United States Solid Waste and EPA530-F-00-020
Environmental Protection Emergency Response February 2000
Agency (5305W) http://www.epa.gov
Office of Solid Waste
&EPA Environmental
Final Rule Promotes Metals Recovery
from Waste Water Treatment Sludge
(F006)
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is encouraging metals recovery in
the Metal Finishing Industry to increase recycling ofF006 waste. While protecting
human health and the environment, this final rule will minimize economic barriers to
recycling waste water treatment sludge.
Background
EPA's Common Sense Initiative (CSI) provides a consensus-based, decision-
making process for stakeholders from federal and state governments, public interest
groups, and regulated industry. As part of this Initiative, this final rule provides a
new opportunity for the Metal Finishing Industry to practice better environmental
protection under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). It encourages
the legitimate recovery of metals from F006 waste that would otherwise be land
disposed. The hazardous waste water treatment sludge (i.e., the RCRA listed
hazardous waste, F006) that is generated from the electroplating processes in the
Metal Finishing Industry generally contains recoverable amounts of metals.
Although some of the waste water treatment sludge is recycled for metals recovery, a
large percentage of the waste is land-disposed. By minimizing economic barriers to
recycling of F006 waste through metals recovery, generators of F006 waste are
encouraged to choose metals recovery as their waste management option for F006
waste.
Action
EPA is encouraging metals recovery by allowing large quantity generators of F006
waste up to 180 days (or 270 days, if applicable) to accumulate F006 waste on site
without a hazardous waste storage permit or interim status, provided that these
generators meet certain conditions. Currently, these generators may accumulate this
waste on site for up to 90 days. To accumulate F006 waste up to 180 days (or 270
days, if applicable), a generator of F006 waste must: (1) have implemented pollution
prevention practices that reduce the amount of any hazardous substance, pollutant
or contaminant entering F006 or otherwise released into the environment prior to its
recycling; (2) recycle the F006 by metals recovery; (3) accumulate no more than
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20,000 kilograms of F006 waste on site at any one time; and (4) comply with the
applicable management standards, such as accumulation in tanks, containers, or
containment buildings, labeling and marking accumulation units, preparedness and
prevention, contingency plan and emergency procedures, personnel training, and
waste analysis and record keeping. (These management standards are the same as
those that currently apply to the 90-day on-site accumulation provisions in the
existing regulations.) Since the proposal, the final rule has been modified in several
ways. Both the pollution prevention condition and the maximum amount of F006
that can be accumulated have modified. Also the final rule now includes metals
recovery on-site as well as off-site.
The final rule also allows large quantity generators to accumulate F006 up to 270
days without a hazardous waste storage permit or interim status, provided that the
generator complies with the conditions stated above, if they must ship their F006
waste off site to a metals recovery facility that is located more than 200 miles away.
The generator may also request additional accumulation time or accumulation of
F006 waste in excess of 20,000 kilograms waste in the event of unforeseen, temporary
and uncontrollable circumstances.
EPA believes that the proposed 180-day (270-day, if applicable) accumulation
time for F006 waste will increase the amount of F006 waste that is recycled because
the longer accumulation time will mean that generators can send larger shipments of
F006 waste off site for metals recovery less often, thereby reducing transportation
costs associated with F006 waste recycling. This proposal provides incentives to
promote metals recovery from F006 waste rather than treatment and land disposal of
F006 waste, and also includes safeguards to insure that F006 waste is managed in a
manner that is protective of human health and the environment. Thus, EPA believes
that this final rule is consistent with RCRA's national objective of "minimizing the
generation of hazardous waste and the land disposal of hazardous waste by
encouraging process substitution, materials recovery, and properly conducted
recycling and reuse, and treatment."
For More Information
This Federal Register notice and this fact sheet are available in electronic format
on the Internet. The notice is available at http://epa.gov/fedregstr/fdate of
publication]. The fact sheet and other documents related to this rule are at
http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/hazwaste/gener/f006acum.htm. For additional information or to
order paper copies of any documents, call the RCRA/Superfund Hotline at (800) 424-
9346 (toll free) or (703) 412-9810 in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The
RCRA/Superfund Hotline operates weekdays (except federal holidays) from 9:00am to
6:00pm. Additional information may also be requested by writing to the RCRA
Information Center, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Ariel Rios Building,
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, D.C. 20460.
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