702 JSN :dem 782551 PHODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT '8*229-2287 STRATEGY IN REGARD TO EPF DECISION bcc: L. Utzig t- 7 V ... Az COPIES: J.F.Brow n R.L.B1unie M. F.Connor J.R.Donnalley E.M,Foley W. R.Kruesi S. F.Read E.L.Simons . f. - ... _ December 2, 1980 J. F. McAllister -Office- The attached memorandum-responds to your recent request for a description of ..the strategy-.being followed by .industry in-the wake of the Appeal Court's decision..upsetting, important elements of EFA's rules implementing the TSCA ban _92Jf>CBs. ... r!/r..s. a ...; ." " .. P;. ?nd more cx.pc-.tid `.P '* f JSN:dem Attach. NEL 000703 782552 MEMORANDUM: STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT FOLLOWING EPF DECISION The Washington Appeals Court Decision of October 30, 1980 set aside EPA's cutoff, at 50 ppm for PCB materials coming under ban regulations- It also set aside EPA's classification of capacitors, nonrailroad transformers, and electromagnets as "totally enclosed". The court remanded the record in both instances to the Agency for further proceedings. The court upheld.the 11 specific non-totally-enclosed use authorizations, including those for railroad transformers, hydraulic systems, and heat transfer systems. In a footnote, the judge found that, in his opinion, Congress did not intend to exclude incidentally manufactured PCBs from the Act, but intended "to include all commercial sources". This memorandum identifies parties principally affected by this decision and discusses the short and long range strategies being followed or contemplated. 1. Components and Companies Principally Affected The decision, on its face and unmodified by acceptance of motions to stay its immediate effect, brings under the PCB ban regulations any product or material that contains any amount of PCB and the continued use of any PCB or oil dielectric transformer, any PCB capacitor, and very possibly any non-PCB capacitor made in a plant formerly making PCB capacitors. In short, the entire electric utility industry and virtually all manufacturing and commerce is implicated; however, there is a small group of Company components and outside companies whose interests are directly affected and who, by the prompt actions now in progress, may presumably prevent disruptive immediate consequences. This directly-affected nucleus consists, at least in part, of the following: 1.1 GE COMPONENTS Component Involvement Apparatus Service Business Division Repair/disposal services for PCB transformers in selected Service Shops; servicing of oil transformers (presumed contaminated with PCB) in all shops; waste disposal. Large Transformer Business Division Legitimacy of oil transformers with low-level contamination (in ppm). Capacitor Products Department "Left over" contamination from former production of PCB capacitors could presumably show up in parts-per-billion contamination of small industrial units. Power capacitors, made with a manifold treat system, are less likely to be affected. f NEL 000704 782553 2- - 1.1 GE COMPONENTS (cont.) Component Involvement Silicone Products Business Division High performance silicones are made by the phenylchlorosilane process which produces both monochlorobiphenyl and dichlorobiphenyl as intermediates. A few parts per million remain in the end product. Company Dow Chemical Company Dow Corning Company Stauffer Chemical Company Olin Chemical Company Various manufacturers of paints and coatings 1.2 OTHER COMPANIES Involvement The company*s heat-exchange product, nDowtherm G" is based on monochlorinated biphenyl (classified by EPA as a PCB, with concurrence of an administrative law judge). Dow Corning has stated that chlorinated biphenyls are produced in its silicone manufacture in excess of 50 ppm during intermediate stages, and that its final product contains "less than 1 ppm". PCBs are said to be generated in intermediate stages of production of the pesticide EPN and in the production of nylon dyes, benzene phosphonic acid and sodium benzene phosphenate. Amounts in the final products were negligible compared to the 50 ppm cutoff. Stauffer also has a polysiloxane product, presumably containing some PCB. PCBs are said to be an intermediate in the production of the fungicide PCNB. According to the National Paint & Coatings Association and the Chemical Specialties Manufacturers Association, which both represent these manufacturers, certain diarylide and phythalocyanine pigments contain more than 50 ppm PCB. NEL 000705 782554 1.2 OTHER COMPANIES (cont.) Company Involvement Manufacturers of transformers C o m p e titiv e m an u factu re rs o f transformers, and their related service facilities, are believed to be affected in the same way as the corresponding GE components. te n u fa c tu re rs o f u t i l i t y and in d u s t r ia l c a p a c ito rs V ir t u a lly a ll m anufacturers o f liq u id f i l l e d c a p a c it o r s f o r m e r ly u se d PCB and may e x p e c t some c o n ta m in a t io n in p re s e n t p r o d u c ts , r e g a r d le s s o f d i e l e c t r i c now in use. 2. Short Term Strategies As a precautionary step, the Environmental Protection Operation issued an information letter on November 6 , stating that the court's decision brings under the PCB ban regulations all materials that contain any level of PCBs and counseling operating components that materials with less than 50 ppm of PCBs must be handled under the same marking, storage, and disposal rules that apply in the 50-500 ppm range. Apparatus Service Business Division sent a telegram to service shops advising them not to sell, as scrap, material containing "any detectable" PCB. These two instructions anticipated the early issuance of a mandate implementing the decision; however, motions filed by the intervenors in behalf of industry (and by GE, Silicone Products Division) will delay the mandate for the time being. It appears to be in the interest of all concerned parties that the Issuance of a mandate or order to implement the appeal court's decision be delayed until the EPA develops new rules, or acceptable justification for the old rules. The ideal outcome would be for the court to issue an affirmative order to that effect. The chances for success will be materially improved if all parties can agree on a petition for such an affirmative order, and negotiations to that end are now going on. Industry is represented in these negotiations with EDF and EPA by an "intervenor" group, including NEMA, EIA, EEI, and some other associations and individual manufacturers. Steven S-. Rosenthal is lead counsel for NEMA. General Electric interests in the intervenor coalition are being served through the participation of Susan Read (EPO) in the lawyers' discussions and through Bill Kruesi's interaction with NEMA staff (Mr. Kruesi is Chairman, Federal Product Regulation Committee of NEMA). The intervenors are also filing (November 26) a petition for rehearing of the case by the entire court of appeals. If granted, this petition would automatically stay issuance of a mandate, pending results of the rehearing. TsJEL 000706 782555 -14- The NEMA ad hoc task force considered and rejected the idea of petitioning for Supreme Court review of the Court of Appeals ruling. The intervenors are not expected to attack directly the judge's gratuitous finding with regard to intermediates/byproducts. The monochlorobiphenyl and dichlorobiphenyl incident to the phenylchlorosilane process by which a portion of SPD's product line is produced are mostly removed and destroyed by incineration. A fraction of a part per billion may still be detected in waste water, and work area air samples have ranged from 0.002 mg/m^ to 0-015 mg/m 0 Concentration carrying over to the final product is a few parts per million -- well below 50 ppm. Silicone Products Division had achieved an agreement with the same court that the intermediate/byproduct issue would not be litigated until EPA had acted on SPD's petition for an exemption from the manufacturing ban rule, filed November 28, 1978. The judge's finding (at footnote 37, in a matter not really before the court) that TSCA applies to incidentally-manufactured PCBs, appears to violate the court's agreement with SPD to separate this issue from the EDF case. Accordingly, outside counsel for SPD has filed (November 13) a motion for clarification along with a motion for rehearing. SPD is also planning to broaden its original petition to include exemption for the chlorinated diphenyls present in the final product. It would appear from the information in section (1.2) above that several chemical manufacturers have an interest in this byproduct problem, and we understand that the possibility of a joint program for relief, coordinated by the Chemical .Manufacturers Association, is being explored. It should be noted in passing that Dow Chemical's efforts to get monochlorobiphenyl excluded from the definition of polychlorinated biphenyl -- even if successful -- would not solve SPD's problem, as the latter's unwanted byproduct includes also dichlorinated biphenyl. 3. Long Term Strategies It would appear that the intervenor group and those with byproduct problems have not as yet formulated an integrated strategy for relatively long range resolution of the PCS regulations problem. Several possibilities are indicated: 3.1 Authorizations Persuade EPA to add additional non-totally enclosed use authorizations to cover all transformers and capacitors now in use, and all products of any nature containing inadvertent contamination by small amounts of PCB, whether now in use or manufactured in the future. 3-2 Exemptions Request exemptions, by individual or class action, for all the uses indicated above. 782556 NEL 000707 -5- 3*3 He-justifv EPA De Minimis and Enclosure Criteria Work with EPA to provide them with new concepts and data to justify a cutoff of 50 ppm (or some other viable level) and new definitions of what constitutes a "totally enclosed" system or product. 3 .U Amend TSCA The ultimate correction would be to amend TSCA, repealing 6? thus leaving PCBs to be regulated under the same law as any other chemical substance. Alternatively, 6'could be amended to give EPA the administrative discretion to restore the ban rules as originally promulgated, or it could be amended to exclude inadvertent byproducts, low-level contamination, monochlorinated biphenyl and perhaps dichlorinated biphenyl from regulation as PCBs. Discussion The authorization and exemption strategies are not permanent, and would be subject periodically to administrative convenience and political influence. The re-justification and amendment strategies would depend, in varying degrees, upon the success of efforts to set the record straight on the toxicology of PCBs. A good part of the information needed is already in place, and more is expected from the current CR&D research program. Dow Chemical is known to be considering a legislative strategy, and so also is Silicone Products Division, with key features yet to be determined. p JSN:dem 12/2/80 NEL 000708 782557 rt-OoQ PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A Lgj E L E C T R I C FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT !---- 8*229-2287 * November Activities Report J.S. Nelson COPIES: L.J.Utzig December 2 1980 Mr. J. F. McAllister * -Office - IV. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY (J. S. Nelson) 1. PCBs In the aftermath of the judge's decision in the EDF case (remanding for further consideration the EPA*s floor of 50 ppm for regulation of PCBs and the Agency's treatment of capacitors and transformers as "totally enclosed") interested parties within the Company have been informed of Dow Chemical's interest in exploring a legislative solution; and Mr. Donnalley's office and Silicone Products have been kept informed of NEMA activities in behalf of the'intervenor group. redacted NEL 000709 7R2RRQ GENERAL ELECTRIC 2- - redacted ?pi N E L 000710 JSM:dem 782559  i00013M V i '-- \ S a V n rV / W-0703Q PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT 1----- December A c t iv it ie s R ep ort -J.S. N e ls o n - COPIES: L - J ` U t z iS January 5, 1981 Mr. J. F. McAllister - Office - IV. PRODUCT. ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY (J. S. Nelson) 1. Regulatory Modification As. an Input to the Office of Management & Budget Transition Team, three opportunities for regulatory modification were identified and described: CPSC hazard reports, OSHA carcinogen regulation; and proposed SPA airborne carcinogen rules. Five submissions were made by. Dr. Simons: PCB Disposal, EPA requirement for vice-president's signatures, inclusion of storm water runoff in NFDES permit system, and..redundant regulation of wastewater treatment facilities under both the NPDES system and the RCRA permit system. The invitation to. submit items was also extended to J. 7. Coe, T. C. Doty, D. J. Watson and D. J. Dillon (J. L. Moore). REDACTED NEL 000712 JSN:dem 782561 January 12, 1981 PROPOSAL TO SUPPLY EPA WITH INFORMATION FOR RULEMAKING ON USES OF PC3S BY THE ELECTRIC UTILITY INDUSTRY ;{ INTENT TO PROVIDE INFORMATION " To a s s i s t PA i n t h e d e v e lo p m e n t o f a n a d e q u a te r u l e - /m aking r e c o r d f o r t h e r e g u l a t i o n o f PCBs, USWAG w i l l r e t a i n i n d e - 1 p e n d e n t c o n t r a c t o r ( s ) , a c c e p t a b l e ' to EPA, : ' t o c o n d u c t a s tu d y on c u rre n t* .--P-C-B- u sa g e 2/in u t i l i t y e q u ip m e n t u se d f o r t h e p r o d u c - tio n of e le c tric ity . .This, s tu d y w i l l a d d re s s th e e f f e c t s o f th e use o f-P C B rc o n ta in in g eq u ip m en t-o n human h e a lth and th e environm ent. It- is expected th a t d ata w ill be su p p lied on: types of e le c t r i c a l equipm ent; leakage phenomena, in clu d in g th e in cid en ce and m agnitude o f le a k s ; f e a s i b i l i t y o f containm ent, '.,.\j v dnilv;- in s p e c t io r i "and m a in te n a n c e ; and f e a s i b i l i t y o f t r a n s f o r m e r and cap a cit , phase b u t. A d d itio n ally , sev eral o th er areas of in q u iry w ill be in clu d ed , such as th e im pact o f a re g u la to ry c u t o f f above o r b elo w 50 ppm; t h e h e a l t h e f f e c t s o f PCBs; a p ath w ay a n a l y s i s f o r PCBs t h a t may be r e l e a s e d i n t o th e 3/ environm ent from e le c t r i c a l system s; n o n e le c tric a l m a te ria ls 1 / To i n s u r e t h e t i m e l y commencement o f t h e s t u d y , EPA w i l l prom ptly respond as to the a c c e p ta b ility of th e c o n tra c to r (s) proposed. 2 / O th e r u s e s o f s i m i l a r e q u ip m en t by o t h e r i n d u s t r i e s , may vary and fo r th is reason w ill not be covered. In a d d itio n , o th e r equipm ent c o n ta in in g PCBs, such as sm a ll c a p a c ito r s , t h a t i s u se d m ore b r o a d ly th r o u g h o u t th e i n d u s t r i a l , com m e rc ia l and r e s id e n tia l s e c to rs w ill n o t be in clu d ed . 3 / In a d d i t i o n t o t h e i n f o r m a ti o n c o n ta in e d i n t h e s t u d y , USWAG r e s e r v e s t h e r i g h t t o s u b m it t o EPA s u c h o t h e r s t u d i e s , i n fo rm a tio n , and d a ta ( e .5 . , problem s o f te s tin g and d ev elo p m ent o f t e s t i n g p r o t o c o l s ) a s USWAG b e l i e v e s a r e n e c e s s a r y or ap p ro p riate to fu rth e r rulem aking. NEL 000713 782562 - 2- Jan u ary 12, 1981 p o t e n t i a l l y c o n ta in in g PCBs; and v ia b le s u b s t i t u t e s f o r PCBs. F in a lly , an o v e ra ll econom ic a n a ly s is would be developed to r e f l e c t b o th c o s t s i n c u r r e d t o d a t e t o com ply w ith t h e TSCA-PCB r e g u la tio n s a s w e ll as th e in c re m e n ta l c o s ts o f new r e g u la to r y approaches. I t is contem plated th a t th e study w ill be com pleted w i t h in n in e m onths and p o r t i o n s o f i t w i l l be s u b m itte d t o EPA 4/ p r i o r t o t h a t .t-im e .',, I f i t a p p e a rs t h a t USWAG w i l l be u n a b le to com plete th e stu d y w ith in n in e months d e s p ite good f a i t h e f f o r t s to do so.,, i t may r e q u e s t an a d d i t i o n a l p e rio d o f up to t h r e e m o n th s f o r i t s w o rk , EPA and EDF w i l l n o t u n r e a s o n a b ly w ith h o ld _ th eir consent to such ex ten sio n , a fte r co n sid erin g USWAG*s e f f o r t s t o d a t e and th e c ir c u m s ta n c e s n e c e s s i t a t i n g the ex ten sio n . SCOPE OF THE INFORMATION GATHERING EFFORT The..scope o f in fo rm a tio n g a th e rin g w ill be d iv id e d in to s e v e ra l d is c r e te ta s k s , as s e t fo rth below . 4 / S in c e some b r i e f p e rio d o f tim e w i l l be n e c e s s a r y to engage c o n su lta n ts and develop sam pling p ro to c o ls f o l low ing accep tan ce o f th e scope of work by th e p a r t i e s , th e -study p e rio d sh o u ld commence no so o n e r th a n one month fo llo w in g th e issu a n c e o f a s ta y o f m andate by the C ourt. NEL 000714 782563 - 3- J a n u a ry 12, 1981 1. C om pilation o f a com plete l is ti n g o f a l l ty p es of e le c t r ic a l equipm ent th a t co n ta in m in eral o il o r o th e r f lu id c o n ta in in g PCBs. The f i r s t ta s k w ill be to l i s t and q u a n tify such e q u ip 5/ m ent, d e sc rib e i t s u se, g eo g rap h ical lo c a tio n , and d is tr ib u tio n o f r a n g e s o f PCB c o n c e n t r a t i o n s . D e s c r i p t i o n s o f e q u ip m e n t m ain tenance procedures and of m easures taken fo r w orker p ro te c tio n a ls o w ill be p ro v id e d . The in v e n to ry o f equipm ent w i l l in c lu d e : tran sfo rm ers, c a p a c ito rs, electrom agnets, e le c tr ic a l sw itches, v o lta g e re g u la to rs , and underground cab le system s as w ell as any o th e r u t i l i t y equipm ent i d e n t i f i e d a s c o n ta in in g PCBs. A com plete n a rra tiv e on each categ o ry of equipm ent w ill be p ro vided cc arin g i t s fu n c tio n , c o n fig u ra tio n and chem ical c o n te n t. * 2. Frequency of leaks o r ru p tu re s . For purposes o f th e study., " le a k " w ill be d efin ed quan t i t a t i v e l y . L eaks may be d e s c r ib e d a s s m a ll , a s m o d e ra te o r a s 6/ ru p tu res. S m a ll l e a k s i n c l u d e a l l i n s t a n c e s i n w h ich a PCB A r t i c l e h a s an y PCBs on an y p o r t i o n o f i t s e x t e r n a l s u r f a c e , b u t no PCBs h av e ru n o f f th e s u r f a c e o f th e A r t i c l e . M o d erate l e a k s i n c l u d e i n s t a n c e s i n w h ich a l e a k r e s u l t s i n an y q u a n t i t y o f PCBs ru n n in g o f f _th e s u rfa c e o f th e A r t i c l e . I n i t i a l l y , ru p tu re s w i l l 5 / G eographical lo ca tio n s h a ll include not only v ario u s geo g ra p h ic a l reg io n s of the U nited S ta te s b u t a ls o v a rio u s ty p es o f te r r a in s ( e . ., d e s e r ts , swamps, n e a r o r over w aterw ays). 6/ F u r th e r d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n s o f le a k s may be n e c e s s a r y . NEL 000715 782564 - 4- Janauary 12, 1981 mean le a k s c a u sin g im m ediate c e s s a tio n o f equipm ent f u n c tio n , a l th o u g h o t h e r d e f i n i t i o n s may be a p p li e d . F o r e ac h ty p e o f e l e c t r i c a l e q u ip m en t, an a tte m p t w i l l be made to d e te rm in e th e f r e quency o f le a k o r r u p tu r e , th e volume o f liq u id l o s t , equipm ent ty p e , and g e o g ra p h ic a l l o c a t i o n . These le a k s may conform to a f r e quency d is tr ib u tio n of m agnitude according to d if f e r e n t v a r ia b le s .. Equipm ent ty p e , g eo graphic lo c a tio n , age and e l e c t r i c a l lo ad in g (to the e x te n t data are a v aila b le) are fa c to rs to be ev alu ated . The r e la tio n s h ip betw een eauipm ent f a ilu r e and su b seq u en t le a k in g 2/ w ill be stu d ie d . 3 F e a s ib ility of a program to c o n ta in , in sp e c t and m aintain d if f e r e n t e le c tr ic a l equipm ent ite m s. % T his ta s k w ill be to id e n tify a number o f in sp e c tio n and m aintenance program s and to provide c o st e stim a te s and te c h n o lo g ic a l f e a s ib ility e v alu atio n s w ith re sp e c t to each program . V a r ia b l e s to be c o n s id e r e d may in c lu d e e l e c t r i c a l eq u ip m en t t y p e , g eo g rap h ical lo c a tio n , and p o te n tia l fo r exposure to d if f e r e n t c o n c e n tr a tio n s and q u a n t i t i e s o f PCBs. At a minimum, th e fo llo w ing program s s h a ll be e v alu ated : f 1 / The e v a lu a tio n w ill a ls o r e f l e c t th e v i a b i l i t y o f s u b s ti tu te s , and th e r e s u lts of th is phase o f th e stu d y lik e ly w ill be re fle c te d in the fe a s ib ility analyses of in sp ectio n and m aintenance and equipm ent phase o u t. NEL000716 782565 - S- January 12, 1981 (a) A program to provide com plete containm ent o f a n y PCBs w h ich m ig h t l e a k fro m e a c h c ateg o ry o f e l e c t r i c a l equipm ent* (b) A program to in sp e c t v is u a lly , a t v a rio u s fre q u e n c ie s ranging from w eekly to annual- . ly , a l l item s w ith in each categ o ry of e le c t r i c a l equipm ent fo r' leak ag e and to c o rre c t a l l m oderate le a k s d e te c te d . 4. F e a s ib ility o f a p h a se-o u t program fo r tra n sfo rm e rs and cap acito rs. The approach to th is e f f o r t w ill be s im ila r to th e f e a s ib ility of in sp e c tio n , m aintenance and containm ent as d e^ sc rib e d above. A lte rn a tiv e approaches w ill be a sse sse d , in c lu d % ing the fo llo w in g : (a ) 2 , 5 , 10 & '2 0 - y e a r p h a s e o u t s o f PCB T r a n s f o r m e r s ; (b ) 2, 5, 10 & 2 0 -y e a r p h a se o u ts o f P C B -C ontam inated Transform ers; 8/ (c ) 2 , 5 , 10 & 2 0 - y e a r p h a s e o u t s o f PCB C a p a c i t o r s . In th is aspect of the stu d y , th e .a v a ila b ility of replacem ent e q u ip -^ 9/ m ent and liq u id s w ill be exam ined, as w ell as th e ir s u i t a b i l i t y , 8 / The tim e fram es w ill be m easured from Ja n u a ry 1982. 9 / For ex am p le, i t may be n e c e s s a ry t o a s s e s s th e t o x i c i t y and flam m ability of s u b s titu te flu id s , in a d d itio n to developing d a ta on th e a v a i la b i li t y o f equipm ent and raw m a te r ia ls . NEL 000717 782566 Jan u ary 12, 1981 6 th e a v a i l a b i l i t y o f s to r a g e and. d is p o s a l f a c i l i t i e s , and th e f e a s i b i l i t y o f r e d u c in g o r e l i m i n a t i n g PCB c o n c e n t r a t i o n s by r e t r o - 10/ fillin g . An a tt e m p t a l s o w i l l be made t o a n a ly z e t h e e f f e c t ran in c re a s e d demand f o r re p la c e m e n t equipm ent may have on p r i c e s . .5 . L ite ra tu re S earch. A com prehensive lit e r a t u r e search and review o f th e * h e a lth e f f e c t s o f PC3s w i l l be u n d e rta k e n and an a tte m p t w ill be made to a s s e s s th e r i s k s posed by phenomena su ch as sm a ll le a k s and ru p tu re s . 6 . Pathway a n a ly s is . An a tt e m p t w i l l b e made t o ex am in e t h e e n v ir o n m e n ta l p a t h ways t h a t PCBs c o u ld t a k e i f t h e y e s c a p e fro m e l e c t r i c a l e q u ip m ent. C onditions r e f le c tin g norm al o p e ra tio n o f tran sfo rm e rs and c a p a c ito rs, w ill be e v a lu a te d , as w ell as th o se in v o lv in g equipm ent th a t has exploded o r o th erw ise suddenly re le a s e d PC B -containing .flu id in to th e environm ent. For exam ple, v o l a t i l i t y and tr a n s p o r t mechanisms (such as s u rfa c e w a ter d ra in a g e , groundw ater in - ' f i l t r a t i o n and ground co v er embodiment a n d /o r. r e le a s e ) would be considered. 1 0 / In e v a lu a tin g s u b s t i t u t e s f o r PCBs, in c lu d in g r e t r o f i l l i n g , th e c o n tra c to r perform ing th e study s h a ll seek and c o n sid er in fo rm atio n from m an u factu rers o f s u b s titu te s and indepen d en t se rv ic in g com panies. NEL 000718 782567 - 7 - ... Jan u ary 12, 1981 7. N o n - e le c tr ic a l system so u rc e s o f PCBs. C e rta in n o n -en c lo se d u ses o f PCBs, such as b u rn in g o f f u e l o i l , may be c r i t i c a l to human n eed s and to th e c o n tin u e d o p e ra tio n o f th e e le c tr ic u t i l i t y and o th e r in d u s tr ie s . Thus, .the stu d y w ill a ls o seek to determ ine th e r is k s and b e n e f its of p erm ittin g the co n tin u atio n of these u ses. * SAMPLING PROCEDURES The stu d y m ust r e f l e c t a s t a t i s t i c a l approach t h a t a s su re s a high degree o f confidence in the v a lid ity of th e r e s u lts . OVERSIGHT ;------------------------------ -- i s c o n te m p la te d t h a t EPA, EDF, USWAG and t h e c o n t r a c t o r i perform ing th e study w ill meet fo r p rogress re p o rts p e rio d ic a lly and w ith s u f f i c i e n t f r e q u e n c y t o k e e p EPA and EDF a b r e a s t o f t h e p r o g r e s s o f t h e s t u d y . EPA* and EDF, a t t h e i r own e x p e n s e , w i l l have the rig h t to review a ll underlying d ata generated in-connec t i o n w ith th e s tu d y . I t is* u n d e rs to o d t h a t i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f p a r t i c u l a r c o m p a n ie s, f a c i l i t i e s and l o c a t i o n s may be m ask ed . W hile i t i s n o t a n t i c i p a t e d , re v ie w o f th e o n g o in g s tu d y may r e s u l t in th e need fo r a d d itio n a l inform ation or fo r th e refo cu sin g of cer t a i n p o r t io n s o f t h i s s tu d y . Such r e v i s io n s may r e s u l t in a d e lay of the com pletion d a te . -* NEL 000719 782568 u i bcc: L . J . Utzig ( Q y n t.n PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT NEW PCB RULEMAKING IN ITIATIV E BY CMA COPIES: J* R* D onnalley, J r . J . F . McAllister M. F . Connor February 3, 1981 R . Arisman Et R. Baker R . L . Blume J . Cloonan J T Cde E . W. Feuerstein A. Glassanos S . B . Hamilton w. R . Kruesi s. P . Read E. L . Simons The enclosed announcement from CMA was distributed at the Chemical Regulations A d visory Committee meeting last week (attended b y ` Marty Connor and me). CMA is considering a special advocacy program on EPA's anticipated rulemaking in the afterm ath of the EDF suit and wilLhold an organization meeting on F eb ru a ry 1 1 . Although the emphasis of the CMA program will be on inadvertent byproduct ru les, the totally-enclosed concept, appropriate partsper-million cu to ff, and toxicology are also to be ad d ressed . I have discussed this matter with Jim Donnalley, and he agrees that our participation in this scoping session is appropriate. A ccordin gly, I have registered to attend, and I am d istributin g this notice to ascertain the in terest of others in attending or in counseling me with resp ect to represen tin g their view points. Please note that the agenda includes discussion of a basis for sharing the cost of whatever program is settled upon. JSN idem Enc. es S. Nelson, Consultantduct Environmental Compatibility NEL 000720 782569 CHEMICAL MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION J a n u a ry 2 3 , 1981 TO: . C hem ical R e g u la tio n s A d v iso ry C om m ittee C o n ta c ts o f CMA SUBJECT: A C o o p e ra tiv e Advocacy Program on EPA 's A n tic ip a te d Rulem aking on PCB's F or th e l a s t few w eeks, CMA s t a f f , w ith g u id a n c e from s e le c te d company members, have p a r tic ip a te d in an in te n s e schedule of m eetings w ith the Environm ental P ro te c tio n Agency (EPA), th e E nvironm ental D efense Fund, and o th e r in te re s te d in d u stry groups in an e f f o r t to id e n tify an a p p r o p r i a te re s p o n s e to th e r e c e n t d e c i s i o n in EDF v . EPA, 79-1580 (D.C. C i r c u i t , d ecid ed O ctober 30, I9 6 0 ). The c o u r t 's d e c is io n o v e rtu rn s EPA's d e te rm in a tio n to ex clu d e from i t s r e g u l a t i o n s PCBs a t c o n c e n t r a t i o n s l e s s t h a t 50 ppm and EPA's p a r t i c u l a r d e f i n i ti o n o f t o t a l l y e n c lo se d u se s of PCBs. In th e a b se n c e o f c o u r t r e l i e f , PCBs would be ban n ed , re g a rd le ss of th e ir c o n c e n tra tio n , and w hether in te n tio n a lly m anufactured or in a d v e rte n tly g en erated in p ro d u cts, waste stream s, or processes, A c c o rd in g ly CMA, on th e a d v ic e o f i n t e r e s t e d company m em bers, h a s a lr e a d y a g re e d to a s s i s t EPA in g a th e r in g in f o r m a tio n p e r t a i n i n g to th e g e n e r a t i o n o f PCBs below 50 ppm. EPA would use a d e s c r i p t i o n o f o u r d a t a g a th e r in g program to convince the c o u rt to sta y i t s m andate. T hat s ta y would p e rm it th e Agency t o o b t a i n in f o r m a tio n from CMA and th e p u b lic in g e n e ra l which th e Agency would use to develop fu rth e r rulem aking p lan s and schedules re la tin g to PCBs below 50 ppm. W ith th e a s s i s t a n c e o f th e E d iso n E l e c t r i c I n s t i t u t e , EPA i s o b ta in in g d a t a f o r use in d e fin in g the t o ta l ly en clo sed uses which should be exempted from r e g u l a t i o n s . CMA a l s o i n te n d s t o v o l u n te e r in f o r m a tio n on th is is s u e . CMA m u st a g re e w ith EPA and EDF on th e d e t a i l s o f i t s data g athering e ff o r t p rio r to February 20, 1981. I t is e s s e n t i a l t h a t i n t e r e s t e d CMA members a s s i s t in th e c o n ti n uing e f f o r ts to id e n tify the d e ta ils of an a p p ro p ria te d a ta g a th e rin g program , and to provide an in d u stry response to Advanced N o tic e o f P ro p o se d R ulem akinq (ANPR) and ru le m a k in g p ro p o sa ls to be issu e d by th e Agency. A b r i e f summary o f th e is s u e s and im pact o f th e a n t i c i p a t e d PCB r u l e s on v a r i o u s seg m en ts o f th e c h e m ic a l in d u stry is a ttac h ed so th a t you can ev alu ate the im pact of EPA's re g u la to r y e f f o r t on your company (E x h ib it A ). I t i s r NEL 000721 Formerly Manufacturing Chemists Association-- Serving the Chemical Industry Since 1872 782570 a n t i c i p a t e d t h a t EPA w i l l p u b lis h an ANPR w i t h in th e n e x t 60 days. The Dow C hem ical Company h a s r e q u e s te d t h a t CMA u n d e r tak e a s p e c ia l advocacy program on EPA's a n tic ip a te d r u le m aking. .An i n i t i a l m e e tin g t o e x p lo r e th e i n t e r e s t o f v a r ious com panies in p a r tic ip a tin g in t h is program i s scheduled fo r Febraury 11, 1981. The agenda fo r the m eeting i s en closed as E xhibit B of th is l e t t e r . Your company i s in v ite d to send a r e p r e s e n ta tiv e ( s) to th is m eeting to d is c u s s the s ta te of p re s e n t knowledge and fu tu re p lan n in g r e la te d to such an advocacy program . I f you p lan to a tte n d , o r your company is in te r e s te d in such a pro gram , p l e a s e r e t u r n th e e n c lo s e d form ( E x h ib i t C) t o D r. Shah a t your e a r l i e s t convenience. Dr. Shah can be reached a t 202-887-1192, i f you need a d d itio n a l in fo rm atio n . S incerely, GVC:law E n clo su re s G e ra ld in e V. Cox, Ph.D V ice P re s id e n t and T echnical D irecto r NEL 000722 782571 rCWED JW *. 5 S' THE DOW CHEMICAL C O M P A N Y Ja n u ary 12, 1981 MrOLAND. MICHK1AN K M Dr. Geraldine V. Cox Technical Vice President Chemical Manufacturers Association 2501 M Street, N.W. Washington, D. C. 20037 Dear Dr. Cox: The Dow Chemical Company requests formation of a CMA Special Projects Group to address industry issues created by the recent court decision on PCB's. On October 30, 1980 the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an opinion on EDF vs. EPA, et al. This opinion sets "aside the regulations dealing with the 50 ppm cut off and the classification of certain PCB uses as totally enclosed and remands those portions of the record for further proceedings consistent with this opinion." The current rule (44 F.R. 31514) specifically exempts all substances that contain less than 50 ppm of PCB's. To change this cut off could have major impact on the use of equipment containing substances contaminated with PCB but more importantly a change in the cut off could have major impact on the manufacture of many chemicals where some in advertent PCB is produced or present. The extent of this impact is unknown. The Agency had few comments on this subject when they proposed the rule. Some petitions for exemption to the manufacturing ban have been filed since the rule was published. These exemption requests include manu facture of chemicals via chlorination, manufacture using chlorinated intermediates, manufacture using chlorinated solvents and manufacture via use of materials contaminated with PCB's. Other situations may exist. All of the exemptions involve situations where the PCB concentration was 50 ppm or over since that was the regulation. More exemption petitions would be expected if the "cut off" was lowered from the current 50 ppm limit. These petitions for exemption demonstrate the broad impact that the court decision could have. The chemical industry needs to obtain substantive data as to the real impact of a lower "cut off" and assess the risk as defined in Section 6(c) of TSCA. A SPAG group assigned to this task could collect initial data to help the Agency frame and scope the rulemarking that the court has ordered and provide input during rulemaking to ensure that all components of the 6(c) f NEL 000723 782572 Dr. Geraldine V. Cox January 12, 1981 Page - 2 findings are evaluated in developing a reasonable regulation. An immediate goal would be the development of sufficient information to encourage the court to stay the mandate during the rulemaking procedure. A part of this information would include the impact of the "totally enclosed" definition as well as the deletion of the 50 ppm cut off. Major problems exist in developing substantive data due to difficulty in analysis of PCB's as a contaminate in various processes, products and waste. The analysis of (previously) commercial PCB's in water has been well studied and excellent methods are available for trace contamination. However, the PCB's homologues and isomers that were not a part of the commercial product have not been the subject of much analytical development. The many media other than water, that could be subject to analysis if the 50 ppm cut. off is eliminated, will lead to a formidable problem. A rule proceeding that covers a broad spectrum of the chemical industry has been ordered by the court. The problem is complex and must be addressed in technical, legal and advocacy terms. The scope of the problem is yet to be* defined. The formation of a CMA SPAG group is recom mended to (1) define the scope of the problem, (2) generate substantive.data and provide risk assessment, and (3) advocate these findings in a regulatory proceeding. Sincerely, Chemicals and Plastics Regulations Regulatory and Legislative Issues Health and Environmental Sciences 1803 Building dmw ? NEL 000724 782573 AGENDA E xhibit - B Polychlorinated Biphenyls Special Program Date - F ebruary 11, 1981 Time - 10 a.m . to 3 p.m . P la c e - T e r r a c e C o n fe re n c e Room Chemical M anufacturers A sso c ia tio n 2501 M S t r e e t , N.W. W ashington, D.C. 20037 1. In tro d u c tio n o f a tten d e es and s e le c tio n o f chairm an fo r th e m eeting 2. A n ti-tru st regulation 3. Review o f a n tic ip a te d r u le making 4 . Review o f i s s u e s and work i n p r o g r e s s u n d e r CRAC 5. Id e n tific a tio n of o b jectiv es 6 . D ecision p o in t - i s th e re a need o r n o t to form a PCB A dvocacy Group 7 . D evelopm ent o f p la n s f o r CMA p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n t h e rulem aking 8 . Review o f CMA s u p p o r t s e r v i c e s i n e f f e c t i v e l y im p le m e n tin g th e p la n s developed by th e program p an el 9. Budget p ro je c tio n and b a s is fo r c o s t sh a rin g 10. S e le c tio n o f program chairm an 11. S et d ate fo r n ex t m eeting NEL 000725 782574 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT January Activities Report -J. S. Nelson- Mr. J. F. McAllister - Office - / y- COPIES: L. J. Utzig F e b r u a r y 3, I98I redacted 3 . PCS Mr. Nelson was a "silent partner" to GE voting representatives in a NEMA conference call at which it was decided to recommend that NEMA sign the joint petition for a stay in the mandate for the EDF case. The petition was filed and had the desired effect of postponing the mandate, at least until plans for responding to the chemical industry byproduct issue can be firmed, but the judge has not yet signed the recommended order that accompanied the petition. Discussions were held with a Goldman-Sachs partner who is raising capital for a new venture to destroy PCBs in sea-going incinerators similar to the Vulcanus. The information developed was forwarded to ASBD. The Chemical Manufacturers Association is forming a new committee to develop input to the EPA rulemaking process in the wake of the EDF decision. CMA will concentrate on the byproduct issue, but intends to address the "fully contained" and toxicological issues 'as well. With the concurrence of Dr. Donnalley, Mr. Nelson will attend the organizational meeting. 782575 NEL 000726 GENERAL ELECTRIC -2 - News media have reported the presence of PCB-laden oil in gas meters in the New York metropolitan area. With the help of Gasr Turbine Division, the probable cause was run to earth and the information provided to CHIP and appropriate operations managers. 4. CMA Hr. Nelson and Mr. Connors attended the Chemical Regulations Advisory Committee of the Chemical Manufacturers Association, at which the above PCB initiative was announced. Other issues highlighted were: testing rules, record-keeping, premanufacturing notices, significant new uses, OSHA labeling rule proposal, and post-election changes in Congress. Information on the OSHA rule Is being forwarded to Legal Services and Corporate Health & Safety for the development of Corporate Comments. redacted f: JSN:dem r J. S. Nelson NEL 000727 782576 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT MEETING WITH CEIP STAFF FEBRUARY 6, 1981______ lu 3 r p jn u s ) COPIES: L. J. Utzig IP ' .'-V. February 9, 1981 Mr. J. F. McAllister Office Dear Jack, On February 6, 1981, at the invitation of Dr. Donnalley (letter enclosed], I addressed the CEIP staff meeting on the history of PCBs and the activity at CMA. Present, in addition to Dr. Donnalley, were: Dr. Stephen B.^amilton (formerly from Wire and Cable) Mr. Bryce I.MdDonald (formerly of Kennecott Copper, and before that, GE) Mr. Robert S. Friedman (recently President, GE Asia, Co., Singapore) Mr. Glen L. Bowler (who also serves Corporate Finance Staff) and Mrs. Susan P. Read (who also serves Corporate Operating Services Legal Operation, i.e., EPO) The history of PCBs was reviewed, with illustration of the progress made in containing the ecological problem largely at private initiative, a full year before the enactment of TSCA. It was explained that the Chemical Manufacturers Association had in the past issued only one formal comment on a proposed PCB rule (in 1977) and had not believed itself to be seriously involved until the decision was handed down in the EDF case, threatening to bring virtually any application of chlorinated hydrocarbon chemistry within the compass of the TSCA 6(e) ban on PCBs. I volunteered to keep the staff informed, primarily through Susan Read, of the plans of the special activity group being formed to address this problem. The following documents were distributed at the meeting: (1) PCB Chronology, October 13, 1975 (2) PCB Chronology Update I (1/26/77 and II (2/6/81) (3) Selected PCB Notices and Regulations in the Federal Register, 1972-1981 Copies of these papers are enclosed Very truly yours NEL 000728 JSNidem Enc. 782577 US3* '/? PHODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287, -- February Activities Report J. S. Nelson- COPIES: ** U t Z i g March 2, 1981 Mr. J. F. McAllister -Office- IV. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY (J. S. Nelson) 1. PCBs With the concurrence of Dr. Donnailey, Mr. Nelson has participated in the formation of a Special Project within the Chemical Manufacturers Association to deal with problems raised by the court decision in the Environmental Defense Fund case. Two meetings were held in February, and a petition was filed with the court. A survey of the incidental or inadvertent production of PCBs by member companies of CMA is in preparation. REDACTED JSN:dem 782578 W \r* o o ft PCB CHARTER CMA Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCB) Program Panel The Polychlorinated Biphenyl Program Panel has been es tablished in response to th court decision in Environmental Defense Fund v. Environmental Protection Agency No. 79-1580 (D.C. Circuit, October 30, 1980). The panel will be responsible for developing support for a general exclusion from the regulation of PCBs in any concentration which do not pose unreasonable risk to^health or environment. The findings required by TSCA 6(c)(p) will be the basis for developing such support. Industry will include a qualitative identification of technology problems and cost which may be imposed as well as administrative problems to be expected by the Agency if a regulatory cutoff lower than 50 ppm is proposed. The Panel will select and supervise contractors hired to prepared reports on the scope of the problem and on current information on the toxicity of PCBs as it relates to PCBs. The Panel will prepare an appropriate response to specific questions posed by EPA's Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR) on both the "totally enclosed" and "50 ppm" issues. After submission of data generated by the initial scoping survey, and working with the Agency during the ANPR the Panel will advocate reasonable rules throughout the remainder of the rule making process. The Program Panel will also be responsible for certain administrative matters, including the election of officers, deciding the basis for sharing the costs of the program among the participating companies, designation of appropriate task and/or working groups, and liaison with interested non-participating parties. The Program Panel will function as a special committee under CMA's bylaws, and as such will be subject to the Special Programs Guidelines. 782579 NEL 000730 .r\i , 2 I fi -Z -> INCIDENCE AND PREVAIENCE OF THE INCIDENTAL MANUFACTURE OF PCBS AT CONCENTRATIONS BELOW 50 ppm This paper is divided into three parts. The first part establishes the importance that firms should place on making a carefully considered response to this search for information on incidental generation of FCBs. The second part'provides information on the types of processing situa tions which-can *lead to PCB generation. The third part discusses what i s ; currently known about the prevalence of the incidental generation problem. THE NEED FOR A CAREFULLY CONSIDERED RESPONSE The District of Columbia Court of Appeal remanded the 50 ppm cut-off with the following words: "EPA's ad hoc consideration of economic impact and disposal require ments, leading to a conclusion that the fifty ppm cutoff 'provides adequate protection for human health and the environment," Preamble to Final Ban Regulations, 44 Fed. Reg. 31,516 (1979), is neither as rigorous nor as strict as the statutorily required unreasonable risk determination based on the subsection 6(c) (1). criteria, ttius, we remand this part of the record to EPA for further proceedings." In the Preamble to the final rule (44 FR 31516) the Agency notes the lack of data for the 50 ppm cut-off: "The Preamble to the proposed Ban Rule emphasized that EPA must select a cut-off point that it can reasonably administer in order to attain the objectives of Sec. 6(e) of TSCA (see 43 FR 24804, June 7, 1978). "Before selecting 50 ppm PCB as the cut-off point, EPA considered several other options, including retaining the 500 ppm PCB cut-off originally specified in the Disposal and Marking Rule, and lowering the cut-off concentration to 10 ppm or even 1 ppm. The 500 ppm PCB option was favored by affected industries because it would reduce the costs of complying with the rule, but no evidence was presented that indicated that industry is technologically or economically unable to comply with the more stringent standard." 782580 NEL 000731 The economic impact statement issued as a part of the Support Docu ment for this proposed rule deals with the lack of information in two sentences : "Other chemicals: Ho information exists in the record to support any estimate of the impact of the ban regulation on companies such as Alcoa and Dow C o m i n g that are inadvertently manufacturing PCB's in chemicals and other dry pigments. These chemical processes will be subject to the same ban provisions or, alternatively, the need to obtain exemptions from the manufacturing, processing, distribution in commerce, and use ban regulations as described above for dry pigments" In this new consideration of rule making on incidental generation of PCB, EPA is not initially planning on its own behalf to conduct any systematic data collection from industry. EPA intends to rely on infor mation provided by individual firms and the results of this Q1A survey. However, EPA must have data if it expects to fulfill the court order relative to an unreasonable risk determination based on TSCA Subsection 6(c)(1) criteria. The burden is therefore on the chemical industry to provide a cohesive, comprehensive picture of the quantity of PCB generated and the fate of such incidental PCB. Individual firms filing comments to EPA on an ANPR will not produce the level of cohesiveness or comprehensiveness of data which should be used in preparing the court required risk assessment. Considered responses to the QtA survey are necessary to accomplish that goal. It is believed within a number of firms that a comprehensive picture of the quantity and fate of PCB from incidental manufacture will demonstrate minimum risk, and that the broad prevalence of incidental manufacture in a wide variety of processes will show the need for an exemption from regulation. If the believed prevalence of the problem were not demonstrated by the CMA survey, either because of a Lack of industry participation, or failure to 782581 NEL 000732 make a considered review of manufacturing operations/ the result could be that EPA would then decide that a rational course of action would be to require firms to request an annual process by process exemption under Subsection 6(e)(3)(B). PROCESSING SITUATIONS LEADING TO THE INCIDENTAL GENERATION OF PCB There is very little information available on the manufacturing process situations which can lead to the generation of PCB. It is an area of trace chemistry that has not been substantively discussed in the literature. One publication of significance is nThe Chemistry of PCBs" by Hutzinger/ CRC Press (1974). Hutzinger illustrates 41 different chemical reactions that can lead to PCBs These vary from chlorination and Diels-Alder reactions/ to Ullman reactions that couple two halogenated benzene molecules. The fact that good yields can be achieved with the right conditions and right catalysts must lead to the suspicion that trace quantities may be gene rated with many conditions and many catalysts. This is of special concern when one has halogenated aromatics present./ or halogenated aliphatics that can cyclize to low yields of aromatics under conditions of the system. Low concentrations of such products may result in the production of some PCB's which may then build up in a system. Hutzinger also notes: "The outstanding physical and chemical characteristics of PCB are their thermal stability/ resistance to oxidation, acid, bases, and other chemical agents as well as their excellent dielectric (elec trically insulating) properties" One aspect of the stability, relative to trace impurities, is simply that most PCB's in a system will not degrade or further react. 782582 NEL 000733 The analytical problem is also important in establishing the presence of PCB*in a manufacturing operation. Analysis of incidental PCB's can be difficult because, by EFA standards, one must analyze for all degrees of chlorination (1-10). The common use of standards composed of commercial PCB's is not an acceptable procedure since.all homologues and isomers are .---- - - - 4 (not present in commercial products It will usually be necessary to qualitatively identify individual peaks from a gas chromatographic separation prior to quantification of total PCB's. Mass spectrometry is the most common method of compound identification and sometimes can be used for quantification as well. Other methods are acceptable according to the preamble of the PCB Ban Rule: "Persons who manufacture or process chemicals in a manner that could result in the production of PCBs as a primary product, impurity, intermediate, precursor, or byproduct are responsible for deter mining whether PCBs have been produced. They will have to conduct tests using good analytical chemistry and investigate ways to improve their ability to detect and quantify PCBs." (44 FR 31538) p- THE PREVALENCE OF PCBs IN MANUFACTURING OPERATIONS The study of trace chemistry leading to detectable PCB's in a process or product is difficult and generalities must be judged by reference to known examples An environmental engineer in EPA's Pesti cide and Toxic Substances Office has been cited (CHEMICAL WEEK, 1/14/61) as stating that "a very large segment" of the industry could be affected. He further said PCB's can be formed any time a material containing hydrocarbons is chlorinated in the presence of heat, or when a chlori nated solvent is recycled. EFA has the advantage of examining all of the data in the current petitions for exemption from the manufacturing ban and the processing and distribution bon. A quick perusal of the nonconfidential parts of these petitions indicates that some times concentrations above 50 ppm PCB's are reached at some point in the operation during manufacture utilizing the following types of reactions: NEL 000734 782583 o Chlorination - of alkanes - of alkenes - of aromatics o Use of chlorinated intermediates in chemical reactions o Recycling chlorinated solvents - aromatic or - aliphatic o Use of contaminated raw materials (below 50 ppm PCB's) Host operations are now engineered to get maximum yield of raw materials to finished product- Frequently this means recycling part of the reactor output in order to improve yield- Since, as noted previously, PCB's are thermally and chemically stable, recycling can lead to concen tration buildup- The PCB's building up in such a system could be from ambient sources (water), contaminated raw materials, or trace quantities generated during the operation* An example of this problem may be useful. If (a) (b) (c) raw materials contained 2-5 ppb of PCB's, or generation of PCB's was such that 2*5 ppb was created, or water containing 1 ppb was used at a volume of 2-5 parts water per part organic (solubilities are such that most organics will extract most of the PCB from water), And in any of the three cases (d) 2.5% of the reactor stream was recycled after stripping product out and the recycle contained all of the PCB's. Then (e) the recycle stream would increase in PCB concentration by 100 ppb for each reactor volume put through the system(All PCB's are in 1/40 of the original volume-) 782584 Many continuous systems will deliver several reactor volumes per day and operate for months Such a system will build up FCB's until losses, to waste or product/ equal input but the recycle stream may contain readily detectable FCB concentrations A knowledge of the properties of FCB's and the operating conditions of the plant can give an estimate as to the potential for build-up. From the above presentation, it is possible to develop generalities but no specifics as to when FCB's may be present in a system at detectable levels Hydrocarbons in the presence of chlorine or compounds of chlorine may result in some generation of FCB1s Temperature and catalysts play some role but this has not been quantified Recycling in some part of the operation may lead to concentrating the FCB's to detectable levels depending on a wide variety of engineering variables. 782585 NEL 000736 TlfT'-C- AGENDA Proposed Program on P o ly c h lo rin a te d B iphenyl DATE: F e b r u a r y 2 4 , 1981 TIME: 1 0 :0 0 A.M. PLACE: G e n e r a l C o n fe re n c e Room CMA Offices 2501 M S t r e e t , N.W. W ash in g to n , D.C. 20037 1 .0 R eport on S ta tu s o f J o in t M otion fo r S tay o f M andate 2 .0 R e p o r t on S t a t u s o f EPA/USDA/FDA P ro p o s e d R e g u l a t i o n s 3 .0 R eview o f F o rm a tin g and C l a r i t y o f 50 ppm Q u e s tio n n a ir e and In stu c tio n s 4 .0 Review o f D ra ft o f Q u e s tio n n a ire L e tte r D e sc rib in g P o te n tia l I n c id e n c e o f PCBs t o R e c i p ie n t s o f S u rv e y 5 .0 D i s c u s s io n o f I s s u e s w h ic h s h o u ld be A d d re s s e d i n CMA's "T o ta lly E nclosed" Survey 6 .0 D is c u s s io n o f P ro p o se d C h a r te r f o r S p e c ia l P ro g ram on PCBs !j NEL 000737 78258(5 PCB-2-A Polychlorinated Biphenyls Initial Meeting - February 11, 1981 T errace Conference Room, CMA Offices ATTENDEES Jam es W. Lewis Manager, Special Environmental Projects BFGOODRICH COMPANY 6100 Oak Tree Boulevard Cleveland, Ohio 216/447-7979 Kenneth L. Burgess Chemical & Plant Regulations DOW CHEMICAL U S . A . 1803 Building Midland, Michigan 49640 517/636-3177 Carl W. Umland Environmental Health Coordinator EXXON CHEMICAL AMERICAS P. O. Box 3272 Houston, Texas 77001 713/870-6762 Harold K. L atourette Environmental Manager Toxic Substances FMC CORPORATION 2000 Market S treet Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19067 215/299-6554 J. L. Alberg Attorney GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY 777 14th S treet, N.W. Washington, D. C. 20005 202/637-4126 782587 NEL 000738 - 2- Jam es S. Nelson Cbnsultant, Product Environmental Compatibility (Corporate Technology Staff) GENERAL ELECTRfC COMPANY 3135 Easton Turnpike Fairfield, Connecticut 06431 203/373-2287 E. R. Baker Group Counsel, Engineered Materials Group GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY 500 West Wilson Bridge Road Columbus, Ohio 614/438-2035 Lawrence K. Hunt Coordinator, Health, Safety & Environment GOODYEAR CORPORATION 142 Goodyear Block Akron, Ohio 44236 216/796-7445 Douglas J. Heilman Technical Manager, Environmental Affairs HERCULES, IN C 910 Market S treet Wilmington, Delaware 19899 302/575-6120 Alex Katona Manager, Waste Disposal Corporate Environmental Health HOOKER CHEMICAL COMPANY 222 Rainbow Boulevard North Niagra Falls, New York 14302 716/278-7187 Safety R. L. Schauer Manager, Chemical Regulatory Services I a AMERICAS Wilmington, Delaware 19897 302/575-4511 Mary Killorin Regulatory Liaison 3M OOMPANY 1101 15th S tree t, N.W. Washington, D .C 20005 202/331-6934 782588 NEL 000739 f - 3- Phocion S. Park Environmental Counsel MONSANTO COMPANY 800 North Lindbergh Boulevard St. Louis, Missouri 63166 314/694-2807 Rosemary Piccirillo Regulatory Specialist OLIN CORPORATION 275 Winchester Avenue New Haven, Connecticut 203/789-5469 06511 Edward T. Grim mins Project Administrator PHILLIPS PETROLEUM (Phillips Chemical Company) 1152 Adams Building Bartlesville, Oklahoma 74004 918/661-5287 Gerald N. McDermott Senior Engineer PROCTOR & GAMBLE COMPANY Hillcrest 1 7162 Reading Road Cincinnati, Ohio 45222 513/763-4428 Je ffre y O. Cerar Attorney SQUIRE, SANDERS & DEMPSEY (General Electric) * 21 DuPont Circle Washington, D .C 20036 202/862-7052 Thomas A. Robinson Director, Environmental Affairs VULCAN MATERIALS COMPANY P. O. Box 12283 Wichita, Kansas 67277 316/524-4211 782589 NEL 000740 -4- Hasmukh C Shah Director,. Special Programs CMA 2501 M S tree t, N.W. Washington, D.C. 2003? 202/887-1192 Randal P. Schumacher Associate Director of Health, Safety & Chemical Regulations CMA 2501 M S treet, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037 202/887-1386 Edmund B. Frost Vice President & General Cbunsel CMA 2501 M S tree t. N.W. Washington, D. CL 20037 202/887-1350 Geraldine V. Cbx Vice President - Technical D irector CMA 2501 M S treet, N.W. Washington, D. C. 20037 202/887-1260 Debra J. Boltas Coordinator, Special Programs CMA 2501 M S tree t, N.W. Washington, D.C. 2003? 202/887-1191 David Zoll. Assistant General Counsel CMA 2501 M S treet, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037 202/887-1158 f> NEL 000741 782590 Meeting PCBs ATTENDANCE RECORD Date February 24. 19B1 Location CMA General Conference Room NAME MtSrouIeh STH ah COMPANY --------------------------- ! /^ 7 / /fl/tt? fV t/h .L j ) o tU C i- itfr m c A L A J.&e*s*5 \it* riy Qfc. Vt* /, c.o t - & //'? .> ttb f r c A f h ie i'-C.'tx/* j n r . fo 'A i'.ir v u /te r J )//W > T . f-P t-L . ADDRESS Z S o \ M M-, l~ln likl fM t - I '- i ' . rPPO'% '7 /* o 3 . , (fc.ogP'g-ir-7 l/4? 2 _ s .- 7 sr^v 'u 7.0 JO /^On/ C V V .1 /V i/}* **'i C*/09 o * fc T ml*- G tr+ f. v C .J-/d ftt, r u l .r p / ,y> VVy3 y f 2 / 0 ^ ^ 7 ^ 7 9 7 ^ ?/ jy / ai / & i o z 5*7 J75T/ /V i / r s e / , A/*l> ^>A 7 , W /3 S 7 -/3 0 4 i f ** r /n 1 ^ S * ^ a y /O T i s o y s z y s - , _ > *#*/&> 7* s y ? z8 f.A .V o * , U-icm iTM ICS 7 3 7 7 /f* >a, l^tL4A > / t f f f l S & sy i/rz -v -y z // ^ } m7 h u r r r ^ _ 9. n > /;,, . //U ' 7 /i.r r 7 /: % . ;& ? / o ? o 3 . x a 7 - 3 V 9 3 Z 7 i" //.*/ / - v , /k. 1 ^ / > / ) 7 f 9 - f J 4 ) (K A V-t w \* C o t t o n - l1 , l.r \ , \ *' \ f , . A>H \X. `i l * ) (r S ' -- I f 1 0 K 00013M J/1M F5 5. N t t S * C S gtM PK A I. ------------------ ~ IfL & C rR IC F /U R r - iT L D , C .J - 6 4 -? ) -~?*W--------------__________________ Cc? -? K 3 7 J - ^ -5 ~ ? ____________ : N EL 000743 yl /* >> ft & i' *i Ss f-t To V S' * t r z> 3T 2 $f Vl fK J ' ^XV. ^' -1 r *X * R 2> n ^ r*\ \ A^v\ r^IVt ** I &I*s **1 *? $ 3r^ "S %It . .CKC z; #^ o1i VJ- > *\f* of & S4 i CS> * 9 * fs *f> v* 0V4i .r 'p*- ^ C* i E 3 *& * * % G*J ^2- p 1 r no2 T>J Z. < >t--3 B ft &K" 2 *0 s ? C7 0o ftHV L?" (T' . \ (// ii*d- p*> tf. -X ? s. i n . <0OsJ* S ?N \ V/\ 5 " iyj bj (A z o 6z Siz' * (k N S? <o r Su' r*\ <* 00ic >S* n? xj V \v5j\ ^ ^<^c*^ S\ * icx> ^ wT'- - OA 1.^-ai> -Jv Zi ? ^s V 00 ts ^H'rJv 5 n -Q $I > ao R cn CO 2 o z R 782592 (please print) O. 2- > > i-3 6 cn R R -3 PHODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L I ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CO N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287 /L /S -w C ~J) COPIES: J. F. McAllister A. Toothaker March 10, 1981 R. S. Friedman CEIP W2I Dear Bob: Enclosed are the only print references I could find to the approval of PCB incinerators -- Rollins in January and Ensco a short time later, in late January or early February. Anne Toothaker is sending a copy of Chemical Regulation Reporter, which contains a little more detail. Note that large capacitors may no longer be land-filled. I understand that EPO will be including this item in a news letter to be issued shortly on the interim rules imposed as a result of the EDF case. Very truly yours, JSN:dem Enc. n e l 000744 782593 PESTICIDE AAEMssdassintoiosaMPcrtgaa:iaaitnnCdrteigtcoaEinEtaEhdnddyaMiititotCooiLtrrco:res:ohPa:BpeafRelomla,rnyNPBmGauroortbaangnlldiiaasdnhoGPenaarrlagLnaots.u,is RoAAMPCtrshsiaorssscrdiciksusSuehttlaaoacitlitdnnntniiooit.gtannMDJORrDMai.roineriarteacheyncgstcaytoecogtfrroharse:rIi:lurrdS:iSAs#hDhlaMicoi*rrel.or<eon,yStW/hcTGfyihlo/kawHet/hlasailn.rlttz COURT RATIFIES PCB INTERIM PROGRAM AMONG SERIES OF PCB ACTIONS In a s e r i e s o f a c tio n s r e la te d to TSCA c o n tro ls o f p o ly c h lo rin a te d b ip h e n y ls , EFA le t th e M arch 1 d e a d lin e fo r e n d in g th e la n d fill d is p o s a l o f la rg e -v o lu m e PCB c ap a c ito rs ta k e e ffe c t, decided not to pursue its reg u latio n on PCBs in food and feed handling establishm ents and received an order f r o m the U .S . Court of A ppeals w h ic h in e f f e c t im p lem en ts a s e r ie s o f "in terim s te p s " on th e w a y to new PCB re g u la tio n s (See Jan . 2 8 , Page 5). The c o u r t 's o rd e r a llo w s a n 1 8 - m onth s ta y o f i t s e a r lie r m a n d a te fo r a n EPA r e w r ite of tw o -th ird s o f i ts PCB r e g u la tio n s , a d e c is io n b a s e d on a s u it b ro u g h t b y th e E nvironm ental D efen se Fund (See N ov. 5, Page 3). But th e new order m akes e ffe c tiv e interim rules w hich c a ll, among other th in g s, for w eekly inspections of PCBe q u ip m e n t In fo o d an d fe e d e s ta b lis h m e n ts . EPA d e c id e d th a t th is m e a s u re w o u ld m ak e u n n e c e s s a r y a s e p a r a te ru le o n th e s e e s ta b lis h m e n ts (See D e c . 3 , P a g e 2 ). ?f t The s e p a r a te n o n - a c tio n b y EPA -- to a llo w th e d e a d lin e to ta k e e f f e c t a g a in s t la n d fill d isp o sa l of larg e PC B -contalning capacitors -- w as b ased on th e recen t approve of an incineration facility at El D orado, A rk ., operated by Ensco, w hich can crush th e c ap acito rs and d e stro y them and th e ir co n ten ts (See F eb. 4 , Page 2). M a jo r p ro v is io n s o f th e EPA " in te rim m e a s u re s " program a p p ro v e d by th e U .S . C o u r of A ppeals for the D istrict of Colum bia C irc u it, w ere: Food a n d fe e d r is k PCB e q u ip m en t -- W e e k ly v i s u a l in s p e c tio n ; re c o rd in g of a l l le a k s a n d re p o rtin g to EPA re g io n a l offices w ith in five b u sin e ss d ays; serv icin g w ith in two days for m oderate le a k s (any quantity of PCBs leaking off th e e q u ip m e n t); m a in te n a n c e o f re c o rd s (a v a ila b le to EPA) for three y e a rs. -0rcv0nol COu N on-food or feed establishm ents -- Q uarterly Inspections; reco rd in g , serv icin g of moderate leak s w ithin tw o days; th re e y e a r reco rd k e e p in g , to be a v a ila b le to EPA. 2 or 4 oo ^4 Cn The court a lso ordered Edison E lectric In stitu te to tak e a series of a c tio n s , workinc through th e U tilitie s Solid W aste A ctivities G roup, including co n tracts to com pile data on "types of e le c tric a l equipm ent; leakage phenom ena, including incidence an m ag n itu d e'o f le ak s; fe a sib ility of containm ent, In sp ectio n and m ain ten ce, and feas b ility of transform er and capacitor p h ase-o u t. " PESTICIDE & T O X IC C H E M IC A L NEWS (ISSN 0146*05011 is published weekly for S200 per year and S135 for addi* rional subscriotions bv Food Chemiral Nm m tr><* nn W u,rt QiiiiwinN T n . c... m hi ui.. ?ag 4 March 4 , 1981 PESTICIDE & TOXIC CHEMICAL NEWS The court said : "A dditionally, sev eral other areas of inquiry w ill be included, such the im pact of a regulatory cutoff above or below 50 p .p .m .; the health effe cts f PCBs; a pathw ay a n a ly sis for PCBs th at may be re le a se d in to the environm ent from e le c tric a l sy ste m s; n o n e le c tric a l m aterials p o ten tially co n tain in g PCBs, and viable su b stitu tes for PC B s." A lternative p h ase-o u t schedules to be investigated include tw o, five and 20-year p h a s e o u ts . The c o u rt a d d e d : "EPA and ED F, a t th e ir ow n e x p e n s e , w ill h a v e th e right to review a ll underlying data generated in connection w ith the study. " FOUR. COMPANIES SUBMIT SUBSTANTIAL RISK REPORTS UNDER TSCA REQUIREMENTS G ulf O il, Dow C hem ical, G lyco C hem icals and an unnamed m anufacturer have su b m itted s u b s t a n t i a l r i s k re p o rts to EPA u n d e r re q u ire m e n ts o f TSCA S e c tio n '8(e) G ulf reported on re su lts of m utagenicity a ssa y s of four com pany p ro d u cts, Identified by brand nam e. P ositive re su lts w ith m etabolic activ atio n w ere found for three p ro d u c ts, S uperquench 7 0 , P ro cess 63 and P ro cess 65. R esu lts w ere n e g ativ e for the first tw o w ithout a ctiv atio n . For Process 63, re su lts w ithout activ atio n w ere in co n clu siv e. R esu lts a lso w ere in co n clu siv e both w ith and w ithout a ctiv atio n in m utagenicity te s ts of the com pany's 100 Texas O il. G ulf said It is e v alu a tin g th e se .suits. ' Dow reported on re c en tly -d ev e lo p e d to x ic ity data on ethylene glycol monom ethyl eth er (EGME), 2 -m e th o x y e th a n o l, s ta tin g th a t a 1,000 p .p .m . ex p o su re to ra b b its for nine days during an 11-day interval w as le th a l. "H em atological,, te sticu la r and lymphoid e ffects w ere found in r a ts , m ice and rab b its exposed to 1,000 p ;p .m . Dow s a id , adding: "Sim ilar b u t le s s pronounced changes were noted in some anim als in the 300 p .p .m . group. No adverse effects w e re a ttr ib u te d to th e 1 0 0 `p . p . m . e x p o su re l e v e l . " Glyco C h em icals, W illiam sp o rt, P a ., reported a summary of to x ico lo g ical d ata on three related halogenated dim ethylhydantoin d eriv ativ es, identified as: (1) 2 , 4 - im id a z o lid in e d io n e ,3 - b r o m o - l - c h l o r o - 5 , 5 -d im e th y l (BCDMH); (2) 2 , 4 im i a a z o l i d i n e d i o n e ,l ,3 - d i c h l o r o - 5 ,5 - d i m e t h y l (DCDMH); and (3) 2 ,4 - im id a z o lid in e dione , 1 ,3 -d ib ro m o -5 , 5 -d im eth y l (DBDMH). The com pany s a id BCDMH is in R&D s ta g e s a t G ly co , alth o u g h it is re g is te re d and sold as a p e stic id e by a t le a s t one other com pany. "We are see k in g to develop a p p licatio n s for it in m arkets w hich have been served by DCDMH . . . for over 25 ia r s , " the com pany sa id , giving the follow ing "to x ico lo g ists' conclusions" legaraing BCDMH: "M oderately sev ere irritant to the skin; severe irritan t to th e e y e s , causing irreversible cellu lar damage to eye tissu e ; at the higher oral dosage le v e ls, system ic effects 782595 NEL 000746 , ([* - --s *February 4, 1981 PESTICIDE & TOXIC CHEMICAL NEWS A D M I N I S T R A T O R R U M O R of the w e e k , w ith som e fo u n d atio n , is for New M exico professor John H ernandez. R l P. F L O R I O ( D -N . J. ), Chairman of the Subcom m ittee on Transportation and Tourism of the Com m ittee on In te rsta te and Foreign Commerce has "resp ectfu lly req u ested " P resident Reagan to keep in ta c t p resid en tial orders signed by former President C arter th at re la te to superfund im plem entation. It's reported that the O ffice of M anagement and B udget (OMB) is c o n s id e r in g re o rg a n iz in g EPA, w h ic h co u ld a f f e c t th e a d m in is tra tio n of th e superfund program (See Jan. 21, Page 16). E T H Y L E NE O X I D E can cer risk confirm ed after conclusion of stu d ies sponsored by a d o z e n c o m p a n ie s an d f i r s t re p o rte d to EPA in a s u b s ta n tia l r is k re p o rt in 1979 (See S e p t. 1 9 , 1979 , Page 6). OSHA and NIOSH are recom m ending can cer h a za rd w arning la b e l s . 2 , 4 , 5 - T p r e - tr ia l b e n e fits b rie fs h av e b een file d by EPA, D ow , USDA, F arm er's U n io n , the N ational Forest Products A ssociation and th e N ational C attlem en's A ssociation in co n n ectio n w ith th e ongoing 2 , 4 , 5-T c a n c e llatio n hearing (See Jan . 21, Page 24). D O W C H E M I C A L w a s tu rn e d dow n b y EPA A d m in istra tiv e Law Judge H erb ert P erlm an o n a " re q u e s t for d is c o v e r y " of EPA re c o rd s c o n c e rn in g th e d e fin itio n o f p o ly c h lo rin a te d b ip henyls. "For the purposes of a sse ssin g a civ il penalty in th is proceeding," said P erlm an , "a PCB is a PCB" (See Jan . 2 8 , Page 2 ). T S C A T E S T R U L E S un d er S ection 4 are in d raft form for dichlorom ethane; 1 ,1 ,1 t: ilo r o e th a n e , a n d n itr o b e n z e n e . V 5 E C 0 N D P C B I N C I N E R A T O R ap p ro v ed b y EPA w a s fo r E n s c o , E ld o ra d o , A rk. (See Jan. 28, Page 2). C O N F I D E N T I A L I T Y i s s u e is c o n fo u n d in g a n EPA in v e s tig a tio n of a T e x a s - to -N e w York co n tam in atio n of n a tu ra l g a s lin e s w ith low le v e ls of PCBs. The m assiv e p ip e lin e system is being tra c e d , w ith no co n sisten cy in re s u lts, and com panies are holding con fid e n tia l under TSCA p ro v isio n s a ll le v e ls of PCBs found, e x c e p t for one s ta tio n n ear C hicago, w here le v e ls of 232 p.p.m _. w ere found in a condensate separator owned by P eoples' Energy Com pany. C I V I L P E N A L T I E S le v ie d u n d e r TSCA for v io la tio n s of PCB re g u la tio n s w e re a g a in s t: St. Regis Paper Co. , B uckspot, M e . , $ 1 4,000, and New Brunsw ick, N . J . , Public Service Electric & Gas, $2,000. C O R R E C T I O N : EPA la w y e r Andrew G o rd o n , n o t D orothy P a tto n , d u rin g c r o s s - e x a m in a tion in the 2 , 4 , 5-T c an c e llatio n p roceedings, raised q uestions about the sig n ifican ce of reproductive and can cer e ffects related to Dow 2 , 4 , 5-T study involving humans (See Jan. 21, Page 24). NEL 000747 C O N T R O L O P T I O N S paper on b en zid in e, two congeners and derivative dyes has been d vered to EPA by a c o n tra c to r and is b e in g re v ie w e d in EPA. G O V E R N M E N T I N S T I T U T E S In c . c o u rs e s on RCRA and o th e r e n v iro n m e n ta l la w s v.'ill be F e b . 12-13 a t S to u f fe r's N a tio n a l C e n te r H o te l, W a s h in g to n , D . C . ; M arch 1 9 -2 0 at Sir Francis D rake h o te l, San F ran c isco , and (advanced course) April 13-14 at th e h o te l W ashington in D. C . . 782596 J a n u a r y 6 , 1981 PESTICIDE & TOXIC CHEMICAL NEWS N O E PA A D M I N I S T R A T O R y e t, as Jam es M ahoney of M a s s a c h u s e tts w ithdrew (See Ja n . 2 i, Page 2). A cam paign on b eh alf of form er A ssista n t A dm inistrator for Enforcem ent Stan Legrow Is taking on ad d ed Im portance. A C T I N G A D M I N I S T R A T O R of EPA for a s e c o n d n o n c e (See J a n . 21, Page 2) is form er D eputy A ss is ta n t A dm inistrator for Air Q u a lity Planning and S tandards W alter B arber, d e sp ite a cam paign by A ssista n t A dm inistrator W illiam Drayton to take over the jo b . B arber re p la c e s S tev en J e llln e k , who held the job re lu c ta n tly for a few d a y s.b e fo re le av in g EPA to s t a r t h is ow n c o n s u ltin g b u s in e s s In W a s h in g to n . U S U P R E M E C O U R T d enied the Environm ental D efense Fund's re q u e st for a w rit of c e rtio ra ri in the ch lo ro b e n zilate proceedings (See D ec. 31, Page 14). F I R S T C O M M E R C I A L I N C I N E R A T O R ap p ro v ed b y EPA fo r b u rn in g o f p o ly c h lo rin a te d biphenyls is the R ollins In cin erato r, D eer Park, T ex as. D O W C H E M I C A L - EPA n eg o tiatio n s in the agency s u it concerning the com pany's D ow therm G p ro d u c ts (S e e O c t. 15, P age 5) h a v e b ro k e n d o w n , a c c o rd in g to a le tte r from EPA e n fo rc e m e n t a tto rn e y Larry B lackw ood to A d m in istra tiv e Law Judge H e rb e rt P e rlm a n . B lackw ood s a id Dow had r e je c te d EPA's p ro p o sa l and th a t fu rth er p ro c e ed in g s and a h e a rin g on the c iv il p en alty am ount w ill be n e c e s s a ry . The agency a lso is considering a c h a lle n g e of D ow 's c o n fid e n tia lity c la im s, Blackwood s a id . T E S T I N G G U I D E L I N E S for the TSCA S e c tio n 5 program w ere p u b lish e d in the J a n . 27 Federal R egister (See Jan . 14, Page 3 ). A S B E S T O S in fo rm atio n p ro p o sa l u nder TSCA S ectio n 8(a) w a s p u b lis h e d b y the a g e n c y Jan . 25 (See Jan. 14, Page 8). P L A N T I D E N T I T Y c o n fid e n tia lity c la im s in TSCA S e c tio n 8(e) s u b s ta n tia l r is k re p o rts w ill b e r o u tin e ly c h a ll e n g e d , o u tg o in g EPA A s s is ta n t A d m in istra to r S te v e n J e llln e k to ld the A d m in istra to r's T oxic S u b sta n c e s A d v iso ry C om m ittee in a fin a l re p o rt (See s to r y , Page 9).- As c o n fid e n tia lity claim s are re s o lv e d , h e s a id , com pany nam es and s ite s w ill be p u b lish ed , and future com pendium s of 6(e) rep o rts w ill Include th ese d a ta . S E V E R E EYE I R R I T A T I O N re p o rte d u n d e r TSCA S e c tio n 8(e) to EPA for the c h e m ic a l 1,3 ,4 -th ia d ia z o lid in e -2 ,5 -d ith o n e . The " su b s ta n tia l ris k " rep o rt w as from R .T . V ander b ilt Company, N orw alk, C o n n ., follow ing independent laboratory tests on rab b its. T S C A S U B S T A N T I A L R I S K n o tic e s w ill be provided to p u b lic re q u e sto rs on ly on w ritte n r e q u e s t , EPA s a id in it s J a n . i s s u e o f TSCA C h e m ic a ls In P ro g re s s . W rite to : EPA, M s. Je rri G re e n (A--101), F reedom o f In fo rm a tio n O f f ic e , W a s h in g to n , D .C . 2 0 4 6 0 . NEL 000748 DAT A E X C H A N G E : EPA w a s w orkin g w ith th e C o u n c il on E n v iro n m en tal Q u a lity up :o in au g u ratio n day to d e v elo p le g is la tio n for exchange of c o n fid e n tia l d ata among g o v e rn m ent ag en cies , as recom m ended by a C arter adm inistration Toxic S ubstances S trategy To--- 'it:e e (See Ju ly 9 , Page 13). N oth in g e m e rg e d , h o w e v e r, and the Incom ing a d m in is -ra.,,n can be e x p e c te d to take a lo n g , hard look a t the is s u e . T S C A T E S T RU LE s c h e d u le p ro p o se d by EPA in r e s p o n s e to th e a g e n c y 's lo s s in th e s u i t b ro u g h t by th e N a tu ra l R e so u rc e s D e fe n s e C o u n c il (O c t. 1, P age 3) w a s a d o p te d and m ade form al by the U. S. D is tric t C ourt for the Southern D istric t o f New York in a ru lin g 'an. S. 782597 GENERAL GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY ELECTRIC /-'$ T t-foujtu. h j PRODUCT QUALITY FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 STAFF March 20, 1981 bcc: M.F. Connor J.R. Donnaile> W.R. Kruesi B.,1. MacDonald J.F. McAlliste S.P. Read Mr. Randal P. Schumacher Chemical Manufacturers Assoc. 2501 M Street N.W. Washington D.C. 20037 Dear Randy, Enclosed, as a starting point for our discussion on March 26, is a draft of a proposed communication to .be sent out from CMA to member companies, intended to promote participation in the "totally enclosed" task. Very truly yours, JSNidem Enc, cc: E. R. Baker J. W. Lewis M. Nevill A. R. Pittaway D, R. Zoll S. Nelson, Consultantct Environmental Compatibility NEL 000749 782598 CDRAFT) IN D U STRY RESPO N SE TO COURT D E C IS IO N ON PCB RULES To CMA E x e c u t i v e C o n t a c t s : The d e c is io n in E n v iro n m e n ta l D efense Fund v . E n v iro n m e n ta l P ro te c tio n Agency (79-1580) in v a lid a te d the b a s is fo r d is c rim in a tin g in e n v iro n m e n ta l r u le s betw een m a rg in a lly - d e te c ta b le tra c e s o f p o ly c h lo rin a te d b ip h e n y ls (PCBs) and p o t e n t ia lly h a rm fu l am ounts; o r betw een open d is p e r s iv e u ses fo r th e c h e m ic a ls and th o se e x is t in g p ro d u c ts r e p r e s e n tin g e n c lo s e d a p p lic a t io n s th a t th e la w a p p a r e n tly so u g h t t o a llo w . The U .S . C o u rt o f A p p e a ls f o r th e D i s t r i c t o f C olu m bia r u le d ( O c to b e r 30 19 80 ) t h a t t h e r e was i n s u f f i c i e n t b a s is in th e r e c o r d t o s u p p o r t e i t h e r E P A * s c u t o f f o f PCB c o n t r o l s a t t h e l e v e l o f 50 ppm o r it s c h a r a c te riz a tio n o f in t a c t tra n sfo rm e rs and c a p a c ito rs as " t o t a lly e n c lo s e d ." I f th e se c o n tr o l co n cep ts a re n o t r e h a b ilia te d o r re p la c e d w ith v ia b le a lt e r n a t iv e s th e e f f e c t w ill be to exten d th e T o x ic S u b sta n ce s C o n tro l A c t s t a t u t o r y ban on PCBs to c o v e r an y a p p a ra tu s t h a t may be shown to c o n ta in any tra c e o f PCBs, w ith lim it s s e t o n ly by th e s e n s it iv it y o f th e m o n ito r in g m ethod em ployed. The c o n tin u e d use o f v i r t u a l l y a l l e x is t in g pow er c a p a c ito r s and m in e r a l- o il tra n s fo rm e rs , a s w e ll as PCB - t y p e s , w o u ld be o f q u e s t io n a b le l e g a li t y , a s w ould many h y d r a u lic and .ti* .% F i< 1 :1 A 1 h e a t - t r a n s f e r e q u ip m e n ts. Any c h e m ic a l p ro ce s s th a t was accom p an ie d by th e in c id e n t a l p ro d u c tio n o f any d e te c ta b le amount o f any c h lo r in a te d b ip h e n y l w o u ld be p r o h ib it e d ( u n le s s i t w ere made th e s u b j e c t o f a s p e c ia l e x e m p tio n ). NEL 000750 782599 2- R e c o g n iz in g th e ch ao s th a t w ould e n su e , th e C o u rt has a g re e d to d e la y is s u in g any m andate th a t w ould g iv e e f f e c t to i t s d e c is io n and has a llo w e d 18 m onths f o r EPA to im p le m e n t new r u le m a k in g a c t i v i t i e s . Industry thus has the opportunity and the necessity to help in the provision of a data base and a rationale to support new rules acceptable to the court and the litigants, rules which will protect the environment without exacting an unacceptable price. To p r o v id e i t s m em bership an o p p o r t u n it y f o r m e a n in g fu l p a r t ic ip a t io n in t h e r u l e m a k i n g , CMA h a s fo r m e d a S p e c i a l P ro g ra m on P C B s . T h e S p e c i a l P ro g ram , in v o lu n t a r y c o o p e ra tio n w ith EPA, w i l l a d d re s s p r im a r ily two is s u e s : (1) th e in c id e n t a l g e n e ra tio n o f c h lo rin a te d b ip h e n y ls ; and (2 ) e l e c t r i c a l equipm ent in th e ch e m ic a l in d u s t r y , c o n ta in in g PCBs. Task (1) i s d e s c rib e d in a s e p a ra te co m m u n icatio n , and i s re g a rd e d as th e p r in c ip a l t h r u s t o f CMA*s c o n t r ib u t io n to th e r e c o r d . T a sk (2 ) i s i n it ia t e d by means o f t h is le t t e r . Task ( 2 ) : C h e m ica l In d u s try E q u ip m en t C o n ta in in g PCBs The E d is o n E le c t r ic I n s t it u t e , a lo n g w ith the N a tio n a l E le c t r ic a l M a n u fa ctu re rs A s s o c ia tio n and o th e r in d u s try in te rv e n o rs in EDF v. EPA, h a s d e s ig n e d a co m p re h e n siv e d a t a - g a t h e r in g and a n a ly t ic a l e f f o r t aim ed a t s u p p o rtin g a v ia b le d e f in it io n o f " t o t a lly e n c lo se d " e le c t r ic a l e q u ip m e n t. In c lu d e d w i l l be th e number and ty p e s o f F C B -c o n ta in in g e q u ip m e n t u se d in e l e c t r i c u t i l i t i e s , th e volum e and c o n c e n t r a tio n o f PCS in th e c o n ta in e d f lu id s , th e in c id e n c e o f le a k a g e , and in s p e c tio n p ro c e d u re s (among o th e r s u b je c t s ) . T h is s tu d y , term ed The EEI/USW AG S t u d y , i s d e s c r i b e d i n t h e C o u r t O r d e r on I n s p e c t i o n a n d M a in t e n a n c e , i6 FR 16090, a t A p p e n d ix A. 782600 NEL 000751 I t i s e n v is io n e d t h a t many o f th e f in d in g s o f th e EEI/USW AG s tu d y o f th e e le c t r ic u t i l i t y in d u s try w ill be b ro a d ly a p p lic a b le to in d u s try g e n e r a l l y , i n c l u d i n g th e c h e m ic a l i n d u s t r y . The CMA S p e c ia l P r o j e c t P a n e l on PCBs h a s d e te rm in e d t h a t , to th e e x te n t t h a t eq u ip m en t and p ro c e d u re s a r e common, e x t r a p o la t io n o f th e E E I s tu d y to th e c h e m ic a l in d u s try w i l l be a s s is te d by c o m p ilin g an in v e n to ry o f tra n sfo rm e rs and c a p a c it o r s in u s e by member c o m p a n ie s . To g u a rd a g a in s t in a p p r o p r ia t e in fe r e n c e s from th e E E I s tu d y , th e P a n e l w ill accom pany th e data su b m itte d w ith a d e s c r ip tio n o f s ig n if ic a n t d iffe re n c e s in o p e ra tin g c o n d it io n s , fre q u e n c y o f in s p e c t io n and m a in te n a n ce , and th e se v e re p e n a lt ie s a s s o c ia t e d w ith p ro c e s s shutdow n f o r ch a n g e -o u t o f eq u ip m en t. In a d d i t i o n , t h e CMA s t u d y w i l l e n c o m p a s s tw o c l a s s e s o f e q u ip m e n t n o t u s u a lly fo u n d in e l e c t r i c u t i l i t y p la n t s , nam ely h y d r a u lic a c t u a to r s and heat exchangers. Member C om panies s h o u ld u n d e rs ta n d t h a t , f o r th e d u r a t io n o f th e c o u r t- o r d e r e d s t a y s , e x is t in g EPA r u le s rem ain in e f f e c t , as su p p le m e n te d by th e in t e r im p ro c e d u re s s e t fo r t h in th e F e d e ra l R e g is t e r a r t i c l e c it e d a b o v e . A c c o r d in g ly , i t i s deemed a p p r o p r ia t e to c o lle c t th e d a ta on PCS c o n c e n tra tio n s ( e . g . , in tra n s fo rm e rs ) in a manner c o n s is t e n t w ith c u r r e n t EPA n o m e n c la tu re : a PCB f l u i d i s one c o n ta in in g 500 p a r t s p e r m illio n o r more o f a c h lo r in a t e d b ip h y e n y l; a PCB c o n ta m in a te d f l u i d o r a r t i c l e i s one c o n t a in in g 50 to 500 ppm; and th e re m a in in g c l a s s i f i c a t io n o f in t e r e s t i s t h a t b elo w 50 ppm. F o rm s f o r r e p o r t i n g t h e d a t a f o r CMA T a s k 2 a r e a t t a c h e d . We h a v e e n d e a vo re d to make t h is a s s im p le a s p o s s ib le , c o n s is t e n t w ith o u r o b je c t iv e s . I t w ill be a p p re c ia te d i f you w ill s ig n if y im m e d ia te ly y o u r co m p a n y's in t e n t io n to p a r t ic ip a t e , and f i l e y o u r r e p o r t in ad van ce o f th e due d a te , Very truly yours, 782601 NEL 000752 f PROOUCT Q UALITY STAFF G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT " March Activities Report -J. S. Nelson- Mr. J. F. McAllister - Office - A3 COPIES: A p r i l 2, 1981 REDACTED t NEL 000753 782602 GENERAL ELECTRIC -2 - REDACTED 5. PCBs With the concurrence of CEIP, EMG accepts responsibility for GE participation in CMA's Special Program on PCBs, with Hr. Nelson serving on the panel. The panel is charged with developing support for a general exclusion from the regulation of PCBs in any concentration which does not impose unreasonable risk, responding to questions posed by EPA in the ANPR on both the 50 ppm cutoff and the "totally enclosed" issues. The panel met March 26 to plan two surveys of CMA member companies addressed to these issues. JSN:dem J. S. Nelson NEL 000754 782603 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF G E N E R A L Ifp) ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT CMA Special Project on PCBs, Third Meeting, March 26, 1961 COPIES: (fu - ) W /.2 C. m :f April 3, 1981 TO: Distribution Background These notes describe the third in a series of meetings which have served to establish within the Chemical Manufacturers Association a Special Project on PCBs. CMA Special Projects are formed by member companies with a strong interest in a particular subject, and who are willing to share the expenses (e.g., consultants* fees), above those covered by CMA dues. Representatives of the companies involved form a Program Panel to direct the Project. The Program Panel of the Special Project on PCBs is charged with developing support for a general exclusion from the regulation of PCBs occurring in any concentration that does not impose unreasonable risk, and with responding to questions posed by EPA in the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on both issues created by the court's decision in the EDF case: the setting aside of the 50 ppm cutoff in the definition of what constitutes a PCB for regulatory purposes, and the setting aside of the determination that intact, non-leaking transformers and capacitors are "totally enclosed" and, as such, not covered by the ban. Project Documentation The CMA program is described in depth in a book distributed at this meeting, entitled, "The Origin and Details of CMA's PCB Project." This book was mailed to the Legal Contact in each member company; in GE's case, to E. R. Baker, Group Counsel, Engineered Materials. Additional copies are located at CEIP (R. S. Friedman), in Schenectady ,(S. P. Read) and in Columbus (T. J. Birch), as well as in this office. Copies were also sent by CMA to twenty-five other trade associations, soliciting their participation. "50 ppm" Survey Draft No. 4 was distributed of the 50 ppm survey, entitled, "Response to the * Court of Appeals For the District of Columbia to Provide Data on the Incidental Distribution, and Use of PCBs at Concentrations Below 50 ppm." Discussion indicated that this is about ready to be released. NEL 000755 782604 GENERAL . ELECTRIC - 2- "Totally Enclosed" Survey A proposed cover letter soliciting response to the totally enclosed survey was distributed by Mr. Nelson and received favorable comment. Assignments Mr. Zoll (CMA*a assistant general counsel) distributed an outline of topics to be addressed in CMA*s submission to EPA. Among the assignments made by the chairman, Ken Burgess, Dow Chemical, were the following: Narrative dissertation on PCB chemistry John Murphy, Stauffer Economic Significance of PCBs John Murphy, Stauffer Mr. Murphy requested the assistance of GE on these topics. Government regulation Zoll, CMA Analysis of the court decision Zoll, CMA Incidental byproducts issue Burgess, Dow Toxicity John Craddock, Monsanto The totally enclosed issue Pittaway, RRS and Nelson, GE Overview & Executive Summary Zoll, CMA Agreement with EPA on Industry Meeting Bill Gunter, who heads up EPA's PCB activities, joined the meeting after lunch and was brought up to date on the status of the CMA survey activity. He stated that he plans to stay abreast of what comes in on the EEI study, so the staff will be in better shape to write the rule. He was sounded out on the appropriateness of an Industry technical meeting, with EPA participation, to exchange information on PCB detection and analysis, particularly in complex streams. Gunter approved the idea, but said it would be better for CMA to issue the invitations, rather than EPA, to avoid a thirty day notice requirement. Two or three weeks after the court acts on the 50 ppm delay was considered to be an appropriate time. Proposed topics to be considered in such a meeting are attached. When asked if there were ways in which CMA could assist EPA in preparation of the ANPR, Gunter deferred to Ellen Ziegler, EPA attorney, who said "I guess we*11 have*to punt on that one." After the meeting, I asked Gunter for his views on the importance of reviewing the toxicity of PCBs. He looked away and said, "Congress settled that when they passed the law." The next meeting of the Special Project Program Panel will be at the call of the chairman. NEL 000756 JSN:dem Attach. 782605 DISTRIBUTION R. Arisman E. R. Baker T. J. Birch J. F. Brown J. T. Coe M. F. Connor J. R. Donna1ley E. W. Feuerstein R. S. Friedman A. Glassanos S. B. Hamilton W. R. Kruesi B. I. MacDonald J. F. McAllister S. P. Read E. L. Simons p NEL 000757 782606 < x o p s qJ < ~ ^ P ,Ci { * 1 OBJECTIVE 1 - Improve quantity of participation by defining why in dustry data are needed for good rule making OBJECTIVE 2 - Improve quality of participation by defining where and how to search for FCB's. OUTLINE: Intro and Def. of ANPR and Future Rulemaking Actions I. Need for Data A. Prior Rulemaking - None B. Data to Justify Any Cut-off Unreasonable Risk Criteria ` C. EPA Concerns D. EPA Expectations " What is Known About ^ 0 ppm PCB's A. Chemistry of Formation B. Processes with Potential for Generation C. Products Where Concentration May Occur Undetectable to Detectable III. How to Search for PCB's A. Analytical Methods- and Problems B. Homologues to be Expected a C. Who has Analytical Capabilities IV. Where to Search for PCB's A. What Operations B. Process Conditions for Highest Concentration C. How to "Estimate" V. Industry - EPA Problems Participation: EPA - Technical EPA - Legal (Rule Making) RRS CMA NEL 000758 782607 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT C ' iA '-:''' ' ) COPIES: J . F . M cAllister April 10, 1981 TO: . R. Baker T . J. Birch R. S. Friedman S . P. Read E. L . Simons A ttached is an advance draft of th e CMA Special Project Survey of Enclosed Use of PCB, in the Chemical In d u stry . Please call me as soon as possible if you have any changes to su g g est. Thank you. JSN :dem A ttach . NEL 000765 782608 occ: J . F . McAllister R . S .Friedman E . L. Simons E.R .Baker T .J . Birch S . P.R ead ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 /-/. y ^ PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF cc: Mr. D. Zoll ;Mr* K-* L. B u rg ess A pril 14, 1981 Mr. Alan R . Pittaw ay Regulatory Research Service 1100 17th S tre e t, N.W. W ashington, D . C . 20036 ----- Dear Alan, Thank you for "Draft 2, Survey of Enclosed Use of PCB." The definitions show improvement, but we believe further simpli fication is possible and desirable. We se e no u sefu l pu rp ose in see k in g to d istin g u ish betw een "Informed Opinion" and "Best T heoretical Estim ate." We p rop ose, in stead , a single category to be called, "Best Estimate," A suitable definition might be: B est Estimate: In the absence of definitive analytical work, a value based on knowledge of the p ro cesses, exposure to contamination, maintenance practices, known values of analogous devices, or-similar information. We also s u g g e st deletin g th e second sen tence in the definition o f "Limiting C ase," as use o f th is method does not provide more certa in ty with resp ect to the most probable value, but only with, respect to the limit. With th ese c h a n g e s, the data in question 3, p p . 2, 3, and 4 would have one le s s column and the form would appear simpler to fill o u t. You may also wish to consider providing "cells," each to hold one alpha or numeric ch ara cter, in each location on the form where th ere is now a blank to fill in . This change should make it easier for key punch operators to process the information. On page 1, we note that the word "contaminated" is misspelled (secon d line from bottom ). We also s u g g e st that each acronym in th e tex t be spelled out on the first occasion o f its use, e . g . , "Edison Electric In stitu te (EEI)" and "Utility Solid Waste A ctiv ities Group (USWAG)." f y e r y tru ly y o u r s;..........- JSN:dem J. S. Nelson f NEL 000766 782609 `'Vt/C 'J'ji.ii --i.-*.-1>*..-'IS--vX.*-V-->---;..-:---'-:i *j J% S r:iz-Z--s--. - ~' '*--S-.-e. ii*.;. -. -*7 ;. : * - ` -' TV . T> -sc r~ ^ l^ r v l :..-;'.-../;- _r; -.* .;- . 'v - -*"-.--.. .* -.. .-'z:*-*"""***' "*: -r--v*_"Vr'v**>r-~i '^r-.-.. -`--'". . r .* " ;;-. ` -*-, - '**7' ..T-, - : -v2.' --- . *->i - *' Draft 2 -.'S: '' ..*;; --, '*''* *' ST7RVEY OF ENCLOSED USE OF PCB ~j;'-- J/ ir; * -V*.:-r_r.%,-;` "* 1 ^ ffl oroo <1 OS REGULATORY RESEARCH SERVICE A DIVISION O F TH E KIFtSCHNEFt ORGANIZATION 782610 REGULATORY RESEARCH SERVICE GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SURVEY OF ENCLOSED USE OF PCS IN TEE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY NOTE: * THIS SURVEY DOES NOT REQUIRE YOU TO PERFORM ANY ANALYTICAL TESTING! RESPONSES CAN BE MADE USING CURRENTLY AVAILABLE INFORMATION. GENERAL INFORMATION AND ORGANIZATION OF TEE SURVEY The Edison Electric Institute, along with the National Electrical Manufacturers Association and other industry interveners in Environmental Defense Fund vs. the Environmental Protection Agency, has designed a comprehensive data-gathering and analytical effort aimed at supporting a viable definition of "totally enclosed" electrical equipment. The study is limited to electric utility companies and will include: the number and types of PCS-containing equipment, the volume and concentration of PCS in the contained fluids, the incidence of leakage, and inspection procedures (among other subjects). This study, termed the EEI/USWAG Study, is described in Court Order on Inspection and Maintenance, 46 FR 16090, at Appendix A. It is envisioned that many of the findings of the EEI/USWAG study of the electric utility industry will be broadly applicable to industry generally, including the chemical industry. The OiA Special Project Panel on PC3s has determined that, to the extent that equipment and procedures are common, extrapolation of the EEI study to the chemical . industry will be assisted by compiling an inventory of transformers and capacitors in use by member companies. To guard against inapproriate inferences from the ESI study, the Panel will accompany the data submitted with a description of significant differences in operating conditions, frequency of inspection and maintenance, and the severe penalties associ ated with process shutdown for change-out of equipment. In addition, the CMA study will encompass two classes of equipment not usually found in electric utility plants, namely, hydraulic actuators and heat exchangers. Member companies should understand that, for the duration of the court-ordered stays, existing EPA rules remain in effect, as supplemented by the. interim procedures set forth in the Federal Register article cited above. Accordingly, it is deemed appropriate to collect the data cn PC3 concentrations (e.g., in transformers) in a manner consistent with current EPA nomenclature: a PCS fluid is one containing 500 parts per i-illion or more of a chlorinated biphenyl; a PCB contaiminated fluid or article is one containing 50 to 500 ppm; and the remaining classification of interest is that below 50 ppm. 782611 NEL 000768 REGULATORY RESEARCH SERVICE Enclosed is a three-page survey for reporting quantity information on totally enclosed use of p c b fluids, in these three concentration ranees, in equipment in your firm* No questions are asked about any other aspect of use except the quantity of PCB in the equipment. CMA will address other aspects of use with separately prepared discussions using information already available. REPORTING BY SUBSIDIARY AND PARENT COMPANIES Tliis survey is being mailed to all organizations who are members of the Chemical Manufacturers Association, and may be mailed to organiza tions who are members of other associations but not CMA. This approach will mean that two organizations within a parent company may receive Questionnaires Before returning your questionnaire, please be sure that the responses are not duplicated in responses made by another part of the parent firm. I D E N T U Y I N G INFORMATION AND RETURN OF COMPLETED FORMS All responses to this totally enclosed survey are confidential and are covered by the Confidentiality Agreement enclosed separately. You nay enclose your responses to the enclosed use survey with your responses to the incidental generation survey, or return them separately. In either event, please remove the survey sheets from this package, together with the transmittal cover sheet preceeding then (pages 1 through 5), and return all pages as a set. We ask that you identify your firm on the transmittal sheet and provide the name and phone number of a person to call, if the RRS has-a problem in processing your responses. On receipt of your response, we will review the forms submitted. If there axe no problems in proces sing the forms, or after a follow-up phone call, we will separate this cover sheet from the forms, thus effectively preventing any possibility of future identification o f `data with source. SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS The instructions and applicable definitions are on the transmittal sheet and the response sheets. Please feel free to call Alan Pittaway of RRS ar (202) 862-9410 for any further guidance or information you may desire. ALL RESPONSES ARE DUE NOT LATER THAN 782612 NEL 000769 rzm hjmei ^KAaSMITTXl SHEET tinvn or scicizD u si or rc* PEMCK TO CALLi TEIXPHOHE HUHIEXi ( ) PLEASE TURN THIS SURVEY 3 STORE . to th at R egulatory Research S c rrlc i sale 00 1100 - 17th StTM Ci H .S. tia a h ln g to a * D.C. 20036 pglW ITIOHS fo r tills survey* c r i t i c a l t t n i i r i d efin ed as follow * i Enclosed Tsai F l u i d c o n t a i n e r s y s te m which e x c l u d e s t h e a m b ie n t e n v ir o n m e n t s a d ht&nsn g s a u r in d e x n o r u l c o n d itio n s ( a .g . m in e ra l-o il tra n sfo rm ers sad power c a p a c ito rs ). C o n c e n tra tio n E stim a tio n M ethods f e r Q u estio n 3 * o A n al^ie^jfeth o d ji SC/ECt Sas c h ro m a to g ra p h y /e le c tro n c a p tu re GC/MSi Sas c h ro a a to g rs p n y /o B B e s p e c tu m e tr y o Inform ed O o in ic a i In d ie s ns e c o n c e n tra tio n sa c im a te a e ra Jaown w ith l e s s c e r ta in ty * th a n p ro v id ed by a n a l y t i c a l s t u d i e s , b u t a r e b s s a d o a soda J e io v ie d g e I a .g . A n a ly tic w ork i s l i m i t e d , method i s la s s p r e c is e ) . o r t h a t a n a ly s is has n o t shown c o n c e n tra tio n a t d se a c ta b la l e v e l s b u t i t l a r e a s o n a b l e t o assum e t h a t t h e r e c a y be PCS a t a o a e c o n c e n t r a t i o n below th a t H a l t . n 5a i T h e o re tic a l E stim ate; U sed when a re v ie w w o u ld i n d i c a t e t h a t PCS c o u ld be p r e s e n t b u t t h e e s t i m a t e o f c o n c e n tr a tio n i s b ased on th e o r e t i c a l e s tim a te s o r ' good g u e s s e s .* Im p lie s no a n a l y tic a l work) e stim a te i s l e s s c e r ta in th a n 'in fo rm e d o p in io n ." o L im iting Caeet i n a l t e r n a t i v e m eth o d o f e s t i m a t i n g c o n c e n t r a t i o n . w n ic b i s y o u r e s t i m a t e o f t h e maximum c o n c e n t r a t i o n o f PCS t h a t w ou ld be p r e s e n t . T h is m eth o d p r o v i d e s m ore c e r t a i n t y th a n Inform ed opinion" o r " b e st th e o re tic a l e s tim a te ." o E ther: 71eaae anew any o th e r m ethod u sed to e s tim a te c o n c e n tr a tio n , such as an a n a ly tic m etnod e t h e r th a n SC/EC o r GC/ttS* a t e . * NEL 000770 - 1- 782613 eCLQSE= u s i c r pc b survey t . E gpspm >~ c=:.Ta.:vTs-e; so to soo ^ c r t h i s ? a s p a n s * s h o s t . f i v a i n f o r m a t io n o n l y o n 7 u - F o e n t w r .im c e n t a i n a D o ra th a n 50 b u t l a s s t h a n 50 ppm PC3 e o a e a n u tu o n . TO R r Q U l W E T T C U S S i r i n A S " 5 0 t o SOO p e n . * I N D IC A T E K U U E X o r I 5 S I P M K T - T E A S AHO T O T A L C C A N T IT T or n = :s :h each or the renew ingi G iv e p o u r a n a w a r In p o u n d s . I f y o u r d a ta i s a v a ila h la o n ly in f a l l e n s , in d le a ta a ith a r (11 s p e c i f ic g r a v ity o r ( 2 ) d e n s ity an p o u n d s p a r f a l l e n . T rans io m a r l a) (a c tiv a ) T ra n s!o ra sti s ) (in a c tiv a ) 55 g a l l o n d r m ( t ) trab ar of U n its T o ta l rlu id C o n ta r t o A i l ..-.iti r lu id C o n ta n t in L bs. o r G a ls. 'C h a c a O n s 1 lb s . fa is . n M M I f f a llo n s (1 ) S p a c iilc S rs v ltv chachad, flv a t o r (2 ) D a n sity (lb * ./c a l.) C a p a c ito r!s ) S w itc h f i a r l a ) H y d r a u l i c S y i t a a l s) H ast D tc h a a fa r(s) O char (a p a e ify ) ri nM 1" nM Ci E S C I P K S T S I T E C * 5 0 t o 5 0 0 o c a * C A T E G O R Y , WBAT I S TH E A V ER A G E PCX CO NC ENTR A n o r o t outs o r the r o n c u g c i ,I f t h s a v e r a g e c o r* c a n t r a t i o n l a v a l a r i a s p r o v i d e t h e w e i g h t e d v e r s o s c o n c e n t r a t i o n i n M M . w h i c h c a n b e uaad w is h t h e t o t a l q u a n ti t y o f f l u i d ( r e p o r te d a b o v e ) t o c a l c u l a t e PCS p o u n d a g e . PCS C c n c e n t r a t I o n L a v a l T ra n sfo rm a rla ) ( a c tiv a ) T ran s fe m a r ( ) (in a c tiv a ) 55 c a ll n d n r a l s l * P ppa C s p a e ito r(s ) S w itc h f a a r ( s ) K v d ra u lie S y s ta n ls ) JP P i ppa H eat E x ch an aar(a) C th e r ! s p e c ify ) -- ? ppn TTB TACK TTPS o r rSCITHENT IN t e s * 50 t t 333 t e c * CACECCR, p l a a s a Show t h a t a t i o d .u s e d t o d t t a r r u n * th e c o n c e n tra tio n o f SCI in th a f lu i d c o n ta n ts . la asen a p p ro p ria ta c a l l o f cha fo llo w in g ta b la w rita t r a p e r c e n t a g e o f t h e t o t a l f l u i d c o n ta r.t (fro m c u e s t i n 1) wr.oaa PCS c o n c e n t r a t i o n was d e te r m in a d by t h a e e s t ir a r i o n n s t r . o d . A d e f i n i t i o n o f e a c h s e n s s u r t a t i or. e s t e s a t i on nao.nod i s en p a o s 1. T ra n s f o n a r <s ) ( a c t iv a ) T ra n sfo rm a r!i) (In a c tiv a ) 5 f a l l e n d r m ( s ) C a p a c ito r!s] S w itc h f a a r ( s ) H y d ra u lic S y stem * s) H ast C h a n g e r! s) O th e r ( s o a c ify ) ! 3 ) n fo rn a d la )l a s t IS itim itin g I l 1 )G C /T C l2 1 G T 'K T ! C r i r . i c r . ! 1 s t . I C a a a le iO th a r t 11 1 %l %l 111 1 %l %l i %i i i 1 1 1 M 5 a % 111 1 %l il i i 1 I a t 11l 1w M i *i 1 M % % 11 1 1M M i i l 1 i 1 1 11 i1 %l i1 5 1 1 il %l %i %l % % 11I M i1 M \ 1 (S o e e ify ) T o ta l 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% NEL 000771 782614 r e g u la t o r y r esea r c h ser vic e comrs-r Z? YOU HAVC AHY COKM dTtS) ABOUT THIS SUHVCY. OK THI TOPIC 3NSEX OI5CUSSIOH. PLEASE u s e 7I SPACE BELOW. f - S- 782615 NEL 000772 tr .. r.,:itfOr^W;-xu *)' ,- .--r, * . z *7V ^ v ;;': ' \ > '*"*l**.^*ymf*m/:w,mi *,* SURV5 OF ENCLOSED USE OF F C B y g ; . V." :.*&&. -T* "' REGULATORY RESEARCH SERVICE A DIVISION OF THE KIRSCHNEH ORGANIZATION 2 cn r* ooo -J vo 782616 GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SURVEY OF ENCLOSED USE OF PCB IN THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY NOTE: THIS SURVEY DOES NOT REQUIRE YOU TO PERFORM ANY ANALYTICAL I TESTING ! RESPONSES CAN BE MADE USING CURRENTLY AVAILABLE | INFORMATION. 1 GENERAL INFORMATION AND ORGANIZATION OF THE SURVEY The Edison Electric Institute, along with the National Electrical Manufacturers Association and other industry interveners in Environmental Defense Fund vs. the Environmental Protection Agency, has designed a comprehensive data-gathering and analytical effort aimed at supporting a viable definition of "totally enclosed" electrical equipment. The study is l o t t e d to electric utility companies and will include: the number and types of PCB-containing equipment, the volume and concentration of PCS in the contained fluids, the incidence of leakage, and inspection procedures (among other subjects). This study, termed the ESI/USWAG Study, is described in Court Order on Inspection and Maintenance, 46 FR 16090, at Appendix A. It is envisioned that many of the findings of the EEI/USWAG study of the electric utility industry will be broadly applicable to industry generally, including the chemical industry. The Q1A Special Project Panel on PCBs has determined that, to the extent that equipment and procedures are common, extrapolation of the EEI study to the chemical industry will be assisted by compiling an inventory of transformers and .capacitors in use by member companies To guard against inapprorlate inferences from the EEI study, the Panel will accompany the data submitted with a description of significant differences in operating conditions, frequency of inspection and maintenance, and the severe penalties associ ated with process shutdown for chaxige-out of equipment. In addition, the CMA study will encompass two classes of equipment not usually found in electric utility plants, namely, hydraulic actuators and heat exchangers. Member companies should understand that, for the duration of the court-ordered stays, existing'EPA rules remain in effect, as supplemented by the interim procedures set forth in the Federal Register article cited above. Accordingly, it is deemed appropriate to collect the data on PCB concentrations (e.g., in transformers) in a manner consistent with current EPA nomenclature: a PCB fluid is one containing 500 parts per million or more of a chlorinated biphenyl; a PCB contaiminated fluid or article is one containing 50 to 500 ppm; and the remaining classification of interest is that below 50 ppm. NEL 000760 782617 Enclosed is a three-page survey for reporting quantity information on totally enclosed use of PCB fluids, in these three concentration ranges, in equipment in your firm. No questions are asked about any other aspect of use except the quantity of PCB in the equipment. OIA will address other aspects of use with separably prepared descriptions using information already available. REPORTING BY SUBSIDIARY AND PARENT COMPANIES This survey is being mailed to all organizations who are members of the Chemical Manufacturers Association, and may be mailed to organiza tions who are members of other associations but not CMA. This approach will mean that two organizations within a parent company may receive questionnaires. Before returning your questionnaire, please be sure that the responses are not duplicated in responses made by another part of the parent firm. IDENTIFYING INFORMATION AND RETURN OF COMPLETED FORMS All responses to this totally enclosed survey are confidential and are covered by the Confidentiality Agreement enclosed separately. You may enclose your responses to the enclosed use survey with your responses to the incidental generation survey, or return them separately. In either event, please remove the survey sheets from this package, together with the transmittal cover sheet preceeding them (pages 1 through 5), and return all pages as a set. We ask that you identify your firm on the transmittal sheet and provide the name and phone number of a person to call, if the RRS has a problem in processing your responses. On receipt of your response, we will review the forms submitted. If there are no problems in proces sing the forms, or after a follow-up phone call, we will separate this cover sheet from the forms, thus effectively preventing any possibility of future identification of data with source. SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS The instructions and applicable definitions are on the transmittal sheet and the response sheets. Please feel free to call Alan Pittaway of RRS at (202) 862-9410 for any further guidance or information you may desire. ALL RESPONSES ARE DUE NOT LATER THAN 782618 NEL 000761 FIRM NAME: transmittal sheet SURVEY OF ENCLOSED USE OF PCB PERSON TO CALL: TELEPHONE NUMBER: ( ) _______ PLEASE RETURN THIS SURVEY BEFORE DEFINITIONS For this survey, critical terns are defined as follows: Enclosed Use Fluid container system which excludes the ambient environment and human contact under normal conditions (e.g. mineral-oil transformers and power capacitors). Analytic Methods GC/EC: Gas chromatography/electron capture GC/MC: Gas chromatography/mass spectometry Informed Opinion Indicates estimates are known with less certainty/ but are based on some knowledge (e.g. analytic work is limited/ method is less precise). Analysis has not. shown concentration at detectable levels but' it is reasonable to assume that there may be PCB at some concentration below that limit. Best Estimate/ 3est Theoretical Es+*mate Used when a review would indicate- that PCB could be present. Estimate of poundage is based on theoretical estimates or "good guesses." Implies no analytical work; estimate is less certain than "informed opinion." Limiting Case An alternative method of estimating poundage. Your estimate of the maximum amount of PCB that would be present; the maximum expected quantity. This method provides more certainty than "informed opinion" or "best estimate." NEL 000762 - 1- 762619 c 'closed use o r p cs survey Tor tf .ii ru p o n ia a h e e t. glv* b. is u :_pmekt costatv- ng: so to sap ppm 5-0 to i.- .f o r o i= i r ' o n ly on q \ u p a i n t w h ich r n n " i n i .................... A , Ti) ppn PCS eoncen m e l o n . 1 . FTR EQUIPMENT CLASSIFIED AS ' SO -3 500 a e a .* INDICATE NUMBER OF ECCIPMZNT ITEMS AND TOTAL JUANTITT o r FI.VIC IN EACH o r THE rCLLCWINS: 1Oivc your u i M C in pound If your at La a v a ila b le on ly in g a llo n * indieaea e ith e r (1) p a c ific g ra v ity o r ( i t d e n sity in pound p ar g a llo n . Transform er!a) (activ e) Transform er!a) (in activ e) SS g a l l o n d r u a ( a ) Number of U nita T otal Fluid C ontent of A ll U nita Fluid C ontent in Lba. o r G ala. (Cheek One) lb . g al. Ci I~l Q If gallona checked, give: (1) S p e c ific or (3) D ensity G ravity flb e ./g a l.) C apacitor!a) Sw itch g e a r(a ) H ydraulic System !a) Heat E xchanger(a) C thar (a p e cify ) Q fl Qn Q l~! 3 . TOR S3U IW EIT IN THE " SO t o 500 b p s CATEGORY, WHAT IS THE AVERAGE PCS CONCENTRATION TOR EACH CT THE FOILOWXNGi IS ch a a v a r a g a concentration l e v e l v a r i a s , p r o v id e t h e w e ig h te d a v e r a g e c o n c e n t r a t i o n l a PPH, w h ich c a n b e u s e d w ith th e t o t a l q u a n t i t y o f f l u i d ( r e p o r t e d a b o v e ) t o c a l c u l a t e PCS p o tm d a g e . PCS C o n c e n tr a tio n L e v e l Transform er( a) (activ e) Pm T ranafcrm er(s) (in activ e) pm SS g a llo n d r u a ( s ) pm C apacitor!a) pm Sw itch g e a r(a ) __ pm H ydraulic System !a) pm Heat Exchanger!a) eth er ( oecif7 ) pm 3 . TZ?. EACH TYPE IF ETTI SHEET IN THE ` ST t o SQO ? c = ` CATEGORY, p l e a a e lhow th e m ethod u ed to e t e r n i n e th e c s n e e n t r a t l a n c f PC3 m th e f l u i d c o n te n t * Ln e a c h a p p r o p r i a t e c e l l o f t h e f o llo w in g t a b l e w r i t e th e p e r c e n ta g e z i t.-.e t o t a l f l u i d i n t e n t ( i r o n q u e a n on 1i v n o ae PCS s c n c e n t r a t i o n w d e te rm in e d by t h a t s t i r a t i on n e tn o d . A d e f in itio n o f each c o n c a n tra tis n a i t i s a t i o n n ethod 1 on page 1. T rin a i om ert) (active) Tranfom er( a) (in a c tiv e ) 55 g a lle n d r a d ) C a p a c ito r!a) Switch gear!a) Hydraulic Syrceat a 1 Heat Exchanger!) Cther ( sp e cify ) 3)2aism ad * ;2 ir 15)Lim^ir.g 11-C-C/EC121GC/MCI Cnr.icr* l S '. I Cai iGIOther 11 1 I vl V v| V1 V 11 1 vl I V vl V1 V 11 1 vl v| V vl V1 V 11 VI V vl V1 V 11 1 ! 1 vl V vl V V i1 1 1 VI V vl V1 V 11 1M vl V v| V1 V I1 v[ V ____v| V1 V Sseeiv) Total 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 - 3- NEL 000763 782620 IT 1(00 HAVE AKY COttHENTfS) ABOUT THIS SURVEY, CR THE TOPIC CVEER DISCUSSION, PLEASE USE. TH r SPACE BELOW. - S- 782621 NEL 000764 ,, 0892Q PROOUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL i p ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N E C TIC U T 06431 SUBJECT April Activities Report J. S. Nelson - COPIES: May J|, 1981 Mr. J. F. McAllister - Office - IV. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY (J. S. Nelson) 1. PCBs On May 1, CMA held an information meeting for member companies to explain CMA*s information - gathering activities in connection with the new regulatory program necessitated by the EDF case. Approximately 100 attended and good questions were asked.* 2. Insulating feterials & Dielectric Conference As requested, Mr. Nelson has supplied a topic-sentence description of a talk on Materials Evaluation as Influenced by Regulation, for a conference slated for May 18 in Schenectady. REDACTED JSN:dem * GE was represented on the panel by Susan Read, filling in for J. S. Nelson. NEL 000773 782622 PHOOUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERALI IELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287 37 < y - 0 - 6 6 J) COPIES: J- P* McAllister May 5, 1981 Dr. J. R. Donnalley, Jr. E 3A Dear Jim Thank you for sending me a copy o`f the NEMA statement on products that may contain PCB. Several years ago, in answer to an inquiry from Industrial Sales Division, I prepared a memorandum on the same subject, with respect to GE products. While basically consistent with the NEMA document, it contains enough more detail that it might constitute useful background for some on your staff. I presume that tap changers and circuit breakers appear on the NEMA list because of possible contamination. My own list con cerned only deliberate applications of PCB. I have no personal knowledge of "sealing compounds for electrical apparatus" that contain PCB, but don't question that PCB may have appeared as a plasticizer in various sealants and coatings. Very truly yours, V JSN:dem Enc. NEL 000774 782623 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF FAIRFIELD, C O N N ECTICU T 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287 COPIES: May 26, 1981 R. S . Friedman CEIP W2I Dear Bob: A fter your r ecen t v is it to the archives of HEW, you spoke of finding our letter su g g estin g changes to permit the continued use of FCB capacitors and transform ers in certain applications in food processing plants and you exp ressed in terest in how decisions for such filings were b ein g made in 1972, While it would be difficult at th is date to reconstruct the precise sequence of approvals, the list of "blind copies" on the attached copy of the subject le tte r should se r v e to indicate who was presum ably a party to the recommendations made. Very truly yours JSN : dem NEL 000775 782624 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL | p ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT May Activities Report - J. 5. Nelson - Mr. J. F. McAllister - Office - COPIES: May 29, 1981 REDACTED !f iJ. NEL 000776 782625 GENERAL ELECTRIC -2- REDACTED 5. PCB3 It was learned at the May 28 meeting of CMA's Panel oh PCBS that sixty member firms have already responded to the invitation to participate in surveys designed to provide a data base for EPA's rulemaking necessitated by the EDF case decision. Forty-four have agreed to participate in the "incidential generation" survey and thirty-five in the "totally enclosed" survey. This activity could take on added significance in view of indications that the EEI program it was, in part, intended to supplement, is not off to a good start. REDACTED Ij JSN:dera NEL 000777 782626 GENERAL GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 f- Hi. i PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF June 8, 1981 bcc: J. F. Brown J. F . McAllistei S. B. Hamilton G lo ria H. Sodaro, Esq. C h e m ica l M a n u fa c tu re rs A sso c. 2501 M S t r e e t N.W. W a sh in g to n , D. C. 20037 RE: Round-robin PCB Measurements Dear Gloria, In our telephone conversation on June 1, you mentioned that you are exploring the willingness of panelists1 companies to participate in a round-robin analysis of the PCB content of still bottoms. It occurs to us that you may encounter some reluctance to play a "no win garae"-- that is, there could be a tendency to regard diversity of results as a limitation of competence or motivation on the part of participating companies, rather than as an illustration of the scientific uncertainty that would furnish technical justification for a cut-off in rulemaking. Fortunately for our purpose, the records of the New York State Department of Conservation document a series of round-robins on PCB analysis, during 1979 and 1980, 'using diverse matrices, and with independent participants whose motivation toward good results was unimpeachable. A New York D.E.C. report of the results is enclosed. ? The results show a great degree of scatter. PCB is found where there was none, and missed where it was spiked in. There seems to be special difficulty in measuring the lower-chlorinated fractions, which are of interest as inadvertent byproducts in some commercial chemical processes. For example, in 1980 six out of ten participating laboratories missed finding Aroclor 12 2 1 present at a reference level of 0.56 pprn and one laboratory even missed it in hexane (a sample that can be injected directly in the gas chromatograph without prior processing). NEL 000778 782627 GENERAL ELECTRIC -2- Inquiries at our research center have failed to produce strong candidates for the role of consultant to the analytical project. Most frequently mentioned were the authors of the Chemical Rubber Company book, whom I am sure are already under consideration: Hutzinger, Safe, and Zitko. Also, it has been suggested that the editor of Analytical Chemistry, George Morrison (Cornell) could recommend someone. Very truly yours, JSN:dem /Enc. cc: Susan P. Read Dr. Thomas A. Robinson Director, Environmental Affairs Vulcan Materials Company P. 0 . Box 12283 Wichita, KS 67277 x$-r-'/S. Nelson f NEL 000779 782628 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT %June Activities Report Mr. J. F. McAllister -Office- ( o a - -/F COPIES: July 2, 1981 Redacted 2. FB The Chemical Manufacturers Association was furnished a summary report on a New York State Department of Conservation round-robin study of PCB analysis, to illustrate one of the constraints involved in current EPA consideration of lower limits on PC3 ' contamination. At the July 1 meeting of CMA's Special Program on PCBs, all except GE voted to engage consultants to review and comment upon Monsanto and GE toxicology studies. GE (CEIP) would have preferred a broader charge to the consultants -- to review all the literature and generate an overview paper of their own. REDACTED NEL 000780 JSN:em 782629 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF GENERAL ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT 8*229-2287 COPIES: j. f . M cA llister July 6, 1981 R. S. Friedman CEIP W2I Dear Bob: In answer to your recent request, attached is a summary of the use of PCB in GE products and processes, made from Monsanto's records of shipments to GE locations and GE customers in 1968, before usage patterns had been significantly affected by environmental considerations or regulation. Appended to this study is the raw data statement from Monsanto, showing shipments to or on behalf of GE. Note that most of the Monsanto shipments to locations other than cities where we had transformer or capacitor plants refer to transformer fluid, GE specification A13B3B, approximately 45% Aroclor 1260 and 55% a mixture of trichlorinated benzene and tetrachlorinated benzene; (Three years later, the Aroclor 1260 was abandoned in favor of Aroclor 1254, and capacitor dielectric based on MCS 1016 was substituted for Aroclor 1242.) Very truly yours, \ JSNrdem Attachment NEL 000781 782630 GENERAL GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF rf4 ju fr t.> r Ju ly 14, 1981 D r. Thomas A. Robinson D irector, Environmental A ffairs Vulcan Materials Company P. O. Box 12283 Wichita, KS 67277 RE: NYS PCB Round Robin Dear Tom, At the last PCB Panel Meeting, you inquired about the back-up data for the round-robin reports I sent you and Gloria Sodaro with my note of Ju n e 8. I am informed that the rep orts we sent are all that we have received at GE. It is suggested that you request any further information needed from James C . D aly, Environmental Health C enter, Division of Laboratories and R esearch , New Y ork State Department of Health, telephone (518) 474-7999. Very truly yours JSN idem cc: Gloria M. Sodaro, E s q ., CMA bcc: J . F. McAllister S . B . Hamilton J . F. Brown NEL 000782 782631 PRODUCT Q UALITY STAFF GENERAL! IELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT I------- 7- ------------- * HUMAN HEALTH EFFECTS OF ELECTRICAL-GRADE PCB's J3 '' t n JV CjLu/vi(e) COPIES: J. F. Brown J. F. McAllister July 17, 1981 Mr. J.T. Coe ElA F a irfie ld Dear J e r r y , I have carefully read the excellent June draft of the subject paper; surely, it must be very close to the final document desired. The message comes through clearly without adversarial tone. Despite the notation that "this paper has been prepared for use within the General Electric Company" I consider that it would be most appropriate for use with the toxicology subcommittee of the CMA PCB Panel, to help mold that group's submission to EPA and the court. As you complete the final editing, you may wish to consider the following suggestions: 1. Executive Summary. Page 1, J 5, treat "data" as plural and change "indicates" to "indicate." Last paragraph, change "have" to "has." Page 2, change 1000 to 2000 (for the reason stated below in discussing IV). In the last sentence, delete "their" to indicate that these subjects are of concern also to G.E. 2. Health Effects, j 2: For the non-specialist reader (manager) a little additional explanation of microsomal enzymes and oxidases would be helpful, as given in John Brown's presentation of this subject to Mr. Jones, March 24, 1980. Thus, the second paragraph on page 10 might appear as follows: When increasing doses of PCB's are administered to animals the first observable effect is the induction of the microsomal enzymes variously known as "drug metabolizing" or "detoxification" enzymes, or as "mixed function" (i.e., chemically non-specific) oxidases. These enzymes catalyze chemical processes by which the animal's body seeks to convert lipid-soluble foreign chemicals into water-soluble substances excretable in the urine. Such effects may be induced by many substances, and are generally regarded as physiological regulatory processes rather than pathological. At page 12, first paragraph, reference 46 is cited. This reference could be expanded as follows: "...and similar comments addressed to the Interagency Research Liaison Group, Nov. 28, 1979( and to the EPA, February 21, 1980." ? NEL 000783 782632 G E N E R A L i- E L E C T R I C -2- .3 . Cllnioal Studies of Capacitor Workers. On page 1U4, the range of inhalation exposure is described as "in the 10 0 to 10 0 0 /Li gg//mm3 raann,ge." 0. G. White has shown ("In-Plant Residual Levels of Polychlorinated Biphenyls," General Electric Health Conference, Washington, D.C., October 31 1978) several instances of much higher exposure at Fort Edward, in 1975: CEB Crimp Station (Right) CEB (Accumulation) Carousel #1 (Oper. Pos.) Carousel #1 (Tilt) 1560 1590 1920 2000 If these data are considered reliable and consistent with your other sources, they furnish justification for speaking of the range as "100 to 2000 /Li g/m 3 . If you elect to make this change, correction should be made on page 2 and page 19, where the range is also given. In the same paragraph on page 14, it is suggested that "around 1971" be changed to "in 1971," as the date is recorded in Capacitor Products Department documents as October, 1971* On page 16, third paragraph, it might be well to record what dividing line is used to separate "lower homologs" from "higher homologs." Very truly yours, J5N:dem NEL 000784 782633 G E N E R A L ELECTRIC GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 PRODUCT QUALITY STAFF (,G Dr. Kenneth L. Burgess, Director Chemical Plant Regulation The Dow Chemical Company 18 0 3 Building Midland, MI 48640 August 4, 19 8 I bcc: J. F. Donnai: S. P. Read S. B. Hamiltc M. P. S c a T b e J. T. Coe L. J. Utzig E. R. Baker C9-/J?- RE: Totally Enclosed Uses Issue Dear Ken, I am writing to acquaint you with the results of our task group meeting on Totally Enclosed Uses, July 30 at CMA headquarters and to give the others who were present a chance to correct any inaccuracies. I shall be pleased to report on the substance of this memorandum at the meeting of the full PCS Panel on August 13, if you think it appropriate. Attachment I contains an agenda prepared by CMA staff. Attachment II, distributed by Gunter of EPA when he visited the Panel on March 26, is included as a reminder of what he said EPA wants to learn about the totally-enclosed issue. The Task Group recommends that its final report include the following elements: 1. Results of Survey of "Totally Enclosed" Apparatus. Results are expected from Alan Pittaway in early October. 2. Explanation of Special Considerations and Cost Factors pertaining to use of totally enclosed equipment in the chemical industry: 2.1 General In-plant Protection Against Chemical Hazards Drafting responsibility: PPG (Steinberg) -- jc< '*. C '' Familiarity with good practices, codes 4 regulations ij Availability of trained personnel accustomed to SPCC plans Location of PCB-containing equipment within controlled areas Provision for damage control, spill containment, 4 personnel protection n e l 000785 782634 general electric -2 - 2 .2 Chemical Plant Equipment Specifications Drafting responsibility: Dow (Nevill) and committee he will form with participation of three chemical manufacturers utilizing personnel with experience in plant electrical equipment; hereinafter designated the "electrical team." The role of special corrosion protection finishes and wall thickness requirements (etc.) in preventing PCB leaks 2.3 Chemical Plant Electrical System Considerations Reliance upon integrity of circuit elements rather than alternative electrical supplies for staying "on line" Effect of the chemical industry practice of maintaining electrical loads at or below equipment ratings upon leak/rupture rates 2 -^ Chemical Plant Inspection and Maintenance Practices Drafting responsibility: Electrical Team Non-statutory business incentives for frequent inspection and timely maintenance Emphasis on reliability and avoidance of down-time Preventive maintenance and frequency of"walk-around" and comprehensive inspections Feasibility and Economic Impact of Equipment Phase-out Drafting responsibility: Electrical Team "Natural" phase-out due to cessation of PCB production Economic burden of any forced phase-out program: special considerations in the chemical plant - delays in receiving equipment built to custom specs - equipment access problems Costs and hazards of disposal Availability of non-PCB apparatus on a timely basis in the quantities required for an industry-wide forced phase-out program Economic feasibility of large-scale retrofit or clean-up proposals - quantities of contaminated or hazardous waste NEL 000786 782635 G E N E R A L ELECTRIC -3- 3. `Evaluation of the Exposure potential from Leaks and Ruptures This section is conceived as containing a summary of the leakage experience with PCB transformers and capacitors in the chemical industry, extrapolated from the survey results (SI). From these results, an estimate of the exposure of people and the environment to PCBs is to be prepared. Factors such as vapor pressure, concentration of PCB in the leaking fluid, ventilation (indoor or outdoor), prevailing temperatures, route of exposure etc., are to be considered. If practicable, the exposure calculation should be supported with air samples taken in the vicinity of various leaking transformers.The resulting exposure calculation is then to be evaluated in terms of the findings of the Task Group on Toxicity and Epidemiology. If; as we anticipate, this exercise supports the conclusion that there is "no significant risk," it should enable EPA to exit from its former position that any exposure to PCBs is significant, thus paving the way for a viable regulatory interpretation of "totally enclosed" uses. Drafting responsibility: to be assigned. The Task Group'considered the suggestion that an outside expert be engaged to perform the task described above, and concluded that it may be more feasible to assemble the requisite knowledge from within panel-member companies. This approach is to be further explored. Hike Nevill has set a goal for the Electrical Team of producing a review draft by the middle of October. Similar timing for task S3 would be appropriate, considering the due date of December 7 for delivery to EPA. Very truly yours, NEL 000787 J5N':dem Attach. cc: Frederick W. Steinberg Michael Nevill Kurt Sanford David F. Zoll Robert Fensterheim 782636 A i Cn M N T CHEMICAL MANUFACTURERS ASSOCIATION Notice of Meeting of the PCB Totally Enclosed Uses Task Group Date: -July 30, 1981 Time: 10:00 a.m. P l a c e : T e c h n i c a l C o n f e r e n c e Room Agenda 1.0 Identification of issues (Principal source material July 1 Draft Legal Memorandum) 2.0 Determination of which issues to include in . CMA submission 3.0 Discuss Who will address these issues; what data can be provided to EPA /* NEL 000788 Form erly M anufacturing C h em ists A s s o cia tio n -- Serving tne C h e m ica l Industry S in ce 1872. 782637 A TTA C H M ENT IX Totally Enclosed Uses I . What EPA Knows A. Transformers and Capacitors - a Fresh Look 1. Can anything be totally enclosed? 2. The damn things really do leak. a. Our previous reliance on legislative history b. Does GSA represent the universe? c. EEI survey B. Other Equipment not Previously Addressed - IX. What EPA Wants To Learn A. Is Electric Utility Experience Universal? (Z~w% ( ixr^ ,vjl, B. 50 ppm Cutoff ' U ^- C. How Soon, Oh Lord? ?cra/JLu3t^ ^ O jji ^ x X i C V ^srtz^U .-. V, -A f & o e ^ ` , NEL 000789 782638 P R O D U C T Q U A L IT Y S T A F F G E N E R A L ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT July Activities Report -J. S. Nelson- Mr. L. J. Utzig -Office- *. UU I COPIES: August 5, 1981 redacted NEL 000790 U. PCBs Mr. Nelson chaired a meeting of CMA's Task Group on the Totally Enclosed Issue, at which strategy was set and assignments accepted. Comments were furnished to Jerry Coe and John Brown on the latest draft of their paper on "Human Health Effects of Electrical-Grade PCBs." 782639 GENERAL ELECTRIC -2- REDACTED JSN:dem NEL 000791 782640 10240 P R O D U C T Q U A L IT Y S T A P F G E N E R A L ^ ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD. CONNECTICUT 06431 SUBJECT August Activities Report -J. S. Nelson - 8*229-2287 1 COPIES: August 26, I98I Mr. L. J. Utzig -Office- IV. PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY (J. S. Nelson) 1. Breeder Reactor Program Power Transformer was advised concerning approvals for participation in hazardous business under the soon-to-be revised Policy 1.1. 2. Voluntary Programs for Toxic Chemicals EPA's draft proposal for voluntary chemical control by industry was discussed with Ted Foley, Corporate Government Relations. Mr. Foley plans to support this initiative. 3- DEHP Conversation with Dr. Arisman of Capacitor Products disclosed a high probability that EPA will accept the CMA testing program for DEHP (a widely used plasticizer that forms the basis for the capacitor dielectric fluid) and will not issue a formal testing rule under Section H of TSCA. This negotiation, if successful, is a good example of the type of cooperation that would be encouraged under item #2, above. U. PCB Plans of the task group on the totally enclosed issue were ratified at a meeting of the Special Program Panel on PCBs (CMA). 5. Nexis Miss Marrone reported on a meeting held by Corporate Planning and Development to explain plans for coupling to the "Nexis" computerized data base -- a system of potential usefulness to Corporate Engineering in retrieving information from the technical and .general press and the Federal Register. ?fir- NEL 000794 JSN:dem S-6. Nelson 782641 1981 HIGHLIGHT ACCOMPLISHMENTS JAMES S. NELSON. CONSULTANT - PRODUCT ENVIRONMENTAL COMPATIBILITY 7 REDACTED PCBs With the concurrence of CHIP and EMG, Mr. Nelson initiated and helped organize Company participation in the Chemical Manufacturers Association special panel on PCBs, with the objective of promoting cost-effective EPA regulations to replace those struck down by the court, and chaired the subpanel on the "totally enclosed" issue. REDACTED NEL 000795 782642 REDACTED October 13 1981 JSN NEL 000796 782643 G E N E R A L mm ELECTRIC GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 y C B *= &<=* PRODUC O- QUALITY STAFF A ugu st 5, 1981 Dr. John H. Craddock Monsanto Company 800 N. L indbergh B lvd. S t. Louis MO 63166 Dr. Kenneth L. Burgess Dow Chemical Company 1803 Building Midland .Ml 48640 Mr. David F. Zoll Chemical M anufacturers A ssoc. 2501 M S tr e e t, NW W ashington, DC 20037 Mr. J . T . Coe O ffice Gentlemen: T he en closed NEMA n e w sletter announces th eir agreem ent w ith EEI to go ahead w ith an o u tsid e team to overview th e to x ico lo g y picture on PCBs. Very truly yours, r JJ S. Nelson JS N : dem Enc. P.S. Ken: I would appreciate a copy of your calculation on the transform er in a 300 cubic meter room show ing the assumptions made. Thank you. JSN A NEL 000792 782644 July 1981 R E C E IV E D INTER-INDUSTRY COUNCIL ON THE ENVIRONMENT PRECAUTIONARY LABELING AUS 3 1981. J. S. NELSON CLEAN AIR ACT W. R. KRUESI EXPORT-IMPORT BANK --=-3 1981 CALENDAR OF MAJOR ELECTRICAL EVENTS INTER-INDUSTRY COUNCIL ON THE ENVIRONMENT The Power Equipment Division Committee on Environmental Affairs has, on the behalf of NEMA, reached agreement with Edison Electric Institute to sponsor a joint literature survey on the human health effects of PCBs. The Washington consulting firm Drill, Friess, Hayes, Loomis & Shaffer has been selected to conduct the study that will assimilate the most significant scientific findings used to promulgate the original ban on PCB's and the more recent studies. There is mounting evidence that the conclusions drawn from the original findings that EPA used to promulgate the rulemaking are invalid. Both EEI and NEMA are confident that the new information will provide EPA with a more balanced picture in which to assess the health effects of human exposure to PCB's. The study will be made available to EPA and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia by January 4, 1982. PRECAUTIONARY LABELING The Power Equipment Division has been involved in an effort to join EEI in a long needed safety labeling program for pad-mounted apparatus. ? NEL 000793 782645 GENERAL GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY ELECTRIC FAIRFIELD, CONNECTICUT 06431 PRODUCT ^Q U A L I T Y j^\0 Y STAFF October 19, 1981 Mr. M.E. Nevill Environmental Quality Dow Chemical U.S.A. "Bennett Building 2030 Dow Center Midland, Michigan 48640 Dear Mike: My written reply has taken longer than anticipated because I decided it might be helpful to attempt a more thoroughgoing redraft. As we discussed on the telephone, the proposed section on comparison with the utility industry is in need of more facts, and clearer presentation, including transition passages. Enclosed is a stab at this, with paragraph headings, and a bit of information from the survey added. I also indicate places where factual exhibits might be helpful, and I hope your committee can supply them. In other suggested changes, I have removed the names of firms from the discussion of 'destruction and retrofit schemes and deleted the statement that current EPA regulations require waiting three months between retrofills. (They don't: they require testing after a three-month period of use before reclassification is permitted. See discussion at 44 FR 31532, 1st column). I have omitted your final paragraph from this version, in the belief that our conclusions and recommendations should be placed at the end of the whole report, incorporating not only your committee's work but that of Steinberg and the section on evaluation of exposure potential. Please feel free to adopt any of these suggestions that appeal to you, and to call me on any changes whose rationale appears obscure. Very truly yours, JSN:cas Attachments be: S.B: Hamilton S.P. Read L.J. Utzig B. Nelson, Consultantoduct Environmental Compatibility 782646 NEL 000797 co mp a r i s on of ELECTRICAL equipment usage between THE CHEMICAL INDUSTRY AND PUBLIC UTILITIES Introduction... ..... The Chemical Industry, through the Chemical Manufacturers Association, and the Utility Solid.WasJte..Activities.-:Gr.oup (USWAG) of the Edison Electric Institute, are each submitting data on PCB-related electrical eauipment to EPA. Data from the two sources may be aggregated legitimately for some purposes, such as, for example, estimating the amounts of PCBs or PCB-contaminated fluids in service. On ..the other hand, there are differences in equipment specification and .major differences in use and maintenance practices that may be significant with respect to some purposes to which the data may be applied, such as prediction of the number of equipment failures or leaks to be expected in service. The differences in equipment application also may lead to different conclusions regarding-the economic impact of any program of equipment; change-out that might be recommended. These differences are discussed-below. Penalty for Downtime Utilities are typically able to arrange their distribution transformers in banks or grids such that the failure of a single transformer will result in no service interruption or loss of revenue. The faulted transformer is.., automatically cut out of the circuit by fuses or circuit-breakers, and the remaining transformers pick up the load until repairs can be effected. Similar system arrangements compensate for the loss of a primary feeder line, or the power transformer associated with it. Such circuit redundancy is seldom practical for a chemical plant installation, forcing chemical plans to place greater reliance on the integrity of individual circuit elements. This circumstance causes operators to exercise great care in maintenance, to load NEL 000798 782647 - 3- c h e m ic a l p la n ts is c o n ce n tra te d in r e la t iv e ly com pact p la n t a re a s and is a c c e s s ib le to fre q u e n t in s p e c tio n . In c o n tr a s t, u t i l i t i e s have thousands o f t r a n s f o r m e r s t h a t may be p la c e d in i s o l a t e d lo c a t io n s th ro u g h o u t th e s e r v ic e a re a w h ich may e x te n d f o r h u n d re d s o f s q u a re m ile s , a c o n d it io n n o t c o n d u c iv e to fre q u e n t in s p e c tio n . T ra n sfo rm e rs in c h e m ic a l p la n ts a re lo c a te d c lo s e to o p e r a t io n s , in a re a s p o p u la te d by t r a in e d w o rk e rs . In th e more c r i t i c a l o p e r a t io n s , tra n s fo r m e rs a re o b se rv e d on a d a ily b a s is . Leaks ten d to be d is c o v e re d q u ic k ly and c o r r e c tiv e m easures taken e a r ly . M ain ten an ce P la n t m a in te n a n ce c y c le s a re u s u a lly a c c o m p lish e d on an a n n u a l o r b ia n n u a l b a s is . The c o o lin g o i l in th e tra n s fo rm e rs is te s te d fr e q u e n t ly -- as o fte n as e v e ry s ix m onths f o r c r i t i c a l eq u ip m en t-- f o r any in d ic a t io n o f d ie le c t r ic d e g ra d a tio n o r lo s s in c o o lin g e f f ic ie n c y . Such p ara m eters as a c id it y , s o lid s in d lu s io n s , e t c . , form a p a rt o f th e s e t e s t s . Any in c ip ie n t le a k a g e w ou ld be d is c o v e re d and c o rre c te d . E x h ib it "B ," a tta c h e d , is the e le c t r ic a l m ain ten an ce in s t r u c t io n from a r e p r e s e n ta t iv e c h e m ic a l p la n t . L o a d in g P r a c t ic e s T h e re a r e many c ir c u m s t a n c e s u n d e r w h ic h e l e c t r i c a l u t i l i t y t r a n s f o r m e r s may be lo a d e d b eyon d th e m a n u fa c tu r e r s ' name p la t e r a t in g s : f o r e x a m p le , when one e le m e n t o f a n e tw o rk f a i l s and th e o th e r s m ust ta k e up th e lo a d ; o r when system lo a d gro w th e x ce e d s th e r a te o f equ ipm en t re p la c e m e n t. T h is i s a norm al p r a c t ic e , and i s a llo w e d fo r in th e ra tin g s a p p lie d to tra n s fo rm e rs , and i t s m en tio n h e re i s n o t in te n d e d a s a c r it ic is m o f th e p r a c t ic e . H ow ever, and t h is is th e p o in t o f t h is d is c u s s io n , a d iffe r e n t s it u a tio n o b ta in s in c h e m ic a l p la n ts . T ra n sfo rm e rs a re u s u a lly d e d ic a te d to fu n c tio n in g w ith a 782649 NEL 000800 - 4 p a r t i c u l a r p r o c e s s , whose e l e c t r i c a l load can be p r e d ic te d w i t h e a s e . There is no in c e n t i v e to take advantage o f the b u i l t - i n o v e rlo a d c a p a b i l i t y o f the t ra n s fo rm e r . Each u n i t is s ize d to the job i t has to do. The r e s u l t is c o o le r o p e r a t i o n , lo n g e r l i f e , and a p r e d ic t a b le freedom from le a k a g e . General In -p la n t Protection against Chemical Hazards ( D r a f t o f t h i s s e c t i o n t o be s u p p lie d by PPG, by O c to b e r 24) F e a s i b i l i t y and Economic Impact o f PCB P h a s e -o u t We h a v e d i s c u s s e d a b o v e t h e f e a t u r e s o f t h e c h e m i c a l i n d u s t r y t h a t m i n i m i z e the occurrence o f tra n s fo rm e r leaks and the i n - b u i l t p r o v is io n f o r coping w ith such i n c i d e n t s as may o c c u r . I t rem ains t o d is c u s s s p e c i a l c i r c u m s ta n c e s and c o n d itio n s o f the chem ical in d u s t r y th a t c o n t r ib u t e to the d i f f i c u l t y and expense o f complying with any program c a llin g fo r the accelerated phase-out o f PCB and P C B -con tarainated t r a n s fo r m e r s and c a p a c i t o r s . I t is im p o r t a n t to n o te t h a t PCB f l u i d p r o d u c tio n in the U n ite d S t a t e s , f o r a l l purposes, ceased in 1 9 7 7 . T h e r e fo r e , fo r the u t i l i t y i n d u s t r y and chemical i n d u s t r y a l i k e , the process o f PCB ecuipment p h a s e -o u t i s o c c u r r i n g . As f a s t as PCB and P C B - c o n ta m i n a t e d u n i t s wear o u t o r become o b s o l e t e due t o systems growth or process obsolescence, they are being replaced with non-PCB ecuipment. Here, again, there are s ig n ific a n t industry d iffe re n c e s. The rep lacem ent c o s t o f a t y p i c a l 500 KVA tr a n s fo r m e r used in the chem ical industry is $15,000, with a d e live ry time o f 12-15 months. Replacement of a l a r g e r e c t i f i e r t r a n s f o r m e r as used i n some c h e m i c a l p l a n t s w i l l r e c u i r e / NEL 000801 782650 5 2 U - 3 0 months l e a d t i m e and t h e c o s t w i l l be i n t h e r a n g e o f $ 3 0 0 , 0 0 0 . Much o f the chemical in d u s tr y eauipm ent, as noted p r e v i o u s l y , is b u i l t to t a ilo r e d s p e c i f i c a t i o n s and is not a v a il a b le o f f the s h e l f , in c r e a s in g both cost and d e liv e ry time compared to a standard ( e . g . , u t i l i t y ) tra n s fo rm e r. U s u a lly, the in s ta lla tio n costs are three times the replacement co sts. Plant l a y o u t is t y p i c a l l y such t h a t the replacem ent u n i t must go i n t o the space vacated by the u n it being taken o u t, so tha t the only p r a c tic a l period for such replacement is during a scheduled shutdown fo r renovation or maintenance o f the associated chemical process. Any attem pt to accomplish transform er replacement a t o the r times would incur downtime costs th a t could e a s ily exceed 310,000 per hour (in addition to the costs noted above). T h e r e we re 85 p a r t i c i p a t i n g c o m p a n i e s i n t h e CMA S u r v e y o f E n c l o s e d Use o f PC3 in the Chemical I n d u s t r y . Twelve thousand tr a n s f o r m e r s were shown to be in use, and o f t h e s e , ^500 were re p o rte d as c o n t a in in g PCS o r contam inated by PC3. At an e s tim a te d replacement cost o f 315 ,00 0 and $U5,000 i n s t a l l a t i o n c o s t , c h a n g i n g o u t t h e s e M500 t r a n s f o r m e r s w o u l d c o s t 3 2 7 0 m i l l i o n . The 85 r e s p o n d e n t s a c c o u n t f o r 3U% o f i n d u s t r y s a l e s . I t s h o u l d be p o i n t e d o u t, however, th a t the no nreporting companies probably have less than a p r o p o r t i o n a l s h a re o f t r a n s f o r m e r o w n e r s h ip , so the burden on the t o t a l i n d u s t r y c a nnot be e s tim a te d by sim ply t r e b l i n g the $270 m i l l i o n . The costs d iscussed above p e r ta in to pre s e n t c o n d itio n s and " n a t u r a l " p h a s e -o u t o f PC B s . I f th e r e should be a mandated p h a s e -o u t on an a c c e le r a t e d s c h e d u le , to be accom plished by a c e r t a i n t im e , these co sts would be m a g n ifie d 782651 MEL 000802 6 by the re s u ltin g com petition from a l l in d u s try for lim ite d resources to r e p l a c e e l e c t r i c a l e a u ip m e n t . T h i s burden would be l i k e l y t o f a l l th e h e a v ie s t on th o s e , l i k e chem ical p l a n t s , r e a u i r i n g c u s t o m - b u i l t e q u ip m e n t. D is p o s a l, D e s t r u c tio n and R e t r o f i t The chemical i n d u s t r y , the u t i l i t y i n d u s t r y , and a l l m an u factu rin g in d u s t r ie s a r e fa c e d w i t h e nor mo us c o s t s f o r d i s p o s i n g o f P C B s , and s h a r e a common concern w ith re sp e ct to any proposal th a t would increase the pace o f th is process and c o n s e q u e n tl y i n f l a t e the c o s t s . T h e r e f o r e , i t seems a p p r o p r i a t e to include in this paper a b rie f review o f disposal a lte rn a tiv e s . R e t r o f i l l i n g o f t r a n s f o r m e r s i s one way t h a t PCB c o n t a m i n a t i o n can be re d u c e d . N o r m a l ly , an a s k a r e l tr a n s fo r m e r r e q u ir e s a minimum o f fo u r r e t r o f i l l s w i t h r e p l a c e m e n t f l u i d t o re d u c e t h e PCB c o n c e n t r a t i o n belo w 50 ppm. In some c a se s i t may t a k e as many as seve n r e t r o f i l l s t o a c c o m p l i s h t h i s . Each r e t r o f i l l g e n e ra te s a n o th e r volume o f f l u i d t h a t must be d isposed o f as a PCB. F o r e x a m p le , a 250 g a l l o n (2 ,0 0 0 pounds o f f l u i d ) t r a n s f o r m e r c o n t a i n i n g 4 0 0 , 0 0 0 ppm P C B , w h i l e c o n t a i n i n g o n l y 800 t o t a l pounds o f P C B s , w i l l g e n e r a te 8 ,0 00 pounds o f m a t e r i a l to be burned as PCB i f t h e r e have been f o u r r e t r o f i l l s . A t r a n s f o r m e r must be s h u t down f o r r e t r o f i l l i n g thus r e q u i r i n g t h e s h u td o w n o f some o p e r a t i n g e q u i p m e n t , so a g a i n , t h e c o s t o f d o w n tim e i s a m a j o r f a c t o r . In some c a s e s , i t i s c h e a p e r t o r e p l a c e an o l d tra n s fo rm e r than to r e t r o f i l l s e v e r a l times and in c u r the f l u i d d is p o s a l c o s t s , downtime c o s t s , and o t h e r co s ts a s s o c i a te d w ith m a i n t a i n i n g PCB eq u ip m e n t. There is a v a r i e t y o f PCB d e s tr u c tio n methods under d evelopm ent. Only a few are com m ercialized and have EPA a p p r o v a l. 782652 H EL 000803 7 I n c i n e r a t i o n i s the o n l y te c h n iq u e c o m m e rc ia lly proven to be ca pa ble o f d e s t r o y i n g la rg e q u a n t i t i e s o f pure a s k a re l as w e ll as s l i g h t l y contam inated PCB f l u i d s . From t h i s s t a n d p o i n t i t is the most v e r s a t i l e t e c h n i q u e a v a i l a b l e . I t has been e x t e n s iv e ly te s te d and has EPA a p p r o v a l . F o llo w in g EPA a p p ro v a l in e a r l y 1 9 8 1 , the base p r ic e fo r i n c i n e r a t i n g PCBs has been i n c r e a s e d 20% and i s p r e s e n t l y 6 0 d / l b . i n b u l k q u a n t i t i e s . I n c o m p a r i s o n , o t h e r c h l o r i n a t e d o r g a n i c w a s t e s may be i n c i n e r a t e d f o r __ d / l b . One f i r m has d e v e l o p e d a system which c o n s i s t s o f c i r c u l a t i n g c o n t a m i n a t e d PCB tr a n s fo r m e r o i l through a c a n n i s t e r f i l l e d w ith neoprene r u b b e r . The PCBs are removed by a dso rp tio n onto the neoprene. Experience thus fa r in d ica tes th is te c h n iq u e is e x tr e m e ly slow and s u i t a b l e f o r rem oving low l e v e l s o f PCB contam ination. Its prime advantage is its a b i l i t y to permit the transform er to stay in service while being tre a te d. Another firm has developed a method o f t r e a t in g tra n s fo rm e r o i l contaminated w ith low le v e l s o f PCB using sodium n a p h th a lid e as the r e a g e n t. P re p a ra tio n o f t h is re a ge n t is d i f f i c u l t and s h e l f - l i f e is l i m i t e d . A la rg e su rp lu s o f reagent (approxim ately 50/1) is required to destroy the PCBs. Experience with s i m i l a r systems in d ic a t e s they are very r e a c t i v e and r e q u ire s p e c ia l s a fe t y p r e c a u tio n s when t r e a t i n g la r g e q u a n t i t i t e s o f f l u i d . A n o th e r o f f e r i n g is a p o r t a b l e system capable o f p o l y m e r i z i n g PCB i m p u r i t i e s i n s l i g h t l y c o n t a m i n a t e d t r a n s f o r m e r o i l ( l e s s t h a n 1 0 0 0 ppm P C B ) . The process re q u ire s m u ltip le passes to remove the PCB. I t s advantage i3 the a b i l i t y to remove PCB w ith o u t co n ta m in a tin g the m in e ra l o i l . P r ic in g ranges from $ 3 - 1 1 . 0 0 / g a l l o n depend ing on the l e v e l o f PCB c o n t a m i n a t i o n . T h is 782653 NEL 000804 f 8- - process generates s o l i d waste d u rin g the f i l t r a t i o n s t e p . A p p ro x im a te ly one drum o f f i l t e r cake is produced per pass fo r every hundred g a llo n s o f f l u i d tr e a te d . This system has EPA a p p ro va l. O th e r processes under developm ent would d e s t r o y PCBs by a r c i n g , o x i d i z i n g w it h Using the in c i n e r a t io n p ric e o f 60^/pound o f PCB contam inated o i l s , the cost o f i n c i n e r a t i n g 1 0 , 0 0 0 g a l l o n s o f c o n t a m i n a te d o i l a t a c o n c e n t r a t i o n o f 300 ppm i s SU M, M0 0 ( 2 2 . 2 p o u n d s o f P C B ) . T h u s , t h e c o s t o f i n c i n e r a t i o n i s $ 2 , 0 0 0 p e r pound o f P C B . When t h e l e v e l o f c o n t a m i n a t i o n i s l o w e r , t h e c o s t p e r pound o f PCB in c r e a s e s as shown by the f o l l o w i n g t a b l e : Level o f Contamination C o s t / l b . o f PCB In c in e r a te d 300 ppm PCB 1 00 ppm PCB 50 ppm PCB 25 ppm PCB 1 0 ppm PCB 3 2,000 6,000 12,000 24.000 60.000 These f i g u r e s a re f o r i n c i n e r a t i o n , o n l y . They do n o t i n c l u d e f r e i g h t , handling, replacement o i l , lo st production, e tc . C a p a c ito rs cannot be r e f i l l e d . C u rre n t d is p o s a l p rices fo r c a p a c ito rs are $ 1.2 5 per pound n e t w e ig h t, a t the on ly d is p o s a l f a c i l i t y c u r r e n t ly a u t h o r i z e d . N EL 000805 JSN 10- 19-81 782654