EPA530-F-94-041
November 16, 1994
FACT SHEET
Final Air Emission Standards under the Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act (RCRA) for Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, and
Disposal Facilities: Tanks, Surface Impoundments and Containers
TODAYS ACTION. . . .
+ The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is issuing a final
rule under the authority of section 3004(n) of the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) to reduce organic air
emissions from hazardous waste treatment, storage, and
disposal facilities (TSDF).
* Hazardous waste TSDF store waste in units such as tanks and
containers, treat waste by processes such as recycling, and
dispose of waste by techniques such as deep-well injection
or incineration.
WHAT ARE THE HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS?
+ The final rule will reduce emissions of cancer-causing air
toxics (such as benzene and carbon tetrachloride) and
volatile organics, which include volatile organic compounds
(VOC) and hazardous air pollutants by an estimated 1 million
tons annually.
* Hazardous waste TSDF are one of the largest industrial
sources of VOC in the country. The VOC emissions contribute
significantly to ground-level ozone or smog. Ground-level
ozone has been shown to cause adverse effects on human
health and can damage forests and crops.
+ The EPA estimates that the incidence of cancer resulting
from exposure to TSDF organic air emissions will decrease
from 48 cases per year to 2 cases per year.
BACKGROUND
+ Promulgation of this standard marks the completion of the
second phase of a three-phased regulatory program under
section 3004(n) of RCRA to control air emissions from
hazardous waste TSDF. Phase I was completed when the EPA
issued final standards for TSDF process vents and equipment
leaks in June 1990.
4 Phase III will address any remaining risks posed by
hazardous waste TSDF to assess the need for additional
regulations.
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WHO IS AFFECTED BY THE FINAL RULE?
Owners and operators of TSDF that are subject to the
permitting requirements for hazardous waste management units
under Subtitle C of RCRA may be subject to this regulation.
Subtitle C defines the hazardous waste universe regulated under
RCRA. The facilities covered by this rule include:
* Approximately 2,300 TSDF, most of which are located at
production facilities such as chemical plants, petroleum
refineries, and pharmaceutical manufacturers across the
nation.
+ An additional 20,000 generators have 90-day tanks and
containers that are now subject to the regulation. (Under
the conditions specified in 40 CFR 262.34, these units are
exempt from the Subtitle C permitting requirements provided
the waste is accumulated in the unit for no more than 90
days and complies with the control requirements specified in
40 CFR 265 Subpart I or J).
+ These requirements will be applicable to all affected
facilities on the effective date of the standards,
regardless of a facility's permit status. The rules are
intended to be self-implementing, and do not require a
modification to be made to existing RCRA final permits.
WHAT DO THE FINAL STANDARDS REQUIRE?
Introduction
+ A "surface impoundment" is an excavation or natural
depression in the ground, such as a pond or lagoon, that
holds an accumulation of waste. A "tank" is a stationary
device designed to contain waste, such as a storage tank or
a treatment tank. A "container," such as a 55-gallon drum
or a dumpster, is a portable device in which waste is
accumulated or stored.
+ This rule is not applicable to other hazardous waste
management units that may be present at a TSDF, such as
landfills or waste piles. Where appropriate, the standards
do apply to miscellaneous units that are like tanks or
containers.
Required Controls
+ Organic emission control equipment must be installed,
operated, and maintained on all tanks, surface impoundments,
and containers that manage hazardous waste with an average
volatile organic content equal to 100 parts per million by
weight (ppmw) or more.
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+ Tanks and surface impoundments must use covers (e.g., a roof
on a tank, an enclosure over a surface impoundment) and vent
the collected organic vapors to a control device that
reduces the organics in the vapor stream by 95 percent. Use
of a cover without additional controls is allowed for a tank
that meets certain capacity and waste vapor pressure
conditions and for all surface impoundments provided: (1) no
waste-fixating, heating, or heat-generating process is
conducted in the unit; and (2) the waste managed in the unit
is not mixed, stirred, agitated, or circulated within the
unit using a process that results in splashing, frothing, or
visible turbulent flow on the waste surface.
+ Containers used for handling, preparing, or storing
hazardous waste are required to be covered except during
necessary operations that require the cover to be removed
(such as waste transfer, inspecting, or sampling). For
containers with a design capacity greater than or equal to
0.46 m (approximately 119 gallons), waste loading
operations performed by pumping shall use submerged fill.
Containers used for waste fixation are required to be
located under a cover with a closed vent system that routes
all organic vapors vented from the container to a control
device.
WHAT ARE THE MAJOR CHANGES IN THE REGULATION SINCE PROPOSAL?
+ A TSDF tank, surface impoundment, or container is exempted
from the required air emission controls provided that the
waste managed in the unit has an average volatile organic
concentration less than 100 ppmw. This concentration cutoff
for the proposed rule was 500 ppmw, but it was a never-to-
be-exceeded value.
+ A container having a design capacity less than O.lm3
(approximately 26 gallons) is exempted from all container
control requirements.
4 A container required to use emission controls under the
final standards and having a design capacity less than
0.46 m (approximately 119 gallons) is exempted from certain
container loading and monitoring requirements.
* Alternative control requirements for containers have been
added to the final standards allowing TSDF owners and
operators to use certain containers that meet the existing
U.S. Department of Transportation specifications and testing
requirements for containers used to transport hazardous
waste.
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* The final standards include a deferral for radioactive mixed
waste and waste associated with cleanup activities.
Therefore, these waste types are not required to be managed
in units that are equipped with the specified controls.
HOW MUCH WILL THE FINAL RULE COST?
+ Total capital investment cost to TSDF owners and operators
to implement the final standards is estimated to be
approximately $290 million. Total annualized costs are
estimated to be $110 million per year. The major portion of
these costs is associated with the design, installation, and
operation of emission control equipment.
FOR MORE INFORMATION...
For specific questions about the rule, contact Michele Aston
at (919) 541-2363. To order a copy of the Federal Register
notice or the fact sheet, please call the RCRA Hotline Monday
through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., EST and ask for the rule
Final Air Emission Standards under the Resource Conservation and
Recovery Act (RCRA) for Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, and
Disposal Facilities; Tanks, Surface Impoundments and Containers.
The RCRA Hotline's national toll-free number is (800) 424-9346;
for the hearing impaired, it is (TDD) (800) 553-7672. You may
also write to the RCRA Information Center (5305), US EPA, 401 M
Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460.
The Federal Register notice and the BID are also available
on the EPA's Clean-Up Information Bulletin Board (CLU-IN). To
access CLU-IN with a modem of up to 28,800 baud, dial (301) 589-
8366. First time users will be asked to input some initial
registration information. Next, select "D" (download) from the
main menu. Input the file name "RCRAAIR1.ZIP" to download this
notice. Input the file name "RCRAAIR2.ZIP" to download the BID.
Follow the on-line instructions to complete the download. More
information about the download procedure is located in Bulletin
104; to read this, type "B 104" from the main menu. In the
interim before the Federal Register notice is available, the
final signature version of the promulgation notice will be
available under the file name "RCRAAIRD.ZIP" from the CLU-IN
bulletin board. For additional help with these instructions,
telephone the CLU-IN help line at (301) 589-8368.
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