United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of
Public Awareness (A-107)
Washington DC 20460
April 1980
2nd edition
SW-830
Hazardous Wastes
Information
Rules for
Transporters of
Hazardous
Wastes
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA) requires
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to institute a national
program to control hazardous waste. Specific regulations for carrying
out RCRA are set forth in the Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR
Parts 260 to 265 and 122 to 124). The program becomes effective 6 months
following promulgation of the regulation identifying and listing hazardous
wastes (Part 261). This regulation includes a list of waste sources, waste
streams, and some specific wastes that are hazardous, as well as four
characteristics of a hazardous waste: ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity,
and toxicity as determined by a specified extraction procedure (referred
to in the regulation as "extraction procedure toxicity").
The keystone of the program is control of hazardous waste from point
of generation through treatment, storage, and ultimate disposal, via trans-
portation manifests and reporting. The control system starts when those
engaged in generating, transporting, treating, storing, or disposing of
hazardous waste notify EPA as required by section 3010 of RCRA. After
receiving notification, EPA assigns an identification number to the notifier.
Anyone engaged in transporting, treating, storing, or disposing of hazardous
waste who does not notify EPA during the 90-day period following promulgation
of the regulation identifying hazardous wastes may not begin or continue
operation after the effective date of the regulations without obtaining
an EPA identification number.
The regulation for transporters of hazardous waste (40 CFR Part 263)
issued under the authority of section 3003 of RCRA was developed jointly
by EPA and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). The EPA
regulation on transporters incorporates by reference pertinent parts of
DOT's rules on labeling, marking, packaging, placarding, and other requirements
for reporting hazardous discharges or spills during transportation. DOT,
in turn, is amending its regulations on transportion of hazardous materials
to include EPA's requirements. EPA believes that these joint efforts
will make it easier for transporters to comply with all requirements and
will eliminate overlapping administrative and enforcement activities.
This coordination will also minimize additional costs for recordkeeping
by transporters.
The regulation (Part 263) requires a transporter of hazardous waste to:
• obtain an EPA identification number
• comply with the manifest system for tracking hazardous waste
« deliver the entire quantity of hazardous waste to the facility designated
by the generator on the manifest.
• retain a copy of the manifest for 3 years
• comply with DOT regulations pertaining to reporting of discharges
or spills
• clean up any hazardous waste discharged during transportation
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Notification
Requirement
EPA
Identification System
Operation of the
Manifest System
Rail Shipment
and
Bulk Shipment
by Water
Hazardous Waste
Discharge
Anyone who generates, transports, treats, stores, or disposes of hazardous
waste is required to notify EPA within 90 days of promulgation of the
identification regulation. Notification should be filed with the Regional
Administrator of the EPA region in which the installation is located.
A transporter who notifies EPA during the 90-day period following
promulgation of the identification regulation receives an identification
number. New transporters (those not handling hazardous waste during
this 90-day period) may submit requests for an identification number
to their EPA regional office. A generator of hazardous waste is prohibited
from using the services of a transporter who does not have an EPA identi-
fication number.
The generator signs the certification on the original manifest and all
copies, one for each person handling the waste. The transporter then
signs and dates the manifest and returns one copy to the generator, who
retains it until a copy is received from the designated permitted facility
following delivery of the waste.
The transporter carries the manifest to the designated facility. When
the shipment arrives, an agent for the facility signs and dates each copy
and retains one. One copy is given to the transporter, who retains it
for 3 years, and another copy is returned to the generator by the facility agent.
If more than one transporter is involved, the initial transporter must
obtain the subsequent transporter's dated signature on the manifest. The
remaining copies accompany the waste until it reaches the designated
facility.
For rail shipment or bulk shipment by water, the manifest need not
accompany the waste. However, a shipping paper, which contains all
the information on the manifest except EPA identification numbers,
generator certification, and signatures, must accompany the waste.
If transportation other than rail or water is used at any stage of the shipping
process, then the manifest must accompany the waste at all times.
The waste may be transferred between two rail or bulk shipment water
carriers without obtaining the subsequent carrier's signature. But the
final rail or water transporter must obtain the dated signature of the
agent for the designated facility on the shipping paper or the manifest.
All rail or water transporters are required to keep a copy of the shipping
paper or the manifest for 3 years from the date of acceptance.
A discharge is defined as the accidental or intentional spilling, leaking,
pumping, emitting, emptying, or dumping of hazardous waste onto or
into the land or water.
All transporters are responsible for cleaning up any discharge of hazardous
waste that occurs during transportation.
When authorities on the scene declare an emergency, they can temporarily
suspend the requirement that waste can be handled only by those holding
EPA identification numbers and complying with the manifest system.
This suspension ceases when the emergency no longer exists.
In certain cases, DOT requires that the transporter telephone the National
Response Center (800-424-8802) to supply information on a discharge.
In the District of Columbia, the number is 202-426-2675.
A written report of each discharge must be submitted to DOT, which
will forward a copy to EPA.
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