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Washington, DC 20460

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Our Purpose              	

          The RCRA, Superfund, and EPCRA
          Hotline is a publicly-accessible service
          that provides up-to-date information
          on several Environmental Protection
_i-ii--—   Agency (EPA) programs. The Hotline
responds to factual questions on federal EPA
regulations developed under the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), which
Includes the Underground Storage Tank (UST)
program; the Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation and Liability Act
(CERCLA or Superfund); the Emergency
Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act
(EPCRA); and on certain related EPA regulations.
The Hotline also responds to requests for relevant
documents.
Using the Hotline
      •      Anyone can call the Hotline — we
            offer information to a broad
            audience including consultants,
            manufacturers, members of trade
            associations and environmental
            organizations, lawyers, health
professionals, state and local government
representatives, citizens, and other callers with
diverse backgrounds and varying degrees of
regulatory knowledge. Our automated message.
system expedites service by supplying      .   .
information on hot regulatory topics and by
directing each caller to the appropriate Hotline
program area at the touch of a button. Callers
seeking regulatory information can speak to a
Hotline staff member who specializes in the
RCRA or the EPCRA/Superfund programs.
Those seeking to order EPA publications
pertaining to any of the Hotline's program areas
can speak to a Document Specialist
Regulations             	

The Hotline's team of Information Specialists
relies on federal regulations and various forms
of EPA guidance to provide quick, accurate
responses to questions on the following
regulatory programs:

              '   1 RCRA    *   -  fc,,V
Under the authority of RCRA, a 1976 law which
amended the Solid Waste Disposal Act, EPA has
created a complex regulatory framework
addressing solid waste disposal and hazardous
waste management.  Questions on RCRA
regulations often concern:

  •  federal procurement of products that contain
    recycled material
  •  hazardous waste generators and
    transporters
  •  land disposal restrictions (LDR)
  •  municipal solid waste landfill criteria
  •  solid and hazardous waste recycling
  •  treatment, storage, and disposal facilities
  •  waste minimization and hazardous waste
    combustion

The Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments
(HSWA) of 1984 broadened the scope of RCRA,
authorizing EPA to regulate underground
storage tanks that contain petroleum products or
hazardous substances. The resulting UST
program includes provisions governing:

  •  corrective action
  •  corrosion protection
  •  financial responsibility
  •  release detection
  •  tank installation and closure
;                Sujjerfundj                -

The 1980 enactment of CERCLA initiated the
Superfund program, allowing EPA to identify
and dean up abandoned or uncontrolled
hazardous waste sites and to recover costs from
parties responsible for the contamination.
The Superfund program generates questions
on topics such as:

  • applicable or relevant and appropriate
    requirements (ARARs)
  • the National Contingency Plan (NCP)
  • the National Priorities List (NPL)
  • radiation site cleanup regulations
  • reportable quantities for releases of
    hazardous substances
^  '   «  ,  "   ,   'EPCRA, /;    '    ;

In November of 1986, Congress enacted the
Emergency Planning and Community Right-
to-Know Act (EPCRA), also known as SARA
Title HI, to help communities prepare for
chemical emergencies and to grant citizens
and government officials access to information
about potential chemical hazards. Topics
commonly addressed include:

   • emergency planning
   • hazardous chemical inventory reporting
   • public access to chemical information
   • toxic chemical release reporting and the
    FormR
   • the toxic release inventory (TRI) database

EPCRA Information Specialists also answer
questions on the Accidental Release Prevention
Provisions of §112(r) of the  Clean Air Act,
including Risk Management Plans (RMPs).

Electronic Resources  	
            The Hotline can provide
            information on EPA's electronic
            resources, which include public
  '     ri "** access Internet servers, electronic
 mailing lists, and Bulletin Board Systems. The
 "RCRA, Superfund, and EPCRA Hotline Guide
 to EPA Electronic Resources," available through
 the Hotline, provides an introduction to these
 resources. Additonal information can be found
 on our Internet Home Page, located ab
 http://wmv.epa.gov/epaoswer/hotline.htm

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