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Commended by industry and marked as a huge win, last week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the release of its long-awaited rewrite of the Obama Administration’s definition of “Waters of the United States,” also known as WOTUS. This new rule, titled the Navigable Waters Protection Rule (NWPR), outlines in clear terms EPA’s jurisdiction over certain waterways within the U.S. The impact to the ready mixed concrete industry is positive in that it largely maintains an industry status quo of disallowing releases of process water and non-permitted stormwater into a WOTUS. The NWPR, in limiting the previous administration’s regulatory expansion, also uses clear language allowing for water accumulations the industry may have at concrete plants to NOT be covered by the new rule. NRMCA has been continually advocating for this clarity and outcome since the finalization of the contentious Obama Administration’s WOTUS rule in 2015. Click here for more information, here and here for to review the final rule. You may also contact Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org. NRMCA has crafted the fifth annual member survey to measure regulatory action within the industry to determine regulatory trends on specific issues, issue types and in geographic regions. This information, while strictly confidential, will help NRMCA to better tailor its actions to address and/or combat any such issues, and to keep a finger on the pulse of when, where, how and why regulatory agencies are targeting and/or levying enforcement actions against the industry. NRMCA urges you to take the survey at your earliest convenience. It is open until 5 p.m. Eastern time on Friday, 28. For more information, contact Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org. 
Buildings
Earlier this month, FEMA announced a major shift in the way it distributes post-disaster aid. Previously, the aid was provided to state and local governments regardless of what building code version they were using and even if they did not have a code adopted. The new policy will require jurisdictions to use the latest code for the rebuilding effort if they want assistance from FEMA. NRMCA has supported this move by FEMA, but more will need to be done to ensure resilient construction. The building code is focused on life safety, not on property protection. Ed Thomas, president of the Natural Hazards Mitigation Association, stated that building codes "are basically a one-legged stool. They don't deal with disaster-risk reduction." NRMCA continues to support efforts to provide true resilience to our communities through improved standards, including: • ASCE/SEI Resilience Committee; • Proposed ASCE standard for resilient building design; • Proposed ASCE/ASHRAE joint standard for resilient design of building envelopes; and • ASHRAE Position Document on resilience. For more information, contact Scott Campbell at scampbell@nrmca.org.
The US Green Building Council (USGBC) recently announced its annual list of the Top 10 states for LEED buildings, recognizing those states leading the way in sustainable building design, construction and transformation. Together, these states certified 1,181 projects with 312.11 million gross square feet of space and are at the forefront of the evolving green building movement. Why is this important? Well, most likely you will come across a LEED project if you are pursuing or bidding on construction projects in Colorado, Illinois, New York, Massachusetts, Hawaii, Maryland, Virginia, Minnesota, Oregon and California. Although this Top 10 list is a look backward to 2019, it informs concrete producers of the likelihood for bidding on future building projects. Also, it provides opportunities to engage local USGBC chapters to network and identify upcoming projects. With the advent of product transparency in green building rating systems, the demand for third-party reports such as environmental product declarations (EPD), raw material sourcing reports and health product declarations (HPD) are increasing. NRMCA has developed a series of tools and guides to help members meet these new requirements. Click here for more details. As part of the Build With Strength campaign, NRMCA promotes Strength Through Transparency for member and industry competitiveness in the green building marketplace and the trends toward product and company transparency. For more information, contact James Bogdan at jbogdan@nrmca.org or 412-420-4138. The online course titled Concrete Innovations, which was launched in the August 2019 issue of ARCHITECT magazine has reached 1,000 registrants this month. Concrete is the material of choice for the tallest buildings in the world and infrastructure designed to last centuries. To meet demands for these cutting-edge projects, concrete must be stronger, more durable and more workable than ever before. This course explores how new products, manufacturing methods and research are developing innovative concretes to meet these new challenges. Bendable concrete, smog eating concrete and carbon capture are just a few examples of new technologies enhancing a product that is nearly 5,000 years in development. Click here to register for this free online course.This course is one of 10 courses Build With Strength and NRMCA have sponsored through ARCHITECT magazine and Hanley Wood University. Four additional courses are scheduled for 2020. For more information, contact Lionel Lemay at LLemay@nrmca.org. 
Registration for NRMCA’s Spring Safety Course from May 13 - 15 in Glendora, CA, is still open. This 2.5-day course teaches participants about OSHA safety compliance, beginning with why safety is so important and details the reasons why an effective safety program actually saves money through loss prevention and control. Participants learn about the new silica rule, electrical safety, machine guarding, fall protection, hazard communication, confined spaces, personal protective equipment, firefighting and evacuation, maintenance shop safety, chute handling, fleet safety, pre-trip inspection and much more. Click here for location details, registration options and staff contacts. The March 24 - 27 Plant Manager Certification Course in Boston and the April 28 - May 1 class in New Orleans remain open for registration. After those dates pass, the only other class will be December 15 - 18 in Phoenix. This 4-day course is industry-specific and concentrates on issues that challenge plant managers all across the county. The intense learning course includes the latest on product knowledge and technical standards, safety culture and OSHA-based regulations, operational and maintenance skills, current environmental issues and regulations from EPA as well as labor law issues and the challenges of supervision and training of industry personnel. The NRMCA Plant Manager Certification is required for all Army Corps of Engineer jobs and is considered the industry gold standard of training for all ready mixed concrete plant managers. Click here for registration options, more information and staff contact. 
March 7 – 9, Las Vegas March 10 – 14, Las Vegas March 17 – 19, Dallas March 24 – 27, Boston April 28 – May 1, New Orleans April 29, Charlotte, NC May 13 – 15, Glendora, CA September 25 – 29, Denver November 17 – 19, Glendora, CA December 15 – 18, Phoenix Learning & Development
NRMCA’s Workforce Development Committee (WDC) invites Association members to attend its next meeting, Saturday, March 7, from 9:15 - 11:15 a.m., at the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas. The main topic of discussion will focus on establishing committee permanent task groups, following best practices as do other NRMCA committees. Additionally, please come to support the committee’s Developing Industry Leaders, who will present their research findings relating to the challenges of mixer driver retention. The WDC welcomes your participation and comments. For more information, contact WDC liaison Eileen Dickson at edickson@nrmca.org. Calendar
*Please note that e-mail and direct links to each event listed below can be accessed from NRMCA's Web site. January 31, Yale School of Architecture, New Haven, CT February 6, Omaha, NE February 11 – 12, Orlando, FL February 20, Castle Hayne, NC February 25 – 28, Miami *Sold Out 
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