Handbook of Environmental Protection and Enforcement: Principles and Practice

Laws Laws provide the vision, scope, and authority for environmental protection and restoration. In some countries, laws also encompass the types of general requirements that other countries describe in regulations. Regulations Regulations establish the details of a law, e. Regulations are most often developed by the implementing agency that is charged with compliance and enforcement under the law. Permits and Licenses The terms permits and licenses are usually used interchangeably. Permits typically control activities related to construction or operation of facilities that generate pollutants.

Permit requirements are often based on specific criteria established in laws or regulations. General permits specify exactly what a class of facilities e. General permits and licenses are used when it is impractical or unnecessary to issue a specific permit for each similar, small facility. Facility-specific permits specify exactly what a particular facility is required to do. Facility-specific permits often take into account the particular conditions at the specific facility.

Licenses are similar to permits. Licenses are authorizations to manufacture, test, sell, or distribute a product, such as a pesticide, that may pose an environmental or public health risk if improperly used. Licenses may be general or facility-specific. Both licenses and permits are usually issued by the implementing agency. These can be directed toward the regulated community or toward the government, prescribing its actions in particular situations. They are frequently used to help ensure fairness and consistency in the application of laws and regulations.

In most countries, guidance and policy are not considered legally binding. The next chapter discusses important considerations when developing environmental laws, including issues of legal authority, institutional framework, and the need for effective and enforceable requirements. Without adequate legal authorities, enforcement programs will generally be ineffective.

Unclear, imprecise, ambiguous, inconsistent, or contradictory requirements may be difficult or impossible to enforce. Requirements that rely on expensive, unreliable, or unavailable technologies will make compliance difficult or impossible. This chapter outlines some steps that can be taken to design effective requirements. These include explanations about some of the basic legal issues in drafting requirements, balancing the stringency and feasibility of requirements, designing effective general and specific requirements, and developing strategies for involving stakeholders in the drafting process.

An environmental standard is a guideline, usually in the form of a law or regulation, that regulates the effect of human activity upon the environment. Standards may specify a desired state the level of nitrogen in the air cannot exceed 0. Ambient standards are usually written in units of concentration. In the US, ambient standards are used as environmental quality goals and to plan the level of emissions from individual sources that can be accommodated while still meeting the area- wide goals.

Ambient standards may also be as triggers, e. Enforcement of ambient standards usually requires relating an ambient measurement to emissions or activities at a specific facility. Performance Standards Emissions and Effluents These standards are widely used for regulations, permits, and monitoring requirements. Performance standards limit the amount or rate of particular chemicals or discharges that a facility can release into the environment in a given period of time.

Performance standards provide flexibility because they allow sources to choose which technologies they will use to meet the standards. Some requirements introduce additional flexibility by allowing a source with multiple emissions to vary its emissions from each stack as long as the total sum of the emissions does not exceed the permitted total.

Compliance with emission standards is measured by sampling and monitoring. Technology standards are particularly appropriate when the equipment is known to perform well under the range of conditions generally experienced by sources in the community. It is relatively easy for inspectors to determine whether sources are in compliance with technology standards: It may be difficult, however, to ensure that the equipment is operating properly over a long period of time. Technology standards can inhibit technological innovation and pollution prevention if they are not continually readjusted.

Practice Standards These standards prohibit certain work activities that have significant environmental impacts or require certain mitigating activities. For example, a standard might prohibit carrying hazardous liquids in uncovered buckets. Like technology standards, it is easy for program officials to inspect for compliance and take action against non-compliant sources, but difficult to ensure ongoing compliance.

Sources generating pollution may be required to monitor, report, and maintain records of levels of pollution generated and whether or not they exceed performance standards. Information requirements are often used when the potential pollution source is a product such as a new chemical or pesticide, rather than a waste. Manufacturers may be required to test and report on potential harmful effects of new products on the environment.

Product or Use Bans A ban may prohibit a product outright e. Laws and regulations need to be clear about the process and procedures by which the government can take an enforcement action. Rules must protect those who have allegedly violated environmental laws from unfair government actions.

The rights and responsibilities of those involved in an enforcement process must be clearly written and accessible to them. A government's willingness and ability to impose sanctions related to bribery and the falsification of environmental data are also very important. In addition, government inspection schemes must be rational and related to the laws' underlying environmental and public health purposes.

Other sectors with laws that overlap pollution control and natural resource protection may include: Rational coordination of laws can be especially important in countries with many agencies sharing responsibility for environmental protection. Brazil, in a situation common to many countries, faces the challenge of coordinating over 69 environmental laws and 53 international environmental-related treaties across the national, state, and municipal levels. If the government would like to ban a particular product or activity, then it will need to determine whether alternatives are desirable, and if so, whether they are feasible.

Social, economic, and political factors, as well as regional, national, and international trends may affect how a particular country determines how stringent to make a particular law or regulation. Stringent requirements can lead to better and potentially quicker environmental protection and restoration.

In some cases, however, overly stringent requirements imposed too early in the life of a program can cause the regulated community to disregard those requirements. Goals and targets that consistently overreach are likely to be modified, encouraging industry to wait for the goals to be revised before complying.

Overly ambitious requirements, accompanied by a history of retreat, will undermine compliance with both the requirements at issue and the overall environmental management program. A phased approach may address some of these issues. The first phase involves less stringent requirements that do not pose too great a burden for the regulated community. At a minimum, this phase should eliminate some of the competitive advantage for polluters. Sometime later, during a second phase, the program implements more stringent requirements.

Additional phases may be implemented later in an effort to continue to tighten standards. General requirements may apply directly to a group of facilities or may serve as the basis for developing facility-specific requirements. Box provides examples of basic questions that can be asked when legal requirements are being drafted into regulations, general permits, or licenses that will be effective. If sources under a certain size are exempted, does the regulation identify how the size of a particular source is to be determined? Are the units of compliance clear? Is the calculation for exceptions clearly specified?

If the regulation, general permit, or general license grants exceptions based on malfunctions or changes in local conditions, does it specify what emission levels may be excused, when, and who makes this determination? Are the changes that must be made clearly defined? Do these requirements support the compliance goals of the environmental law? For example, if the compliance goal is to demonstrate that facilities are in compliance each day, does the regulation, general permit, or general license require daily self-monitoring and recordkeeping [and reporting]?

Are the methods clearly described? Are any allowable averaging times clearly specified? Will these data provide sufficient evidence to document a violation? Is compliance determined by field inspections and desk reviews of reports submitted by the regulated community, or is the regulation, general permit, or general license self- enforcing? Can the environmental management program independently determine compliance?

Can the program require the facility to perform certain tests and determine compliance? Do the time periods have specified beginning and end points? If compliance is defined by occurrence of an event, rather than by a date, is the event discrete enough for an inspector to determine whether the facility is in compliance?

Can third party data be used as evidence? For example, a province in the Netherlands passed a law requiring companies to apply for an exemption if they wanted to use a processing installation to dispose of their wastes. Inspections alone would have required hiring an additional to inspectors. The provincial government decided to revise the regulation. Exemptions are no longer required. Companies must keep a record of their waste deliveries and periodically report information on the most hazardous wastes. Compliance assurance efforts now focus on the waste processors about 1, rather than the waste producers.

Although most SMEs serve local markets, they increasingly operate as part of a global market place, purchasing products produced abroad, supplying multinational companies and selling directly to overseas buyers. SMEs face widely differing environmental issues based on the economic sector, employee base and jurisdiction in which they operate. The largest impacts from SMEs were on biological oxygen demand in water and suspended particles in air, followed by release of toxic chemicals.

Because of their size, governments should consider these factors when developing initiatives for SMEs: Official efforts narrowly tailored to the business sector, size, and location of the SME will be far more successful than generic outreach efforts; 3 The right partners are essential. When governments involve business associations that have SMEs as members, the likelihood of success is greater; 4 Regulatory compliance pressure can motivate the search for the least expensive solutions that are lawful.

Smaller entities are a major source of pollution and often may not have in-house expertise or the resources to comply with complicated requirements. Governments may need to provide greater compliance promotion activities and work with local governments and trade associations to help understand the capabilities of these types of businesses and the extent of environmental problems at their facilities.

Environmental management programs often use facility-specific permits or licenses to provide the flexibility that individual circumstances often warrant. They are often based on specific criteria established in laws, regulations, or guidance, but are customized to the specific conditions at the particular facility receiving the permit or license. These documents may cover only certain requirements e. To be enforceable, permits and licenses must generally be clear, precise, and unambiguous. Regulatory agencies can take several practical steps to help ensure that permits and licenses have these qualities: The model is then slightly modified by the permit or license writer to tailor a permit for a specific facility.

Box provides a checklist that permit and license writers can use to ensure the enforceability of permits and licenses. Writers of facility-specific requirements will need to consider whether the permit conditions might conflict with those in any of the facility's existing permits or licenses. Conflicts and contradictions between different environmental permits and licenses can invite non-compliance.

Multimedia permits or licenses that encompass all relevant environmental requirements in a single document can overcome this potential problem. Multimedia documents may also enable permit and license writers to prioritize requirements based on human-health or environmental risk, the facility's resources for compliance, and feasibility. Is a date specified to indicate when the permit must be reissued and when an application for a new permit should be filed? Do these requirements support the compliance goals of the environmental regulation?

Are the methods clearly described and available to the permittee? Do these procedures cover entering a regulated facility, inspecting documents and collecting samples? Wll these data provide sufficient evidence to document a violation? Is the facility required to retain information long enough for enforcement purposes? The permitting and licensing processes provide opportunities to ensure that facilities clearly understand what the requirements are and the importance, both from an environmental and legal perspective, of meeting them.

This process should be governed by administrative procedures that are transparent and based on the rule of law. Enforcement and compliance officials often have unique and real world experience with different regulatory programs and can see the strengths and weaknesses for the enforceability of regulatory proposals.

One option is to create committees that include both policymakers and enforcement officials. These committees can include representatives of all government levels national, regional, provincial, and local that may be involved in the process of assuring compliance with the requirements. Committee members can be responsible for ensuring that the appropriate individuals within the environmental management program are involved in drafting and reviewing the requirements. Comments on the proposed requirements should follow administrative procedures that allow for written comments and that establish a record of the decision-making process.

Lessons learned about what makes existing requirements effective or ineffective in a particular region or country might be recorded, studied, and communicated to those involved in developing new requirements. It can also make requirements more practical, and therefore more enforceable, and it publicizes the requirements at an early phase, thus "setting the stage" for compliance.

Below are three basic ways to involve the regulated community and civil society in the process of drafting environmental requirements: These consultations can be helpful in sorting out future problems early and eliminating resistance. Widely distributed, low-cost government periodicals provide advance notice that new regulations are being developed and announce when they will be available. Any organization or individual can easily obtain and review the proposed regulations when they are issued.

Written comments from the public are usually accepted for a limited period of time 30 to 90 days in the United States after the proposed regulation has been issued. The environmental agency prepares and publishes detailed responses to the comments. Many of the comments directly concern the difficulty or unanticipated effects of compliance.

These comments provide regulators with an opportunity to rethink their approach.

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The formal responses to comments reassure commenting parties that their comments were considered. Policymakers can then make changes to the general requirements before they are finally implemented. Though field testing can lengthen the total time it takes to develop a general requirement, it can expose weaknesses that might otherwise render it unenforceable.

Such involvement is an opportunity to solicit creative ideas from knowledgeable groups. Civil society has an interest in clear and effective environmental requirements. Laws, regulations, and permits that provide specific substantive requirements make it easier for members of civil society to participate in citizen based compliance promotion, monitoring, and enforcement. In addition, the involvement of civil society helps shield the program from isolation and builds broad-based popular support for the requirements and their implementation.

In China, for example, the State Environmental Protection Administration recently passed a regulation to allow greater public participation in Environmental Impact Assessments. These Assessments will be more widely distributed to the public, and citizens will be able to participate in the process through opinion surveys, consultations, seminars, debates, and hearings.

For instance, regulations requiring electronics firms to stop chemical solvents in tanks from leaking into the groundwater could be obeyed by releasing solvents into the air, creating an air quality problem. Other examples include flue-gas scrubbing to reduce harmful air emissions that could lead to discharges of contaminated water and treatment of contaminated wastewater that produces yet another waste product requiring responsible processing.

Several rulemaking practices can be used to avoid unintended effects. First, environmental laws can require policymakers drafting general requirements to specifically consider whether such effects are possible. Second, individuals who are knowledgeable about the different environmental areas can review the requirements. Third, studies of the regulated community can examine whether compliance with one law would result in shifting of pollution from one medium to another. If cross-media effects are discovered, the requirements can be modified to prevent or minimize these effects.

Finally, requirements can be defined for all media at once. Voluntary programs are different from compliance promotion activities, as voluntary programs have no mandatory component while compliance promotion activities encourage and help the regulated community to comply with environmental laws and requirements through assistance and incentive activities. This chapter provides an overview of some of these compliance assistance and compliance incentives activities. It begins by examining educational, technical, and financial assistance programs that make up compliance assistance efforts.

It then examines compliance incentives efforts, such as auditing policies, recognition programs, efforts to provide the public with information, and market-based mechanisms. Compliance assistance activities can cover both statute specific and sector related activities. Outreach programs and technical assistance tools tend to be most successful when they are developed at regional levels and are tailored to the needs of specific businesses.

Compliance assistance programs can help regulated firms reduce the costs of compliance and develop environmental management capacity within the regulated community. The success of these initiatives will depend largely on how they are developed, packaged, and delivered. Compliance assistance programs can include education and technical assistance and in some cases financial assistance. These efforts can help businesses and individuals fully understand their legal responsibilities, and how they can meet those responsibilities.

Education and technical assistance are particularly important in the early stages of a new program or when legal and regulatory requirements change. Education and technical assistance programs can help the regulated community understand: Education and technical assistance outreach can be made through publications such as brochures and guidance manuals ; websites; "hot lines" or dedicated telephone numbers; conferences and other meetings; or as part of media announcements.

Technical assistance can be provided by trained government personnel who visit individual members of the regulated community to assist them in making changes, and as part of special assistance programs, set up for example at universities or non-governmental institutions, that provide a central resource for information and advice on how to comply with legal and regulatory requirements. Professional associations are important government partners for compliance assistance activities.

These associations usually have established communication networks and access to industry experts. They can provide forums for the regulated community and enforcement program personnel to exchange information and ideas. However, getting the waste to the processor was a problem for small businesses. The processors were often unwilling to pick up small amounts of waste, and transporting small quantities of waste long distances to a processor placed a disproportionate economic burden on small businesses.

Therefore, small companies were often out of compliance with the hazardous waste rules. The Dutch government helped to solve this problem by establishing a collection depot in nearly every town in the Netherlands. Both private citizens and small companies may now discard their waste at these depots at regular times. This government-facilitated cooperative arrangement was instrumental in helping solve the compliance problem. Many countries are increasingly focusing compliance assistance efforts on specific sectors or types of businesses.

By using this approach, governments can tailor their outreach efforts to the specific needs of an industry instead of focusing their efforts on the requirements of individual statutes. Over the past decade, USEPA has established highly successful, stakeholder-driven, web-based compliance assistance centers geared primarily toward small and medium size business. In some instances, the government may want to provide direct assistance to the regulated community in order to help them deal with the initial cost of compliance.

In the late s, for example, selected firms in Sri Lanka's distillery, textile, and metal finishing sectors were shown ways to reduce waste generation quantities through simple process and raw material changes, as well as good housekeeping practices. Demonstration waste minimization projects such as these help industries to meet the required environmental standards while at the same time reducing end-of-pipe treatment costs.

Some international organizations and national development aid agencies provide funds to developing countries that could not otherwise afford to comply with environmental requirements.

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The Compliance Assistance Programme of the Multilateral Fund of the Montreal Protocol, for example, has a successful capacity building program that places teams in regional offices to deliver technical assistance on Protocol requirements directly to developing countries. Many audit and special recognition programs are examples of compliance incentive programs.

These programs provide concrete benefits for companies, agencies, and individuals that actively monitor their facilities and report problems to appropriate authorities. But they must discover violations through self-auditing or under environmental management systems, self-disclose prior to the Agency having initiated its own investigation , correct the violations promptly, and take 90 measures to prevent recurrence.

It is based on a voluntary agreement between Mexico's Attorney General for Environmental Protection Profepa and a participating organization. Under the EAP, a plan of action is devised to recommend preventive and corrective measures related to air, water, soil, solid and hazardous waste, noise, industrial safety and hygiene, energy, natural resources, environmental risk, environmental management and other issues with potential adverse impacts to the environment. Participating organizations are evaluated by independent auditors.

Participants agree to correct violations by a certain date, and Profepa agrees not to penalize companies until that date has passed. Organizations receive Profepa's certification of Clean Industry for Environmental Compliance after an audit has been completed, an action plan has been implemented, and all the preventive and corrective measures have been taken. Organizations that go further and achieve stronger environmental performance under pollution prevention and eco-efficiency schemes are granted the recognition of Environmental Excellence.

Organizations can use Profepa's performance seals to promote their public image. Both Mexico and the United States, for example, have recognition programs, which provide incentives to join these programs and maintain high levels of environmental performance.

To obtain the seal, organizations must present documented and operational proof of environmental compliance. To be recognized under performance track, facilities must have, among other things: Facilities accepted into the program receive special benefits such as low priority for federal inspections; special regulatory and administrative incentives, such as flexibility in developing certain air permits; and more flexible requirements for large generators of hazardous waste.

Surveys of regulated communities find that the potential opportunity to forgo or postpone regulation is the most important benefit of voluntary approaches. Rating systems simplify the flow of information to the public by summarizing a regulated firm's performance into a grade. Box provides an example of public grading in Indonesia. Note that the rating system has two grades above simple compliance, providing inducements to go beyond the environmental requirements. Support of local media is critical to public information campaigns. To ensure accurate press reports and foster a working relationship with the media, the environmental management program should invite reporters to a detailed presentation of the information campaign, including an explanation of how the information was collected and analyzed.

The information should also be in a format that is easily communicated by the broadcast and print media. It should be simple and easily understandable by the public. Finally, it should offer the regulated firm a chance to improve its performance before the information becomes public. Many firms will take this opportunity to come into compliance rather than risk damage to their reputations or more severe fines.

See Box for an example from China. Polluter makes effort to control pollution but not sufficiently to achieve compliance. Polluter applies effort sufficient only to meet the standard. Pollution level is significantly lower than the discharge standards. Polluter also ensures proper disposal of sludge, good housekeeping, accurate pollution records and good maintenance of the wastewater treatment system. All the requirements of Green, plus similar levels of pollution control for air and hazardous waste. Polluter reaches high international standards by making extensive use of clean technology, waste minimization pollution prevention, recycling, etc.

The effectiveness of public involvement in information strategies will vary with the nature of the sectors and firms regulated. It will be a challenge to bring market pressure on firms that provide products or services in sectors with limited competition or where a brand name is not dependent on public good-will.

Closely held and government-owned enterprises also have a degree of insulation from external pressure. But all of these firms can be reached with carefully planned strategies. Pilot efforts, such as those in Hohhot Municipality and Zhenjiang City, demonstrated that public disclosure of environmental performance could impact a company's public image.

The results were that "enterprises that improved their performance immediately requested new monitoring reports so that their public ratings could be improved as well. Enterprises with poor ratings shifted from passive resistance to active solicitation of inspections, as a means of improving their performance ratings. At the same time, enterprises with good ratings felt continued pressure to maintain their environmental performance to avoid complaints from the public about backsliding. Externalities are "hidden" costs to human health and the environment associated with an activity, such as manufacturing steel.

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Because manufacturing steel creates air pollution, an externality of this activity may be an increase in asthma rates among children. Market-based approaches are not usually considered compliance promotion activities unless they involve promoting compliance with underlying regulatory requirements. Instead they often either complement regulatory requirements or make them unnecessary. For example, the Netherlands, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Finland have introduced car registration taxes which encourage car buyers to opt for the cleanest car models.

These taxes can complement existing domestic laws that require minimum fuel efficiency standards by making more inefficient but legal cars more expensive. The purpose of this tax is to address environmental issues of waste and to better distribute tax burdens across different groups by introducing a new tax base. The tax is calculated based on the weight of the waste. Studies have shown that the tax has contributed to a shift from dumping to prevention, recycling, and incineration of waste. Colombia has demonstrated how discharge fees can create incentives for regulatory authorities to improve permitting, monitoring, and enforcement.

In , to reduce water pollution, Colombia began charging polluters a fee per unit of pollution emitted. The fees were determined based on whether overall pollution reduction targets were being met. By allowing Colombia's regional environmental authorities to keep the fees, but requiring reporting of fees to a centralized authority, this system creates incentives for improved monitoring and enforcement.

The collection and analysis of compliance information improves decision making through the following: There are four primary sources of compliance information discussed in this chapter: These are described in detail below. Box summarizes the advantages and disadvantages of these four information sources. Additional information may come from reports of other national, regional, provincial, or local agencies that have related jurisdiction over the facility; requests for modifications to permits or licenses; and environmental audit reports provided by the facility.

However, as information on compliance status is gathered, an enforcement program needs a system computerized if possible to store, access, and analyze the information as needed. Can be very resource-intensive. Monitoring Environmental Conditions Near a Facility Useful for detecting possible violations without entering the facility. Useful for determining whether permit or license requirements are providing adequate environmental protection. Can be difficult to demonstrate a connection between the pollution detected and a specific source.

Difficult or impossible to obtain precise information. Resource-intensive in areas of multiple sources. Shift economic burden of monitoring to the regulated community. May increase level of management attention devoted to compliance within a facility. Rely on integrity and capability of source to provide accurate data. Place economic burden on the regulated community and increase paperwork. Citizen Monitoring Can detect violations that are not detected by inspections, industry self- monitoring, and reporting. Cannot control amount, frequency, or quality of information received. Only a few violations are noticed by citizens.

May require resources to respond to erroneous or irrelevant complaints.

Handbook of environmental protection and enforcement: principles and practice

The inspector then organizes those observations and supporting documentation into a report for review against standards set forth in law. Inspectors plan inspections, gather data in and around a particular facility, record and report on their observations, and sometimes make independent judgments about whether the facility is in compliance. Inspection activities may include, but are not limited to: Inspections can be very resource-intensive and therefore require careful targeting and planning. By standardizing inspection procedures, enforcement officials can help ensure that all facilities are treated equally and that all the appropriate information is gathered.

By specifying deadlines for inspection reports, program managers can help ensure that reports can be made available to enforcement personnel without delay if there is a possibility of non-compliance. This process entailed close coordination between branches of the national government e. The investigations helped to increase the role and influence of the environmental inspectors in society and helped introduce the Law on Environmental Protection to the public. These audits may be part of a larger management system, and may be done as a way to get certification such as ISO certification or to show suppliers, clients, or investors that the company is complying with its environmental responsibilities.

During an inspection, if violations are found, the government follows standard procedures to ensure that the evidence collected will be upheld in court. In contrast, when an audit uncovers violations, evidence generally is not collected, as there is not an enforcement response to the violations. The facility may choose to correct the violation on its own, or may elect to report the violation to the regulatory agency. Audits and environmental management systems are discussed in more detail in Chapter Six.

The Act provides that an "inspector may, in the performance of his duties There are many levels of inspection. At the most basic level, an inspector can simply walk through a plant. A more complex and time consuming inspection might require an inspector, or multiple inspectors, to spend time in the facility to observe operations, interview plant personnel, and take samples for analysis. Inspections may focus on one or more of the following questions: Signs could include conflicting data, conflicting stories from different employees at the same facility, monitoring data for which there is no supporting record or documentation, claims that employees are ignorant of the regulations when company files show knowledge of these requirements, and complaints from employees or citizens in the local community.

Walk-Through Inspection This type of inspection is limited to a quick survey of the facility. Inspectors need only to walk through the facility to verify the existence of certain features, such as control equipment or a records repository, or to observe work practices and housekeeping. These inspections establish an enforcement presence, and can also serve as a screening process to identify facilities that should be targeted for more intensive inspection. Compliance Evaluation Inspection This level involves a thorough inspection of the facility but does not include sampling.

It may include visual observations like those in Level 1; review and evaluation of records; interviews with facility personnel; review and critique of self-monitoring methods, instruments, and data; examination of process and control devices; and collection of evidence of non- compliance. Sampling Inspection This includes the visual and record reviews of the other inspection levels, as well as pre-planned collection and analysis of physical samples. These inspections are the most resource-intensive.

Inspections usually begin with an opening conference to explain the inspection process to the facility. Other countries' legal systems require inspectors to leave written summaries of observed violations, putting inspected companies on notice. Box contains an example of the phases of the inspection process. The following sections take a closer look at several of the phases. Targeting Inspections Inspection sites are selected using four criteria: An agency must explain how it weighed each of these criteria in a compliance monitoring report made available to the public to show it that the selections were made in a fair and transparent manner.

Preparation of an Inspection Plan This phase entails tasks such as reviewing all available information, contacting everyone who may have relevant information, getting administrative clearances, and making necessary arrangements if samples need to be taken. Entry into Facility Most public agencies seek to obtain consensual entry first.

If the entry is denied, they try to explain again why the entry is necessary. If denied again, authorization to enter may be granted by a legal authority. Opening Conference The purpose of an opening conference is to let the facility know what the agency plans to do and why, and also to learn more about the facility operation, plant layout, management structure, plant processes, plant safety, and other information relevant for the investigation.

Collecting Evidence in the Field Evidence is anything that provides verifiable information that can be used to establish, certify, prove, substantiate, or support an assertion. It can include physical samples, photographs, and copies of facility documents. The two most common methods of collecting evidence in the field are facility walk-throughs and process-based investigations.

Collecting Evidence from Records and Reports A record is any means of memorializing an event, person, place, or thing. Inspectors have the authority to review relevant firm records to determine compliance. The following are some common records that may be of relevance for inspectors: Closing Conference The closing conference provides an opportunity to confirm inspectors' observations and review preliminary findings with facility personnel. This may also be the opportunity to explain observed violations to the company. Report Writing The objective for generating the report is to organize and coordinate all documentation and potential evidence in a comprehensive, understandable, and usable manner.

Appearance as a Witness The inspector may be called as a witness if civil or criminal enforcement actions are taken. Targeting Inspections More frequent inspections generally promote improved compliance. However, most enforcement programs generally do not have enough resources to adequately inspect all regulated facilities.

A two-tiered monitoring approach has proven effective in reducing environmental management costs while maintaining an adequate level of deterrence. In selecting sources for more intensive inspections, enforcement programs can consider several factors: Another strategy for conserving program resources is to start with a less expensive inspection. If the source is in violation, enforcement action should be taken to require the source to correct the violation and conduct more extensive self-monitoring.

If the monitoring data indicates a continued violation or if there is any other reason to suspect a violation, another more intensive inspection should then be conducted. This shifts some of the burden of data gathering to the source and postpones resource-intensive inspections until concerns raised in lower-level inspections and monitoring warrant greater expense. Some environmental management programs offer to limit enforcement actions, and subsequent penalties, in exchange for immediate correction of violations discovered during inspections.

Other considerations in targeting inspections include: This will help reveal the true scope and nature of different risks by examining problems unlikely to be revealed by targeted activities. Random inspection activities can include the location, timing, or scope of the inspection.

Most inspection programs have traditionally addressed a single environmental medium, such as air, land, or water. Many government agencies have started stressing multi-media inspections, sometimes by combining inspections from different agencies. Preparation of an Inspection Plan Developing an inspection plan before going on site helps ensure the quality and value of the inspection. An inspection plan provides an organized step-by-step approach to conducting the inspection. Some flexibility, however, is important to allow the inspector to adapt to unanticipated situations at the facility.

The inspection plan must clearly establish duties for each member of the inspection team. This promotes efficiency, as well as avoiding any confusion. Box lists some common elements of an inspection plan. Collecting Evidence The inspector is responsible for gathering information to determine whether a facility is in compliance and for collecting and documenting evidence of any violation. This evidence is used to support the development of enforcement cases, as well as to help the inspector prepare for and give testimony when required.

Therefore, inspectors are required to follow appropriate procedures for preservation of evidence. Standard checklists are often developed for different types of inspections to ensure that the inspections properly cover all of the necessary aspects and are fair and objective. Sometimes inspectors are responsible for determining whether a violation has occurred, while other times, program staff or legal staff make this determination.

Involvement of legal staff is essential in interpreting requirements, to determine whether there has been a violation. Because of the potential risk to subsequent enforcement cases, most inspectors in U. What must be done, and what is optional to complete? Written Inspection Report The inspector must record notes on every aspect of the inspection and gather additional evidence, such as physical samples, photographs, and copies of facility documents. As soon as possible following the inspection, the inspector must prepare an inspection report which references any additional evidence collected photographs, documents, etc.

The final report will serve as the basis for any testimony by the inspector and will likely be used as evidence if enforcement actions are taken. Prior to finalizing the report, any samples collected must be sent to a laboratory for analysis, in accordance with the protocol outlined by the agency to ensure reliable evaluation of samples.

It is also important to establish and preserve the chain of custody. The evidence should remain under the care of an appropriate authority in order to reduce the possibility of the evidence being corrupted. The subject of the inspection, however, may be given the right to have the samples examined by their own experts, provided that rules and procedures are in place to protect the evidence from tampering. Analytical data should be interpreted and presented in the final inspection report.

Elements of an inspection report may include: They are responsible for identifying facilities that are out of compliance, and for gathering evidence for enforcement actions. They are often the only environmental officials that a facility manager will ever meet in person and may serve as the key witnesses in enforcement cases.

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A program should not assign inspectors to monitor the same facilities where they have provided special technical assistance. This will help minimize the risk and appearance of preferential treatment by agency staff members who have spent considerable time and energy consulting with a firm. In some instances, however, resource constraints and the need for particular expertise make this difficult.

For example, there may be a limited number of energy plant inspectors with the requisite technical expertise so an agency may not have enough manpower to change inspectors every visit. In cases such as these, the agency should set a goal of changing the inspector responsible for that facility as often as practicable - perhaps every few years. They need to be technically competent in the subject matter of the inspections they perform and skilled in obtaining crucial facts and collecting and preserving evidence of non-compliance.

They also need to be skilled in managing projects, working as part of a team, and communicating effectively. Communications range from entry conversations to complex cross-examination in cases of serious violations. It is useful if inspectors are trained in negotiation techniques and conflict resolution, because some inspections may become adversarial.

In such cases, inspectors must be able to prevent a hostile situation from escalating.

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The training and integrity of inspectors are critical to effective enforcement programs. Equipment needed may include: How are facilities chosen for inspection? How can routine inspections be distributed fairly and neutrally across the regulated community? Announced Versus Unannounced Inspections. When should inspections be announced versus unannounced? If inspections are announced, the facility's managers can make sure that the information requested and any essential plant personnel will be available when the inspector arrives. Thus, announced inspections can be more efficient and comprehensive.

Unannounced inspections, however, are more likely to discover the plant's true operating conditions. They are particularly useful when there is reason to believe the source is in violation and is misrepresenting its self-reported data or is likely to destroy evidence if the inspection is announced. On the other hand, if inspectors need to collect particularly detailed information, it may be necessary to announce the visit so that the relevant experts are available.

How often should a particular facility be inspected? Policymakers will need to balance the cost of inspections with the expected compliance benefit, while also considering the results of earlier inspections. Sources that are more likely to fall out of compliance may require more frequent inspections. Which level of government will provide the most effective inspection force: Would it be more effective for the government to contract with an independent group to perform inspections? Numerous variables need to be considered when making these determinations, including cost, resources, experience, and political considerations.

Objectivity of the Inspector. Care is needed to ensure that inspectors do not become so familiar with and sympathetic to certain facilities and facility managers that their objectivity is compromised. Some enforcement programs periodically rotate inspectors to avoid this possibility. What legal authority do inspectors have to enter facilities? What form of identification is used to prove the inspector's authenticity?

What procedures will be taken if the facility refuses to allow the inspection? Must the inspector have consent before entering? Does the inspector need a warrant? Role of the Inspector. Should the inspector determine whether a violation has occurred or simply gather information?

Without a clear role and authority, the inspection may fail to meet the needs of enforcement. What data should inspectors gather? Should inspections focus on data needed under a particular regulation, permit, or license, or should inspectors try to gather data relevant to several environmental regulations, permits, or licenses? The advantage of focused inspections is that it is easier to train inspectors for these inspections. The disadvantage is that more focused inspections may fail to detect non-compliance in areas not specifically covered by those inspections.

Inspection of Related Activities. To what extent should inspectors gather data on related company activities that may have an effect on environmental quality, such as preparedness for chemical emergencies, pollution prevention activities, and waste minimization programs? Which environmental media, including land, air, and water, should inspectors examine? How can the quality of data be ensured? Ways to help ensure data quality include initial reporting procedures, processes for review and confirmation of the data, and schedules and procedures for auditing the program's reporting and recordkeeping system.

Guidance also should be developed to ensure the quality of the laboratory analysis supporting the inspection. Consistency of Sampling and Analytical Procedures. Use of consistent methods and procedures for sampling and analysis is important to ensure data quality, fairness of enforcement, and the value of the results for legal proceedings. Both inspectors and analytical laboratories require guidance on appropriate procedures.

How should the information gathered by the inspector be documented? The Kellyanne Conway Technique. Public Budgeting in African Nations. The American Revolution of Immigration and Membership Politics in Western Europe. Can the EU Spend Better? Defenders of the Unborn. Italian Military Operations Abroad. The Branding of the American Mind.

Multinational Enterprises from the Netherlands. Cohabitation and Conflicting Politics in French Policymaking. New Mentalities of Government in China. Global Markets and Government Regulation in Telecommunications. Safeguarding land tenure rights in the context of agricultural investment. A Presidential Civil Service. Environmental Crime in Europe. How to write a great review. The review must be at least 50 characters long.

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