RCRA Boot Camp
(Basic Training for the Newly Inducted)
2013 College & University Hazardous Waste Conference
Charlottesville, Virginia
August 4-7, 2013
Objectives:
• Summarize, Demonstrate and Provide Experience
Completing the Waste Determination Process
• Discuss Special Wastes (Universal Waste, Oil, Etc.)
• Summarize Generator Issues (Status, ID#, Subpart K)
• Summarize Land Ban & Transportation Issues
• Discuss Compliance Strategies & Inspections
Schedule:
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10:00 – 10:10
10:10 – 11:00
11:00 – 11:10
11:10 – 12:00
12:00 – 13:00
13:00 – 13:30
13:30 – 14:00
14:00 – 14:10
14:10 – 14:30
14:30 – 15:00
Introductions & Welcome
Waste Determinations
Break
Waste Determinations (continued)
Lunch
Special Wastes (UW, Oil, etc.)
Generator Issues (Status, ID#, Storage)
Break
Land Ban & Transportation Issues
Compliance Strategies & Inspections
Introductions
Bill Diesslin, ARM, CHMM, CSP
Associate Director, EH&S
Iowa State University
Sean B. Whalen, ASP, CHMM
Environmental Manager, EH&S
Iowa State University
The Need For RCRA
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$750 billion chemical industry
70,000 different chemicals
1,500 new chemicals each year
50,000 hazardous waste sites
Many avenues of exposure
Many chemical risks are poorly understood
Times Beach, Missouri
Love Canal
Valley of the Drums
Resource Conservation & Recovery
Act (RCRA)
• Enacted in 1976 as an amendment to the
Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA)
• Main objectives:
– Protect human health & the environment
– conserve valuable material
– conserve energy resources
• Established "Cradle-to-grave"
management and tracking of hazardous
waste
RCRA Administration
• EPA administers RCRA
• States may be authorized by the EPA
– Rules need to be adopted for state enforcement
• Alaska & Iowa do not administer state programs
USEPA Regions
Waste Determinations
• What
– Wastes to consider
• When
– Not defined by regulation
• Who
– Interpretive letter
• How
– Objective of this class
Waste Determinations (what)
• Solid Waste
– To be hazardous waste a material must first be solid
waste
– Discarded material
– Not excluded by 40 CFR 261.4(a)
• Discarded material
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Abandoned material
Recycled material
Inherently waste-like material
A military munition as defined by 40 CFR 266.202
Waste Determinations (what)
• Materials are solid waste if they are abandoned
– Disposed
– Burned or incinerated
– Accumulated, stored or treated in lieu of disposal or
incineration
• Materials are solid waste if they are recycled
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Use constituting disposal
Burning for energy recovery
Reclaimed
Accumulated speculatively
Waste Determination (what)
• Use constituting disposal
– Materials applied to or placed on land in a manner that
constitutes disposal
– Material used to produce products that are land applied
– Commercial chemical products (261.33) are not solid
waste if land application is ordinary manner of use.
• Burning for energy recovery
– Materials burned or used to produce fuel
– Commercial chemical products (261.33) are not solid
waste if they are themselves fuels.
Waste Determination (what)
• Inherently waste-like materials
– Materials that are solid waste when recycled in any
manner
– F020 – F023, F026, F028
• Some materials are not solid waste when recycled
– Used as an ingredient in an industrial process
– Used as an effective substitute for a commercial
chemical product
– Returned to its original process
Waste Determination (when)
• Not overtly stated in regulation
• Often implied that it must be done at the moment
the waste is generated
• Topic discussion of discussion in OSW
Waste Determination (who)
• C&U interpretation
– 08/16/2002
– RCRA On-line #14618
• Definition of “person”
– individual, firm, agency, corporation, partnership,
association, state, municipality, commission
• Waste determination can be made by:
– Lab personnel
– EH&S staff
– Other qualified person
Waste Determination (how)
• Outlined in 40 CFR 262.11
• Determine if material is solid waste
– As discussed
• Determine if waste is excluded [261.4]
• Determine if the waste is a listed hazardous waste
• Determine if the waste is a characteristic
hazardous waste
Waste Exclusions
• Outlined in 40 CFR 261.4
• Materials which are not solid wastes
– 40 CFR 261.4(a)
• Solid wastes which are not hazardous
– 40 CFR 261.4(b)
• Hazardous wastes which are specifically exempt
– 40 CFR 261.4 (c) - (g)
40 CFR 261.4(a)
• Domestic sewage. Domestic sewage means
untreated sanitary wastes that pass through a
sewer system.
• A mixture of domestic sewage and other wastes
that pass through a sewer system to a publiclyowned treatment works (POTW).
• A wastewater discharge subject to permitting by
the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES).
40 CFR 261.4(a)
• Special nuclear or by-product material as defined
by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended by
42 USC 2011.
• Excluded scrap metal being recycled.
• Shredded circuit boards being recycled.
• Materials that meet the requirements for
comparable fuels or comparable syngas fuels as
defined in 40 CFR 261.38
40 CFR 261.4(b)
• Household waste
• Solid waste generated by agricultural activities
that are returned to the land as fertilizer. Included
both plant and animal production.
• Mining overburden returned to the mine.
• Fossil fuel combustion residues (fly ash, bottom
ash, etc.)
• Trivalent chromium waste.
40 CFR 261.4(b)
• Solid waste from ores and minerals.
• Treated lumber used for its intended purpose.
• Petroleum contaminated media subject to
corrective action.
• Reclaimed CFCs.
• Properly managed non-terne plated used oil filters.
40 CFR 261.4(c) – (g)
• Hazardous waste samples
• Treatability study wastes
• Others
– Rare in acadamia
Listed Wastes
• Waste from non-specific sources
– “F-List”
• Waste from specific sources
– “K-List”
• Commercial chemical products
– “P-List”
– “U-List”
F-Listed Wastes
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Hazardous waste from non-specific sources
Spent materials
F001 – F005 are common wastes in academia
F027 waste is occasionally found at academic
institutions and is subject to acute waste limits
K-Listed Wastes
• Spent material from specific industrial processes
• Very rare in academia
Acute Hazardous Wastes
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P-Listed wastes
Unused commercial chemical products
Sole active ingredient
Waste containers require triple rinsing
Toxic Hazardous Wastes
• U-Listed wastes
• Unused commercial chemical products
• Sole active ingredient
Characteristic Hazardous Wastes
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Ignitable (D001)
Corrosive (D002)
Reactive (D003)
Toxic (D004 – D043)
Ignitable Wastes
• A liquid with a flash point less than 140º F
– Does not include aqueous solutions containing less than
24 percent alcohol by volume
• A material other than a liquid capable of causing
fire under standard temperature and pressure that
burns so vigorously and persistently that it creates
a hazard
• An ignitable compressed gas
Ignitable Wastes (Oxidizers)
• For many years, 40 CFR 261.21 (a)(4) incorrectly
referred readers to 49 CFR 173.151 for the
definition of an oxidizer
• Mistake was due to revision of 49 CFR in 1990
• EPA determined that excluding DOT definition
from RCRA was impractical
• Resulted in the 2006 definition that is actually
more confusing
– Includes numerous notes
Revised Oxidizers (2006)
• Substance that yields oxygen readily to stimulate
combustion of organic matter
– “such as” chlorate, permanganate, nitrate, inorganic
peroxide
• Organic peroxides except:
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Class A & B Explosives
Forbidden for transport
Predominant hazard is other than organic peroxide
Does not present a hazard for transportation
Corrosive Wastes
• An aqueous solution with a pH less than or equal
to 2.0 or greater than or equal to 12.5
• A liquid that corrodes steel at a rate of 0.25 inches
per year
• Solids, by definition, can’t be corrosive
Reactive Wastes
• Normally unstable and readily undergoes violent
change without detonating
• Reacts violently with water
• Forms potentially explosive mixtures with water
• Generates toxic gas when mixed with water
• Cyanide and sulfide bearing wastes
Reactive Wastes
• Capable of detonation or explosion when ignited
or heated under confinement
• Can detonate or explode at standard temperature
and pressure
• Forbidden explosives as defined in 49 CFR 173.53
Toxic Wastes
• Wastes that contain hazardous contaminants that
may “leach” into groundwater if landfilled
• A sample of the waste is subjected to Toxicity
Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP)
• TCLP “leachate” is then subjected to chemical
analysis
• Analytical results that exceed limits listed in
261.24 are hazardous waste
Toxic Wastes
• TCLP is not always necessary
• May use generator knowledge to assign waste
codes
• May use “total” analysis with a 20x dilution factor
in lieu of TCLP process
Toxic Wastes & SDWA
Contaminant
SDWA - MCL
RCRA - TCLP
Arsenic
0.05 mg/l
5.0 mg/l
Benzene
0.005 mg/l
0.5 mg/l
Mercury
0.002 mg/l
0.2 mg/l
Carbon tetrachloride
0.005 mg/l
0.5 mg/l
Toxic Wastes & SDWA
Contaminant
SDWA - MCL
RCRA - TCLP
Chlordane
0.002 mg/l
0.03 mg/l
2,4-D
0.07 mg/l
10.0 mg/l
0.0002 mg/l
0.4 mg/l
NA
5.0 mg/l
Lindane
Silver
Mixture Rule
• Characteristic waste + solid waste = characteristic
waste if the mixture still exhibits the waste
characteristic
• Wastes listed for a characteristic + solid waste =
listed waste if the mixture still exhibits the waste
characteristic
• All other listed wastes + solid waste = listed waste
• Mixing is treatment
Derived-From Rule
• Treatment residue from characteristic wastes are
hazardous if the exhibit a waste characteristic
• Treatment residue from wastes listed solely for a
characteristic are hazardous waste if they exhibit a
waste characteristic
• Treatment residue from all other listed wastes
remain listed
Questions
Example #1
Unused reagents in their original containers are
left over from a research project in the Biology
department. These are common reagents that
would be readily used if transferred to the
Chemistry department. Are the reagents solid
waste?
Example #2
A researcher has retired and left behind a supply
closet filled with dust covered reagents. Dates on
many containers indicate that they are more than 30
years old. Are the reagents solid waste?
Example #3
During a lab inspection you encounter four unlabeled
glass containers filled with colorful liquids. All lab
staff are aware of the containers but have no idea
what they contain. Are these materials solid waste?
If so, are they hazardous waste?
Example #4
The campus motor pool uses a power washer to clean
automobile engines. A degreaser is applied to the
engine as a pretreatment prior to cleaning the surface.
Rinse water enters a floor drain that is connected to
the sanitary sewer. Is the rinse water hazardous
waste?
Example #5
A radio isotope lab is being decommissioned.
Twenty lead bricks that were used for shielding are
discovered. The bricks are of no use to any other
laboratory on campus. Are the bricks solid waste?
Are they hazardous waste?
Example #6
A jar of sodium hydroxide pellets is too old for use
elsewhere on campus. Is the sodium hydroxide solid
waste? Is it hazardous waste?
Example #7
Unused formalin solution typically consists of 37%
formaldehyde, 10-15% methanol and 48-53% water.
If this liquid (fp 120 – 140° F) were disposed of as
waste, what would be the most appropriate waste
code(s)?
Example #8
As part of routine maintenance, paint stripper
containing methylene chloride was used to remove
lead based paint from dormitory windows. What
waste code(s) apply?
Example #9
Osmium tetroxide (P087) is used in a fume hood to
prepare microscopy samples. The fume hood is
equipped with a filter that must be replaced. What is
the regulatory status of the used filter?
Example #10
Toulene-2-4-diamine (CAS#95-80-7) and toulene-26-diamine (CAS#823-40-5) do not show up in 40
CFR 261.33; however, toluenediamine (CAS#2537645-8) is listed as U221. What is the regulatory status
of these isomers?
Special Wastes
Special Wastes
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Universal Wastes 40 CFR 273
CRTs 40 CFR 261
Oil and Oil Filters 40 CFR 279
Solvent contaminated Wipes (effective 01/14)
Universal Wastes - Background
• EPA recognized large volumes of certain wastes
were problem for generators
• Hazardous Waste Rules impediment to recycling
efforts
• Promulgated UW Rules in 1995
Universal Wastes - EPA Goals
• Encourage resource conservation while ensuring
adequate protection of human health and the
environment
• Improve implementation of current Subtitle C
hazardous waste program
• Provide incentives for recycling and recovery
efforts
What is Universal Wastes (UW)?
• IMPORTANT- for a material to be a Universal
Waste it must first be a Hazardous Waste
• But UW Rules encourage recycling of nonhazardous (and therefore non-UW) wastes along
with UW wastes
– Green tip bulbs
– Certain batteries
What is UW?
• Originally batteries, pesticides, and mercury
switches in 1995
• Lamps added in 1999
• Mercury containing equipment added in 2005
• States may declare other UW
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CRTs, CRT glass
Non-empty aerosol cans
Non-hazardous batteries
Industrial Wipes
What is UW?
• Batteries (40 CFR 273.2)
– Defined in 40 CFR 273.9
– HW if not managed as UW
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Silver
Nickel-cadmium
Mercury
Lithium ion
Lead acid
What is UW?
• Batteries
– Non-hazardous waste (check state regs, CA & MN)
• Nickel metal hydride
• Alkaline
• Zinc carbon
– Non-haz but might still be recycled
What is UW?
• Pesticides (40 CFR 273.3)
– Defined in 40 CFR 273.9
– Hazardous waste by listing or characteristic
• Recalled pesticides
• Stocks of other unused pesticides managed as part of a waste
pesticide management program
– Non-haz (most pesticides) can still be handled under
UW rules
What is UW?
• Mercury Containing Equipment (40 CFR 273.4)
– Defined in 40 CFR 273.9
– Device or part of a device that contains mercury
– Excludes batteries and lamps
What is UW?
• Lamps (40 CFR 273.5)
– Defined in 40 CFR 273.9
– Hazardous waste due to mercury vapor
– Many new “non-haz” lamps on the market. Debate
whether they actually pass TCLP
– But regulations encourage recycling of ALL lamps
UW Management
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Generator Status
Notification
Waste Management
Labeling/Marking
Accumulation Time Limits
Training
Response to Releases
Off-site Shipments
Waste Tracking
UW Management
• Generator Status
– Small Quantity Handler of Universal Waste (SQHUW)
(40 CFR 273 Subpart B)
• Less than 5000 kg (11000 lbs) aggregate accumulation at one
time
– Large Quantity Handler of Universal Waste (LQHUW)
(40 CFR 273 Subpart C)
• Greater than 5000 kg (11000 lbs) aggregate accumulation at
one time
UW Management
• Generator Status
– Must count all UWs on site at a given time
– Most requirements are same for small and large
– Totals are NOT ANNUAL, but are calculated at a
single point in time
– Benefits for frequent shipments of smaller amounts
UW Management- Notification
• SQHUW
– No requirements, don’t
have to get an EPA ID#
• LQHUW
– Must notify EPA of waste
activities and receive an
EPA ID# before meeting or
exceeding 5000 kg limit
– Unless already have EPA
ID#
UW Management
• Waste Management- same for both SQ and LG
• Outlines requirements and allowances
– Prevent breakage, spillage, and releases
– Package securely
– Non-treatment techniques such as sorting, mixing,
regenerating, and emptying of used batteries
UW- Labeling/Marking
• Same for SQ and LQ handlers
• Individual item or container must be marked as
described in the regulations
• Make your own labels and distribute them to
campus personnel
• LABEL EXAMPLE
Label
Date
UW- Accumulation Time
• Same for SQ and LQ Handlers
• 1 year to dispose of UW
• Must date each item or container or maintain
detailed inventory system
UW- Training
• SQHUW
– Must INFORM all
employees who handle or
manage UW regarding
proper handling and
emergency procedures
• LQHUW
– Must ENSURE that all
employees are thoroughly
familiar with proper waste
handling and emergency
procedures, relative to their
responsibilities
UW- Response to Releases
• Same for SQ and LQ Handlers
• Must immediately contain releases
• Must make follow up hazardous waste
determination
UW- Off-site Shipments
• Same for SQ and LQ Handlers
• Must send UW ONLY to another UW Handler, a
destination facility (recycler), or a foreign
destination
• If a UW Handler self transports off-site, becomes
UW Transporter (40 CFR 273 Subpart D)
• Must follow DOT Hazardous Materials
regulations (unless otherwise exempt)
UW- Tracking Shipments
• SQHUW
– Not required to maintain
records of shipments
– Probably a good idea
though.
• LQHUW
– Must maintain records of
waste received from off-site
– Must maintain records of
waste shipped off-site
– 3 year retention
UW- Questions?
Special Wastes - CRTs
• Conditionally excluded from RCRA
– Processed CRT glass (261.39)
– Used broken CRTs (261.40)
– Used intact CRTs (261.41)
• Current proposal to revise export provisions
Special Wastes- Used Oil
• Used oil regs in 40 CFR 279
• You have a choice
– Handle oil as a hazardous waste, or
– Recycle it and benefit from used oil regs
• Check state regs for differences with Feds
Special Wastes- Used Oil
• What is used oil?
– Refined from crude or synthetic
– Used
– Contaminated by physical or chemical impurities such
as water, metal fines, lead, antifreeze, etc.
– Oil not mixed with hazardous wastes except in a few
circumstances
Special Wastes- Used Oil
• The EPA assumes that used oil is going to be
recycled
– Recycling includes reformulation, recovery, and
burning for energy recovery
– You may not use used oil as a dust suppressant
Special Wastes- Used Oil
• Generator Requirements
– Mixtures of used oil and hazardous waste generally
become hazardous waste
– Oil storage must be in tanks or containers in good
condition
– Oil storage units must be clearly marked “Used Oil”
– Spills or releases must be addressed when found
Special Wastes- Oil Filters
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Requirements vary state to state
Non-terne plated oil filters
Generally puncture and hot drain 12 to 24 hours
Contact local oil collector, service station, or state
agency to identify avenues for recycling
Solvent Contaminated Wipes
• FR Vol. 78, No. 147 July 31, 2013
– Effective January 31, 2014
• Conditionally excluded from RCRA
– 40 CFR 261
– Cleaned and reused
– Disposed
• “Solvent” is the key word!
• Reads much like UW
Solvent Contaminated Wipes
• Requirements (HW if not followed)
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Closed, Non-leaking container
Labeled “Excluded Solvent Contaminated Wipes”
180 days from container start (assume dated)
No free liquids
Document destination facility
Special Wastes- Conclusion
• Crash course in special waste topics
• Benefits to generators if they properly utilize the
less stringent UW and Used Oil Rules
• More time for questions later
Questions
Generator Issues
• Generator Status
• Generator ID#
• Storage
Waste Generator Status
• Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity
Generator (CESQG)
• Small Quantity Generator (SQG)
• Large Quantity Generator (LQG)
Waste Generator Status
• Generator status can change
– Up or down
• Status change remains at least one month
• Common causes of generator status change
– Conditionally exempt facility accumulating too
much waste.
– Generation of acute hazardous waste.
– Failure to identify hazardous waste.
– Cleanouts of old facilities.
Conditionally Exempt Generator
• Generates less than 100 Kg (220 Lbs) of
hazardous waste per month.
• Generates less than 1 Kg (2.2 Lbs) of acute
hazardous waste per month.
– 100 Kg spill clean-up wastes
• Accumulates less than 1,000 Kg (2,200
Lbs) of hazardous waste.
– Note limited by mass rather than time
Conditionally Exempt Generator
• Some wastes excluded from monthly tally
– Used oil
– Lead-acid batteries
– Universal Wastes
• Many disposal options
• Largely exempt from regulation
• Often qualify for state sponsored waste
disposal programs
Small Quantity Generator
• Generates between 100 Kg (220 Lbs) and
1,000 Kg (2,200 Lbs) of hazardous waste
per month.
• Generates less than 1 Kg (2.2 Lbs) of acute
hazardous waste per month.
• 180 day storage limit
– 270 days if shipping 200+ miles
• Waste manifests required
Small Quantity Generator
• 6,000 Kg (13,200 Lbs) maximum
hazardous waste accumulation
• Follow Subpart I of part 265
– Management of containers
– Includes weekly inspections
• Special requirements for tanks
• Must have an emergency coordinator
• Emergency numbers posted
Small Quantity Generator
• Must keep records for three years
– Longer for “unresolved” enforcement
• Exception Reports
– 60 days without a signed manifest copy
• Additional Reports
– As deemed necessary by EPA
Large Quantity Generator
• Generates more than 1,000 Kg (2,200 Lbs)
of hazardous waste per month.
• Generates more than 1 Kg (2.2 Lbs) of
acute hazardous waste per month.
• 90 day storage limit
• Waste manifests required
• Heavily regulated
Large Quantity Generator
• Must keep records for three years
– Longer for “unresolved” enforcement
• Biennial Report
– March of even numbered years
• Exception Reports (destination manifest)
– Contact receiving facility after 35 days
– File report after 45 days
• Additional Reports
– As deemed necessary by EPA
Large Quantity Generator
• Contingency Plan
• Training Requirements
Hazardous Waste Accumulation
• Permit required for storage beyond
generator time limits
– Unpermitted storage subject to closure
• Less than 90 days
– Tanks
– Containers
– Containment building
• 180/270 days
– Tanks
– Containers
Satellite Accumulation
• Waste at or near the point of generation
• Contents identified
• Less than 55 gallons
– One quart acute hazardous waste
• No time limit
– Limited by volume
• Containers dated when capacity is
exceeded
• Waste must be moved within 3 days
Generator ID#
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Not required for CESQG
Obtained with Form 8700-12
12 “digit” number
Unique number required for each
contiguous property
– Military munitions rule
• Temporary ID#s available
– One time waste removals
Subpart K (Labs Rule)
• 1989 Report to Congress
– Acknowledged that RCRA didn’t fit colleges
– 30,000 institutions, but less than 1% of HW
• Academia discussions with EPA in 2000
– Wanted rules with a better fit
• Proposed Rule in 2006
• Final Rule in 2008
• Technical corrections in 2010
Subpart K (Labs Rule)
• “Opt-in” program
– Written declaration to regulatory agency
• Laboratory Management Plan (LMP)
• Laboratory Clean-out provision
• Discussed in detail at this conference
– Kristin Fitzgerald, USEPA
– Alfredo Chandia, Bringham Young University
Questions
Transportation and LDRN
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Transportation of wastes by generator
Transportation of wastes by vendor
Land Disposal Restrictions
Completing the UHWM and LDRN
Transportation of Wastes
by Generator
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Establish internal SOPs
Satellite Accumulation Area versus Storage
Contiguous versus non-contiguous property
Training requirements
Transportation of Wastes
by Generator
• Waste collection SOPs
– Internal tracking documents
– Packaging of waste for transport
• Done by lab or collection personnel?
– Right of refusal critical
– Emergency response
– Most internal movements of waste not regulated by
DOT (Non-commercial)
Transportation of Wastes
by Generator
• Movement of waste from or between SAAs
– Once waste is moved from POG then SAA rules no
longer apply
– Creates a “Storage Area” regulated under 262.34(a)
– Depending on state rules this could be across the bench
top, across the hall, or across campus
Transportation of Wastes
by Generator
• Contiguous versus Non-contiguous property
– EPA working interpretation of contiguous is by
proximity AND ownership
– Separate EPA ID#s
– Movement of waste between EPA ID#s triggers
UHWM requirements
• Must segregate by DOT hazard class
– Problems if you are not a TSDF
– The Iowa State Clarification
Transportation of Wastes
by Generator
• Training
– Internal training recommended on SOPs, emergency
response
– Shippers of waste must comply with DOT training
requirements for shippers of hazardous materials (out to
vendors)
Transportation of Wastes
by Vendor
• Generators responsibility to complete required
paperwork
– UHWM and LDRN
– However, most vendors will complete paperwork as
part of their service
• You must still sign
• Any errors they make is a potential NOV for you
Land Disposal Restrictions
• 40 CFR 268
• Most complicated aspect of RCRA
• Essentially, almost all wastes must be treated to
proscribed standards prior to disposal on the land
• Burden on generator to inform Transporter and
TSDF that shipment contains restricted wastes
Land Disposal Restrictions
• Each shipment of waste requiring a UHWM must
be accompanied by a LDRN
– Even if you are the generator, transporter, and TSDF
– Vendor collected wastes
Land Disposal Restrictions
• Exceptions
– One time notification if waste shipment is exactly the
same every time (rarely happens in an academic setting)
– Universal Wastes
– CESQG (federal)
– PCBs
Completing the UHWM
and LDRN
• Handouts
– HCWAF, UHWM, Hazardous Materials Table, LDRN
• UHWM located in Appendix to Part 262
• No uniform LDRN
– Example is Iowa State’s
– Create your own or do what we did
– Modify your vendor’s
Completing the UHWM
and LDRN
• HCWAF
– Based on your needs and state requirements
– Provides information needed to make waste
determination and haz mat segregation
• UHWM
– EPA requirement even if you are exempt from DOT
rules
Completing the UHWM
and LDRN
• Hazardous Materials Table
– 49 CFR 172.101
– Science and art determining proper category
– “Waste” before any category
• LDRN
– Must accompany UHWF
– Utilize vendor’s
Questions
EPA Inspections and
Compliance Strategies
• Summarize basic regulatory structure
for hazardous waste management
• Describe enforcement history/Review
current regulatory environment
• Provide basic inspection strategies
• Provide basic compliance strategies
Regulatory History
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EPA created – 1970
RCRA – 1976
RCRA regulations 1980
Superfund
Big polluters, lakes, rivers, landfills
Has finally trickled down to academia
– Large campus
– Small campus
– Secondary institutions
College & University Initiative
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Started in EPA Region I (May 15, 1999)
Followed by EPA Region III (May 25, 1999)
Followed by EPA Region IX (August, 1999)
Followed EPA Region II (December, 1999)
Followed by EPA Region V
EPA Region VII (2002)
EPA Region IV (2007)
College & University Initiative
• Justification
– significant use of hazardous materials
– decentralized (poor management)
– poor waste management history
• Initiative
– provide training to colleges & universities
– provide “grace period” to upgrade compliance
– Detailed follow-up inspection
Inspection Priority
• Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generator
(CESQG)
– Low priority
• Small Quantity Generator (SQG)
– Higher priority
• Large Quantity Generator (LQG)
– Highest priority
Inspection Priority
• Generator status can change
• Change in status = change in inspection priority
• Common causes of generator status change
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Conditionally exempt facility accumulating too much waste.
Generation of acute hazardous waste.
Failure to identify hazardous waste.
Cleanouts of old facilities.
Recent Enforcement Activity
• Washington University (St. Louis, MO)
– EPA inspection in 2008
– $15,000 fine and $45,000 SEP in 2010
• University of Florida (Gainesville, FL)
– EPA inspection in 2008
– $175,000 fine in 2010
• Drew University (Madison, NJ)
– Self-reported violations in 2007
– Inspected in 2009
– $145,000 fine in 2011
RCRA Enforcement
• EPA may require compliance immediately or within a
specified time
• May require monitoring, testing, analysis, and/or
reporting
• May involve individuals or institutions
• May involve past or present inappropriate management
practices
RCRA Enforcement
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•
•
•
Up to $37,500 per day per violation
Same amount for continued noncompliance
EPA may shut down operation
Criminal penalty up to $7,500 per day per violation or
imprisonment for up to 5 years
• Employee or management may be targets
Past Fines & Penalties
•
•
•
•
•
•
University of Hawaii
Stanford
Brown
Boston University
Rhode Island
MIT
$1.8 million
$1.0 million
$365,000
$771,000
$800,000
$550,000
If You Get Inspected
• EPA Inspectors have same authority as ATF, FBI, etc.
Respect them and they will respect you
• EPA contractors
• Don’t panic
• Cooperate to the fullest of your ability
• Promptly correct any violations
• Document response
If You Get Inspected
• Opening conference
– Authority and credentials
– Goals of inspection
• One hour to several weeks
• Accompany inspectors at all times
• Closing conference
– Notice of Preliminary Findings
– Your chance to ask for clarification, argue
• Several days to weeks later
– Notice of Violations
• Several months to years later
– Fines and penalties
Frequent Citations
• No waste determination
• Improper marking and dating
– Hazardous waste
– Universal Wastes
– Used Oil
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•
•
•
•
Open containers
Training and training records
Improper SAA and/or storage area management
Secondary containment
Generator status
What’s An NOV and What Do I Do
Now?
• Notice of Violation
– EPA contends you have broken the law
– Maybe, maybe not
– The EPA has been known to be incorrect
• Require response in certain time frame
– If unable to complete, request extension
• Respond in detail how you are addressing the NOV or why you
believe the EPA is in error
• If they are right, FIX IT!
• Follow through. NOVs are the first thing an inspector will
check on a repeat inspection
Compliance Goals
•
•
•
•
•
Prevention!
Central control
Clearly stated objectives
Well defined roles
Individual appreciation for the “big picture”
Compliance system elements
•
•
•
•
•
•
Authority
Knowledge of Regulations
Compliance Strategy
Training
Documentation
Management of Change
Authority
• Receive Authority of Administration
– Higher the better
– Must have financial resources
– Authority delegated must be commensurate with
responsibility
• Establish a Policy Statement
– Signed by the individual delegating authority
• Get the Word Out
– Refer to policy in correspondence
– Include policy in publications
Knowledge of regulations
• Regulatory Publications
– Code of Federal Regulations
– Federal Register
– Regulatory Guidance Documents
• Training Sessions
– State and federally sponsored programs
– Private training companies
• Professional Meetings
– College & University Hazardous Waste Conference
– CSHEMA
• Internet
– www.epa.gov
Compliance Strategy
• Set Goals
– Compliance at minimum
– Form committees if necessary
• Determine Cost of Compliance
– Training
– FTE
– Supplies, vendors, consultants
• Determine Cost of Non-compliance
– Fines
– Liability
– Negative publicity
Training
• Awareness Level
– Students
– Faculty and staff
– Administration
• Operations Level
– Waste generators, emission source operators, etc.
• Facility Level
– Environmental Managers
• Mode of Delivery
– Dedicated training
• Live
• Video
• Web Based
– In conjunction with class
– In conjunction with other training
Documentation
• Central Records
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Permit applications
Permits
Correspondence
Reports, manifests, certifications
• Databases
• Operation Manuals
– Hard copy
– Electronic
• SOPs
Basic Compliance Strategy
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•
•
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Identify hazards
Determine generator status
Communicate risk
Eliminate risk
Prevent accumulation of future waste
Environmental compliance evaluations
Identify hazards
• Conduct chemical inventory
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What is this material?
How is it used?
Is it still suitable for its intended use?
Record quantity, condition and location.
• Complete waste determinations
– Is the material waste?
– Is it hazardous waste?
Determine generator status
• Based on inventory
• Obtain EPA ID # if necessary
– May only need temporary ID
• Document generator status
Communicate risk
• Place “burden” of knowledge on appropriate level of
administration
• Provide awareness training to faculty and staff
• Label hazardous waste
Prevent future accumulation
• Inventory control
– Buy only what you can use.
– Date containers when purchased.
– Rotate stock
• Material substitution
• Schedule (budget) regular waste removal
Environmental Compliance Evaluations
• You must be visible!
• Perform regular evaluations
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SAAs
Shops, custodial closets, maintenance areas
“Storage” areas
Identify weak program areas
• Repeat problems
• Recalcitrant personnel
• Evaluation checklists
– Maintain data base
– Require follow-up by staff
Questions