PrintSTEP Pilot Program

PrintSTEP logo.

PrintStep Pilot in St. Louis Completed
The PrintSTEP pilot project has been successfully completed in St. Louis. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has written the PrintStep project evaluation report PDF. See page 59 PDF of the report for a summary of the findings.

The Department is reviewing the results of the pilot and is considering options to employ the concepts tested in PrintSTEP.

If you have questions or comments about PrintSTEP, please contact Todd Crawford in the Division of Environmental Quality at 573-751-6892.

The goal of PrintSTEP is to have one form to submit and one environmental agency to contact for permits and annual reports.

The PrintSTEP Pilot Program (Printer's Simplified Total Environmental Partnership) is an innovative, voluntary, environmental compliance approach being tested in the St. Louis Region. Three states (Missouri, Minnesota and New Hampshire) have been selected by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to try out the PrintSTEP approach as a pilot project. The method of the program is to consolidate the wastewater, hazardous waste, storm water and air emission requirements for printers into a single enforceable "Agreement" that will result in less pollution, while making it simpler for printers.

This department, area leaders and local environmental agencies see the benefits associated with trying to improve our regulatory approaches. PrintSTEP enhancements are not just for printers, but also for the neighborhoods and communities they operate in.

Letter from PrintSTEP advocates (11/01) 10 KBPDF

The Four Goals of PrintSTEP

1. PrintSTEP combines environmental requirements

Printers need to obtain different kinds of environmental permits and do a lot of required paperwork to conduct business. Working with different agencies and different forms can be confusing and time-consuming. With PrintSTEP, the wastewater, hazardous waste, storm water and air requirements are all covered in one package called an "Agreement." Our goal is to have one form to submit and one environmental agency to contact for permits and annual reports.

2. PrintSTEP promotes pollution prevention for printers

Pollution prevention means changing your printing processes to generate less pollution in the first place, instead of treating and disposing of it after it is created. This can save money by creating less waste and using fewer resources. PrintSTEP provides and promotes free technical assistance to encourage pollution prevention by focusing on regulated releases. Printers that reduce pollution receive the benefit of less burdensome requirements. Fewer pollution releases mean fewer regulatory requirements.

3. PrintSTEP enhances public participation and information

Public participation provides an opportunity for regulatory agencies, the printer and the community to educate each other on their individual and shared concerns and interests. Under the current regulatory system, the public may not be aware of printers' contributions to their communities or printers' efforts to be environmentally responsible neighbors.

4. PrintSTEP provides operational flexibility

When a printer makes a process change under PrintSTEP, in many cases, no PrintSTEP Agreement modification is required if the adjustment does not result in a shift of current regulatory status. We expect printers may often make improvements to respond to market demands and only be required to notify the PrintSTEP Coordinator.

Advantages to Printers

PrintSTEP is designed for printers of all sizes.
A Plain Language Workbook for printers briefly outlines environmental obligations.
Access to a single point of contact helps navigate the new system and receive priority technical assistance.
PrintSTEP is more flexible regarding modification of facility processes.
The lower the environmental impact, the fewer the administrative regulatory requirements.
Community understanding and participation help to improve business and community relations.
Recognition as a PrintSTEP printer.

PrintSTEP Eligibility

Facilities where printing is the primary operation are eligible to participate in the PrintSTEP pilot program. Current local, environmental authority (municipal, county or sewer district) permits and fees may be incorporated into the PrintSTEP agreement.

Facilities where printing is an ancillary operation may or may not be eligible for the PrintSTEP pilot program, depending on the nature of the primary industry.

Facilities that operate printing presses, but "quick copies" are the primary product, may not be eligible for the PrintSTEP pilot program.

Acceptance of facilities being investigated for state or local environmental authority permit revocations or violations to the ordinances, laws or regulations will be postponed until the violation issues are resolved satisfactorily by all parties.

Why Printers Should Get Involved with their Communities

Good Business-Community relations make good business sense.

We all care about the environment in which we live, work and play. We want to feel safe from things like fire, crime and pollution hazards that may affect whole communities.

Printers are an integral part of the communities in which they operate. Neighbors and businesses must work together to keep the environment clean and healthy and to protect the quality of neighborhoods where we live and do business every day. One way to ensure a high level of cooperation in working toward these goals is to keep the lines of communication open and create trusting relationships among all of the interested parties. PrintSTEP encourages residents and business owners to discuss community efforts that are ongoing and what new efforts should be undertaken. Businesses should be proud to be a part of a community and neighbors should be proud to recognize and recommend local businesses.

PrintSTEP participants will be urged to open a dialogue with members of the community in which they work whether or not the PrintSTEP guidelines require them to do so.

Therefore, the printer's role includes minimizing their facility's impact on the environment, as well as keeping interested community members informed of pollution prevention efforts. Informing people what printers are doing to protect the environment will build trust and credibility with the community.

St. Louis area printers are being asked to be a part of the PrintSTEP pilot project.

The Public Participates in PrintSTEP

PrintSTEP fosters open communication and cooperation between printers and communities. The level of required public participation corresponds with the actual environmental impact of a local printing business. Printers with the lowest levels of emissions or wastes do not have requirements for public participation, but are encouraged to open communications with their community. Those printers with moderate emission levels will be required to undertake some community engagement activities while the printers with the greatest releases will have to engage the community more proactively. All PrintSTEP applications will be publicly available.

Specific examples of community engagement may include

writing a letter to your local elected official;
attending a community meeting;
sponsoring or hosting a community event; or
submitting an article to your community newsletter.

If your neighborhood or community likes the PrintSTEP approach, you may want to encourage your local printer to participate in the pilot.

Environmental and Community Advantages

Improved public health and safety
Direct responses to citizen comments by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and printers
Preservation of environmental standards
Increased community awareness encouraged through printer sponsored activities
Potentially reduced emissions and waste generation for printers who take advantage of the technical assistance and Pollution Prevention (P2) programs offered by PrintSTEP
Public meeting options for education and to address, and possibly resolve, citizen issues and concerns as a part of PrintSTEP
Heightened public participation requirements for printers when their waste releases increase
Easy to understand plain language in the PrintSTEP workbooks and agreements
Anyone can subscribe to the PrintSTEP Notification Registry. MoDNR will notify subscribers by mail or e-mail about regulatory activities related to PrintSTEP. Interested parties will be asked for questions and comments about the noticed projects.

A PrintSTEP stakeholders group discusses ways to improve communications and consolidate forms.

The Stakeholder Advisory GroupThe St. Louis PrintSTEP Stakeholder Advisory Group (SAG) provides local guidance to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources on how to implement the PrintSTEP pilot program.

Through the input from this diverse group, the PrintSTEP pilot program is designed to better meet the needs of all interested parties. The SAG includes representatives from the printing industry, environmental protection agencies, community and environmental justice organizations:

American Lung Association of Eastern Missouri - Environmental Health
Commercial Lithographing Co. - Technical Advisor
Conservation Federation of Missouri - Environmental Protection
Fleming Printing Company - Industrial Representative
Printing Industries of St. Louis (PISTL) - Printing Industry Representatives
Rainbow Chamber of Commerce of Greater St. Louis - Environmental Justice
U. S. Environmental Protection Agency
Wesley House Association - Environmental Justice

MoDNR will continue to work with the SAG throughout the development and completion of the PrintSTEP pilot project. The advisory group will assist MoDNR in finalizing the details for public participation in PrintSTEP and the standard requirements for PrintSTEP agreements.

Current PrintSTEP Printers

PrintSTEP Printers in the St. Louis area

How to Become a PrintSTEP Printer

To become a PrintSTEP printer, you must complete an application from the St. Louis PrintSTEP Plain Language Workbook and provide it to the PrintSTEP coordinator. The coordinator will be able to review the pilot requirements and assist with any aspect of the application.

St. Louis PrintSTEP Plain Language Workbook (11/01) 16 KB PDF

To receive the latest PrintSTEP news updates, or to receive PrintSTEP public notices, complete the form below.

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PrintSTEP News

As significant new developments in PrintSTEP occur, we will be reporting it here. These are not the public notifications, but are reports of what is new with PrintSTEP, how the project is progressing, and who the participants are. Check back often!

For More Information

Contact the St. Louis PrintSTEP Coordinator Bill Hernlund at 314-416-2960 or by fax
at 314-416-2970.

E-mail or write to

PrintSTEP
Missouri Department of Natural Resources
St. Louis Regional Office
7545 S. Lindbergh, Suite 210
St. Louis, MO 63125