Small Business Clean Air Assistance Program

Other Technical Resources and Assistance

Important note! The Small Business Clean Air Assistance Program is moving. Beginning July 1, 2011, the SBCAAP will be located in Wisconsin's Department of Natural Resources. For the new address and phone numbers, see the Contact Information at the bottom of our program home page.

SBCAAP staff provide a level of expertise with air pollution regulations.  We partner with other programs where staff have expertise in other areas of environmental regulation and pollution prevention.  Links provided below will take you to other web sites with information or contacts that may help you understand environmental regulations beyond air pollution or help you find ways to reduce emissions and improve your environmental performance overall.  Also provided are some listings for different funding opportunities.  

• For assistance with waste or energy related issues, go to the SHWEC web site *.  SHWEC programs include: industrial pollution prevention, environmental management planning, solid waste source reduction, community environmental protection, sustainable design, energy conservation, and renewable energy. 
• Go to the State Lab of Hygiene WisCon Onsite Safety and Health Consultation site to set up a free and confidential audit to review your OSHA compliance for either safety or health aspects of your operations.
• Run through the DNR's Permit Primer * to see which of the environmental permits may apply.
• Focus on Energy works with eligible Wisconsin residents and businesses to install cost-effective energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. Visit www.focusonenergy.com or call 800-762-7077 to see how Focus can help your business. 
• Wisconsin Small-Scale Biofuels Producer Program - offers a range of assistance from a variety of state programs to Biofuels Producers.  Read more about the program and find out how to contact them by clicking HERE.

• Hiring an Environmental Consultant — A brief overview on what to look for and questions to ask when seeking the services of an environmental consultant for your air pollution issues.
• Clean Air Consultants — A partial listing of Wisconsin companies that provide air pollution consulting services to small businesses--categorized by specific services provided, including emissions inventory, stack testing, permit applications, air dispersion modeling, and other non-air related services.
• Phase I and II Environmental Site Assessments — Construction on an old commercial site should be preceded by a Phase I ESA to determine if there is any contamination of the site and a Phase II ESA to determine the extent of any contamination found.

• DNR's Cooperative Environmental Assistance program has staff organized by industry sectors, called Sector Specialists *. The sector specialists are available to work with specific industries on any environmental issue that they may encounter.
• Cascade Asset Management provides an asset management program for businesses or institutions in the Madison and Southeast WI area that need assistance in managing their electronic equipment.  While Cascade does charge a fee for processing the equipment, they also provide a rebate to you from the recycling or reuse value of the equipment. They will also pick up the equipment you wish to recycle for a fee.  For a list of all their fees and services, you can contact Cascade Asset Management at 1-888-222-8399 or www.cascade-assets.com *.
• If you need to find a place to recycle some of your wastes, you can search the Recycling Markets Directory * now managed by the UW Extension Solid and Hazardous Waste Education Center. 

• Practical Guide to Environmental Management for Small Business —This publication is based on Environmental Management Systems (EMS) concepts is designed to help small businesses organize their environmental management responsibilities in a productive and most cost-effective way.
• Documenting your Environmental Management Plan — The Workbook allows the small business owner to get environmental management issues organized one step at a time.  Each section includes an explanation of what needs to be done, worksheets to help the business owner complete the tasks, and examples of completed documentation from two hypothetical small business.  The Workbook works as a support document to the Practical Guide to Environmental Management for Small Business.
• EMS and ISO 14000 - What is an EMS and what does it mean to be ISO certified?  

Many people that ask for environmental assistance often wonder about monetary resources to help them start their business or expand or to deal with environmental regulations. While there is no free lunch, or free money in this case, there are resources for small businesses to get assistance with financing.

• The Small Business Environmental Funding Help * web site contains information and links to federal and state funding resources.
• The US Small Business Administration * (SBA) is one such resource you can contact directly.
• The WDNR's Funding Sources Water and Wastewater web site contains information about potential funding.  Please note, much of the funding available is for governmental entities.  

There are also a few groups in Wisconsin that can help you find a combination of funding resources, including use of local revolving loan funds, SBA loans, etc. Many of these do focus on starting or expanding your business, and a couple loan programs address expenses to comply with environmental requirements. Most of these programs will also have some business planning and financial training available or even required as part of their program.

• The Wisconsin Business Development * (WBD) Finance Corporation can help through their TEAM network. They have a number of offices throughout the state. You can contact them through the Madison office at 800/536-6799.
• Wisconsin Women's Business Initiative Corporation * (WWBIC) has a focus on micro loans (< $35,000) for women, other minorities and low income people looking to start a business, but they will help anyone who contacts them. A large part of their program also provides training for both the novice and experienced small business owner. They have offices in Milwaukee (414/263-5450) and Madison (608/257-5450).
• Impact Seven, Inc. * can help businesses statewide through two offices, one in Madison (608/251-8450) and one in Almena (715/357-3334).
• The Department of Commerce has multiple programs for financing businesses.
• The Great Lakes Regional Pollution Prevention Roundtable * site provides a list of various funding opportunities (most involve environmental research).