# Presentation: 043317

## Environmental Management Information System (EMIS):

**  ****Getting Your EMS Off the Shelf and Working For You**

- Peter M. Heinricher
- Deborah R. Curtin
- Construction Engineering Research Laboratory
- Champaign, IL
- Greg Gasperecz
- Enviance, Inc
- Carlsbad, CA

## Problem for Federal Agencies:

- Reality:  fragmented programs, decentralized data management

- Maturity of Commitment:  Yes

- Maturity of Tools:  No

## EMS:  “Another Rock in My Rucksack”  

**A disconnected**** ****EMS results in:**
**Unmeasurable goals**
**Duplication of effort**
**Fragmented information**
- .

**WASTE**

**WATER**

**AIR**

**AUDIT**

**EMS**

- For many agencies, EMS is a stove-piped program that does not interact directly with other program areas’ information or management goals.

## EMS: High Level vs. “Eaches”

** ****Too expensive to manage****     the “Eaches”**
**  ****EMS = Sustainability****    EMS ****≠ Compliance**
**  ****Emphasis on ****    compliance is reactionary**

** ****EMS =  Complete management****   from daily operations on up**
** ****ISO 14001 *****requires***** compliance,****   from identification of regulated****   to auditing**
** ****Sustainability = Requires ****   benchmarking**
** ****You **_**are**_** going to manage the**** “eaches”, either poorly or well**

**EMS: High Level vs. “Eaches”**

## Identifying The ‘Eaches’: The Compliance Connection

- 4.3.1:  Identify environmental aspects **+**

-  Federal Agencies currently identifying regulated environmental aspects as    part of compliance assessment program:
-  US Postal Service ECR: 399 Activity-Tasks
-  Navy:  353 Practices (pilot project)
-  Veteran’s Health Administration:  883 Activities-Tasks
-  Air Force:  1194 DOEHRS Process Codes
-  Army:  2619 Facility-Activity-Task sets

- 4.3.2:  Identify legal requirements related to aspects  **+**

- Tracking and Auditing the Eaches

## Short Answer:  Yes

- Using modern technology:
-     If information has to be routinely       collected, processed or analyzed,       that process can be automated.
-    If a facility or operation has to be       inspected, the check process can       be automated.
-    If data has to be reported, the       report process can be automated.

- Shop Staff

- Other SystemsCEMS, Tank monitors, effluent sampling, etc.

- PDAsAudits, RFID tags, field data-entry

- RFID tagsTanks, drums, meters

- EMIS

## EMIS:  Auto Data Collection

- Example:  Waste Tracking for a Dispersed Organization

- Env Office tracks down missing data, corrects errors

- Env Office calculates weight of HW, other wastes, tracks accumulation limits

- Env Office compiles roll-up report, submits waste reports to State/HQ

- (mouse click)

- Env Office compiles roll-up report, submits waste reports to State/HQ

- Shop staff track amounts of wastes generated

- Shop staff compile monthly reports and submit

- Env Office Tracks down missing data, corrects errors

- Env Office calculates weight of HW, other wastes, tracks accumulation limits

- Env Office compiles roll-up report, submits waste report to State/HQ

- Shop staff enter amounts of waste(s) generated directly into EMIS

- EMIS notifies when data is missing; validates data

- EMIS calculates HW, tracks accumulation limits

## EMIS:  Auto Data Collection

**Details:  Waste Tracking**

| Organization:  54 facilities located across StateStaffing:  Intermittent, subject to interruptionRequirement:  Monthly/Quarterly Discharge Reports |  |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Activity | Hours Saved Per Action | Hrs Saved/Yr |
| Preparing annual waste report | 32 hours
(old:  32 hrs; new: 0 hrs) | 32 |
| Preparing monthly waste reports | 96 hrs
(old: 96 hrs; new: 0 hrs) | 96 |
|  | 
Total hours saved per year | 
128 |

## EMIS:  Auto Data Collection

**Benefits**

**Examples**

-  Labor savings
-  Net-centric: Enter once, use anywhere
-  Transcription error reduction
-  Timeliness of data entry
-  Source of data is clearly identified
-  Data consistency (e.g., air toxics    inventory and TRI releases)
-  Staff morale (professionals do    professional level work, rather than    data clerking)

-  Environmental field measurements    (water quality, opacity readings, etc)
-  Environmental monitoring devices    (CEMS, COMS, tank monitors)
-  Inspection data
-  Incident recording
-  Equipment operating records   (hours, flows, fuels, etc)
-  Energy and utilities consumption
-  Human resource info (Training    records, PPE fit, etc)
-  Material use records

## EMIS:  Auto Report Generation

- Example:  HW Reporting

- Generator Turn-in

- Manually Calculate HW Quantity

- Prepare Manifests

- Aggregate Data

- Submit Biennial Reports

- Submit Biennial Reports

- Generator Turn-in

- (mouse click)

- Auto Calculate HW Quantity

- Auto Generate Manifests

- Generator Turn-in

- Submit Biennial Reports

- Manually Calculate HW Quantity

- Prepare Manifests

- Aggregate Data

- Submit Biennial Reports

- Generator Turn-in

- Auto Calculate HW Quantity

- Auto Generate Manifests

## EMIS:  Auto Report Generation

**Details:  HW Reporting**

| Activity | Hours Saved Per Action | Hrs Saved/Yr |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Container Management @ 540 drums yr | 45 minutes/drum
(old: 60 min; new: 15 min) | 405 |
| Processing shipment 
@ 156 shipments/yr | 2.25 hrs/shipment
(old: 3 hrs; new: 45 min) | 351 |
| Completing Form 1348 / shipment line @ 225/yr | 11.5 min/shipment line(old: 15 min; new: 3.5 min) | 43 |
| Monthly, Quarterly, Biennial Reports | Approx 6 hrs/report
(old:  6  hrs; new:  5 min each) | 99 hrs |
|  | 
Total hours saved per year | 
898 |

## EMIS:  Auto Report Generation

**Benefits**

**Examples**

-  Labor savings
-  Timeliness of report preparation
-  Report accuracy, reduced errors
-  Organizational memory (what are my    obligations/requirements, where,    why, and how do I address them?)
-  Extracting “intelligence” from data via   filtering, sorting, grouping, etc
-  Performance information and comparisons    (equipment, individuals, groups, programs,    etc)

-  Compliance reports (Title V,   NPDES, Haz Waste, TRI, Tier II, etc)
-  Inventories (materials, emissions,    assets, etc)
-  Actions/tasks management
-  Identification of training needs, based    on performance data

## EMIS:  Automated Task Management

- EMIS automatically notifies facility staff of need to sample

- EMIS automatically generates/submits DMRs to State

- EMIS automatically reviews data for completeness, exceedances, compiles quarterly reports

**EMIS:  Automated Task Management**

- Example:  Discharge Monitoring Reports

- Facility staff sample and analyze outfall

- Facility staff send sampling data to Env Off.

- Env Office compiles and submits DMRs to State

- Env Office reviews sampling data

- EMIS automatically notifies facility staff of need to sample

- Facility staff sample and analyze outfall

- Facility staff enter data online

- EMIS automatically generates/submits DMRs to State

- Env Office analyzes for exceedances

- EMIS automatically reviews data for completeness, exceedances, compiles quarterly reports

- EMIS rejects inconsistent values

- Facility staff sample and analyze outfall

- Facility staff send sampling data to Env Off

- Env Office compiles and submits DMRs to State

- Env Office reviews sampling data

- Was data submitted?

- Is data legible? Legitimate?

- Env Office analyzes for exceedances

- Facility staff sample and analyze outfall

- EMIS rejects inconsistent values

## EMIS:  Auto Task Notification

**Details:  DMRs**

| Organization:  54 facilities located across StateStaffing:  Intermittent, subject to interruptionRequirement:  Monthly/Quarterly Discharge Reports |  |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
|  |  |  |
| Activity | Hours Saved Per Action | Hrs Saved/Yr |
| Tracking down facility information / month / 54 facilities | 30 hours(old: 30 hrs; new: 0 hrs) | 360 |
|  | Total hours saved per year | 360 |

## EMIS:  Auto Task Management

**Benefits**

**Examples**

-  Transparency of actions
-  Clear lines of responsibility
-  Notifications (ticklers, escalators,    warnings)
-  Provides useful background info   (SOPs, checklists, reference    materials, etc)
-  Performance measurement and    evaluation
-  Ties actions/tasks to obligations (what    is required) and drivers (regulations,    permit conditions, policies, etc)

-  Compliance with required activities    (inspections, observations, etc)
-  Manual data entry tracking
-  Incident response
-  Audits and findings resolution
-  Reports submittal
-  Maintenance of environmental equipment
-  Training tracking and notifications

## Cost / Benefit:  Hard Dollar Cost Savings

- ROI: 1.5 – 2 yrsAnnual savings: 5 – 22 x annual costs

## Cost / Benefit:Soft Savings

-  NOV/NON avoidance
-  Data QA/QC
-  Data availability for      decision makers
-  Institutional memory
-  Auditability
-  Data archiving/control

-  Reduced reliance on   shop personnel
-  Material tracking/   waste reduction
-  Monitors thresholds   (generator status, etc)
-  “What if?” modeling

## Implementation:  Lessons Learned

-  Data collection:  Largest initial expense, biggest    task, worth doing in any case:
-  Contractor support
-  Coordinate with external audit
-  Begin with most eager adopters (demonstration),    or with ‘orphan’ program (environmental training)
-  Training:  Focused for most users (learning e-mail)
-  Champions: Every EMIS will require one or more   ‘power users’ to administer program, develop    solutions after implementation phase

## EMIS Impact on the EMS

-  EMS benefits from the same data collection, task    notification and report automation as any other program
-  All full-featured EMIS contain document manager
-  Tracks aspects and impacts, facilitates analysis
-  Gives ability to set benchmarks, set targets/goals, and to    track progress in real-time
-  Automates compliance requirements
-  Facilitates communication with employees, stakeholders

## Resources*

-   Environmental Management System Software: EMS     Software Assessment, March 15, 2004      http://corpslakes.usace.army.mil/employees/envcomp/pdfs/ems-assessment.pdf
-  Catalog of EMIS Systems: “EH&S Management Information    Systems Report,” Donley Tech, 2007      http://www.donleytech.com/emis.htm
-  Seminar on selecting an EMIS:          _[http://](http://trinityconsultants.com/TrainingCategories.asp?tc=38&ts=24)__[trinityconsultants.com/TrainingCategories.asp?tc](http://trinityconsultants.com/TrainingCategories.asp?tc=38&ts=24)__[=38&ts=24](http://trinityconsultants.com/TrainingCategories.asp?tc=38&ts=24)_
-  Author’s emails:         _[peter.m.heinricher@us.army.mil](mailto:peter.m.heinricher@us.army.mil)_, _[deborah.r.curtin@us.army.mil](mailto:deborah.r.curtin@us.army.mil)_,        _[ggasperecz@enviance.com](mailto:ggasperecz@enviance.com)_

- * Citation here does not constitute endorsement by the Government