Environmental
Compliance.
Nova Group, GBC provides Environmental Compliance Services to public and private sector clients to ensure compliance with federal, state and local environmental regulations. Nova’s Environmental Compliance Group focuses on providing cost-effective solutions that promote sustainable compliance tailored to the specific needs of each individual client. Our goal is to exceed client expectations through our knowledge and unwavering dedication to service and results. Nova assists our clients with evaluating applicable environmental regulations, acquiring the proper permit and plans, implementing appropriate tools and systems to manage compliance obligations, fulfilling reporting and recordkeeping requirements and managing change due to new regulatory requirements or expanded operations.
Nova's Expertise
Nova professionals have extensive experience in environmental compliance management and provide our clients with valuable insight into meeting their regulatory compliance requirements. Nova professionals have a wide range of experience in the manufacturing, chemical, petroleum distribution, agricultural chemical, food production, retail distribution, educational, financial and healthcare industries.
Services.
Environmental Compliance Audit
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An environmental compliance audit evaluates the regulations that pertain to a business or industrial facility and identifies areas where the facility may have compliance concerns.
Nova conducts both facility-wide multi-media (air, water, waste, etc.) compliance audits and audits that focus on one area of compliance, such as waste management audits (universal, hazardous and industrial waste management).
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What is an Environmental Compliance Audit?
An environmental compliance audit examines each of the regulations applicable to the specific facility, evaluates the actions conducted by the facility to maintain and demonstrate compliance with the requirements and summarizes the findings. Nova’s report provides our clients with a status of both current compliance findings and compliance related concerns (Best Management Practices). The report provides a clear outline of action items that need to be taken and Nova will also provide guidance to help prioritize the steps needed to achieve compliance with all federal, state, and local regulations based on risk. Through this process, our clients gain a better understanding of environmental compliance obligations as well as possible increased efficiencies, improved management techniques and associated cost savings.
Standards set forth in federal and state regulations for air emissions, wastewater discharge, stormwater management, hazardous waste management, SPCC and FRP Plans, Tier II and TRI reporting, along with other applicable regulations, require businesses to address the following general issues and requirements:
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Registration and Licensing
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Inspection, Data Collection and Monitoring
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Sampling, Labeling, Posting and Disposal Documentation
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Employee Training
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Reporting
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Agency Notification
Air Emission Permitting
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Nova professionals provide air emission permitting support to a wide range of clients to ensure sustainable compliance with increasingly complex local, state and federal regulations. Nova professionals have experience permitting numerous types of industries including pulp and paper, oil and gas, painting and coating, food processing and general manufacturing.
Nova designs air permit applications with the goal of allowing the permit to be issued with maximum operational flexibility, but without imposing additional regulatory requirements. Based on an evaluation of the emissions and applicable regulatory thresholds, along with close coordination to understand our client’s business goals, Nova develops a strategic permitting approach. This provides our clients with an increased ability to change facility operations to quickly respond to market demands without regulatory agency interaction. Air emission related services provided by Nova include:
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Federal Title V (Part 70) and State (FESOP) Permitting
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State Registration and Permit by Rule Permitting
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Air Emission Inventory Reporting
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Compliance Certification and Monitoring Reporting
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Greenhouse Gas Inventories and Reporting
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Permit Compliance Management and Compliance Tracking Tool Development
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Chemical Reporting Requirements: Tier II and TRI (Sara) Reporting
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Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) annual chemical reporting requirements including SARA 312, also known as Tier II Reporting, and SARA 313, also known as Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) reporting, apply to many facilities and are increasing in scope and complexity. In addition, SARA 311 requirements drive mid-year notifications to local and state agencies for the same facilities.
Compliance with these requirements requires ongoing and year end chemical management and reconciliation to track storage volumes and throughputs.
Nova assists clients in complying with these regulations through completion of the annual data review and reporting efforts. In addition, Nova provides additional assistance in developing and implementing data tracking tools to minimize data maintenance efforts, streamlines future reporting efforts, increase data accuracy and promotes sustainable compliance.
Water Management
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Nova provides water management guidance to clients, including both stormwater and wastewater discharges.
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Stormwater
Many industrial facilities throughout the country hold individual or general National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for stormwater discharge associated with industrial activity, or else are required to obtain construction stormwater permits. Nova personnel have assisted numerous clients with stormwater management, including with the following:
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Completion of Notice of Intent (NOI) documents to obtain coverage under the proper permit sector (determined by SIC/NAICS)
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Development of Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPP)
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Assistance with implementation and updating of SWPPPs, including personnel and inspection training
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Preparation of Construction SWPPPs and Erosion Control Plans
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Stormwater runoff inspections and sampling
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Evaluation and implementation of stormwater controls and best management practices (BMP)
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Development of proper data collection and recordkeeping practices
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Preparation of periodic Discharge Reports and Annual Compliance Reports
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With the assistance of Nova’s expertise and background, its clients reduce the potential for noncompliant stormwater discharges and streamline their stormwater permit management efforts.
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Wastewater
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Wastewater discharges to sanitary sewer systems, or Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW), for industrial users discharging nondomestic wastewater are commonly regulated under POTW discharge permits. In addition, some types of facilities are further regulated under Categorical Pretreatment Standards, depending on the activities conducted. Nova assists clients with management of their wastewater discharge permit requirements to ensure compliance with these local and federal regulations by offering the following:
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Completion of POTW permit applications and permit renewal negotiations
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Discharge treatment system development and ongoing management
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Discharge sample collector installations and sample collection
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Development of proper data collection and recordkeeping practices
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Preparation of annual reports
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​Nova assists clients in establishing more manageable permit conditions, reduced system downtime and upsets, more cost-effective and compliant sample collection methods, and an overall reduced management effort, and increases POTW discharge permit compliance.
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Waste Management
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Nova provides waste management guidance to clients for the full range of waste streams including hazardous waste, universal waste and special or industrial wastes. Proper waste management provides almost every business with an opportunity to reduce operating costs through proactive waste minimization and source reduction efforts to reduce the volume or toxicity of their generated wastes. Proper waste stream management and disposal also reduces the potential for exposure to employees and may reduce future corporate liabilities. Nova’s services that assist clients with management of their waste streams to ensure regulatory compliance and minimize costs include:
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Assistance with Waste Stream Characterization, Classification, Proper Profiling and Manifest Management
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Waste Accumulation Area and Container Management Compliance
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Preparation and Implementation of Emergency Contingency Plans
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Development of Waste Tracking and Reporting Tools
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Waste Disposal Vendor Selection, Management and Auditing
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Waste Stream Minimization and Source Reduction Plans and Reporting
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Pollution Prevention Plans and Reporting
SPCC Plan and Facility Response Plan Development
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Nova personnel have extensive experience in the development and implementation of Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plans and Facility Response Plans (FRP).
SPCC Plans are required for many facilities across the country which exceed the threshold volume for aboveground or underground oil storage and FRPs are required for larger oil storage facilities that have the potential to create substantial harm to the environment. Nova personnel provide extensive experience and insight, gained through years of regulatory interaction and plan development, into the requirements, implementation and management of these plans. Nova ensures that the plans are compliant with the regulatory requirements, accurate and applicable to the facility and that the required training, inspections and drills both fulfill the regulations and also provides value to our clients. Nova also assists our clients with the development of practices to ensure the plans are updated in accordance with ongoing facility changes and regulatory requirements.
Nova also develops SPCC and FRPs to ensure compliance with other overlapping regulations, such as state emergency preparedness and spill response regulations and U.S. Coast Guard regulations. This provides a plan that fulfills all applicable requirements, reduces redundancy and decreases the number of plans that need to be maintained. Nova personnel have developed these plans in the “stand alone” format and also in the Integrated Contingency Plan (ICP) or “One Plan” format.
In addition, these plans can be hosted through a web based format and therefore easily updated and also accessible by multiple parties from multiple locations. Based on the unique needs of each client, Nova can help determine the proper format.
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Ask Us.
Nova Group, GBC (Nova) is an international advising firm providing innovative environmental and engineering services in the areas of risk assessment, investigation, management, compliance and corrective action activities.
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Call: +1 855-440-9393
Email: info@novagroupgbc.com
