&EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
May 2006
EPA530-F-06-007
www.epa.gov/osw
                           Laboratories
                 EPA is proposing the Academic Labs rule in order to tailor RCRA regulations to the
              unique environment of academic laboratories.  This alternate set of regulations provides
              academic laboratories with increased flexibility, helping them ensure that the -waste they
              generate is safely managed.

          Action
             EPA is proposing to add a new section to the Resource Conservation and
          Recovery Act (RCRA) hazardous waste generator requirements. The alternative
          set of regulations allows college and university laboratories the flexibility to make
          hazardous waste determinations in the laboratory; at a central accumulation area; or
          at an on- or off-site treatment, storage, and disposal facility (TSDF). Colleges and
          universities may also choose to remain subject to existing generator requirements.
             Existing generator regulations that are geared to industrial facilities may not fit
          well in educational facilities. Industrial waste generators typically produce large
          volumes of a few waste streams. College and university laboratories, on the other
          hand, produce a relatively small volume of many different types of waste. As  such,
          academic laboratories find it difficult to comply with the existing regulations.
          The Academic Labs Rule proposal gives college and university laboratories more
          flexibility that helps them safely manage their hazardous waste.
          For        information
             More information about the Standards Applicable to Generators of Hazardous
          Waste; SubpartK; Standards Applicable to Academic Laboratories proposal: http://
          www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/specials/labwaste/index.html. To find more detailed
          information or to ask a question, please go to www.epa.gov/osw, and click on Find an
          Answer or Ask a Question.

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