How to integrate all aspects of environmental law enforcement into various public safety response missions at the local and state level.

1. Let’s All Get Going in
the Right Direction
1

2. What is
Environmental
Law Enforcement?
2

3. A system of laws and
corresponding activities
that guide government
actions designed to
minimize human impact on
the environment
3

4. Protect public health, welfare and
the environment
Mitigate, minimize environmental
damage
Environmental Law
Enforcement
Strategic Objectives
4

5. Achieve compliance with
laws, regulations, and codes
Environmental Law
Enforcement
Tactical Objectives
5

6. Environmental Law
Enforcement
Tactical Objectives
Deter future non-compliance:
Enforce existing law
Education
6

7. Environmental Law
Enforcement
Tactical Objectives
Level playing field by solid field
investigation work:
Gain compliance via prosecution and
punishment
7

8. Integrating
Environmental
Law Enforcement
into Your
Response Mission
8

9. “I’ll take things that keep us
from doing our job for $500 Alex.”
Two Major Challenges for
Environmental Law Enforcement
9

10. Emergency and complaint response
to environmental incidents are
demanding on many levels.
Challenge #1
10

11. Laws are complex, jurisdictions
are cloudy, misconceptions and
miscommunication abound
between responders,
regulators, investigators, and
prosecuting attorneys.
CHallenge #2
11

12. Classobjectiv
Recommend innovative
ways to successfully
conduct and/or assist in
the investigation and
eventual enforcement of
environmental law,
regulations and codes.
12

13. Ensures Best Practices &
Sustainability:
Area specific protocols
Limit necessary staff
Manage time & money
Classobjectiv
13

14. Consistent with primary mission
Rules review independent
Flexible for area needs
Classobjectiv
Recommendations are...
14

15. positive outcomes
Community Relations
Environmental Protection
Accomplishments
Penalize offenders
Penalties & costs from prosecutors
Good Government
A “Whole Community” approach to gov’t
15

16. Course ModulesCourse ModulesCourse Modules
# Title Take Home Message
1
The Role of Public Safety During Complaint Response,
Investigation and Environmental Emergency Response
ELE case identification,
reporting and collecting the
initial evidence
2
Incorporating Environmental Law Enforcement into
Your Agency: SOPs and Training
How and why it can work
3
Dissolving Myths and Misconceptions: Interagency
Communications between Cops, Firefighters,
Regulators and Prosecutors
Potential roadblocks: plow
through or drive around
4
A Regional Approach in San Diego, CA:
Civil & Criminal Investigation and Eventual Prosecution
of Environmental Cases
Recommendations from
real-world experiences
16

17. Student
Introductions
Name, 0rganization & Job Title
Training or Experiences with
Environmental Law Enforcement
Specific challenges you face
17

18. MODULE ONE:
Roles
18

19. First Response
paradigm-shift
19

20. Anticipate lifecycle of incident &
investigation
Investigation & enforcement
actions outside primary mission
Focus on primary mission; but
not exclude future actions
20

21. Environmental Law
Enforcement
Roles for Public Safety
critical
Factors
21

22. Knowing when & who to report
Preventative education to responsible party
First responder activities
22

23. Basic understanding of ELE
Collection of key *informational* evidence
First responder activities
23

24. ELE success
Sustain lifecycle of the
incident/case with
pre-negotiated tasking
24

25. Enforcement
Components of the lifecycle
25

26. First responders should not be
expected to obtain
environmental samples
Initial informational evidence
collection is far more important
Critical To Success
26

27. Note: Failure of initial
evidence collection can
negatively impact a potential
enforcement case early
27

28. On-site
TaskingFirst Responders:
Preservation of on-site data & samples
Designated First responders:
Assist info/sample evidence collection
Regulatory Responders:
P0C for ELE evidence collection
28

29. ELEactivity
continuum
Investigation Initiation
Regulatory Reporting
0n-Site Expectations
Evidence Collection
Case Referral
Incident/Case Identification
29

30. ELE incident/case
Identification
Trust responder experiences:
Notification to other gov’t officials critical
Anything may be considered a pollutant and
therefore regulated
30

31. ELE incident/case
Identification
Many responders encounter violations
of law but self-determine importance
Avoid deciding what is a ‘big-deal’
Environmental laws differ from most laws
Many regulatory agencies legally required to investigate
31

32. ELE Investigation
Initiation
Seemingly insignificant event
Case development procedures
Regulatory reporting
Subject matter expert (SMEs)
32

33. For all oil & hazardous
material incidents
Regulatory
Reporting
(800)424-8802
33

34. Battery disposal
Sewage discharge (facility/vessel)
Vessel bottom sanding
Restaurant waste
Scuttling / sinking of vessels
Trash / plastics / debris disposal
Improper storage of chemicals or oil
Building code violations
Regulatory Reporting
Regulatory Reporting
34

35. Storm water discharges
Runoff management
Surface water body rerouting / filling
Dumping
Work-site injuries
Pesticide use / application / sales
Transportation & hazard communication
On-site treatment bypass
Regulatory Reporting
Regulatory Reporting
35

36. On-Site
Expectations
Negotiate with regulatory
agency on specific actions
Designated first responder:
collect and hold evidence
Determine expanded regulatory investigation:
on-call response vs. business hours
36

37. on-site Tips & TRICKS
37

38. Interviews of potentially responsible parties
Witness statements from all parties on-site
at time of incident
Photos and videos of on-site conditions:
Focus on documenting environmental damage &
potential cause (not always obvious)
Treat every case as a possible crime
38

39. Follow your instincts
Don’t give up asking questions, follow up!
Can you verify/validate the information?
Corroboration?
Find an SME for that “is this a deal?” factor
39

40. 0ne moment in time...
40

41. Without specific training, do not
determine on your own what constitutes a
violation or an environmental problem
Frequent oil sheen + 5 days = 1 large spill
41

42. On-Site Education
Appropriate during complaint response
Not applicable all situations
Not to be confused with outreach
42

43. Responders have duty to educate public
on acceptability of certain actions
Initial informational evidence collection can be
used to educate responsible party in order to
prevent future incidents
On-Site Education
43

44. InitialEvidence
Collectionform
44

45. Responders should refer cases:
regulatory agencies
civil/criminal investigators
Responders & Investigators:
Mutual respect & knowledge of mission sets
45

46. ELE regulatory agencies/
departments rely on incident
referrals: typically only happen
after consistent education and
training
46

47. If referral doesn’t seem to go
anywhere, visit prosecuting
attorney in person
Follow up
47

48. Repeat offenders are only
repeat offenders because illegal
behavior is tolerated
48

49. Knowing who to call is half the battle!
49

50. ELE agencies rely on first
responders because they
alone may have access to
evidence that can make or
break an enforcement case
50

51. MODULE Two: SOPs
& Training
51

52. What Makes
a Regional
ELE Program
Successful?
52

53. Incorporating environmental law
enforcement principles into
the daily routine via
S0Ps, training & exercises
E
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t
53

54. What constitutes an ELE incident/case
What constitutes protection of human
health, welfare and the environment
Conducting joint training
Ensuring guidance, S0Ps and leadership
Education
54

55. Investigation
Consistent collection of initial evidence
Incident/case reporting and referral
Mutually beneficial and reciprocal training
55

56. Enforcement
via penalties/prosecution
56

57. Incentives for
working within a
Regional ELE
Program
57

58. Deterrent for environmental crime
Positive, pro-environmental protection
press releases to local media
Press releases following enforcement
‘doubles down’ on deterrent + penalties
Potential for restitution
58

59. Recommendations
for first
Responders
59

60. Voluntary ELE
Coordinator
60

61. Agency specific S0Ps
61

62. Evidence collection kit
with referral
procedures
62

63. Prosecutors office/env.
agencies training
63

64. Attend Advanced
Environmental Crimes
Training Program
64

65. Attend Environmental
Task Forces
65

66. Create scenario based
training for training
exercises, table tops,
resource deployments
66

67. M0As/M0Us
67

68. take
hom
e
m
essages
Accepting ELE additional duties
Bad economy =
regulations bad
education, investigation
and enforcement
68

69. take
hom
e
m
essages
Routine Participation
Restitution & Settlements
Management Support
Daily Operations
69

70. MODULE three
Dissolving Myths and Misconceptions
70

71. Typically don’t work together or in concert
Mismatched readiness posture
Different missions
Lack identical operational model
ELE program will require
coordination and cooperation
71

72. Routine interagency
partnerships breed
mutual understanding of
mission requirements
72

73. Interagency Coordination
and Cooperation
Pre-incident comms & data sharing
Task forces
Ride-alongs
Business meetings
Facility tours
and...
73

74. Training opportunities
74

75. Continuity for the regional ELE
incident/case referral process
75

76. Seemingly benign environmental issues
76

77. Prohibited effluent that
are commonly discharged
77

78. Making sense of environmental
laws, regulations and codes
78

79. Miscommunication
Regulatory/scientific language
Legalese & prosecutorial priorities
Response vs. regulatory posture
Referred case unsuccessful
79

80. Miscommunication
Industry objections/obfuscation
Public safety vs. enforcement
Regulatory vs. enforcement
80

81. Reaching a Common Goal
The goal is compliance!
Fair & consistent enforcement is key
Enforcement will reverberate thru regulated community
Lessen the frequency & number of repeat offenders
81

82. Reaching a Common Goal
Effective ELE cannot be
accomplished by any one agency
at any one level of government
82

83. Common operational picture
Environmental Task Forces
83

84. Whole Community Approach
Post-prosecution press releases can
garner public outreach and support
Public education of potentially
responsible parties:
Regulated and non-regulated
84

85. Module
Example Approaches
to Integrating ELE
85

86. Post Deepwater Horizon Reorganization of Minerals
Management Service inside Department of the Interior
New Bureau, new organization
One set of rules: 30 CFR 254
ComplianceVerification Procedures Lacking
No standardized processes: Gulf, CA & AK
Challenges:
86

87. National
Approach:
Form Based SOPs
5 Capabilities + Enforcement
87

88. A Regional Approach:
A look at San Diego’s
approach to Environmental
Law Enforcement
88

89. Task Forces:
Environmental Crimes Task Force
Marine Environment Task Force
Abandoned Vessel Guidebook
89

90. 90

91. Training:
At Task Forces
Recruiting for EPA-CID AECTP
Port of SD Harbor Police
SDPDHU
Lifeguards
Oceanside PD
91

92. Field exercises:
Investigation & enforcement activities
92

93. Cases referred & prosecuted:
Joint press releases
Restitution/Settlements
93

94. A form
A procedure
A booklet or flowchart
Consistent Training
Consistent Inter-Agency Outreach
Consistent Participation (Just be there!)
Consistent Support
Follow Up
Work towards establishing a reasonable expectation for ELE
related actions from first responders
Provide feedback loop for case progress and results
94

95. Protect public health, welfare and
the environment
Mitigate, minimize environmental
damage
95

96. Contact information:
Jereme M. Altendorf
Phone: 619-630-5325
Email:
Jereme.Altendorf@bsee.gov
Altendorf@regulatoryconsultants.org
Twitter: @AltRegConsult
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