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The  public has this  unique op-
portunity  to  participate in the
decisionmaking process because
of the  Resource  Conservation
and  Recovery  Act  (RCRA).
This Act, passed in  1976, con-
tains special provisions for in-
forming and training citizens to
assist  them   in  understanding
the  complex solid waste  man-
agement issues and thus be able
to participate constructively.
RCRA  also provided that EPA
set guidelines for public partic-
ipation  in RCRA-funded  pro-
grams.  Those guidelines,  which
were published in the Code of
Federal Regulations, Title 40,
Part 25, require that State and
local governments seek citizen
involvement.    Waste   Alert!
helps State and local agencies
by serving as a forum to pro-
vide information  and  to ex-
change  views with citizens on
important  solid  waste  issues.
From  the  time  the  original
national solid waste legislation
was  passed in 1965,  EPA's solid
waste  office  has  devoted sub-

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stantial effort and resources to
information programs directed
to technical audiences and the
general  public.   Since  1972,
these  efforts   have  included
grants   to   civic,   scientific,
environmental,  and  consumer
groups  and  labor   unions  for
educational activities suited to
their  own  constituencies.  As
the  nation's solid waste man-
agement situation became more
apparent,  the  need for  even
more intensive efforts to  ena-
ble  citizens to  participate in
working  toward  solutions  was
recognized. Helping citizens to
understand  the  issues involved
in  implementing  solid  waste
legislation was  especially  im-
portant  in  order for them  to
participate effectively in local,
State, and Federal  decision-
making.     This  need  led  to
opportunities under  RCRA for
greatly increased public partic-
ipation.

Today's  heightened   awareness
of  poor   solid  and   hazardous
waste management practices is
a compelling reason for citizens
to take advantage of these new
opportunities.     For  example,
citizens in rural  areas who are
increasingly being asked to pro-
vide space for waste from in-
dustrial areas  can now become
involved in their own State's
decisionmaking.  Citizens  con-
cerned  with   the  effects  on
health  and  the  environment
from  the  improper  disposal of
toxic waste near their  homes
and   communities   can   make
their  views known and become
involved in the development of
programs to regulate hazardous
waste under RCRA.  Other citi-
zens can become involved  with
RCRA  activities  related  to
materials  and  energy  conser-
vation  and  the disposal  of
other-than-hazardous   waste.
Only  when  all sectors of  the
public participate in the impor-
tant programs under RCRA  will
we begin  to  find  satisfactory
solutions to our many solid and
hazardous waste problems.

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            What
         RCRA
            is  All
          About
RCRA is a complex law which
reflects the complicated nature
and scope of solid waste man-
agement issues.   Among  the
major issues are:  (1) the con-
tamination of  water, land,  and
air and other public health  and
environmental risks frequently
caused by improper  disposal of
solid waste, especially  hazard-
ous industrial wastes;  (2)  the
increasing  amounts of wastes
generated and the lack  of sites
for their disposal; (3) the insti-
tutional, economic, and tech-
nical  barriers  blocking more
                                 "*"*TT
                               V,>,' **
                                           .  :*   Ai*
                                       .•flCv-r,^-: -
                                     ^^*5
                                                >a
rapid development of resource
recovery   and   conservation
measures; and (4) the  need  to
strengthen State and local ca-
pabilities  to  solve solid  waste
problems.  In working toward
solutions, RCRA set up  three
primary objectives:

o  to   establish    regulations
   covering  management   of
   hazardous wastes from  the
   time  they are generated to
   their disposal
o  to  improve disposal  prac-
   tices for all other wastes

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o  to promote  resource recov-
   ery and conservation
Under  RCRA, EPA sets mini-
mum  standards  for  managing
hazardous waste, although Con-
gress  intends  that  each State
will  eventually  carry out  its
own  hazardous waste manage-
ment program. If a State can-
not or chooses not to  operate a
program, then EPA  is required
to manage a  hazardous  waste
program in that State. In addi-
tion,  EPA  has  set  minimum
standards for land disposal of
nonhazardous wastes, although,
again,  Congress  intends  each
State to manage its  own pro-
gram. RCRA authorizes EPA to
provide financial and technical
assistance  for  both hazardous
and  nonhazardous  waste pro-
grams.    Every  State  agency
applying   for  EPA  financial
assistance under  the  Act must
submit, as  part  of  its grant
application,  details on how the
public  will be allowed and, in-
deed, encouraged to participate
in its RCRA-funded programs.

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           Sponsoring
        Organizations
While EPA  is giving financial
support  to  Waste Alert!, the
program is  fundamentally the
responsibility of a number of
national organizations. Current
sponsors include:
American Public Health
Association—
   an organization  consisting
   of over 30,000 members plus
   50  State-affiliated organi-
   zations.  APHA is  recog-
   nized for its ability to bring
   together groups with diver-
   gent  interests  to  address
   and work toward a common
   goal.
                                 environmental
                                 action
                                 foundation
Environmental Action
Foundation—
  a nonprofit, tax-exempt cit-
  izens'  organization devoted
  to research  and  education
  on  environmental  issues.
  EAF   maintains  a  strong
  local orientation by provid-
  ing technical and organiza-
  tional  expertise to commun-
  ity activists  and  groups
  through a  citizens' network
  and a  National Coalition on
  Solid Waste.
                       THE IZAAK WALTON LEAGUE OF AMERICA
                                               INCORPORATED
                            Izaak Walton League
                            of America—
                              a national conservation or-
                              ganization, founded in 1922,

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   and  committed  to  the pru-
   dent use and preservation of
   the nation's  natural resour-
   ces. IWLA  is composed  of
   approximately 50,000  mem-
   bers  representing  a   wide
   cross section of the grass-
   roots conservation commun-
   ity.    The  national  office
   engages  primarily in educa-
   tional, regulatory, and legis-
   lative  programs  related  to
   the  management  of  water
   resources, public lands, and,
   more recently, the manage-
   ment of solid and hazardous
   wastes.
  \lf/
   tion, comprised of  over  4.1
   million  members  and sup-
   porters,  with  affiliates  in
   every State.   Waste  man-
   agement is a   priority item
   in the federation's program.
   The NWF's concerns are  the
   degradation of the  environ-
   ment  due  to  the improper
   handling of waste and, par-
   ticularly, the threat to pub-
   lic health  and safety  posed
   by inadequate management
   of hazardous waste.
League of Women Voters
Education Fund—
   aresearch  and  education
   organization that offers cit-
   izens   reliable,   impartial
   information about  national
   issues  affecting their  com-
   munities.      Since   1971,
   LWVEF has  educated  citi-
   zens about local, State, and
   national solid waste issues.
National Wildlife Federation—
   the nation's largest conser-
   vation education  organiza-
Technical Information Project—
   a national  nonprofit, scien-
   tific citizen education orga-
   nization. TIP specializes in
   resource and environmental
   policy issues, with a strong
   concentration on hazardous
   and   nonhazarodus   waste.
   TIP'S  citizen  networks  in-
   clude  the   "Citizens  and
   Waste"  and  TOXNET con-
   stituencies.  The  "Citizens
   and Waste" network  was de-
   veloped  through a   3-year
   EPA-supported      national
   workshop  program  bringing
   together citizens  from  38
   States,  as  well as  Mexico
   and Canada.  TOXNET  is a
   scientifically  oriented  na-
   tional group concerned with
   toxic  substances and haz-
   ardous waste problems.

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    Building;

 a  Prog-rain

EPA's Office  of Solid  Waste
(OSW) has the lead responsibil-
ity  in presenting a  nationwide
information  program  to citizen
leaders and decisionmakers in
government, industry, business,
and education. OSW  carries out
this function through a variety
of media and  through educa-
tional grants to organizations—
Waste Alert! is  one  such pro-
gram.  The organizations con-
ducting  Waste  Alert!   hold
regional conferences on issues
related  to  the  problems  of
abandoned waste sites, siting of
new  facilities,  implementation
of RCRA regulations, and other
aspects of waste management.

Each Waste Alert! grantee or-
ganization assumes responsibil-
ity for specific areas, including
researching  and  developing in-
formation,   planning  logistics
for  each conference, and re-
imbursing citizens  who could
not  otherwise attend.  At each
conference,   certain   partici-
pants volunteer to be the con-
tacts  between    Waste  Alert!
grantees and   conference  at-
tendees.  The   Waste  Alert!
grantees can  then advise the
contacts on how citizens  can
facilitate  forming   coalitions.

The Waste Alert! conferees are
expected to form coalitions in
their States and  to  serve as a
corps to help citizens at the
local  level  understand  solid
waste projects, such as landfill
   COMMUNITIES
         STATES
              REGIONS
                    GRANTEI
  siting, resource  recovery,  and
  separate  collection   systems.
  EPA  regions advise the grant-
  ees  and citizens in  areas of
  need, for example, State plan-
  ning  processes  and   resource
  contacts.
A  Long-Ter]

     Program

  Ten regional conferences were
  scheduled for the first phase of
  Waste Alert!.  The main  focus
  of the program is on:
  o  identifying and training cit-
     izen  leaders  and  reaching

-------
   appropriate communications
   media
o  developing proposals for im-
   plementing public participa-
   tion  under  RCRA  at  the
   State level
o  planning for  State  confer-
   ences
o  identifying   State   action
   groups and assisting them, if
   they  wish, in working to-
   gether to hold State Waste
   Alert! programs

Waste  Alert!  is  an  on-going
public information participation
program with  long-term  objec-
tives.  Those objectives will not
be achieved, unless the program
moves, as time goes on,  from
the Federal to the State level,
and  eventually  to  the   local
level.
The  hazardous  waste problem
that we confront today perhaps
illustrates  more  clearly  than
any  other  environmental  issue
the  importance of  the public
participation  provisions   that
appear in  several recent  Fed-
eral laws.  The waste problem
cannot be  magically solved  by
science and  technology.   Nor
can  government and industry
alone work out  appropriate so-
lutions.  This has been under-
scored as  we have  recognized
that we  are dealing with two
discrete  issues:   the manage-
ment of  wastes that are being
generated today or will be gen-
erated in  the   future and the
management  of  wastes  that
have  been improperly  handled
in the past.   It  is  not   clear
which is the greater problem.

What is clear is that the waste
problem  is too  difficult  to  be
solved by experts alone. It will
not yield to shortsighted or lop-
sided approaches.   The  waste
problem  involves public health,
conservation,  waste  reduction,
economics,  science   and   tech-
nology, social values, and polit-
ical realities.  The problem will
be solved only  if we remember
that solid waste management is
all  of these  things and  more-
end  that only an alert and  in-
formed  public   can  properly
cope with such complexities.

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                     '

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•

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For information about State solid and hazardous waste programs,  contact the
                                appropriate State agency.
Alabama
Division of Solid Waste
  and Vector Control
Department of Public Health
State Office Building
Montgomery, AL 36130
205-832-6728

Alaska
Air & Solid Waste Mgmt. Program
Department of Environmental
  Conservation, Pouch 0
Juneau, AK  99811
907-465-2635

American Samoa
Environmental Quality Commission
American Somoa Government
Pago Pago, American Samoa 96799
(overseas oper.) 633-4116

Arizona
Bureau of Sanitation
Department of Health Services
411 North 24th Street
Phoenix, AZ  85008
602-255-1156

Arkansas
Solid Waste Management Div.
Department of Pollution Control
  and Ecology,  Box 9583
Little Rock, AR 72219
501-371-1701

Solid Waste Program
Department of Energy
3000 Kavanaugh
Little Rock, AR 72205
501-371-2234

California
State Solid Waste Management
  Board, Box 1743,
1020 Ninth Street
Sacramento,  CA 95814
916-322-3330

Hazardous Material Mgmt. Section
Department of Health Services
744  P Street
Sacramento,  CA 95814
916-322-2337
Colorado
Department of Public Health
4210 East Eleventh Avenue
Denver, CO 80220
303-320-8333

Commonwealth of
North Mariana Islands
Environmental Protection Board
Dept. of Health Services
Saipan, Mariana Islands 96950
(overseas oper.) 9370

Div. of Environmental Quality
Department of Public Health
  and Environmental Services
Saipan, Mariana Islands 96950

Connecticut
Solid Waste Management Unit
Dept. of Environmental Protection
165 Capital Avenue
Hartford, CT  06115
203-566-3672

Industrial & Hazardous Materials
  Management Unit
Dept. of Environmental Protection
(same address as above)
203-566-5148

Connecticut Resource Recovery
  Authority, Suite 603
179 Allyn Street
Hartford, CT  06103
203-549-6390

Delaware
Solid Waste Management
Department of Natural Resources
  and Environmental Control
Edward Tatnall Building
Dover, DE 19901
302-678-4764

District of Columbia
Dept. of Environmental Services
415 Twelfth Street, NW.
Washington, DC 20004
202-727-5701

Florida
Solid Waste Management Program
Dept. of Environmental Regulation
2600 Blair Stone Road
Tallahassee, FL 32301
904-488-0300
Georgia
Environmental Protection Div.
Dept. of Natural Resources
Rm. 822
270 Washington Street, SW.
Atlanta, GA 30334
404-656-2833
                         gency
Guam
Environmental Protection A
Government of Guam
P.O. Box 2999
Agana, GU  96910
(overseas oper-) 646-8863
Hawaii
Environmental Health Division
Department of Health
P.O. Box 3378
Honolulu, HI 96801
808-548-6410

Idaho
Solid Waste Management Section
Department of Health & Welfare
Statehouse
Boise, ID 83720
208-334-4108

Illinois
Division of Land & Noise
  Pollution Control
Environmental Protection Agency
2200 Churchill Road
Springfield, IL  62706
217-782-9800

Indiana
Solid Waste Management Section
Division of Sanitary Engineering
State Board of Health
1330 West Michigan Street
Indianapolis, IN 46202
317-633-0176

Iowa
Air and Land Quality Division
Dept. of Environmental Quality
Henry A. Wallace Building
900 East Grand
Des Moines, IA 50319
515-281-8853

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Kansas
Solid Waste Management Section
Dept. of Health & Environment
Topeka, KS 66620
913-862-9360, Ext. 297

Kentucky
Division of Hazardous Materials and
  Waste Management
Department for Natural Resources
  and Environmental Protection
Capital Plaza Tower
Frankfort, KY  40601
502-564-6716

Louisiana
Department of Natural Resources
P.O. Box 44396
Baton Rouge, LA  70804
504-342-4506

Maine
Div. of Solid Waste Mgmt. Control
Bureau of  Land  Quality
Dept. of Environmental Protection
State House, Station 17
Augusta, ME 04333
207-289-2111

Maryland
Water and Waste Mgmt. Program
Water Resources Administration
Department of Natural Resources
Tawes State Office Building
Annapolis, MD   21401
301-269-3875

Community Health Program
Dept. of Health & Mental Hygiene
201 West Preston Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
301-383-3123

Massachusetts
Bureau of  Solid  Waste Disposal
Department of Environmental
  Management, Rm. 1905
100 Cambridge Street
Boston, MA  02202
617-727-4293

Div. of Air & Hazardous Materials
Department of Environmental
  Quality  Engineering
600 Washington  Street, Rm. 320
Boston, MA 02111
617-727-2658
Hazardous Waste Section
Div. of Water Pollution Control
Department of Environmental
  Quality Engineering
110 Tremont Street
Boston, MA  02108
617-727-3855

Michigan
Environmental Protection Bureau
Department of Natural Resources
P.O. Box 30028
Lansing, MI  48909
517-373-2682

Resource Recovery Division
Department of Natural Resources
(same address as above)
517-322-1315

Hazardous Waste
Environmental Services Division
Department of Natural Resources
(same address as above)
517-373-3560

Minnesota
Division of Solid Waste
Pollution Control Agency
1935 West  County Road, B-2
Roseville,  MN  55113
612-296-7315

Mississippi
Div. of Solid Waste  Management
  and Vector Control
State  Board of Health
P.O. Box 1700
Jackson, MS 39205
601-982-6317

Missouri
Solid Waste Management Program
Department of Natural Resources
P.O. Box 1368
Jefferson City,  MO  65102
314-751-3241

Montana
Solid Waste Management Bureau
Department of Health and
  Environmental Sciences
1400 Eleventh Ave., Suite A
Helena, MT  59601
406-449-2821
Nebraska
Solid Waste Division
Dept. of Environmental Control
State House Station
P.O. Box 94877
Lincoln, NE  68509
402-471-2186

Nevada
Solid Waste Management
Div. of Environmental Protection
Department of Conservation
  and Natural Resources
Capital Complex
Capitol City,  NV  89710
702-885-4670

New Hampshire
Bureau of Solid Waste
Dept. of Health and Welfare
State Laboratory Building
Hazen Drive
Concord, NH  03301
603-271-4610

New Jersey
Solid Waste Administration
Div. of Environmental Quality
P.O. Box CNO27
Trenton, NJ  08625
609-292-9120

New Mexico
Solid and Hazardous Waste
  Management Programs
Health and Environment Dept.
P.O. Box 968
Crown Building
Santa Fe, NM 87503
505-827-5271  Ext. 282

New York
Division of Solid Waste Mgmt.
Department of Environmental
  Conservation
50 Wolf Road
Albany, NY 12233
518-457-6603

North Carolina
Solid and Hazardous Waste
  Management Branch
Division of Health Services
Department of Human Resources
P.O. Box 2091
Raleigh, NC   27602
919-733-2178

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12
North Dakota
Division of Environmental
  Waste Management and Research
Department of Health
1200 Missouri Avenue
Bismarck, ND  58505
701-224-2382

Ohio
6ffice of Land Pollution Control
Environmental Protection Agency
P.O. Box 1049
Columbus, OH 43216
614-466-8934

Oklahoma
industrial & Solid Waste Service
Department of Health
P.O. Box 53551
Oklahoma City, OK 73152
405-271-5338
Oregon
Solid Waste Management Division
Dept. of Environmental Quality
P.O. Box 1760
Portland, OR 97207
503-299-5913

Pennsylvania
Bureau of Solid Waste Management
Dept. of Environmental Resources
P.O. Box 2063
Harrisburg, PA  17120
717-787-9870

Puerto Rico
Environmental Quality Board
Office of the Governor
P.O. Box 11488
Santurce, PR 00910
809-725-2062, Ext. 229

Rhode Island
Solid Waste Management Program
Dept. of Environmental Mgmt.
204 Health Building
Davis Street
Providence,  RI  02908
401-277-2808
Rhode Island Solid Waste Corp.
39 Pike Street
Providence, RI 02903
401-831-4440

South Carolina
Solid Waste Management Division
Department of Health and
  Environmental Control
2600 Bull Street
Columbia, SC 29201
803-758-5681

South Dakota
Air Quality and Solid
  Waste Programs
Department of Health
Carnegie Library Building
Pierre, SD 57501
605-773-3329

Tennessee
Division of Solid Waste Mgmt.
Bureau of Environmental Services
Department of Public Health
Capitol Hill Bldg., Suite 326
Nashville, TN 37219
615-741-3424

Texas
Division of Solid Waste Mgmt.
Texas Department of Health
1100 West 49th Street
Austin, TX 78756
512-458-7271

Industrial Solid Waste Unit
Department of Water Resources
P.O. Box 13087 Capital Station
Austin, TX 78711
512-475-2041

Utah
Bureau of Solid Waste Mgmt.
State Division of Health
P.O. Box 2500
Salt Lake City, UT 84110
801-533-4145
Vermont
Air and Solid Waste Programs
Agency of Environmental
  Conservation
State Office Building
Montpelier, VT  05602
802-828-3395

Virgin Islands
Solid Waste Planning Office
Department of Public Works
Government of the Virgin Islands
Charolotte Amalie
St. Thomas, VI  00801
809-774-7880

Virginia
Bureau of Solid and Hazardous
  Waste Management
Department of Health
109 Governor Street
Richmond, VA 23219
804-786-5271

Washington
ingt
Was
Solid Waste Management Div.
Department of Ecology
Olympia, WA  98504
206-753-6883

West Virginia
Solid Waste Division
Department of Health
1800 Washington Street, E
Charleston, WV 25305..
304-348-2987

Wisconsin
Bureau of Solid Waste Management
Department of Natural Resources
Box 7921
Madison, WI 53707
608-266-1327

Wyoming
Solid Waste Management Program
Dept. of Environmental Quality
Hathaway Building
Cheyenne, WY  82002
307-777-7752
                                           AU.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1980 O— 621-164/873  REGION  3-1

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