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MCLEAN REICH, RUST, EAR, and Reporting Section Manager - State Water Board

McLean Reich is the Section Manager of the RUST (Remove, Replace, or Upgrading Underground Storage Tanks), EAR (Emergency, Abandoned, Recalcitrant Account Program), and Reporting Section within the State Water Board's UST Cleanup Fund. The RUST Program provides grants and loans to assist small business UST owners and operators to come into compliance with UST regulatory requirements by removing, replacing, or upgrading USTs. The EAR Account Program provides funding to the Regional Water Quality Control Boards and local regulatory agencies to abate emergency situations or to cleanup abandoned or recalcitrant sites that pose a threat to human health, safety, and the environment, as a result of a petroleum release from a UST.

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MEGAN FLOYD, REHS - Sacramento County EMD

Megan Floyd is currently the Water Protection Supervising Environmental Specialist for EMD. She oversees Land Use, Small Water Systems, Wells, the Local Oversight Program (LOP), and Onsight Wastewater Treatment Systems (OWTS).

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MEGAN MELNICK, Environmental Scientist - DTSC

Megan Melnick is an environmental scientist in the Regulatory Information and RCRA Implementation Branch of the Hazardous Waste Management Program at the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC).

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MELIKE YERSIZ, Chemical Incident Investigator - US CSB

Melike Yersiz is a Chemical Incident Investigator at the U.S. Chemical Safety Board. She has deployed to incident sites and led several investigations since joining the agency in March 2020.

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MELISA CUSTER, Hazardous Materials Specialist I - Los Angeles County Fire

Melisa Custer, Hazardous Material Specialist II with LA County Fire Department, Health Hazardous Materials Division. I conduct hazardous material, hazardous waste, and Aboveground Petroleum Inspections.

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MICHAEL POLKABLA, Senior Certified Industrial Hygienist, Principal - BioMax Environmental Inc

Mr. Michael A. Polkabla, CIH, REA is a Principal and Senior Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) at BioMax Environmental, Inc. Michael has accumulated over 30-years of experience in environmental consulting and industrial hygiene compliance within a wide range of industries and has become a leading expert in the assessment and cleanup of toxic contamination associated with clandestine drug manufacturing, distribution, and processing sites. Michael is also an active member of the American Industrial Hygiene Associations national Opioid Working Group and as a result, is at the forefront of current assessment and cleanup technologies and practices both federally and throughout California. Mr. Polkabla is a published author and expert in drug residue contamination assessment and cleanup and assisted in the drafting and implementation of current California regulatory standards and county CUPA guidance protocols associated involving the assessment and cleanup of sites contaminated with opioids and/or other illicit drug residues.

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MICHAEL DOSSEY, Accidental Release Prevention Engineer, Supervisor - Contra Costa County HS

Michael Dossey has worked for Contra Costa County Hazardous Materials Programs since 2000. He is the Supervising Accidental Release Prevention Engineer in the county. He supervises the Accidental Release Prevention Engineer working under the California Accidental Release Prevention (CalARP) and Contra Costa County's Industrial Safety Ordinance (ISO) Programs.

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MICHAEL REID, Environmental Scientist - DTSC

Michael Reid, Environmental Scientist, DTSC, Regulatory Assistance Officer with DTSC's Regulatory Assistance Unit

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MICHAEL WHITEHEAD, Hazardous Materials Specialist III - Los Angeles County Fire

As a Hazardous Material Specialist III with Los Angeles County Fire Department, I have been assigned to the Investigations Unit since April of 2021. I began the mission of protecting public health and safety and the environment with the CUPA in March of 2002 during my assignments in Inspection Section, Administrative and Planning Section, CalARP Unit, and Investigations Unit. I have a Masters in Science in Environmental and Occupational Health (CSUN), and have a license as a registered environmental health specialist.

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MICHELLE LE, Environmental - Southern California Edison

Michelle Le is Principal Manager for Environmental Field Execution at Southern California Edison. In her current role, she leads a team of 49 that is responsible for field and facility compliance in the areas of hazardous materials, hazardous waste, air quality, water quality, biology, and cultural resources. Previously, Ms. Le worked in consulting and as an agency regulatory. As a consultant she developed a program to assist and supplement industry's Environmental Health & Safety compliance needs. The goal of the program was to bridge industry daily operations with EH&S compliance, with a focus on the CUPA programs. The program includes various EH&S plan development, procedure development, audits, agency relations, and unlimited phone/text consultation.

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MIGUEL RIZO, Accidental Release Prevention Engineer - Contra Costa County HS

Welcome to Miguel Rizo's biographical profile. I'm Miguel Rizo, and I'm excited to share a bit about myself with you. Rather than diving straight into my accomplishments, I'd like to express my sincere appreciation for your interest in reading my bio. In a world filled with countless distractions, your commitment to exploring my profile within the 2024 CUPA conference is truly commendable. Your dedication and character shine through, and I'm eager to connect with individuals like you. If you'd like to delve deeper into my background and experiences, I invite you to visit my LinkedIn profile at https://www.linkedin.com/in/miguelrizo/. There, you'll discover comprehensive details about my professional and academic journey. Thank you for your time, and I hope you'll consider joining me for this years presentation.

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MIGUEL ZEPEDA, ARP Engineer - Contra Costa County HS

My name is Miguel Zepeda, I am an Accidental Release Prevention Engineer for Contra Costa County Health Services. My job takes me to industrial facilities within the county that are subject to the CalARP regulation. As a CalARP engineer, I audit the process safety programs at chemical plants, petroleum refineries, power plants, and facilities that use ammonia as a refrigerant.

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MIKE MCCANN, Deputy District Attorney - San Diego County DA Office

Mike McCann is a Deputy District Attorney at the San Diego District Attorney's Office. Mike has been a prosecutor for 18 years and has been in the Environmental Protection section for the past six years. Mike has taught locally with the San Diego Department of Environmental Health and also state-wide with the California District Attorney's Association.

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NATALIA DEARDORFF, Emergency Preparedness Coordinator - CA Dept of Public Health

Natalia Deardorff is an Emergency Preparedness Coordinator within the California Department of Public Health's Center for Environmental Health. Her work focuses on incorporating environmental health elements into state and local emergency planning activities.

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NICHOLAS ANTILLA, Associate Governmental Program Analyst - CalEPA

Hello, my name is Nicholas Antilla Associate Governmental Program Analyst with the Unified Program of CalEPA. I provide support to the unit in various capacities from developing training, updating website content/correspondence to the public and CUPAs, and am in numerous ways helping with CERS NextGen.

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NICK VENT, Sup EHS - Retired

Nick Vent Retired Supervising Environmental Health Specialist Active instructor specializing in all aspects of Hazardous Materials incidents For these submitals I will be representing Spectral Labs, Inc in San Diego and Sustainable Workplace Alliance in Lake Wales Florida. My workplace is any location that will allow me to help them. Which currently includes Agencies, Industry and Hospitals in San Diego County and all 50 State and US Territories. In retirement I travel the world enjoying new experiences and locals whenever possible. Attempting to combine teaching classes with new travel locations. There is a lot of this country still to see.

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NICOLE BANDAK, Fire & Environmental Safety Inspector 1 - Santa Fe Springs Fire

My name is Nikki Bandak and I work for the City of Santa Fe Springs Fire-Rescue. I have been an inspector for over 5 years. I am a Fire and Environmental Safety Inspector who enforces the laws and regulations for CUPA, Fire, Storm Water and Industrial Waste.

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PAUL MCCARTER, Senior Project Manager - Tait Environmental Services

Mr. McCarter is a Senior Project Manager for Tait Environmental Services, Inc. (TAIT). Mr. McCarter has over 35 years experience in the field of geology and has received Bachelors and Masters of Science Degrees in Geology. Mr. McCarter is a California Professional Geologist, Arizona Registered Geologist, Wyoming Professional Geologist, Florida Professional Geologist, Texas Professional Geoscientist, Louisiana Professional Geoscientist, Georgia Professional Geologist, Colorado Recognized Environmental Professional, and a California Certified Hydrogeologist. Mr. McCarter has experience in providing professional and technical background consulting, data acquisition, and support in cases involving environmental litigation, third-party document review, report preparation, report editing, and peer review. He has extensive experience with management of teams of staff and project professionals to provide optimum efficiency with respect to project implementation, completion, value to management, and has technical and personnel management skills for both large-scale and small-scale projects requiring environmental assessment, investigation, and remediation. Mr. McCarter currently leads TAIT teams on the completion of both Hazardous Materials Area Plans, Hazardous Materials Commodity Flow Studies, and Community Risk Assessments involving hazardous materials.

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PAUL MCCARTY, Hazardous Materials Specialist III - Shasta County EH

Paul McCarty graduated with a BS in Environmental Science & Resource Management from Cal State Channel Islands. He is a Registered Environmental Health Specialist and Hazardous Materials Specialist III with Shasta County Environmental Health. He has been working in the CUPA program for 7 years, is a member of the Office of the State Fire Marshal APSA Advisory Committee, and the Northern California APSA TAG Chair.

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PETER THOMAS, President / Senior Engineer - Resource Compliance

Peter Thomas is the President and Senior Engineer at Resource Compliance. Peter has extensive knowledge of chemical safety regulation with particular emphasis on ammonia refrigeration and process safety management. He has a degree in mechanical engineering from California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo and is a licensed professional engineer. Peter is an active member of RETA and IIAR.

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