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Environment Quick News
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| A
Monthly Report on EPRI's Environmental Research Programs |
February
2010 |
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Program members can use their epri.com ID and password to download
Acrobat PDF files of EPRI technical reports. For assistance,
contact the EPRI Customer Assistance Center at (800) 313-3774. |
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Dear Environment Sector members:
Happy New Year! We hope you all had an enjoyable holiday
with friends and family.
This is the first Quick News newsletter for 2010
and thus our first opportunity to provide you with a snapshot
of 2009. We are in the process of
preparing our Annual Overview, which will be sent to all members
prior to the March Advisory Meetings. The Overview will summarize
our principal technical accomplishments, including a list
of relevant reference materials and our major communications
efforts. We are proud not only of the content of the material
but also of the efforts we’ve taken to provide you and
the broader stakeholder community with our key research results.
The Overview also documents the results of the Member Satisfaction
Survey, lists recipients of the Technology Transfer Awards,
and highlights future plans for the Sector’s research.
The new year also started with some changes in the Sector’s
management. We are pleased to announce that Tina Taylor will
assume the direction and management of the Sector’s
Water and Ecosystems programs, as well as our emerging work
on the environmental impacts of renewable energy, sustainability,
and other potential “clean tech” areas related
to the environment. This expanded role for Tina recognizes
the growing interest of Environment members in these areas
and takes advantage of her extraordinary skill in fostering
new collaborations with an increasingly diverse variety of
participants. Michael Miller will continue to manage the remainder
of the Environment programs in Air Quality, Land and Groundwater,
Climate, and EMF/RF and Occupational Health and Safety.
We look forward to seeing everyone at the advisory meetings
in Orlando the week of March 15.
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| Air Quality Area News |
| . EPRI's
Air Quality Group will be holding its first summer seminar
on May 26-27 in Washington, D.C. The topic of the seminar
is Particulate Matter (PM) and Health. |
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| Program 42: Air Toxics Health and Risk
Assessment |
| . Using currently
available information to estimate stack emissions of hazardous
air pollutants (HAPs) from all U.S. coal-fired power plants,
EPRI has updated its emission factors and estimated emissions
from these plants for the reference year 2007. |
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| . The Environmental Mutagen Society
has selected this review article to highlight as its Editor's
Choice for "an impressive scholarly work, setting a new
standard for the interpretation of toxicogenomic studies."
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| . One proposed cause for
the increased rate of childhood autism observed in the
United States is local exposure to mercury. |
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| . This Technical Update summarizes
key EPRI research findings on mercury, ozone, nitrogen
oxides, and particulate matter transport from Asia. |
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| . This paper
describes the development of a passive sampler for estimating
concentrations of gaseous oxidized mercury. |
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| Program 91: Assessment Tools for Ozone,
Particulate Matter, Regional Haze and Atmospheric Deposition |
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Findings from EPRI's 2008 August Mini-Intensive
Gas and Aerosol Study (AMIGAS) are helping to clarify
the transformation of organics in the atmosphere and their
role in particle formation. |
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| . This
paper describes the development of a natural emissions
database, needed to simulate the natural visibility that
would exist in the absence of man-made contributions to
haze. |
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EPRI's research on vehicle emissions and its research
on nitrogen deposition were discussed in separate sessions
at the Dec. 14-18 American Geophysical Union (AGU) Annual
Meeting in San Francisco. |
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| Program 92: Assessment of Air Quality
Impacts on Health and the Environment |
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This Technical Update reviews and summarizes the
results of the major EPRI air pollution epidemiology and
toxicology research efforts, and compares the findings
with those of the broader scientific literature. |
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| . Using data from the Aerosol
Research and Inhalation Epidemiology Study (ARIES), this
paper looks at relationships between air pollutants and
visit rates to a managed care organization in the Atlanta
area. |
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| Visit
the Global Climate Webpage |
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| Program 102: Global Climate Policy Costs
and Benefits |
| . EPRI, in a
collaboration with researchers at Duke University, Texas
A&M University, and the International Institute for
Applied Systems Analysis, was recently awarded a one-year
grant from The David and Lucile Packard Foundation. |
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This report describes the development of the U.S.
Regional Energy Policy (USREP) model. |
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| Program 103: Greenhouse Gas Reduction
Options |
| . This Technical Report presents two related
studies—one examining cost and performance improvements
across a range of new technologies, the other looking
specifically at the value of carbon capture and storage
retrofits to existing coal generation. |
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| . This EPRI supplemental project is exploring
an innovative approach to developing large-scale, cost-effective
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions offsets. |
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Victor Niemeyer's Dec.12th webcast presentation,
"Assessing Climate Policy Impacts at Regional Levels Using
National Energy Modeling System (NEMS)," generated considerable
interest and follow-up discussion from the 70-80 utility
participants. |
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| Program 49: Coal Combustion Products—Environmental
Issues |
| . On Dec. 10, EPRI’s Ken Ladwig
testified about coal combustion by-products (CCBs) before
the House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment. |
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| . Research reported here compared
concentrations of trace species (arsenic, selenium, mercury,
cadmium, chromium, lead, and nickel) and one anion (bromide)
leached from baseline fly ash with concentrations leached
from fly ash collected during sorbent injection or boiler
bromide addition for mercury control. |
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MANAGES™ provides a central database in which to
store and interpret all data describing water quality,
soil quality, and waste characterization collected at
power plant sites. |
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| Program 50: Manufactured Gas Plant Site
Management |
| . This Technical Update describes the
first phase of research to unambiguously detect important
diagnostic compounds in sediments contaminated by coal
tar. |
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| . Many states
have regulations or policies to address situations where
complete cleanup of a former MPG site is technically impracticable,
according to a review of regulatory programs in 13 states
presented in this Technical Update. |
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| Program 59: Power Plant Toxics Characterization |
| . EPRI has prepared a series of seven
technical papers to assist owners of U.S. power plants
in responding to Section III of the EPA Information Collection
Request (ICR) for Electric Utility Steam Generating Units. |
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| . Using currently
available information to estimate stack emissions of hazardous
air pollutants (HAPs) from all U.S. coal-fired power plants,
EPRI has updated its emission factors and estimated emissions
from these plants for the reference year 2007. |
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| . Standard analytical methods such
as inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)
may greatly over report trace elements in flue gas desulfurization
(FGD) water. |
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| . This Technical Update reports progress
in creating a comprehensive index of sampling and analysis
methods that can be used for chemical measurements of
stack gas, water, and solid samples at power plants. |
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| . This
report summarizes research to determine the performance
of activated carbon sorbents currently used in mercury
flue gas monitoring. |
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| . Current technologies for
measuring vapor-phase mercury emissions from coal-fired
power plant stacks will be the primary options for years
to come, according to this state-of-the-science Technical
Report. |
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| Program 53: Water Quality Criteria Development
and Assessment |
| . This interim Technical
Report describes methods and procedures for characterizing
the toxicity of coal-fired power plant wastewater effluents
to freshwater mussels, fish, and daphnids. |
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| . This Technical Report summarizes
results from a two-year study to develop a model capable
of predicting metal toxicity to aquatic organisms while
considering metal bioavailability and episodic and time-variable
metal exposures. |
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| . This software, a Windows™-based
simulation model for personal computers, predicts the
cycling and fate of the major forms of mercury in lakes,
including methylmercury, Hg(II), and elemental mercury. |
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| . This Technical Report
covers a number of topics raised by EPA's 2009 implementation
guidance document. |
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| . This paper describes how
vegetation in a boreal forest, located in the Experimental
Lakes Area of Canada, retained new mercury (four stable
isotopes) deposited from the air to the ground surface. |
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| Program 54: Fish Protection at Steam
Electric Power Plants |
| . Blockage
of cooling water intakes occurs frequently at nuclear
and fossil power plants worldwide, and can have operational
impacts that may ultimately translate to system reliability
problems and declines in plant revenue. |
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EPRI is initiating a new supplemental project to
quantify the impingement and entrainment (I&E) reduction
benefit should EPA propose 316(b) regulations designating
closed-cycle cooling as Best Technology Available (BTA). |
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| . EPRI
recognizes the need to provide members with information,
analytical tools, innovative mitigation technologies,
and expert services to help environmental and power plant
managers effectively manage water resources and protect
aquatic communities in accordance with section 316(b)
of the Clean Water Act. |
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| . This Technical
Report presents results of a study that reexamined the
issues raised in the Environmental Protection Agency's
critique of 37 past entrainment survival studies, performed
during development of the CWA §316(b) Phase II Rule. |
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| Program 55: Strategic Water Issues: TMDLs,
Availability, Climate |
| . EPRI's Jeff Stallings presented
two papers at the recent International Association for
Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research's Cooling Tower
and Air-Cooled Heat Exchanger Conference, hosted by the
University of Stellenbosch in South Africa. |
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This paper, co-authored by EPRI's Bob Goldstein
and based on EPRI research, describes the challenges of
meeting future U.S. water needs with limited water resources. |
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| . This Technical Report
is a general guide to analytical techniques used to address
water resource management as related to long-term sustainability
planning and short-term regulatory requirements, including
total maximum daily loads, endangered species, and relicensing
of hydropower facilities. |
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| Program 56: Effluent Guidelines and Water
Quality Management |
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EPRI is currently working with members to develop
the 2010 plan; additional input will be collected at the
March Advisory Meetings in Orlando, FL. |
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EPRI will continue to work with advisors and members
to determine how to help members respond as EPA moves
forward with guidelines revisions. |
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| Program 58: Waterpower |
| Hydropower Technology Update on Aerating
Turbines. Hydropower
Technology Roundup Report: Technology Update on Aerating
Turbines (EPRI Product 1017966). EPRI's 2002
report, Maintaining
and Monitoring Dissolved Oxygen at Hydroelectric Projects:
Status Report (EPRI Product 1005194), provided
a comprehensive review of a wide range of techniques and
technologies for improving the dissolved oxygen levels
in releases from hydroelectric projects. This Technical
Update supplements that report, focusing primarily on
aerating turbine technologies for new turbine installations
and for turbine upgrades. For more information, contact
Doug Dixon, (804) 642-1025,
ddixon@epri.com. |
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| Program 57: ROW: Siting, Vegetation Management,
and Avian Issues |
| . The report explains why the
utility industry should use sustainable practices, demonstrates
that IVM is a ready-made model of sustainability, and
surveys the websites of all twenty-nine Program 57 member
companies to investigate their portrayal, if any, of the
relationship between IVM and sustainability. |
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| . This Technical Report
describes an approach for applying the principles of reliability-centered
maintenance (RCM) to vegetation management (VM) on an
overhead electric distribution system. |
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| . Owners siting transmission
projects are increasingly required, under the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and some NEPA-like state
regulations, to submit a documented analysis of the "cumulative"
environmental impacts of their projects. |
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EPRI has developed a conceptual design for a Bird
Activity Monitor (BAM), a video-based tool for monitoring
activity after EPRI's Bird Strike Indicator (BSI) records
contact between a bird and a utility structure such as
a power line or wind turbine. |
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| Program 60: EMF Health Assessment and
Radio-Frequency Safety |
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| Visit
the EMF Health Assessment and RF Safety Public Webpage |
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| . Animal models are critical in cancer
research because they allow scientists to examine the
biological alterations required for tumor formation and
to assess cancer risks in a manner that would be impossible
in human populations. |
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| . This database consolidates
occupational and residential magnetic field exposure and
dosimetry data collected in 14 major studies sponsored
by EPRI and others from 1985 to 2002. |
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| . This Technical Update
reviews electromagnetic interference standards designed
to minimize the risk of disrupting the function of workers'
implantable and wearable medical devices, such as pacemakers. |
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| . The primary goal of research reported
here was to identify conditions under which significant
radio-frequency (RF) burns can or cannot occur. |
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| . EPRI welcomes
Ximena Vergara as the newest member of the EMF Health
Assessment and Occupational Health and Safety research
programs. |
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OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH
AND SAFETY |
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| Program 62: Occupational Health and Safety |
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This Technical Report presents illness and injury
trends for electric power industry workers based on data
collected for EPRI's Occupational Health and Safety Database
(OHSD) program. |
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| . With a focus on tasks
performed by electricians who work in fossil-fueled electric
power plants, this interactive DVD aids industry safety
programs in applying research results. |
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This Technical Report contains the results of an
analysis of worker breathing zone air samples associated
with Cr(VI) during welding and thermal cutting activities
conducted at electric utility operations. |
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| . The goal of the workshop was to help "frame
the issues surrounding integrating worker health and safety
into sustainable and green designs and technologies." |
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| . EPRI welcomes
Ximena Vergara as the newest member of the EMF Health
Assessment and Occupational Health and Safety research
programs. |
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| NEW SUPPLEMENTAL PROJECT
OPPORTUNITIES |
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| NEW MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS |
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| Program 91: Assessment Tools for Ozone, Particulate
Matter, Regional Haze and Atmospheric Deposition |
| Ultrafine
Particles: Formation, Chemistry, Exposure, and Health Effects,
Issue Brief (EPRI Product 1020539) |
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| Program 92: Assessment of Air Quality Impacts
on Health and the Environment |
| Concentrated
Ambient Particles: Application to Air Pollution Health Research,
Issue Brief (EPRI Product 1020612) |
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| Program 56: Effluent Guidelines and Water Quality
Management |
| Cleaning
Mercury and Selenium From Scrubber Wastewater,
EPRI Journal, Fall 2009 |
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| Program 60: EMF Health Assessment and Radio-Frequency
Safety |
| Magnetic
Fields Near Transformers, Fact Sheet (EPRI
Product 1020261) |
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| UPCOMING EVENTS |
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| *
denotes EPRI sponsored or cosponsored event |
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| Environment Sector |
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Environment Sector and Area Council Advisory Meetings
Mar. 15–18, Orlando, FL. Contact: Marsha Grossman,
(650) 855-8760, mgrossma@epri.com.
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Environment Sector and Area Council Advisory Meetings
Sept. 27-30, San Antonio, TX. Contact: Marsha Grossman,
(650) 855-8760, mgrossma@epri.com.
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| Air Quality |
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| Hemispheric Transport of Air
Pollution-Workshop on Addressing Black Carbon and Ozone as
Short-lived Climate Forcers
Mar. 3-4, Research Triangle Park, NC. Contact: Eladio Knipping,
(202) 293-2691, eknippin@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
20th CRC On-Road Vehicle Emissions Workshop
Mar. 22-24, San Diego, CA. Contact: Stephanie Shaw, (650)
855-2353, sshaw@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
AAAR Specialty Conference—Air Pollution
and Health: Bridging the Gap from Sources to Health Outcomes
Mar. 22–26, San Diego, CA. Contact: Naresh Kumar,
(650) 855-2990, nkumar@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
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EPRI/UARG Air Toxics Research Coordination Meeting
May 5-7, Palo Alto, CA. Contact: Leonard Levin, (650) 855-7929,
llevin@epri.com.
Remediation of Chlorinated and Recalcitrant Compounds
May 24–27, Monterey, CA. Contact: Leonard Levin,
(650) 855-7929, llevin@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
* EPRI Air Quality Summer Seminar-Particulate
Matter and Health: Evaluating Alternatives to a Mass-Based
PM Standard
May 26-27, Washington, D.C. Contact: Naresh Kumar, (650) 855-2990,
nkumar@epri.com.
Goldschmidt™ 2010 - Earth, Energy and the Environment
June 13-18, Knoxville, TN. Contact: Arnout Ter Schure, (650)
855-2281, aterschu@epri.com.
Dr. Ter Schure will chair a session on Atmospheric Oxidation
of Mercury by Reactive Halogen Species. More information is
available at the event
website.
A&WMA 103rd Annual Conference & Exhibition
June 22–25, Calgary, Canada. Contact: Naresh Kumar,
(650) 855-2990, nkumar@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
Joint ICACGP–IGAC Conference—Atmospheric
Chemistry: Challenging the Future
July 11–16, Halifax, Canada. Contact: Eladio Knipping,
(202) 293-2691, eknippin@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
* Power Plant Air
Pollutant Control “MEGA” Symposium
Aug. 30–Sept. 2, Baltimore, MD. Contact: Leonard Levin,
(650) 855-7929, llevin@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
AWMA Symposium on Air Quality Measurement Methods
and Technology
Nov. 2–4, Los Angeles, CA. Contact: Naresh Kumar, (650)
855-2990, nkumar@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
American Geophysical Union 2010 Fall Meeting
Dec. 13–17, San Francisco, CA. Contact: Stephanie
Shaw, (650) 855-2353, sshaw@epri.com.
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| Global Climate |
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15th Annual EPRI Global
Climate Change Research Seminar
May 18–19, Washington, DC. Contact: Christina
Kemp, (650) 855-2044, ckemp@epri.com.
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| Land and Groundwater |
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AEHS Soils, Sediments, and Water Conference
Mar. 15-18, San Diego, CA. Contact: Jim Lingle, (414) 355-5559,
jlingle@epri.com. This
conference is presented by The Association for Environmental
Health and Sciences (AEHS). More information is available
at the event
website.
* TRI for Power Plants (LARK-TRIPP) Training
Workshop
Mar. 24-25, Charlotte, NC. Contact: Naomi Goodman, (650) 855-2193,
ngoodman@epri.com.
* EPRI/UARG Air Toxics Research Coordination
Meeting
May 5-7, Palo Alto, CA. Contact: Leonard Levin, (650) 855-7929, llevin@epri.com.
Remediation of Chlorinated and Recalcitrant Compounds
May 24–27, Monterey, CA. Contact: Leonard Levin,
(650) 855-7929, llevin@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
A&WMA 103rd Annual Conference & Exhibition
June 22-25, Calgary, Canada. Contact: Naresh Kumar, (650)
855-2990, nkumar@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
* Power Plant Air
Pollutant Control “MEGA” Symposium
Aug. 30–Sept. 2, Baltimore, MD. Contact: Leonard Levin,
(650) 855-7929, llevin@epri.com.
More information is available at the event
website.
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| Water and Ecosystems |
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Webcast: Ohio River Trading Project Quarterly
Update
Feb. 17, 10 a.m. PDT. Contact Katie Vroom, (650) 855-2417,
kavroom@epri.com.
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Workshop on Western Water Availability Constraints
on Electric Power
Feb. 23–24, Albuquerque, NM. Contact: Robert Goldstein,
(650) 855-2154, rogoldst@epri.com.
This workshop will be held at the facilities of Public Service
of New Mexico (PNM).
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Webcast: Ohio River Trading Project Quarterly
Update
May 19, 10 a.m. PDT. Contact: Katie Vroom, (650) 855-2417,
kavroom@epri.com.
* Summer Water & Ecosystem Area Council Meeting
June 23-25, Whitefish, MT. Contact: Katie Vroom, (650) 855-2417,
kavroom@epri.com.
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| T&D Environmental Issues |
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| The Bioelectromagnetics Society
32nd Annual Meeting
June 13–18, Seoul, Korea. Contact: Gabor Mezei,
(650) 855-8908, gmezei@epri.com.
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Together…Shaping
the Future of Electricity® |
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Electric
Power Research Institute
3420
Hillview Avenue, Palo Alto, California 94304-1338 • PO Box 10412,
Palo Alto, California 94303-0813 USA
800.313.3774 • 650.855.2121 • askepri@epri.com
• www.epri.com
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