In our prior post on the upcoming RCRA changes (Part 1), we provided an overview of eight significant areas of change that will impact Hazardous Waste Generators and will go into effect on May 30, 2017. This post (and at least the subsequent seven) will attempt to provide an overview of each of those areas of change. The eight changes from Part 1 were listed as:
- Reorganization of the Hazardous Waste Generator Regulations and modifies the organization of the Preamble.
- Changes to 40 CFR Part 260, which covers definitions
- Changes to 40 CFR Part 261, requiring biennial reporting by facilities that recycle hazardous waste without storing it.
- Changes to 40 CFR Part 262, which covers the standards applicable to generators of hazardous waste
- Additional changes to 40 CFR Part 262 for generators that would ordinarily have changed status due to an episodic event
- Additional changes to 40 CFR Part 262 clarifying expectations related to Preparedness, Prevention, and Emergency Procedures for SQG’s and LQG’s
- Technical corrections and changes to 40 CFR Part 257
- New discussion of “Electronic Tools to Streamline Hazardous Waste Reporting and Record keeping Requirements”
Today, we will tackle the first – Reorganization of the regulations. The announced intent of the reorganization of the content is “to make the regulations more user-friendly, which EPA expects will improve generator compliance.” We will skip the changes to the preamble for now and move straight into the changes to the organization of the regulations themselves. Remember, these changes are specific to Generators of Hazardous Waste.
For simplicity in understanding what changes have been made, we have borrowed from literature that EPA has provided and reorganized the overview into 5 areas:
- Reorganization of the general standards applicable to Waste Generators
- Reorganization of the standards associated with Satellite Accumulation Areas or SAAs
- Reorganization of the standards associated with Very Small Quantity Generators or VSQGs (formerly Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators or CESQGs)
- Reorganization of the standards associated with Small Quantity Generators or SQGs
- Reorganization of the standards associated with Large Quantity Generators or LQGs
The summary of changes is outlined in the tables below. Each table is organized in the order of appearance of the new citation.
| Table 1: General Reorganization of the Standards for Waste Generators | |||
| Description of Regulation | Prior Citation | New Citation | Comment |
| Definitions of Generator Categories | §§ 260.10, 261.5 and 262.34 | § 260.10 | Previous definition of SQG in § 260.10 was outdated. Generator categories were based on §§ 261.5 and 262.34. |
| Hazardous Waste Limits for VSQGs | § 261.5(a) and (e) | § 260.10 | Included in the new definition of VSQG. |
| Purpose, Scope, and Applicability | § 262.10 | § 262.10 | Not moved, but expanded significantly. |
| Hazardous Waste Determination and Record keeping | §§ 262.11 and 262.40(c) | § 262.11 | Content in § 262.11 is expanded and § 262.40(c) is incorporated. |
| Generator Category Determination | § 261.5(c), (d), and (h)-(j) | § 262.13 | New section that explains how to count hazardous waste to determine generator category. |
| EPA Identification Numbers | § 262.12 | § 262.18 | Re-notification requirements are also in this section. |
| Landfill Ban for Liquids | § 258.28 | § 262.35 | For SQGs and LQGs. |
| Table 2: Reorganization of the Standards for Satellite Accumulation Areas (SAAs) | |||
| Description of Regulation | Prior Citation | New Citation | Comment |
| Satellite Accumulation Area Provisions | § 262.34(c) | § 262.15 | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Selected Part 265 Subpart I Provisions | § 265.171 | § 262.15(a)(1) | Duplicated from part 265. |
| Selected Part 265 Subpart I Provisions | § 265.172 | § 262.15(a)(2) | Duplicated from part 265. |
| Selected Part 265 Subpart I Provisions | § 265.173(a) | § 262.15(a)(4) | Duplicated from part 265. |
| Table 3: Reorganization of the Standards for Very Small Quantity Generators (VSQG’s) | |||
| Description of Regulation | Prior Citation | New Citation | Comment |
| VSQG Definition | § 261.5(a) | § 260.10 | Moved into new definition of VSQG. |
| VSQG Mixtures | § 261.5(h)-(j) | § 262.13(f) | Moved into Generator category determination. |
| Conditions for Exemption for a Very Small Quantity Generator | § 261.5(b), (f), and (g) | § 262.14 | Included in VSQG conditions for exemption. |
| VSQG Consolidation by LQGs Within the Same Company | N/A | § 262.14(a)(5)(viii) | New provision. |
| Landfill Ban for Liquids | § 258.28 | § 262.14(b) | Specific citation for VSQGs. |
| Episodic Generation | N/A | Part 262 subpart L | New provision. |
| Table 4: Reorganization of the Standards for Small Quantity Generators (SQG’s) | |||
| Description of Regulation | Prior Citation | New Citation | Comment |
| Definition of Small Quantity Generator | § 262.34(d) | § 260.10 | Moved into new definition of SQG. |
| Accumulation Time Limit | § 262.34(d) | § 262.16(b) | Moved. |
| Accumulation Limit | § 262.34(d)(1) | § 262.16(b)(1) | Moved. |
| Accumulation in Containers | § 262.34(d)(2) (references part 265 subpart I) | § 262.16(b)(2) | Duplicated from part 265. |
| Accumulation in Tanks | § 262.34(d)(3) (references part 265 subpart J) | § 262.16(b)(3) | Duplicated from part 265. |
| Accumulation on Drip Pads | N/A | § 262.16(b)(4) references part 265 subpart W | No previous regulatory reference for SQGs using drip pads. |
| Accumulation in Containment Buildings | N/A | § 262.16(b)(5) references part 265 subpart DD | No previous regulatory reference for SQGs using containment buildings. |
| Marking of Tanks and Containers | § 262.34(d)(4) (references § 262.34(a)(2) and (3)) | § 262.16(b)(6) | Copied from § 262.34 with some changes. |
| Preparedness and Prevention | § 262.34(d)(4) (references part 265 subpart C) and § 262.34(d)(5) | § 262.16(b)(8) and (9) | Duplicated from part 265 and moved from § 262.34. |
| Land Disposal Restrictions | § 262.34(d)(4) (references part 268) | § 262.16(b)(7) | There is still a cross reference to part 268. |
| Transporting Over 200 Miles | § 262.34(e) | § 262.16(c) | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Accumulation Time Limit Extension | § 262.34(f) | § 262.16(d) | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Rejected Loads | § 262.34(m) | § 262.16(e) | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Episodic Generation | N/A | Part 262 subpart L | New provision. |
| Table 5: Reorganization of the Standards for Large Quantity Generators (LQG’s) | |||
| Description of Regulation | Prior Citation | New Citation | Comment |
| Definition of Large Quantity Generator | N/A | § 260.10 | New definition. |
| Accumulation Time Limit | § 262.34(a) | § 262.17(a) | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Accumulation in Containers | § 262.34(a)(1)(i) references part 265 subparts I, AA, BB, and CC | § 262.17(a)(1) (§ 262.17(a)(1) also references part 265 subparts AA, BB, CC) | There is still a cross-reference to part 265 subparts AA, BB, and CC because of the length of these regulations. |
| Accumulation in Tanks | § 262.34(a)(1)(ii) references part 265 subparts J, AA, BB, and CC | § 262.17(a)(2) references part 265 subparts J, AA, BB, CC | There is still a cross- reference to part 265 subparts J, AA, BB, CC because of the length of these regulations. |
| Accumulation on Drip Pads | § 262.34(a)(1)(iii) (§ 262.34(a)(1)(iii) also references part 265 subpart W) | § 262.17(a)(3) (§ 262.17(a)(3) also references part 265 subpart W) | Accumulation time limit and record keeping provisions move to § 262.17 and the extensive technical standards remain in part 265. |
| Accumulation in Containment Buildings | § 262.34(a)(1)(iv) (§ 262.34(a)(1)(iv) also references part 265 subpart DD) | § 262.17(a)(4) (§ 262.17(a)(4) also references part 265 subpart DD) | Accumulation time limit, labeling, and record keeping provisions move to § 262.17 and the extensive technical standards remain in part 265. |
| Marking and Labeling | § 262.34(a)(2) and (3) | § 262.17(a)(5) | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Preparedness, Prevention, and Emergency Procedures | § 262.34(a)(4) references part 265 subparts C and D | § 262.17(a)(6) references part 262 subpart M | Cross-references remain but to a new subpart of the generator regulations. |
| Personnel Training | § 262.34(a)(4) | § 262.17(a)(7) | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Closure | § 262.34(a)(1)(iv)B) references §§ 265.11 and 265.114. Section 265.111 references other sections in part 265 | § 262.17(a)(8) | Duplicated from §§ 265.11 and 114 with some revisions. |
| Land Disposal Restrictions | § 262.34(a)(4) references applicable parts of part 268 | § 262.17(a)(9) | There is still a cross-reference to part 268. |
| Extension of Accumulation Times | § 262.34(b) | § 262.17(b) | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Accumulation of F006 | § 262.34(g) through (i) | § 262.17(c) through (e) | Moved from § 262.34. |
| Accepting waste from VSQGs under the control of the same person to consolidate before sending to TSDF | N/A | § 262.17(f) | New provision. |
| Rejected Loads | § 262.34(m) | § 262.17(g) | Moved from § 262.34. |
The next post will cover changes to 40 CFR Part 260 – Definitions.