United States Solid Waste and Environmental Protection Emergency Response EPA530-F-92-011 Agency (OS-305) June 1992 Office of Solid Waste &EPA Environmental Fact Sheet Treatment Standards Finalized For 20 Newly Listed Hazardous Wastes and Hazardous Debris Background The Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA) to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) enacted in 1984 prohibit the land disposal of untreated hazardous wastes. HSWA requires EPA to set levels or methods of treatment for hazardous wastes to substantially diminish the short-term and long-term threats to human health and the environment. Wastes that meet the treatment standards established by EPA may be land disposed (i.e., placed in a landfill, surface impoundment waste pile, injection well, land treatment facility, salt dome formation, salt bed formation, or underground mine or cave). The statutory schedule for land disposal restriction (LDR) rules covered by HSWA was completed on May 8, 1990. However, a number of hazardous wastes have been newly listed or identified since 1984 for which LDR treatment standards are needed. As part of the LDR rulemakings, EPA has made a number of modifications to the rules. Several of these modifications are part of the RCRA Reform Initiative—a broad set of regulatory reforms which will yield significant cost savings without sacrificing environmental protection. This rule is the second major piece of this initiative. Encompassed in this final rule are specific actions to eliminate unnecessary burdens and stimulate technological innovation. ------- Action s Debris With this rule, EPA is implementing an innovative approach to regulating hazardous debris under the LDR program. EPA is finalizing amendments to the existing treatment standards for debris contaminated with prohibited listed or prohibited characteristic hazardous wastes. Under the final rule, debris must be treated prior to land disposal using specific technologies from one or more of the following families of debris treatment technologies: extraction, destruction, or immobilization. In addition, hazardous debris that is treated by extraction or destruction technologies and no longer exhibits a hazardous characteristic will no longer be subject to regulation as a hazardous waste. Buildins EPA is establishing a new waste management unit— a containment building— which will allow certain types of waste to be treated and/or stored in buildings without being considered land disposal. Generic Exclusion and Paperwork Reduction Alternate treatment standards for F006 and K062 wastes have been promulgated, as well as extending the K061 generic exclusion to F006 and K062 wastes treated by high temperature metal recovery. Further, EPA is significantly reducing and simplifying the notification and certification rules for characteristic wastes. 20 Newly Listed Wastes EPA is also finalizing LDR treatment standards for 20 newly listed wastes that are based on identified best demonstrated available technologies for the treatment of these wastes. The 20 newly listed wastes are: • Recent petroleum refining wastes (F037 and F038) • Wastes from the production of unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine (K107-K110) • Wastes from the production of dinitrotoluene and toluenediamine (Kill and Kl 12) • Wastes from the production of ethyiene dibromide (Kl 17, Kl 18, and K136) ------- • Wastes from the production of ethylenebisdithiocarbamic acid (K123 - K126) • Wastes from the production of methyl bromide (K131 and K132) • Additional organic U wastes (U328, U353, and U359) Revisions to Existing LPfi Regulations In addition, E^PA is revising a number of current LDR treatment standards, including: organic constituents of F001- F005 wastes; wastewaters for certain listed hazardous wastes, basing the new treatments standards on actual wastewater treatment technologies, rather than incineration scrubber waters. LDR Surface Impoundment Retrofitting Requirements This rule harmonizes the conflicting provisions of Sections 3004(h)(4), 3005(J)(6), and 3005(j)(l 1). All surface impoundments brought into the Subtitle C regulatory system through the identification or listing of a new hazardous waste now have four years from that date of identification to meet the minimum technological requirements (double liner with a leak detection system, and a ground water monitoring system). Contact For further information, or to order a copy of the Federal Register notice, please: call the RCRA Hotline Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., EST. The national toll-free number is (800) 424-9346; for the hearing impaired, it is fTDD) (800) 553-7672. In Arlington. VA, the number is (703) 920-9810 or fTOD) (703) 486-3323. Or write to the RCRA Information Center (OS-305). US EPA, 401 M Street SW. Washington. DC 20460. ------- ------- |