Livelihood and Long-Term Sustainability
RETTEW specializes in helping our clients understand and keep track of all the various applications, permits, reporting, legal requirements, and processes for environmental compliance.
But we don’t just hand you the paperwork and walk away. We help build a management system to set up your company’s environmental standards and sustainability processes, including monitoring, reporting, recordkeeping, and training.
You’re busy running your business, not keeping abreast of the latest policies and regulations.
That’s our job. The myriad of federal, state, and municipal codes can be confusing to navigate, and is continually evolving and changing. The experts at RETTEW help you understand and manage the regulatory requirements that are applicable to your operation.
Staying Compliant
With 30-plus years of experience in environmental compliance, we are well-versed in on-site investigations, assessments, and remediation. We work with a variety of industries, including pharmaceutical, chemical, primary and secondary metals, and food and beverage.
Beyond that, RETTEW’s environmental, health, and safety (EHS) experts know that any good business plan integrates compliance measures including training, risk management, auditing, and performance goals.
We regularly develop custom templates for environmental improvement and sustainability across single and multi-site client facilities. These outlines address concerns from energy efficiency and waste minimization to water conservation and greenhouse gas emission reduction.
Environmental Compliance in Practice
RETTEW helps organizations manage their EHS risks by developing and implementing systems tailored to each client. Many of these management systems are ultimately certified to international standards such as ISO 14001 and ISO 45001.
So, when one large food provider needed help with their environmental compliance system, they called us. Because EHS can get complicated really quickly, and some things can easily slip through the cracks, we provided a gap analysis. These insights gave the company’s leadership a comprehensive glimpse inside each area and helped prioritize improvements.
The gap analysis also showed the need for change management around health and safety. We worked to change the mindset and culture around compliance to make it a forethought rather than an afterthought.
Many of our clients have multiple facilities in various states and sometimes other countries. RETTEW’s experts have assisted these clients in establishing management systems that provide a consistent framework for managing EHS compliance and risks.
It’s also an opportunity to continually improve EHS performance across the entire organization.
Emissions and wastewater compliance impact a wide range of industries and RETTEW has first-hand, technical experience adapting to fit these scenarios.
In one notable case, a large pharmaceutical company with a niche discipline requested RETTEW’s team to help navigate the ins and outs of their carbon footprint, including robust energy use, wastewater, manufacturing pollutants, sterilization waste, hazardous lab waste, air emissions, and vehicle emissions.
Similarly, a bourbon manufacturing company turned to RETTEW for help in planning their water use, residual waste, barrel disposal, flammable waste, and air emissions.
In both cases, clients relied on our expertise, industry knowledge, and network connections to complete permits, act as a third-party inspector, and provide a full-suite of regulatory services.
Navigating Environmental Permit Types & Requirements
Each type of environmental permit is carefully tailored by regulators to specific use cases.
That’s why you need a strategy that matches your facility size, industry, location, and operational output.
Permits RETTEW frequently assists clients with include:
- Air quality permits: For facilities with boilers, generators, or manufacturing emissions.
- Water & stormwater permits: For managing runoff, industrial wastewater, or discharge.
- Waste management permits: For hazardous or residual waste handling.
SPCC Compliance: Protecting Operations & Avoiding Costly Fines
One of the critical aspects of environmental safety permitting is the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) plan. Under federal regulations, any facility with an aboveground oil storage capacity of 1,320 gallons or more must maintain an active SPCC plan.
Failing to meet these environmental permit requirements can lead to penalties exceeding $32,000 per day. Yet, many organizations write a spill prevention plan under SPCC guidelines and simply file it away in case of an audit.
However, EPA regulations, in practice, require going considerably further. Organizations must train employees on spill response, inspect tanks carefully, and maintain a strict record keeping system.
The solution? Partnering with industry specialists who understand the latest updates in regulations. RETTEW helps clients maintain compliance with environmental permit renewal management and continuous environmental permit training.
Relationships that Deliver Lasting Results
At RETTEW, beyond the policies and paperwork, we prioritize strong client partnerships that form the foundation of our work. Our specialists value these relationships and are committed to maintaining trust and respect throughout every project.
Our employees are members of the same communities we serve, and we take our environmental responsibility seriously. We also provide comprehensive services under one roof, offering every service you need to plan, budget, and mitigate issues, from wastewater engineering and equipment permitting to safety training and facility design.
We recognize your business has unique needs and challenges. Our approach focuses on delivering tailored solutions specific to your operation rather than generic templates.
Implementing environmental compliance programs takes time, and we remain engaged partners throughout the entire process to foster lasting success.
Taking decisive action today creates long-term benefits for your bottom line and for our shared environment.
Our Environmental Compliance Specialties
- Consulting and On-site Support
- Environmental Compliance Audits
- Environmental Performance Engineering, Design, and Implementation
- Hazardous Materials Surveys
- Hydrostatic Discharge Permitting/Monitoring
- ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Implementation and Support
- SPCC/Emergency Response and Contingency Plans
- Solid, Residual, and Hazardous Waste Permitting and Compliance Reporting
- Stormwater, Water Use, and Air Permitting
Ready to Schedule a Meeting With an Environmental Permitting and Consultation Specialist?
As your project consultant, RETTEW has real-world experience tackling the realities of ever-changing compliance regulations for environmental management, emergency response, jobsite safety, SPCC, and a wide-range of compliance protocols.
Whether you’re preparing for regulatory changes by maintaining compliance or evaluating before an audit, RETTEW offers the multidisciplinary expertise and service that helps your teams to operate with maximum productivity while protecting your operations.
Want to review your environmental permitting project with a specialist? Reach out to our practice expert today to begin planning your project in detail.
John Stipe, CPSS, Practice Vice President, Environmental and Geotechnology
Mr. Stipe is Vice President of RETTEW’s Environmental and Geotechnology practice, bringing more than 25 years of experience across Phase I and II ESAs, environmental due diligence audits, asbestos and lead hazard surveys, storage tank investigations, site characterization studies, remedial actions and site closures, compliance audits, soil and geologic evaluations, and environmental and water supply permitting.
Email: jstipe@rettew.com
