Environmental Results Program (ERP)

The list below summarizes the results of ERP. Some of the results were derived from a subset of actual field-observed MA DEP inspections that were then extrapolated to the whole group. In the case of estimated pollution reduction results, these were based on a set of emission factors and assumptions that were used to calculate results.

-One in ten facilities that have submitted certifications have identified environmental violations and committed to compliance timetables - all without state inspectors ever setting foot in their facilities.

-Fewer businesses are unregulated. For example, 10 percent of the state's dry cleaners appeared in DEP's database before ERP; today, 95 percent are registered.

-Printers were found to have reduced VOC emissions, ceased disposing of hazardous waste with solid waste, and eliminated such practices as washing ink-contaminated press rollers in sinks. For example, the performance rate for applicable standards for press cleanup solutions (e.g., use of lower VOC products) increased from 77 percent in 1998 to 85 percent in 1999. This improvement extrapolates to an estimated four-ton emissions reduction annually for the entire sector.

-Dry cleaners were found to have made significant compliance and P2 changes to their operations as a result of ERP. For example, prior to ERP, only 33 percent of dry cleaners in 1997 were engaging in leak checks. After ERP, the number of dry cleaners performing routine leak checks increased to 66 percent in 2000. This improvement, when applied across the entire sector, results in an estimated reduction of 22.5 tons of perchloroethylene emissions to the air.

The ERP had delivered real environmental results for Massachusetts while bringing into the regulatory system a vast number of smaller companies that were previously unregulated.