A Planet of Environmental Data

Today, every discussion about changes in environment must begin with data. In its exponentially increasing volume, velocity and variety, environmental data is becoming a new corporate and natural resource. It promises to be for the 21st century what steam power was for the 18th, electricity for the 19th and hydrocarbons for the 20th. This is what we mean when we say environmental data management.

Thanks to a proliferation of measurement devices, lower detection limits,  and the infusion of technology into all things and processes, the environmental industry is now generating huge amounts of data and 80 percent of it is “unstructured”—everything from images, video and audio to social media and rivers of data from embedded sensors and distributed devices. Managing these data in databases built only 10 years ago is either not possible or is very expensive.

Managing this data at enterprise level is our core business. To capture this growth potential, we have built the world’s broadest and deepest capabilities in environmental and sustainability Big Data and analytics—both technology and domain expertise. Two-thirds of Locus Research’s work is now devoted to environmental data, analytics and automated reporting. Locus provides the full array of capabilities our clients need to extract the value of Big Data. They can mine multiple structured and unstructured data sets across their business. They can apply a range of analytics—from descriptive to predictive to prescriptive. And importantly, they can capture the time value of data. This matters, because the battle for competitive advantage in this new world can be lost or won in fractions of a second.

Our data and analytics portfolio today is the deepest in the industry. It includes decision management, content analytics, planning and forecasting, discovery and exploration, business intelligence, predictive analytics, data and content management, stream computing, data warehousing, information integration and governance.  “Traditional computing systems, which only do what they are programmed to do, simply cannot keep up with Big Data in constant motion.” For that reason late last year we launched the all new Locus EERP platform. In the process, we believe Locus will change the nature of environmental management and reporting.

At the same time that industries and professions are being remade by data, the information technology infrastructure of the world is being transformed by the emergence of cloud computing—that is, the delivery of IT and business processes as digital services. It is estimated that by 2016, more than one-fourth of the world’s applications will be available in the cloud, and 85 percent of new software is now being built for cloud. Locus pioneered cloud computing in environmental industry since its inception in 1997. No other company has a track record of 15 years of managing enterprise environmental and sustainability data in the cloud with no down time.

New sustainability & environmental reporting standards for banks

Under recently published accounting standards, banks will now be called upon to report on their social and environmental impact. These new Sustainability Accounting Standards are backed by large investors, including the California state teachers’ pension fund, Calstrs, and were drawn up after negotiations with shareholders, accountants, and banks including Deutsche Bank, TD Bank, and Goldman Sachs.

According to the Financial Times, the new standards require “reporting of measures such as the greenhouse gas emissions of companies in which banks have investments, as well as the number of complaints handled by their compliance departments.”

Author of these new standards, the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), is backed by non-profit donors and was launched in 2012 to create standards for reporting on non-financial data. The SASB writes standards industry by industry- last year it was for pharmaceuticals companies, and next month standards are due for the technology and communications industry.

The Financial Times states that further details on the financial services standards include “measures of the companies’ possible losses on insurance or mortgage lending from weather-related events, the number of data breaches involving customers’ information, and details of the results of stress tests under adverse economic scenarios.”

Chief executive of Calstrs, Jack Ehnes, recognized that there may be some initial hesitation about the new standards, but believed they would eventually come to be accepted. “There is a market need for these data, and as soon as investors start talking about them and looking at them… then I think we will move to that,” he said.

2014 State of the Union Address: Obama on Energy

On the night of Tuesday, January 28 the President of the United States took to the podium to deliver the 2014 State of the Union Address. Among the many topics that President Obama covered, one of them was energy.

The president gave praise to his all-of-the-above energy strategy he introduced a few years ago, and stated that America is closer to energy independence than we’ve been in decades. “One of the reasons why is natural gas- if extracted safely, it’s the bridge fuel that can power our economy with less of the carbon pollution that causes climate change,” he said.

President Obama stressed the importance of this resource being extracted safely, and stated the clear benefits it brings when this occurs. This translates to the old saying “trust but verify”. With today’s real-time monitoring and information management technologies this can easily be accomplished without increasing the extraction cost. He vowed to keep working with the industry to continue job growth while also ensuring the protection of our air, water, and communities. Obama also added in a touch of sustainable promise- “And while we’re at it, I’ll use my authority to protect more of our pristine federal lands for future generations.”

The president then made a clear statement about his intentions. “But the debate is settled. Climate change is a fact. And when our children’s children look us in the eye and ask if we did all we could to leave them a safer, more stable world, with new sources of energy, I want us to be able to say yes, we did,” he said.

Locus Technologies Receives 2013 EBJ Business Achievement Award

Environmental Business Journal Recognizes Locus for Growth and Innovation

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., 22 January 2014 — Locus Technologies (Locus) announced today that the Environmental Business Journal® (EBJ) granted the company the 2013 award for Information Technology in the environmental and energy industry for the eighth time in the last 10 years.

Locus was recognized for significantly enhancing its suite of software products, and adding new customers and renewing current ones for both software and verification services.

In 2013 Locus generated record software revenue and added customers in the food and beverage, manufacturing, mining, and railroad industries, as well as had its contract with Los Alamos National Laboratory significantly expanded and extended for an additional four years. The company introduced the Locus platform for sustainability, energy, health and safety, and environmental compliance management and reporting, which offers fully integrated cloud-based software that brings all mission-critical environmental applications together in an ERP-like system. Locus also added new functionality to its flagship EIM software system, including the generation of Annual Radiological Environmental Operating Report (AREOR) Data Summary Tables, the automation of Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMRs), and the ability to support imports and exports from ERPIMS: the system the U.S. Air Force uses for validation and management of data from all environmental projects at its bases.

Additional achievements for Locus in 2013 include earning a Microsoft Gold Application Development competency for demonstrating a “best-in-class” ability and commitment to meet customers’ evolving needs, being recognized as one of the top 10 sustainability management software providers by the market analyst firm Verdantix, being listed as the only software provider to make the list of top 200 environmental companies by Engineering News-Record (ENR) magazine, and being named the second largest environmental firm in Silicon Valley by the Silicon Valley Journal.

“We are very proud to receive the prestigious EBJ Information Technology award in environmental business for the eighth time. No other company has accomplished anything close to this level of recognition in the emerging space of cloud-based environmental information management, the on-demand computing space for data management in the environmental industry that Locus pioneered in 1997,” said Neno Duplan, President and CEO of Locus. “I believe this highlights Locus’ relentless dedication to developing top-notch environmental and sustainability management software systems, and would like to thank both the Locus team, and our customers who have trusted us with the management of their data for making this award possible.”

“In what is widely regarded as a stable market, a number of companies exceeded the norms of low single-digit growth with double-digit growth or ambitious ventures into new practice areas or technology development,” said Grant Ferrier, president of Environmental Business International Inc. (EBI, San Diego), publisher of Environmental Business Journal. “Locus continues to influence the industry with its forward-thinking product set and eye for customer needs.”

The 2013 EBJ awards will be presented at a special ceremony at the Environmental Industry Summit XII in San Diego, Calif. on March 12-14, 2014. The Environmental Industry Summit is an annual three-day executive retreat hosted by EBI Inc.

ABOUT EBI
Founded in 1988, Environmental Business International Inc. (EBI, San Diego, Calif.) is a research, publishing and consulting company that specializes in defining emerging markets and generating strategic market intelligence for companies, investors and policymakers. EBI publishes Environmental Business Journal®, the leading provider of strategic information for the environmental industry, and Climate Change Business Journal®, which covers nine segments of the Climate Change Industry. EBI also performs contract research for the government and private sector and founded the Environmental Industry Summit, an annual three-day event for executives in the environmental industry.

The Battle Against Ozone-depleting Substances

Substances that contribute to the depletion of our ozone are a serious threat. Because ozone is our first line of defense against harmful UVB ultraviolet light from the sun, its decrease can lead to many serious consequences. These include a possible increase in skin cancer and other health risks, cataracts, and a decrease in plant growth.

Ozone-depleting substances (or certain chemicals such as chlorofluorocarbons, hydrochlorofluorocarbons, and halons) come in various forms. These substances are commonly used in refrigerants, which are present in air conditioners and refrigerators. Luckily, authorities took notice of the negative impacts of these substances, and The Montreal Protocol, an international environmental agreement that began the worldwide phaseout of ozone-depleting substances (currently carried out in the U.S. through Title VI of the Clean Air Act) was enacted in 1987. However, the fight against these harmful substances is far from over.

Just last September U.S. grocery store giant, Safeway, allegedly violated the federal Clean Air Act. The company agreed to pay a $600,000 civil penalty, and spent approximately $4 million to reduce its emissions of ozone-depleting substances from refrigeration equipment at 659 of its stores.

Hydrochlorofluorocarbon HCFC-22, the specific substance that was said to be leaking from Safeway’s equipment, is up to 1,800 times more potent than carbon dioxide in terms of global warming emissions. The allegations Safeway faced include failing to promptly repair leaks of this substance, and failing to keep adequate records of the servicing of its refrigeration equipment. In response to these allegations, the changes Safeway had committed to were expected to prevent over 100,000 pounds of future releases of ozone-depleting refrigerants.

Further plans for the U.S. to continue reducing ozone-depleting refrigerants include a production and import ban on HCFC-22 by 2020.

Versar, Inc. Selects Locus’ EIM as its Standard Environmental Data Management System

Locus EIM to assist Versar by supporting ERPIMS exports for U.S. Air Force remediation projects

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., 7 January 2014 —Versar, Inc. (NYSE MKT:VSR) has selected Locus Technologies’ (Locus’) Environmental Information Management (EIM) software to be its preferred environmental data management system for the firm’s Performance Based Remediation (PBR) program for the U.S. Air Force (USAF).

Versar will take advantage of EIM’s ability to support analytical data compatible with Environmental Resources Program Information Management System (ERPIMS), the electronic system that the Air Force uses for validation and management of data collected from environmental projects at its bases. In addition, Versar will utilize the ERPIMS regulatory export feature and the EIM data validation module.

Versar is currently providing PBR services to the USAF under the 2009 Worldwide Environmental Restoration and Construction (WERC 09) contract through September 2020. The Versar Program, as both Prime contractor and Team subcontractor, presently includes nearly 200 contaminated sites at 15 Air Force bases in 10 different states across the U.S. The total value of the work (if all options are awarded) is approximately $110M; Versar is the Prime contractor with direct responsibility for 128 sites valued at $93M under three separate Task Orders (TOs) and is a Team subcontractor on a fourth TO.

“We are very proud Versar has determined that EIM has the robust and versatile functionality to meet the company’s data management requirements for its USAF PBR Program,” said Neno Duplan, President & CEO of Locus. “We are constantly striving to incorporate specific features into our software, such as the ERPIMS compatibility, that will make a big difference for our customers.”

ABOUT VERSAR, INC.
Versar, headquartered in Springfield, VA, is a publicly traded global project management company providing sustainable, value-oriented solutions to government and commercial clients in engineering, construction management, environmental services, and munitions response market areas. For more information, visit www.versar.com.

Climate Change Poses Threat to the World’s Water Supply

According to the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Germany, climate change is threatening the world’s water supply, increasing the number of people at risk of absolute water scarcity by 40 percent in this century alone.

PIK heeds the warning that if the Earth should warm by 5.4 degrees Fahrenheit above pre-industrial levels and if populations grow, ten in 100 people would have access to less than 132,000 gallons of water in a year- which is up from one to two in 100 today. This prediction is particularly alarming considering PIK’s announcement in October that 1.3 billion of Earth’s 7 billion people already live in water-scarce regions.

The UN gives a similar forecast that the world is on track to experience a temperature increase within the next century, which at the very least would be the catalyst for higher sea levels and more intense storms.

The study that PIK references was based on an analysis of 11 global hydrological models, and conducted by research institutes from around the world. PIK also states that different regions of the world would have varying experiences as the world’s temperature increases: the southern U.S., Mediterranean, Middle East and southern China most likely seeing lower water availability, while southern India, western China and parts of East Africa possibly experiencing noticeable increases.

This research serves as yet another reminder that water scarcity is a real thing, and the loss of this precious resource is a world-wide concern.

Is the U.S. Emitting More Methane Than We Thought?

According to a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), the United States may be emitting 50 percent more methane than the federal government had originally estimated. Methane, a greenhouse gas, is less prevalent in our atmosphere than carbon but is also a more powerful heat-trapping gas- approximately 21 times more potent over a 100 year period.

The new study argues that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) underestimated methane emissions because it calculated from the bottom-up, whereas the new study took a different approach. The PNAS study, conducted by Scot M. Miller, a doctoral student in Earth and planetary sciences at Harvard University, along with researchers from seven other institutions, took measurements of methane actually released into the atmosphere. More specifically, it analyzed almost 5,000 air samples collected from tall towers around the U.S. in 2007 and 2008, and more than 7,700 samples taken over this same period by research aircrafts.

Based on their research, the following are a few conclusions that were reached:

  • Methane from Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas was 2.7 times higher than previously recorded (these three states alone account for nearly one-quarter of U.S. methane emissions)
  • Methane emissions from livestock are nearly two times as high as earlier measurements
  • Current atmospheric concentrations of methane are nearly triple the levels found in the preindustrial era; human activity being responsible for 50 to 65 percent of global methane emissions

These findings will no doubt impact the debate about how both regulators and industry should handle reducing methane emissions.

As if this isn’t enough of a reason for concern, new research published in Nature Geoscience finds that significant amounts of methane are currently escaping the East Siberian Shelf. This methane is stored on the floor of the Arctic Ocean, being held down by permafrost. However, it has been escaping recently due to both powerful storms stirring up the ocean that bring the methane to the surface faster, and global warming thawing the permafrost; creating a perpetual cycle.

This new research and press may be able to put the spotlight on a greenhouse gas other than carbon, and also on how important it is to reduce these methane emissions.

Locus Announces Railroad Industry Specific Incident Management Module

Companies can comply with FRA and other health and safety regulations through the use of Locus’ Incident software

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., 12 November 2013—October 28, 2013 —Locus Technologies (Locus), the leader in cloud-based environmental compliance and information management software, has added a railroad-specific health and safety (H&S) incident management module to its software offerings.

The Incident module enables users to report and manage railroad accidents and incidents in compliance with Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) regulations. Other features of the Incident module include easy-to-use data entry forms for incidents and near misses; the ability to associate multiple injuries/illnesses to an incident; customizable dashboards to view incident trends and other key metrics; automated incident notifications with configurable workflows; and push-button generation of report-ready FRA and OSHA 300, 300A, and 301 forms.

“When it comes to incident management, company managers should be able to have an easily accessible, all-encompassing view of what’s occurring across all of their different facilities, sites, and incident locations,” said Neno Duplan, President and CEO of Locus. “Locus’ H&S Incident module represents a single repository in the cloud, that offers railroad-specific functionality and ease of use for managing incident investigations, and analyzing key safety metrics aimed at reducing accidents and mitigating risks.”

This module represents Locus’ continuous commitment to the enhancement and expansion of its software offerings. The railroad-specific Incident module is available for use immediately.

AWWA introduces updated cost assessment for impending perchlorate regulation

The American Water Works Association (AWWA) recently introduced a new assessment on the cost-impact of an impending perchlorate regulation. The decision to move forward with the development of this regulation “to protect Americans from any potential health impacts, while also continuing to take steps to ensure the quality of the water they drink” was officially announced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in early 2011.

Perchlorate is both a man-made and naturally occurring chemical that can be found in some bleaches and fertilizers, and is used to manufacture flares, explosives, fireworks, and rocket fuel. Scientific research finds that perchlorate may negatively impact the thyroids ability to produce hormones that are essential to the development of fetuses and infants- propelling the EPA forward to develop a rule.

In an effort to further evaluate the feasibility of the new regulation, the AWWA’s new assessment updates a review of cost done four years ago. The new evaluation includes additional treatment strategies, accounts for regulatory limits already in place in California and Massachusetts, and considers costs associated with blending, source abandonment, and development of new sources.

The new assessment concludes that the estimated national compliance costs for a perchlorate maximum contaminant level ranging from 2 to 24 parts per billion (ppb) is smaller than estimated compliance costs for other drinking water regulations.

However, according to AWWA Government Affairs, the relatively small compliance cost is most likely attributed to the limited number of public water systems that are expected to be affected by a perchlorate regulation. Because of this, the economic impact to individual water systems is expected to be substantial. For example, smaller water systems could see treatment costs increase by three dollars per 1,000 gallons.

To view the AWWA’s full assessment:

https://www.locustec.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/AWWA2013PerchlorateCostAssessment.pdf

For further information on perchlorate:

http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/unregulated/perchlorate.cfm