\ UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460 pqCfl*- AUGUST 7, 1984 MEMORANDUM OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE SUBJECT: RCRA/Superfund Hotline Monthly Status Report -- June 1984 FROM: Carolyn Barley, Project Officer ( / Office of Solid Waste (382-5235) // Barbara Hostage, Project Officer VboAJbtucO Office of Emergency and Remedial Response (382-218b) TO: Addressees I. ACTIVITIES The Hotline responded to 2,705 questions and requests for documents in June. The decreased call load was due to substantially fewer requests for documents. Publication requests numbered less than half of those requested in the previous months. II. FREQUENTLY ASKED AND SIGNIFICANT QUESTIONS A. RCRA 1. If a small quantity generator (SQG) periodically becomes subject to the 262.34 generator regulations, e.g., only once every five years, must his personnel training be updated annually per 265.16(c)? No; the SQG need only comply with the 265.16(c) requirements when he is subject to all of 262.34 which, in this case, is once every five years. Hence, personnel training would be updated every five years. 2. Is the open burning of waste explosives the same as the detonation of waste explosives? No; 40 CFR 265.382 distinguishes between "open burning" and "detonation" of waste explosives on the basis of the speed of the chemical reaction. RCRA regulates them the same way, however, by providing property distance requirements depending on the quantity (pounds) of waste explosives or propellants. 3. Hazardous waste is to be received in a U.S. port and shipped to Sweden. Must the receiving ship company have an EPA ID nunber? Yes; the receiving facility must have an EPA ID number to receive the waste per 263.11. If they store the waste, they would need a storage permit unless they are a transfer facility. ------- RCRA/Superfund Hotline June 1984 Report Page 2 4. Which States are going to print the Uniform Hazardous Waste Manifest? Based upon the information which Headquarters has received from the Regions, the following States are planning to print the Manifest: AR, CA, CT, DC, DE, IL, LA, MD, MA, ME, MI, MO, NH, NJ, NY, OK, PA, RI, TX, VT, PR, and WI. Other States may also decide to print as the Septerrber 20th implementation date draws near. 5. How can one determine if a chemical has been used as a solvent or as an ingredient in a process? Typically, a solvent is a chemical that can dissolve another substance. When a chemical is used in an extraction or as a carrier, it is being used as a solvent. Non-solvent action would include using the chemical as a reactant or a chemical intermediate. For example, when toluene is added to other ingredients to produce trinitrotoluene, the toluene is not acting as a solventj whereas mixing toluene and a resin to put the resin in solution (use as a carrier) is a solvent action. B. CERCLA 1. a) Have the proposed NPL sites from Septerrber 8, 1983, been finalized? b) What right of appeal exists for those persons whose sites are 1i sted on the NPL? a) No; they should be finalized in mid-August. b) A 60-day comment period exists once a site has been proposed for listing on the NPL. Information that counters the reasons for EPA's inclusion may be submitted for review. However, once a facility has been listed, that decision may be appealed in the Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Coluntia. 2. In the CERCLA reauthorization, to which waste group does the waste end tax apply: CERCLA hazardous substances or RCRA hazardous wastes? The wording in pending bill HR 5640 confuses CERCLA hazardous substances with RCRA hazardous wastes. Apparently, the intention is to tax CERCLA hazardous substances. Further questions should be directed to Representative Florio's sub-committee by contacting Rena Steinzer at (202) 225-3160. 3. a) Is notification information reported to the National Response Center (NRC) confidential? b) Is such information available through the Freedom of Information Act? a) No; once a spill is reported to the NRC, the. information is part of the public domain. b) Yes; this information is available through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). ------- RCRA/Superfund Hotline June 1984 Report Page 3 III. RESOLVED ISSUES A. RCRA 1. 100 gallons of U134 (C,T) is spilled. The cleanup results in 9000 pounds of waste. The cleanup mixture does not exhibit any characteristics. Would the 100 gallons be used for a small quantity generator (SQG) determination? Yes; since the quantity of the spilled hazardous waste is known before mixture occurs, 261.5(h) can be used. Only the 100 gallons is counted towards the SQG determination as long as the mixture does not exhibit any characteristics. Source: Jacqui Sales Research: Tom Gainer 2. If K062 (spent pickle liquor) is shipped to Canada for reuse in wastewater treatment, must it be manifested and a notice filed with the Office of International Activities, or does 261.6(a)(3)(i) exclude it from any regulation? A manifest must accompany the waste while in tne U.S.. The generator must also notify the Office of International Activities about the shipment in accordance with 262.50, because the 261.6(a)(3)(i) exclusion is only applicable if the facility has an NPDES permit. Source: Matt Straus Research: Denise Wright 3. If EPA lists a new hazardous waste, must a generator or TSDF owner/operator file a subsequent notification for generating or handling that new waste? Pursuant to Section 3010, a generator, transporter or TSD facility owner/operator must renotify for newly listed wastes only if the Administrator specifically requires renotification. The Federal Register notice for any newly listed waste will explicitly state when renotification is required. Source: Jill Weller Research: Denise Wright . 4. What recourse does one have in addressing a case of an accumulation of drums containing less than 2.5 cm of a volatile liquid like acetone which poses a danger as an ignitable vapor? Several drums are bloated, and the flash point of acetone is 100°F, 8°F less than the airbient temperature. Under Section 261.7, only "empty" containers are exempt from regulation. It is unclear whether these drums qualify for that exemption. The regulation does not allow one to simply leave an inch of residue in a container without attempting to empty it using practices commonly employed to remove materials from that type of container. In addition, this situation may constitute an imminent hazard that could be addressed under Section 7003. Source: Alan Corson Research: Ken Jennings ------- RCRA/Superfund Hotline June 1984 Report Page 4 5. The final rule in the June 5, 1984, Federal Register exempted lime stabilized waste pickle liquor sludge from the iron and steel industry. Is the effluent from this process also exempted? No, only the lime neutralized sludge which is the residue from treating K062 is exempt. The effluent is still hazardous by §261.(c)(2) and would be regulated as a hazardous waste. A common practice is to discharge the effluent to navigable waters. Source: Jacqui Sales Research: Tom Gainer 6. Is an aqueous solution from coal flue gas emissions exempted under the "fly ash" exclusion 261.4(b)(4)? Yes; emission control wastes from flue gas desulfurization are exempt. Source: John Heffelfinger Research: Tom Gainer B. CERCLA 1. The Agency has taken the lead at a CERCLA cleanup and must transport waste off-site under a manifest. May the Agency delegate signatory power for the manifest to the Army Corps of Engineers (COE); and may the COE, in turn, delegate that power to the cleanup contractor? Yes; according to a memorandum from William N. Hedeman, Jr., to Lloyd Duscha of the COE, EPA has delegated full operational responsibilities to the COE. Therefore, the COE may sign the manifest. The COE may then delegate signatory power to its contractor. This is the multiple generator situation presented in the October 30, 1980, Federal Register where the unit owner, the unit operator, and the contractor cleaning the wastes from the unit are all generators. Because there is a permanent on-site COE representative, it may be preferable to have the COE sign the manifest rather than the contractor. Source: John Thompson and Carolyn Barley Research: Ken Jennings 2. Person A purchased some land from Person B which had been used as a dump site ten years before the purchase. It is believed that most of the waste dumped there was non-hazardous, although hazardous wastes may have been dumped since no records were kept. Five years after Person A purchased the land, groundwater contamination problems arose from the dump site area. Even though no dumping occurred after Person A purchased the land, is Person A potentially liable for the groundwater contamination under CERCLA? Yes; under CERCLA 107(a)(1) Person A is considered the facility owner and would, therefore, be a potentially liable party. Source: . Gail Cooper Research: Gordon Davidson ------- RCRA/Superfund Hotline June 1984 Report Page 5 The Hotline responded to 2,705 questions and requests for documents in June. Of the W. ANALYSIS OF QUESTIONS questions asked, the percentage of callers was: More calls were received from Region 3 than in any other Region. Breakdown by Region: 1 7.1% 3 22.0% 5 17.5% 7 3.2% 9 9.9% 2 13.8% 4 10.7% 6 9.7% 8 3.7% 10 2.3% Canada <1% RCRA TSDF General Information 229 A-Scope/Applicabi 1 ity 65_ l|tification (3010)" 27 B-General Facility Standards 16_ Prfinitions (260.10")"" 52 C-Preparedness Prevention 5_ Petitions/Delisting (260.22) 37 D-Contingency Plans 12_ Definitions (261.2 & 3) 84 E-Manifest/Recordkeeping/Reporting 7_ Exclusions (261.4) 75 F-Groundwater Monitoring 26_ Small Quantity Generator (261.5) 89 G-Closure/Post-Closure 35_ Recycle/Reclaim (261.6) 85 H-Financial Requirements 30_ Container Residues (261.7) 29 I-Containers 16. Waste ID (261 C4D) 283 J-Tanks 23_ 262 Generator K-Surface Impoundments 28_ Manifest Info 77 L-Waste Piles 4 Pre-transport 5 M-Land Treatment 1_ Accumulation 35 N-Landfills 12_ Recordkeeping & Reporting 15 0-Incinerators 14_ International Shipments 4 P-Thermal Treatment 5 263 Transporter 33 Q-Chemical, Physical. Biological Treat. 3 270 B - Permit Application 61 R-Underground Injection 3 D - Changes to Permits 10 X-Misc. Facility 0 F - Special Permits 4 Y-Experimental 0 G - Interim Status 29 266/267 0 271 State Programs 67 124 Decision Making 2 CERCLA General 92^ Hazardous Substances/RQ 128 General Hazardous Site/NPL/104 85 Liability/Enforcement 21 NCP 17 Other/Referrals 383 Taxes/IRS 6 ^-Document Requests 336 ------- RCRA/Superfund Hotline June 1984 Report Page 6 V. PUBLICATION INFORMATION A. RCRA 1. The draft Technical Resource Document "Hydrologic Evaluation of Landfill Performance Model" announced in the June 25, 1984, Federal Register is available from the RCRA docket in limited numbers. 2. "Inventory of Open Dumps" is available from State ayencies, EPA Regional offices, and EPA Headquarters. See p. 26287 of the June 27, 1984, Federal Register for further information. 3. "Final Draft Permit Applicant's Guidance Manual for Hazardous Waste Land Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities," May 1984, is available through the U.S. Government Printing Office (stock number 055-000-00240-1). 4. The "Interim National Criteria for a Quality Hazardous Waste Management Program Under RCRA," EPA/530-SW-84-006, May 1984, is available from the RCRA docket. B. CERCLA 1. "Rapid Assessment of Potential Ground-Water Contamination Under Emergency Response Conditions," EPA 600/8-83-030, Noventer 1983, is available in limited numbers from EPA's Office of Research and Development in Cincinnati, Ohio ((513) 684-7562). VI. FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICES June 4 23152 This proposed rule is intended to bring greater fairness to "racers to the courthouse" by defining the issuance of a regulation for the purposes of direct appellate judicial review at 1:00 p.m., eastern time or two weeks after the date when notice of the action appears in the Federal Register. This system is used for judicial review of regulations under the Clean Water Act and is hereby proposed for additional regulatory programs under EPA jurisdiction, including RCRA. Public comments should be submitted by August 3, 1984. June 5 23182 Lime stabilized waste pickle liquor sludges generated from the iron and steel industry (Standard Industrial Classification Codes 331 and 332) were exempted as RCRA listed wastes (K062) under 261.3(c)(2). The effective date of this final rule is Decenter 5, 1984. (Note - these sludges must be tested for Subpart C characteristics.) ------- RCRA/Superfund Hotline June 1984 Report Page 7 VI. FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICES (CONTINUED) June 5 23290 EPA issued a proposed rule to amend the special requirements for interim status and permitted facilities for the storage or treatment of ignitable or reactive hazardous waste in containers and tanks. The amendments are adopted from the so-called buffer zone requirements contained in two codes published by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Comments on these proposed amendments will be accepted until August 6, 1984. June 8 23837 Delaware is granted final authorization to operate its hazardous waste program in lieu of the Federal program. Although Delaware was granted final authorization on Decentoer 14, 1983, the State's implementiny regulations were not in effect on that date. The effective date is June 22, 1984. June 13 24377 Mississippi is granted final authorization to operate its hazardous waste program. The effective date i s June 27, 1984. June 25 25855 Maryland is granted Interim Authorization for Phase II, Components B and C to operate the State's hazardous waste program for facilities which incinerate hazardous waste or dispose of hazardous waste on land. The effective date is July 9, 1984. June 25 25885 EPA announces the availability of a draft Technical Resource Document for public comment. The document i s The Hydrologic Evaluation of Landfill Performance (HELP) Model. Comments on the draft document must be submitted before October 25, 1984. June 27 26287 This notice indicates that the fourth installment of the inventory of open dumps is now available. ------- ADDRESSEES John Skinner, WH-562 Mike Cook, WH-562 Eileen Claussen, WH-562 Robert Knox, WH-562 Carl Reeverts, WH-562 Cora Beebe, WH-562A Jack McGraw, WH-562A John Lehman, WH-565 Fred Li ndsey, WH-565 Bruce Weddle, WH-563 CI em'Rastatter, WH-563 Elizabeth Cotsworth, WH-563 Penny Hansen, WH-565 Alan Corson, WH-565 Ken Shuster, WH-565 Dale Ruhter, WH-565 William Sanjour, WH-563 Truett DeGeare, WH-563 Steve Levy, WH-563 Peter Guerrero, WH-563 John Thompson, WH-563 Mike Shannon, WH-563 Susan Mann, WH-563 George Garland, WH-562 William Hedeman, WH-548 Elaine Stanley, WH-548 Kenneth Biglane, WH-548A Robert Landers, WH-548A Jim Jowett, WH-5488 Jack Stanton, WH-548B John Riley, WH-548B Jack Kooyoomjian, WH-548B Mike Flaherty, WH-548B Henry Van Cleave, UOD/DLA Russ Wyer, WH-548-E Bill Hanson, WH-548E Mary Ann Froehlich, WH-548D Carol Lawson, A-107 Marc Jones, PM-220 John Palmisano, PM-223 Sam Napolitano, PM-220 Gene Lucero, WH-527 Frank Biras, WH-527 Lee Herwig, A-104 Tony Montrone, WH-527 Pete Rosenberg, WH-527 Mike Kosakowski, WH-627 Barbara Elkus, WH-527 Hotline Staff Alvin K. Joe, Jr., Geo/Resource Sue Moreland (ASTSWMO) Diane McCreary, Region III Library Joyce Baker, Region III Library Lisa Friedman, LE-132S Steve Dorrler, EPA - Edison, NJ John Gilbert, EPA - Cincinnati, OH Hazardous Waste Division Directors, Regions I-X Hazardous Waste Management Branch Chiefs, Regions I-X ------- |