Solid Waste and Emergency Response
(5305W)
EPA530-K-05-013
Introduction to
Land Disposal
Restrictions
(40 CFR Part 268)
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
September 2005
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LAND DISPOSAL RESTRICTIONS
CONTENTS
1. Introduction 1
2. Regulatory Summary 2
2.1 History of the LDR Program 2
2.2 LDR and EPA's Groundwater Protection Strategy 4
2.3 Applicability 5
2.4 Treatment Standards 6
2.5 Alternative Treatment Standards 8
2.6 Variances, Extensions, and Exemptions 10
2.7 Storage and Dilution Prohibitions 13
2.8 Tracking and Recordkeeping Requirements 15
2.9 Characteristic Hazardous Wastes 17
3. Special Issues 20
3.1 Point of Generation 20
3.2 Dioxin-Containing Waste 20
3.3 LDR Applicability and Remediation Wastes 20
4. Regulatory Developments 21
4.1 Burden Reduction Initiative 21
4.2 Dyes and Pigments 21
4.3 Macroencapsulation of Radioactive Lead Solids 22
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 1
1. INTRODUCTION
The primary goal of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Subtitle C program
is to protect human health and the environment from the dangers associated with generation,
transportation, treatment, storage, and disposal of hazardous waste. Disposal of hazardous waste
on the land is a practice of particular concern to the RCRA program. Land disposal units, such
as landfills and surface impoundments, must comply with stringent requirements for liners, leak
detection systems, and groundwater monitoring. The land disposal restrictions (LDR) provide a
second measure of protection from threats posed by hazardous waste disposal. The LDR
program ensures that hazardous waste cannot be placed on the land until the waste meets specific
treatment standards to reduce the mobility or toxicity of the hazardous constituents in the waste.
This training module presents an overview of the land disposal restrictions program.
When you have completed this module, you will be able to describe the LDR requirements.
Specifically, you will be able to:
• define the basic terms and describe the structure of the LDR regulations
• identify the statutory basis for LDR
describe the applicability of LDR
explain how EPA sets treatment standards
• identify treatment standards for wastes subject to land disposal restrictions and cite the
CFR section
• describe and identify how extensions and variances from treatment requirements are
obtained
define generator and treatment, storage, and disposal facility (TSDF) requirements under
the LDR program
• summarize the schedule of existing restrictions and the plan for restricting newly
identified wastes.
Use this list of objectives to check your knowledge of this topic after you complete the training
session.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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2 - Land Disposal Restrictions
2. REGULATORY SUMMARY
The LDR program found in 40 CFR Part 268 requires waste handlers to treat hazardous waste or
meet specified levels for hazardous constituents before disposing of the waste on the land. This
is called the disposal prohibition. To ensure proper treatment, EPA establishes a treatment
standard for each type of hazardous waste. The Agency lists these treatment standards in Part
268, Subpart D. The Agency expresses treatment standards either as required treatment
technologies that must be applied to the waste or contaminant concentration levels that must be
met. EPA bases treatment standards on the performance of the best demonstrated available
technology (BDAT) that is able to substantially diminish the toxicity of a waste or to reduce the
mobility of the hazardous constituents in a hazardous waste. Wastes that do not meet treatment
standards cannot be land disposed unless EPA has granted a variance, extension, exclusion, or
the waste is managed pursuant to an approved "no migration" petition. In addition to the
disposal prohibition, there are prohibitions and limits in the LDR program regarding the dilution
and storage of wastes. The program also requires tracking and recordkeeping to ensure proper
management and safe land disposal of hazardous wastes.
2.1 HISTORY OF THE LDR PROGRAM
The Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984 (HSWA) established EPA's authority for
the LDR program. Due to the large number of hazardous waste codes that existed prior to
HSWA, EPA developed LDR treatment standards in stages. In HSWA, Congress set a time
frame for the implementation of treatment standards for all wastes listed or identified as
hazardous on or before November 8, 1984. Congress set specific prohibition dates for certain
high-risk and high-volume wastes and established a three-part schedule with specific deadlines
for EPA to develop treatment standards for the remaining listed and characteristic wastes.
Wastes identified subsequent to HSWA are considered newly identified or listed. Additional
rulemakings, promulgated in "phases," addressed these new wastes. This section highlights
some especially pertinent parts of those rulemakings and identifies and explains certain complex
areas.
SOLVENT AND DIOXIN-CONTAINING WASTE
Solvent and dioxin-containing wastes were the first group of wastes for which EPA established
treatment standards. Congress set a statutory deadline for EPA to establish treatment standards for
these wastes because they are generated either in high volumes (solvent wastes) or are considered
highly toxic (dioxin-containing wastes). EPA published a final rule on November 7, 1986 (51 FR
40572), establishing effective dates and treatment standards for F001-F005 solvent wastes
(§268.30) and F020-F023 and F026-F028 dioxin-containing wastes (§268.31). The November 7,
1986, final rule also established the basic framework for the land disposal restrictions program.
CALIFORNIA LIST WASTE
A second group of hazardous wastes for which Congress set a specific LDR deadline is known
as the California list. This list was compiled from a program established by California's
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 3
Department of Health Services. The California list, which became effective July 8, 1987,
prohibited the land disposal of liquid hazardous wastes containing certain toxic constituents or
exhibiting certain properties unless subjected to prior treatment (52 FR 25760; July 8, 1987).
The targets of the list included cyanides, poly chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), halogenated organic
compounds (HOCs), and metals. Certain HOC-containing wastes were also prohibited even
when in solid form.
Waste code-specific treatment standards addressing the constituent (or property) of concern have
superseded the California list prohibitions. For example, the treatment standard for D008 (i.e.,
the toxicity characteristic for lead) supersedes the California list prohibition on liquid hazardous
wastes containing lead. On May 12, 1997, EPA removed all references to the California list
wastes because the treatment standards for these wastes had been superseded by more specific
treatment standards (62 FR 25998).
THIRDS
HSWA §3004(g)(4) required EPA to prepare a plan by November 8, 1986, to meet the
Congressionally mandated schedule for establishing treatment standards for all hazardous wastes
identified or listed on or before November 8, 1984. When developing the plan, EPA was
required to rank the listed wastes from high to low priority, based on the wastes' intrinsic hazard
and volume generated. The Agency scheduled high-volume, high-intrinsic hazard wastes first,
while low-volume, lower-hazard wastes (including characteristic wastes) were to have treatment
standards established last. Wastes with treatment standards promulgated in the first portion of
the three-part schedule are known as First Third wastes (53 FR 31138; August 17, 1988), wastes
addressed in the second portion of the schedule are known as Second Third wastes (54 FR
26594; June 23, 1989), and wastes in the third category are known as Third Third wastes (55 FR
22520; June 1, 1990).
TREATMENT STANDARDS FOR NEWLY IDENTIFIED OR LISTED WASTES
HSWA also requires EPA to establish treatment standards for all hazardous wastes listed or
identified after November 8, 1984. EPA developed treatment standards for these wastes in
phases. EPA published the first of these rulemakings, termed Phase I,on August 18, 1992 (57
FR 37194). In addition to promulgating restrictions for certain new wastes, Phase I finalized the
alternative treatment standards for hazardous debris.
EPA finalized the Phase II Rule on September 19, 1994 (59 FR 47982). This final rule
consolidated the existing treatment standards into §268.40, created the Universal Treatment
Standards (UTS), and promulgated treatment standards for toxicity characteristic organic wastes,
coke by-products, and chlorotoluenes.
EPA finalized the Phase III Rule and subsequent partial rescission on April 8, 1996 (61 FR
15566 and 15660). These final rules modified treatment standards for reactive wastes and
decharacterized wastewaters (see Section 2.8 for a complete discussion on the status of
wastewaters), and promulgated new treatment standards for carbamate wastes and spent
aluminum potliners. Even though Phase III promulgated treatment standards for these newly-
identified carbamate wastes, in the case, Dithiocarmbamate Task Force v. EPA, the DC Circuit
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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4 - Land Disposal Restrictions
Court of Appeals vacated several carbamate hazardous waste listings, thus nullifying their
corresponding LDR treatment standards (62 FR 32974; June 17, 1997).
EPA finalized the first half of the Phase IV Rule on May 12, 1997 (62 FR 25998). This final
rule promulgated treatment standards for the wood preserving wastes and streamlined the LDR
notification requirements. EPA promulgated part two of the Phase IV Rule on May 26, 1998 (63
FR 28556). This rule finalized treatment standards for several metal wastes and certain newly-
identified mineral processing wastes, and revised the universal treatment standards for twelve
metal constituents. The rule also created a new treatability group, soil, and established soil-
specific alternative treatment standards.
2.2 LDR AND EPA'S GROUNDWATER PROTECTION STRATEGY
A large part of the hazardous waste management regulatory program, including the LDR
program, is designed to protect groundwater. Hazardous waste can pollute groundwater through
a process known as leaching, in which precipitation percolating through the ground draws
contaminants out of buried waste and carries them into groundwater. Congress understood that
hazardous waste could be made less dangerous to groundwater in two main ways: by reducing a
waste's toxicity through destruction or removal of harmful contaminants, or by reducing a
waste's teachability by immobilizing hazardous contaminants. As a result, EPA created a tiered
approach to the protection of groundwater by attempting to prevent teachability of harmful
constituents at three levels: LDR, LDUs, and groundwater monitoring. The first tier of the
approach, LDR, regulates what kind of waste can be placed on the land or in land disposal units.
This training module focuses on the LDR provisions, but more information on the other two tiers
of the groundwater protection strategy can be found in the modules entitled Land Disposal Units
and Groundwater Monitoring.
LDR requires that hazardous wastes undergo fundamental physical or chemical changes so that
they pose less of a threat to groundwater. When directing EPA to establish the LDR program in
RCRA §3004(m), Congress specified that EPA should "promulgate regulations specifying those
levels or methods of treatment, if any, which substantially diminish the toxicity of the waste or
substantially reduce the likelihood of migration of hazardous constituents from the waste." To
implement that goal, Congress gave EPA very specific directions for establishing the LDR
program. In particular, Congress required EPA to specify how hazardous wastes should be
treated to satisfy LDR's goal of groundwater protection. The rules EPA promulgated governing
how different hazardous wastes must be treated are known as treatment standards. Treatment
standards are simply instructions on how a hazardous waste should be treated.
For example, many of the chemicals capable of contaminating groundwater are organic
compounds. Incineration or burning can destroy these organic compounds, usually breaking
them down into less dangerous by-products like carbon dioxide and water. Thus, incineration of
organic-bearing hazardous wastes can protect groundwater by destroying organic contaminants
before they have a chance to enter underground water supplies. The obvious advantage of such
hazardous waste treatment is that it provides a more permanent and lasting form of groundwater
protection than hazardous waste containment. Structural barriers separating hazardous
contaminants from groundwater may eventually break down or leak. In contrast, treatment that
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 5
destroys harmful contaminants or reduces a waste's toxicity before it enters the environment is a
permanent groundwater protection solution.
Treatment, however, cannot destroy all types of contaminants found in hazardous waste. In
particular, metal elements, which are common toxic contaminants, cannot be broken down
through combustion. Treatment techniques other than incineration, however, can be used for
such wastes. For example, through a process called stabilization or immobilization, metal
contaminants can be chemically and physically bound into the wastes that contain them.
Although this treatment method does not reduce the overall concentration of toxic metals in a
hazardous waste, it does immobilize these constituents, making them less likely to leach from the
waste. Reducing the mobility or teachability of hazardous constituents in a waste is another
means of achieving LDR's groundwater protection goal.
2.3 APPLICABILITY
To be subject to the land disposal restrictions, a waste must first be a RCRA hazardous waste.
Unless a waste meets the definition of a solid and hazardous waste, its disposal will not be
subject to the LDR program.
RCRA §3004(g) requires that EPA restrict hazardous wastes from land disposal within six
months of promulgating a new listing or characteristic. Until the Agency establishes a treatment
level, newly listed or identified wastes are not subject to LDR and they may continue to be land
disposed. Generally, EPA now promulgates new listings and their treatment standards at the
same time. Once EPA promulgates final treatment requirements waste handlers must manage it
in accordance with all the requirements of Part 268 and cannot land dispose the waste until it
meets the treatment level.
EXCLUSIONS
While the LDR program generally applies to all persons who generate, transport, treat, store, or
dispose of a restricted hazardous waste, EPA excludes certain wastes from the applicability of
Part 268. The following hazardous wastes are not subject to the requirements of LDR
(§268.1(e)):
• waste generated by conditionally exempt small quantity generators as defined in §261.5
• waste pesticide and container residues disposed of by farmers on their own land pursuant
to §262.70
• newly identified or listed hazardous wastes for which EPA has yet to promulgate land
disposal restriction treatment standards
• certain low volume releases, known as de minimis losses, and laboratory wastes that are
mixed with a facility's wastewater and are discharged to the facility's wastewater
treatment or pretreatment facility.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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6 - Land Disposal Restrictions
Waste handlers may continue to land dispose wastes meeting any of these descriptions without
being subject to the LDR program. They must manage other restricted hazardous wastes in
compliance with the requirements in Part 268 unless explicitly exempted by another part of the
RCRA program.
2.4 TREATMENT STANDARDS
LDR requires waste handlers to fundamentally change the threat posed by hazardous waste
before it is land disposed. Waste-specific restrictions are manifested as thresholds for adequate
treatment, known as treatment standards. Once EPA restricts a waste and issues a treatment
standard, the waste may be land disposed only after it meets the appropriate treatment standard.
ESTABLISHMENT OF TREATMENT STANDARDS
Section 3004(m) of the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA) requires EPA to
promulgate treatment standards that reduce the toxicity or mobility of hazardous constituents to
minimize the short and long-term threats to human health and the environment. To implement
this mandate, EPA chose to base treatment standards on technical practicability instead of risk
assessment. To this end, EPA conducts research into available treatment technologies. Of all
the proven, available technologies, EPA designates the ones that best minimize the mobility
and/or toxicity of hazardous constituents as the Best Demonstrated Available Technology
(BOAT) for that waste. The Agency then establishes a waste code-specific treatment standard
based on the performance of BDAT, incorporating any existing constituent treatment levels
specified as universal treatment standards (UTS), which are discussed later in this section. EPA
expresses these treatment standards as either concentration levels or required technologies.
When EPA sets treatment standards as concentration levels, they do not limit the allowable
method of treatment to the BDAT used to establish the treatment standard; instead, the Agency
uses BDAT to determine the appropriate level of treatment for each hazardous constituent
commonly found in the waste. The regulated community may then use any method or
technology to meet the treatment standard, except for instances where application of a method or
technology would be impermissible dilution. A generator fully treating the waste before
sending it off site or a TSDF treating the waste must analyze the waste pursuant to a waste
analysis plan to determine that it meets the applicable concentration-based standards in §268.40.
When a treatment standard is a required technology, the generator or facility treating the waste
must use that technology, unless it can demonstrate that an alternative method can achieve a
level of performance equivalent to the required technology (discussed in Section 2.4). Whenever
possible, EPA prefers to use numeric treatment standards in order to stimulate innovation and
development of alternative treatment technologies.
Since the physical and chemical composition of a waste significantly impacts the effectiveness of
a given treatment technology, EPA divides the treatment standard for each waste code into two
categories: wastewaters and nonwastewaters. The Agency defines these two categories based on
the percentages of total organic carbon (TOC) and total suspended solids (TSS) present in a
waste, since these factors commonly impact the effectiveness of treatment methods.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 7
Wastewaters contain less than one percent TOC by weight and less than one percent TSS by
weight. Nonwastewaters include wastes that do not meet the definition of wastewater (§268.2).
EPA also developed alternative treatment standards for soil, debris, and lab pack wastes. The
alternative treatment standards will be discussed in the "Alternative Treatment Standards"
section of this module.
CONSOLIDATED TABLE OF TREATMENT STANDARDS
EPA originally presented the treatment standards for hazardous wastes in multiple tables, but
replaced these with a single consolidated table for wastewaters and nonwastewaters. If EPA
restricts a hazardous waste from land disposal, the treatment standard for both wastewaters and
nonwastewaters appears in §268.40. Section 268.40 expresses treatment standards in three
ways:
• constituent concentrations in mg/kg of the waste
• constituent concentrations in an extract of the waste expressed in mg/1
• treatment standards expressed as specified technologies and represented by a five-letter
code (described in §268.42).
EPA commonly expresses numeric standards in mg/kg when BDAT is a destruction or extraction
technology such as incineration. Waste handlers measure compliance with these treatment
standards by analyzing a representative sample of the waste for the total concentration of each
hazardous constituent identified in the treatment standard and comparing it to the level given for
the waste code.
EPA also expresses concentration-based treatment standards in mg/1. For wastewaters, waste
handlers demonstrate compliance by comparing the concentration of hazardous constituents
found in a composite sample of the waste with the regulatory level. For nonwastewaters, the
waste handler prepares an extract that reflects the leaching potential of hazardous constituents in
the waste. The waste meets the treatment standard if the concentration of regulated constituents
in the liquid extract falls below the regulatory levels given for the waste code. EPA requires the
use of the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) to obtain the waste extract. The
older and less sensitive Extraction Procedure (EP) was available for use until August 24, 1998.
EPA also expresses treatment standards in §268.40 as specified technologies for certain wastes.
Waste handlers must treat these wastes using the specified technology. Table 1 in §268.42
provides full descriptions of the technologies represented by the five-letter codes used in
§268.40. Examples include incineration (INCIN), fuel substitution (FSUBS), and mercury
retorting (RMERC). In most cases, once treated by the required technology, wastes can be land
disposed without being tested. There are, however, some exceptions. For example, all F024
wastes must be incinerated. Following incineration, the remaining residues must then also meet
the concentration levels specified in §268.40.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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i - Land Disposal Restrictions
UNIVERSAL TREATMENT STANDARDS
Use of BDAT to set treatment standards for hazardous wastes gave rise to an unintended
consequence: the numeric treatment standard applied to an individual hazardous constituent, like
benzene, could vary depending on the performance of BDAT on each listed or characteristic
wastestream that EPA evaluated. For example, nonwastewater forms of the listed wastes F005
and U019 both require treatment for benzene; however, the treatment standard originally set for
benzene in the spent solvent was 3.7 mg/kg, while the standard originally set for unused,
discarded benzene was 36 mg/kg.
To simplify the LDR program and eliminate this inconsistency between standards, the Agency
examined the range of numeric standards applied to each hazardous constituent found in
restricted hazardous wastes. Based on the range, EPA assigned a single numeric value to each
constituent for its respective wastewater and nonwastewater forms. A consolidated list of each
constituent and its treatment standards (wastewater and nonwastewater) appears in §268.48 and
is known as the UTS table. EPA used the values assigned to hazardous constituents in UTS to
adjust numeric levels found in the treatment standards table in §268.40. Applying these
universal treatment standards has not changed the hazardous constituents that waste handlers
must treat in a particular waste, as EPA only amended the numeric standards. As a result, a
common constituent found in multiple, different wastes will nonetheless carry the same numeric
treatment level. The treatment standards found in §268.40 for F005 and U019 nonwastewaters,
therefore, continue to address benzene, but EPA has adjusted the level for each to 10 mg/kg.
The creation of UTS simplifies the process of assigning treatment standards to wastes that are
newly identified or listed in the future. When a new waste contains hazardous constituents that
EPA has already addressed in UTS, the Agency will apply the existing BDAT-based numeric
standards for those particular constituents. EPA can individually evaluate constituents not
already included in UTS and add them to §268.48.
2.5 ALTERNATIVE TREATMENT STANDARDS
In addition to these waste code or site-specific exception procedures, the Agency also created a
number of broad alternative treatment standards that facilities may choose to use in lieu of
meeting the waste code-specific treatment standards. These alternative treatment standards are
only available for certain forms of restricted wastes.
TREATMENT STANDARDS FOR CONTAMINATED SOIL
Remediation of hazardous waste sites will often produce contaminated soil that the generator
must handle as hazardous waste if it contains a listed hazardous waste or if it exhibits a
characteristic of hazardous waste. These remediation wastes, due to either their large volume or
unique properties, are not always amenable to the treatment standards for hazardous wastewater
and nonwastewater. Because of this, EPA designated soil as a unique treatability group and
promulgated alternative soil-specific treatment standards in the Phase IV Final Rule (63 FR
28556; May 26, 1998). As with hazardous waste, RCRA prohibits the land disposal of
hazardous soil until the soil has been treated to meet LDR standards.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 9
A facility may treat contaminated soil to meet the waste-specific treatment standard in §268.40,
(i.e., the same standard the waste would have to meet if it was newly generated rather than found
in soil) or to meet the soil-specific standards in §268.49. The soil standards mandate reduction
of hazardous constituents by 90 percent, capped at 10 times the UTS. This means that if a 90
percent reduction of a particular constituent would bring the constituent concentration to below
10 times the UTS level, treatment need only achieve the 10 times UTS level. If the 90 percent
reduction is higher than 10 times UTS, treatment need only achieve the 90 percent reduction.
For example, a contaminated soil contains 400 mg/1 nickel. Reducing this by 90 percent would
mean treating the waste to 40 mg/1. However, the UTS for nickel is 11 mg/1, so 10 times the
UTS would be 110 mg/1. Therefore, this soil would only require treatment to 110 mg/1 to meet
the LDR soil treatment standards.
Waste handlers may also treat soils that exhibit a characteristic of hazardous waste using these
soil standards. Following treatment, however, the soil may still exhibit a characteristic of
hazardous waste, since the 10 times UTS level is sometimes above the hazardous waste
characteristic level (e.g., 10 times UTS for lead is 7.5 mg/1, while the toxicity characteristic level
is 5 mg/1). Because these soils would still be hazardous wastes, they would require disposal in a
Subtitle C facility. Soils that are no longer characteristic may be sent to a Subtitle D facility or
placed back on the land. Soils contaminated with listed wastes continue to carry the listed code
and must be managed in Subtitle C facilities even after meeting the LDR treatment standards,
unless the facility gets a site-specific ruling from their implementing agency.
Like all LDR treatment standards, the soil treatment standards are promulgated pursuant to
HSWA. Because the soil treatment standards are generally less stringent than current federal
requirements, they will not go into effect in authorized states until the states adopt and become
authorized for them, even though the soil treatment standards are promulgated pursuant to
HSWA.
If a state is authorized to implement the LDR treatment standards for any given waste or
constituent, and that waste or constituent is contained in contaminated soil that is subject to
LDR, then, generally, the more stringent treatment standard for the as-generated industrial waste
or constituent applies to contaminated soil until the state adopts and becomes authorized for the
soil treatment standards. This would not be the case if the state implements state waiver
authorities or other state laws to allow compliance with the soil treatment standards in advance
of adoption or authorization. (See EPA guidance memorandum from J. Winston Porter to EPA
Regional Administrators, "RCRA Permit Requirements for State Superfund Actions," November
16, 1987, OSWER Directive 9522.00-2.) Similarly, if a state has adopted, under state law, an
authorization for the requirement, and that waste or constituent is contained in contaminated soil
that is subject to LDR, the more stringent state requirement continues to apply until the state
adopts, under state law, the soil treatment standards. Once again, the state may implement state
waiver authorities or other state laws to allow compliance with the soil treatment standards in
advance of adoption or authorization. Therefore, facility representatives should contact their
state regulatory agency before undertaking soil remediation to see if the alternative treatment
standards are available in their state.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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10 - Land Disposal Restrictions
DEBRIS
Section 268.45 contains alternative treatment standards for manufactured items and
environmental media of a certain size that are contaminated with hazardous waste. EPA
developed these alternative standards because materials such as rocks, bricks, and industrial
equipment (known genetically as debris) contaminated with hazardous waste may not be
amenable to the waste code-specific treatment standards in §268.40.
Section 268.45 allows a waste handler to choose among several types of treatment technologies,
based on the type of debris and the waste with which it is contaminated. EPA divided the
alternative treatment standards for debris into three technological categories: extraction,
destruction, and immobilization. When using an alternate debris treatment standard, waste
handlers must ensure that the treatment process meets the design and operating requirements
established in §268.45, and that they treat for each contaminant, or hazardous constituent,
subject to treatment, as defined in §268.45(b). In order to be eligible for land disposal, the debris
must meet the specified performance standards in Table 1 in §268.45. For example, a
contaminated boulder that is sandblasted to remove surface contamination must be treated to a
"clean debris surface" and at least 0.6 centimeters of the surface layer of the boulder must be
removed.
Once the waste handler has treated hazardous debris according to the specification of one of
these technologies, it may be land disposed. If treated hazardous debris does not exhibit any
characteristic following treatment with an extraction (e.g., sandblasting) or destruction (e.g.,
incineration) technology, it is eligible for land disposal and can be disposed of as nonhazardous
or simply returned to the environment (§261.3(f)). Hazardous debris treated with an
immobilization technology (e.g., macroencapsulation) that is no longer characteristic can be
disposed of as nonhazardous only after a determination from the implementing agency
(§261.3(f)(2)).
LAB PACK WASTES
Laboratories commonly generate small volumes of many different listed and characteristic
wastes. Rather than manage all these disparate wastes individually, laboratories commonly take
advantage of regulatory provisions that allow them to overpack many small containers of
hazardous waste into a larger drum. These containers are known as lab packs. EPA has
assigned them an alternative treatment standard, incineration, that allows generators to apply one
treatment standard for the entire lab pack rather than applying the treatment standard for each
individual waste code contained within the lab pack (§268.42(c)). The primary condition for
application of this alternative, however, is that the lab pack may not contain any of the heavy
metal-bearing waste codes identified in Part 268, Appendix IV.
2.6 VARIANCES, EXTENSIONS, AND EXEMPTIONS
If a restricted waste does not meet the appropriate treatment standard, it is ineligible for land
disposal. Restricted wastes that waste handlers cannot land dispose because they do not yet meet
their treatment standards are termed "prohibited" wastes. Although most prohibited wastes
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 11
become eligible for land disposal through treatment to the appropriate standards, this may not be
possible in all cases. As a result, EPA created procedures that allow waste handlers to land
dispose otherwise prohibited wastes under special circumstances. The following exemptions,
variances, and extensions established in Part 268 allow wastes for which treatment standards
have been promulgated to be land disposed without meeting treatment standards, or to be treated
to a less stringent level or by a different technology:
• national capacity variance (§3004(h)(2))
• case-by-case extension to an effective date (§268.5)
• no-migration variance (§268.6)
• variance from a treatment standard (§268.44)
equivalent treatment method variance (§268.42(b))
surface impoundment treatment exemption (§268.4).
While wastes subject to any of these provisions continue to be restricted under LDR, they are not
prohibited from land disposal under these limited conditions.
NATIONAL CAPACITY VARIANCE
When developing a treatment standard, EPA reviews treatment, recovery, and disposal capacity
to see if capacity is adequate for current and future waste management needs. If there is
inadequate capacity for certain waste codes, EPA may grant a nationwide extension of the
prohibition deadline for up to two years (RCRA §3004(h)(2)). This extension is known as a
national capacity variance. To make capacity determinations, EPA compares the quantity of the
restricted waste generated with the nationally available treatment, recovery, or protective
disposal capacity at permitted and interim status facilities that will be in operation by the
effective date. If there is a significant shortage of capacity, EPA will establish an alternative
effective date based on the earliest date such capacity will be available. Waste handlers can land
dispose waste that benefits from a national capacity variance without meeting the treatment
standards. However, if they dispose of the waste in a landfill or surface impoundment, the
disposal unit must be in compliance with the minimum technological requirements of RCRA
§3004(o).
CASE-BY-CASE EXTENSION
Regional or local conditions may create a lack of adequate treatment capacity in a particular
area. In this situation, EPA may extend the effective date of a treatment standard on a case-by-
case basis. EPA grants case-by-case extensions for one year, when waste handlers appropriately
demonstrate need as enumerated in §268.5, and can renew these extensions for an additional
year. Individual extensions cannot exceed a total of 24 months (RCRA §3004(h)(3)).
If waste handlers dispose of hazardous wastes benefiting from a case-by-case extension to an
effective date in landfills or surface impoundments, these disposal units must meet the minimum
technological requirements for liners and leak-detection and be in compliance with groundwater
monitoring requirements (RCRA §3004(o)).
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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12 - Land Disposal Restrictions
Although case-by-case extensions usually apply only to the waste generated at the individual
facility that sought an extension, EPA has, at times, granted "generic" case-by-case extensions
with broad applicability. The last of these generic case-by-case extensions to an LDR effective
date, a limited extension for the disposal of hazardous debris, expired May 8, 1994.
NO-MIGRATION VARIANCE
Waste handlers can land dispose hazardous wastes subject to LDR in a land-based unit without
meeting treatment standards, if a petitioner can demonstrate that there will be no migration of
hazardous constituents from the unit for as long as the waste remains hazardous (§268.6). EPA
interprets "no migration" to mean that constituents will not leave the unit boundary at
concentrations above Agency-approved health-based levels. EPA may grant a no-migration
variance for up to 10 years, but may not extend the variance beyond the term of the particular
disposal unit's RCRA permit.
No-migration petitions must include a site description, waste characterization, and monitoring
plans for evaluation by the Agency. The regulated community must also submit for review long-
term modeling estimates of concentrations in the ground's unsaturated zone and the air pathway.
EPA has granted the majority of no-migration petitions to underground wells that inject
hazardous waste deep beneath the surface. A notable example is the conditional no-migration
variance granted for the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Waste Isolation Pilot Plant
(WIPP) in New Mexico. This variance permits DOE to dispose of untreated mixed radioactive
and hazardous wastes in an underground salt dome for the duration of a test period.
VARIANCE FROM A TREATMENT STANDARD
Under certain circumstances, generators or TSDFs may petition the Agency for a variance from
using a required technology or from meeting a concentration-based treatment standard. EPA
established this variance from a treatment standard to account for those wastes for which
applicable treatment standards are unachievable or inappropriate (§268.44). In most cases,
petitioners must demonstrate that the waste is significantly different from the wastes evaluated
by EPA when developing the codified treatment standard or that such method or standard is
unachievable or inappropriate for the waste. A treatability variance may apply generically to all
waste meeting a certain description or it may be narrower in scope, applying only to a specific
waste generated at a particular site (55 FR 22526; June 1, 1990).
With the establishment of soil-specific standards, EPA promulgated an additional provision in
§268.44 for contaminated soil. Pursuant to §268.44(h)(3), variances from otherwise applicable
LDR treatment standards may be approved if it is determined that compliance with the treatment
standard would result in treatment beyond the point at which short- and long-term threats to
human health and the environment are minimized. This allows a site-specific, risk-based
determination to supersede the technology-based LDR treatment standards under certain
circumstances, allowing regulators to align cleanup levels and treatment levels. Alternative LDR
treatment standards established through site-specific risk-based variances should be within the
range of values the Agency generally finds acceptable for risk-based cleanup levels. Decisions
to grant or deny these variances will be made by EPA Regions or authorized states.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 13
EQUIVALENT TREATMENT METHOD VARIANCE
Generally, waste handlers must treat waste to which EPA has assigned a technology-based
treatment standard in §268.40 using that method of treatment prior to disposal. A person may,
however, submit an application to the implementing agency demonstrating that an alternative
treatment method can achieve a performance equivalent to that of the specified treatment
standard and can protect human health and the environment (§268.42(b)). If EPA approves the
petition granting an equivalent method variance, the alternative method may be used in lieu of
the specified technology.
SURFACE IMPOUNDMENT TREATMENT EXEMPTION
The management of liquid wastes in surface impoundments often serves as a means of treatment.
Typically, particulates suspended in liquid wastes settle to the bottom of impoundments, forming
sludges in which contaminants concentrate. This precipitation process may result in the
generation of sludges that are hazardous wastes. Since management of wastes in surface
impoundments is considered land disposal, even though the waste is not permanently disposed in
the unit, such generation and placement of hazardous sludges on the land without prior treatment
would normally be inconsistent with LDR's disposal prohibition. Section 268.4 allows this
practice, however, by providing an exemption for wastes treated in surface impoundments.
Waste handlers may treat hazardous waste in surface impoundments without first meeting
treatment standards provided that (1) the surface impoundment meets certain technological
requirements, (2) the treatment residues that do not meet applicable standards are removed from
the impoundment annually, and (3) the removed residues are not managed in another surface
impoundment.
2.7 STORAGE AND DILUTION PROHIBITION
In addition to prohibiting the land disposal of wastes that do not meet treatment standards, the
LDR program includes two other important prohibitions. One forbids the long-term storage of
wastes as a substitute for meeting the required treatment standards. The other prohibits the
dilution of wastes as a substitute for legitimate treatment. Like the prohibition on land disposal,
these prohibitions no longer apply once a waste meets its waste code-specific treatment standard.
STORAGE PROHIBITION
EPA promulgated the storage prohibition in order to prevent waste handlers from storing
hazardous waste in lieu of proper treatment (§268.50). EPA forbids the storage of waste subject
to a treatment standard unless the waste is being stored to accumulate such quantities as are
necessary to facilitate proper recycling, treatment, or disposal. During the first year of storage,
EPA bears the burden of proving that the waste handler is storing in order to avoid meeting
treatment standards rather than to facilitate legitimate recycling, treatment, or disposal. There is
no strict time limit on legitimate waste storage; however, after the first year of storage, the
burden of proof for showing that waste is indeed being legally accumulated to facilitate proper
future management shifts from EPA to the waste handler.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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14 - Land Disposal Restrictions
Generators accumulating waste on site in accordance with §262.34 and transporters storing
waste at a transfer facility for 10 days or less are exempt from the storage prohibition. The
storage prohibition also does not apply to wastes which qualify for an exemption from a
treatment standard such as a case-by-case extension in §268.5, a no-migration petition in §268.6,
a national capacity variance, or to wastes that were placed in storage prior to the effective date of
a prohibition on land disposal.
DILUTION PROHIBITION
EPA generally prohibits dilution of wastes as a substitute for appropriate treatment (§268.3). For
example, a waste handler may not, in most cases, achieve compliance with a numeric treatment
standard by simply mixing hazardous waste with another material that fails to reduce the
mobility or toxicity of the hazardous constituents in the waste. Similarly, EPA may consider
waste to be impermissibly diluted when a waste handler treats with an inappropriate technology.
For example, it is often impermissible to incinerate metal-bearing, inorganic wastes because
incineration fails to destroy or immobilize the hazardous metal constituents.
There are, however, certain cases where EPA permits dilution. Dilution is inherent in some
types of legitimate waste handling, such as the aggregation of similar wastes to facilitate
subsequent treatment. As a general rule, if aggregated wastes are all legitimately amenable to
the same treatment, the aggregation step does not constitute impermissible dilution. In addition,
waste handlers may dilute certain characteristic wastes that are managed in Clean Water Act-
regulated treatment systems (§268.3(b)). As well, certain characteristic wastes may be diluted to
render them nonhazardous before disposal in a deep injection well regulated under the Safe
Drinking Water Act (§268. l(c)(3)). Table 1 may be used to determine if a particular waste is
subject to a prohibition against dilution when handled in a particular manner.
TABLE 1: SUMMARY TABLE: WASTES SUBJECT TO DILUTION
PROHIBITION
Type of Waste
Characteristic Wastes Managed in Clean Water Act-Regulated
Treatment Systems (§268.3(b))
Characteristic Wastes Disposed of in Safe Drinking Water Act
Underground Injection Control Wells (§268.1(c)(3))
Wastes Subject to a National Capacity Variance (§3004(h)(2))
Wastes Disposed of in a Unit With a No-Migration Variance (§268.6)
Wastes Subject to a Case-by-Case Extension to an Effective Date
(§268.5)
Newly Identified or Listed Wastes for Which EPA Has Not Yet
Established a Treatment Standard (§268.1(e)(3))
Wastes that Meet All Applicable Treatment Standards and Prohibition
Levels
Metal -Bearing Hazardous Wastes That Are Incinerated (§268. 3 (c))
Yes
/
No
y
y
y
y
j
j
j
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 15
Waste Managed in a Corrective Action Management Unit (CAMU) or
Temporary Unit (TU) !
Wastes from Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators
Regulated Under §261.5 2 (§268.1(e)(l))
Farmers Disposing of Waste On Their Own Land Under
§262.70 2 (§268. l(e)(2))
J
J
J
1 For more information about these provisions, see the module entitled RCRA Corrective Action.
2 For more information about these provisions, see the module entitled Generators.
2.8 TRACKING AND RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENTS
EPA requires generators and TSDFs managing wastes that are subject to LDR (i.e., restricted
wastes) to meet certain notification, certification, waste analysis, and recordkeeping
requirements pursuant to §268.7. Much like a hazardous waste manifest, the LDR notification
and certification paperwork helps hazardous waste handlers and EPA enforcers ensure that
wastes are properly managed. A notification accompanies the initial shipment of each waste that
is subject to LDR and includes such information as the waste code(s), the hazardous constituents
present in the waste, and waste analysis data. EPA requires subsequent notification only when
the waste or the receiving facility changes. Additionally, if a waste can be land disposed without
further treatment, a certification to that effect must accompany the notification. EPA requires
waste handlers to retain such paperwork in order to track wastes that are subject to LDR and to
ensure that those wastes receive proper treatment prior to disposal. Section 268.7(a) contains the
tracking requirements for generators, §268.7(b) specifies the requirements for treatment
facilities, §268.7(c) contains the regulations applicable to disposal facilities, §268.7(d) contains
special notification and certification requirements that apply to hazardous debris, and §268.7(e)
contains special notification requirements for contaminated soil.
GENERATORS
Generators must determine if their hazardous waste is subject to LDR at the point of generation.
They may make this determination by testing or applying knowledge. If a waste is subject to
LDR and does not meet applicable treatment standards, generators must notify the treatment
facility in writing (§268.7(a)(2)). This notice accompanies the manifest and must include the
following information:
• EPA hazardous waste code(s)
• identification of the waste as a wastewater or nonwastewater
• manifest number associated with the waste shipment
• waste analysis data (if available)
• for characteristic wastes, any additional hazardous constituents present
• when hazardous debris is to be treated by an alternative technology in §268.45, a
statement to that effect and the contaminants subject to treatment
• for contaminated soil, a list of the constituents subject to treatment and a statement that
the soil does or does not meet LDR standards.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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16 - Land Disposal Restrictions
If a generator's waste already meets applicable treatment standards, the generator, in accordance
with §268.7(a)(3), must submit a signed certification stating that the waste meets the applicable
treatment standards. This certification accompanies a copy of the notification statement
described above.
If a generator's waste qualifies for an exemption from a treatment standard, such as a national
capacity variance, case-by-case extension, or no-migration exemption, the generator must submit
to the disposal facility a notification similar to that given in §268.7(a)(2), except that it must also
identify the date that the waste will become subject to LDR prohibitions (§268.7(a)(4)).
Generators may treat hazardous waste in accumulation tanks, containers, or containment
buildings provided the units are in compliance with certain standards applicable to TSDFs
(§262.34). EPA believes that generators should have the same recordkeeping and documentation
responsibilities that apply to TSDFs when treating wastes to meet LDR treatment standards.
Therefore, §268.7(a)(5) requires generators to prepare a waste analysis plan when treating wastes
to meet LDR. The waste analysis plans must justify the frequency of testing based on a detailed
analysis of a representative sample of the waste. The plan must contain all information
necessary for proper treatment of the waste in accordance with Part 268, and must be retained in
the facility's records (55 FR 22670; June 1, 1990). Generators who are conducting partial
treatment, but not treating to meet treatment standards are not required to have a waste analysis
plan.
TREATMENT FACILITIES
The tracking and recordkeeping requirements that apply to treatment facilities are found in
§268.7(b). EPA requires hazardous waste treaters to test treated waste to ensure that all
applicable treatment standards are met. The TSDF must perform these tests as specified in its
waste analysis plan (all TSDFs must have plans under §264/265.13). If a facility ships treated
waste off site for disposal, a notification similar to the generator's notice must accompany the
initial shipment of the waste to the disposal facility. The treater's notice must include relevant
waste codes, additional hazardous constituents present, manifest information, and waste analysis
data (§268.7(b)(3)). The treater must also include a certification that the shipment of waste
meets treatment standards (§268.7(b)(4)). If the waste or a residue of the waste will be sent for
further treatment or storage at another facility, the treater must comply with the notification and
certification requirements for a generator.
LAND DISPOSAL FACILITIES
Section 268.7(c) contains the paperwork requirements that apply to the final link in the cradle-to-
grave management of hazardous waste, the land disposal facilities. Hazardous waste disposers
must ensure that incoming wastes or residues meet the applicable treatment standards by testing
the waste in accordance with their facility's waste analysis plan. Additionally, disposers must
maintain records on site of all notifications and certifications received from generators and
treatment facilities.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 17
SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS FOR TREATED DEBRIS
Generators or treaters of hazardous debris who claim that their hazardous debris is excluded
from the definition of hazardous waste in §261.3(f) are required to comply with certain
notification and certification requirements (§268.7(d)). Since these wastes are no longer
hazardous, the paperwork will not be sent to the disposal facility. Instead, relevant notices and
certifications are submitted to EPA and retained on site by the original generator or treater on a
one-time basis.
2.9 CHARACTERISTIC HAZARDOUS WASTES
Just like listed wastes, restricted characteristic wastes must also meet treatment standards before
they are eligible for land disposal. Since the land disposal restrictions attach at the point of
generation, waste handlers cannot circumvent treatment standards applicable to characteristic
wastes by simply removing the characteristic. Once a waste handler both decharacterizes and
treats the waste to meet the treatment standard that applied at the point of generation, however,
the waste may be land disposed in a nonhazardous, RCRA Subtitle D landfill.
TREATMENT STANDARDS
EPA established special requirements for wastes that exhibit a characteristic (§268.9). As a
general principle, a hazardous waste must meet all applicable treatment standards before land
disposal. For purposes of LDR, a generator with a listed hazardous waste must determine if the
waste also exhibits any hazardous waste characteristics (§262.1 l(c)). If a listed waste also
exhibits a characteristic of hazardous waste, the waste must meet the treatment standard for both
waste codes. An exception occurs, however, when the treatment standard for the listed waste
specifically includes a standard for the constituent that causes the waste to exhibit the
characteristic. In this case, compliance with the treatment standard for the listed waste will
satisfy both requirements, as the standard for the listed waste will operate in lieu of the treatment
standard for the characteristic waste code.
PAPERWORK REQUIREMENTS
While characteristic wastes are subject to the standard notification requirements in §268.7, EPA
subjects wastes from which the characteristic has been removed to special provisions. When
these wastes meet treatment standards and no longer exhibit any characteristic, LDR notification
and certification paperwork need not accompany the shipment to a Subtitle D facility. Instead,
§268.9(d) requires the waste handler to file a one-time notice and certification with the
implementing agency and maintain a copy on site. However, when the RCRA Burden Reduction
rule is finalized, this requirement may change. Subsequent shipments of similar waste do not
require additional notice except on an annual basis, or if the process or recipient facility changes.
DILUTION OF CHARACTERISTIC WASTES AND TREATMENT OF UNDERLYING
HAZARDOUS CONSTITUENTS
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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18 - Land Disposal Restrictions
When EPA first promulgated treatment standards for characteristic wastes, the Agency initially
determined that removal of the hazardous waste characteristic alone would adequately protect
human health and the environment. Thus, the treatment standards for these wastes appeared as
the specified technology, "DEACT," or deactivation. While Part 268, Appendix VI,
recommends particular methods of treatment to accomplish deactivation, simple dilution with
soil or water was an acceptable means to achieve compliance. Dilution of this kind was not
considered impermissible per §268.3, since it was performed as part of a specified technology.
However, in the case, Chemical Waste Management, Inc., et al. v. EPA, the plaintiffs won a
judgment against the Agency alleging, among other things, that deactivation via dilution failed to
meet the statutory mandates of RCRA §3004(m) because dilution does not reduce the mobility or
toxicity of the hazardous constituents present in the wastes. On September 25, 1992, the DC
Circuit Court of Appeals immediately vacated the treatment standards for ignitable (D001) and
corrosive (D002) wastes and remanded the treatment standards applicable to many other
characteristic wastes.
In response to the court decision, EPA published revised treatment standards for D001 and D002
wastes on May 24, 1993 (58 FR 29860). These revised standards require that certain ignitable
and corrosive wastes not only be deactivated to remove the hazardous characteristic, but that
they also be legitimately treated to meet numeric concentration levels for any constituents also
present in the wastes above the UTS levels. These constituents are known as "underlying
hazardous constituents" because they require treatment to meet LDR standards, but nonetheless
do not cause the waste to exhibit a characteristic.
On September 19, 1994, when EPA promulgated treatment standards for the newly identified
toxicity characteristic (TC) organic wastes (D018-D043) and revised the standards for some
previously restricted characteristic wastes (D012-D017), the Agency also required treatment for
underlying hazardous constituents beyond that necessary for removal of the characteristic.
When EPA promulgated revised treatment standards for metal wastes on May 26, 1998, the new
metal standards also required waste handlers to treat for underlying hazardous constituents (63
FR 28556). The creation of the UTS in §268.48 gave the Agency an easy source for the list of
constituents and appropriate treatment levels. Wastes requiring treatment for underlying
hazardous constituents must meet the numeric treatment levels enumerated in the UTS to be
eligible for land disposal. Wastes subject to treatment for underlying hazardous constituents are
easily identified since their treatment standards in §268.40 require that they comply with the
characteristic level "and meet §268.48 standards."
Part of the settlement agreement and consent decree with Chemical Waste Management, Inc. et
al., required EPA to ensure that waste handlers effectively treat characteristic wastewaters that
are managed in certain CWA and SDWA systems; to merely decharacterize or dilute these
wastes would not satisfy Congress's mandate to substantially diminish the toxicity of hazardous
waste. As a result, on April 8, 1996 (61 FR 15566), EPA finalized treatment standards for
characteristic wastes injected into deep SDWA wells, managed in non-hazardous surface
impoundments prior to CWA discharge, or discharged to land following CWA-equivalent
management. Specifically, these regulations would have required that such wastes undergo
RCRA-equivalent treatment not only to remove the characteristic, but also to destroy or
immobilize underlying hazardous constituents.
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 19
Despite the finalization of these treatment standards for characteristic wastewaters managed in
certain CWA and SDWA-systems, these provisions were immediately altered by the Land
Disposal Program Flexibility Act of 1996. The new law removed the requirement that
characteristic wastewaters be treated to remove, destroy, or immobilize hazardous constituents.
As a result, characteristic wastewaters managed in certain CWA or SDWA-systems need only be
decharacterized before land disposal, and dilution may be used to satisfy this requirement.
Consequently, the Agency published, in the same Federal Register that contained the new
treatment standards, a notice to rescind those regulations and require only decharacterization for
characteristic wastewaters in accordance with the provisions of the new Land Disposal Program
Flexibility Act (61 FR 15661). See additional discussion of the statutorily mandated study of
decharacterized waste disposed of in surface impoundments in Section 4 of this module, entitled
"Regulatory Developments."
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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20 - Land Disposal Restrictions
3. SPECIAL ISSUES
The following three points discuss LDR issues of special note or concern.
3.1 POINT OF GENERATION
Generators are required to classify their solid wastes as soon as they are subject to regulation in
order to ensure that hazardous wastes will always be safely managed. Since LDR applies
additional limits to the ways in which waste may be managed, it is also necessary to immediately
determine if a hazardous waste is subject to LDR. Generators must, therefore, fully characterize
their wastes at the point of generation to determine if their hazardous waste is subject to LDR
(§262.11). If a waste is restricted at the point of generation, all Part 268 requirements continue
to apply to the waste, even if it is subsequently de-characterized or excluded from the definition
of hazardous or solid waste.
3.2 DIOXIN-CONTAINING WASTE
EPA bases the §268.40 treatment standards for dioxin-containing wastes on a BOAT of
incineration. While any technology short of dilution is permissible for achieving the required
contaminant levels, only incineration has been able to achieve them. Currently, no facility in the
United States is permitted to burn dioxin-containing wastes. In the interim, these listed wastes
must be exported or stored until treatment capacity becomes available.
3.3 LDR APPLICABILITY AND REMEDIATION WASTES
In order to ensure that site cleanups and remediation are conducted in a timely and cost-effective
fashion, EPA has designed special standards for the management of certain remediation wastes.
In the February 16, 1993, Federal Register (58 FR 8658), EPA promulgated regulations on the
use of corrective action management units (C AMUs) and temporary units (TUs) to manage
remediation waste generated during a site cleanup. Additionally, on November 30, 1998, EPA
finalized standards for a new type of unit, called a staging pile, into which a waste handler can
place solid, non-flowing remediation waste (63 FR 65874; §264.554).
To facilitate the cleanup process, these regulations effectively waive the requirement that wastes
managed in staging piles, CAMUs, TUs meet LDR treatment standards prior to storage or
disposal on the land. However, EPA established a new framework for the treatment of wastes
placed in CAMUs (67 FR 2962; January 22, 2002). Under this framework, principal hazardous
constituents (PHCs) identified in the waste must meet either minimum national treatment
standards adapted from the LDR alternative soil standards (see Section 2.5 Alternative
Treatment Standards) or, in special circumstances, site-specific treatment standards (See also the
module entitled RCRA Corrective Action).
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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Land Disposal Restrictions - 21
4. REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS
With the completion of the "Thirds," EPA had addressed all hazardous wastes that were
identified or listed before November 8, 1984. Similarly, with the completion of Phase IV, EPA
addressed all hazardous wastes that were newly-identified or listed after November 8, 1984.
Since EPA has fulfilled its requirements to establish treatment standards for all hazardous wastes
through the Thirds and the Phases (as required by the Statute), in the future, the Agency will
propose LDR treatment standards when hazardous wastes are proposed for listing. On
November 20, 1995, EPA began this process by proposing LDR treatment standards for
petroleum refining process wastes in the same rule that proposed to list such wastes as hazardous
(60 FR 57747). The petroleum listings and their LDR treatment standards were finalized August
6, 1998 (63 FR 42110). On November 25, 2003, EPA proposed to list as hazardous waste
certain waststreams from the dyes and pigments industry. This listing, as well as LDR treatment
standards for constituents in the new listing, were finalized on February 24, 2005 (70 FR 9138)
(See Section 4.2, below). Consistent with this approach, all future waste treatment standards will
be promulgated in conjunction with the waste listing.
Currently, EPA is considering amending several aspects of the solid waste regulatory scheme.
4.1 BURDEN REDUCTION INITIATIVE
On January 17, 2002, EPA proposed to reduce the recordkeeping and reporting burden imposed
by RCRA on the states, the public, and the regulated community to meet the federal government-
wide goal established by the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) (67 FR 2518). When finalized,
the Burden Reduction Initiative will reduce the reporting requirements for generators and TSDFs
by eliminating or modifying non-essential paperwork. A few changes to the LDR recordkeeping
provisions are likely to be finalized.
4.2 DYES AND PIGMENTS
On February 24, 2005, EPA finalized the Waste from the Production of Dyes and Pigments
Listed as Hazardous rule, which listed as hazardous nonwastewaters generated from the
production of certain dyes, pigments, and FD&C colorants. This action is mandated by the 1984
Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments and a consent decree (EDF v. Browner, Civil Action
No. 89-0598, D.D.C.). This listing sets annual mass loadings for constituents of concern, such
that wastes would not be hazardous if the constituents are below the regulatory thresholds. If the
wastes meet or exceed the regulatory levels for any constituents of concern, the wastes must be
managed as listed hazardous wastes, unless the wastes are either disposed in a landfill unit that
meets certain liner design criteria, or treated in a combustion unit as specified in the listing
description. This rule also adds five toxic constituents to the list of hazardous constituents that
serves as the basis for classifying wastes as hazardous. In addition, this rule establishes Land
Disposal Restrictions treatment standards for the wastes, and designates these wastes as
hazardous substances subject to CERCLA. The effective date of this rulemaking is August 23,
2005 (70 FR 9138; February 24, 2005).
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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22 - Land Disposal Restrictions
4.3 MICROENCAPSULATION OF RADIOACTIVE LEAD SOLIDS
EPA anticipates taking action to grant a national determination of equivalent treatment petition
at the request of the Department of Energy. Currently, the use of containers is prohibited for the
storage of radioactive lead solids before disposal pursuant to §268.42, thus necessitating the
segregation and separation of radioactive lead solids from other debris. Containers can be
constructed of high density polyethylene (HDPE) to provide a resistant barrier to degradation by
the wastes and materials into which it may come into contact after disposal. The use of such
containers require revision to current regulation will be required to allow the use of such HDPE
containers. EPA intends approval of the equivalent treatment variance to promote faster cleanup
of contaminated sites by removing a regulatory distinction between radioactive lead solids and
other forms of hazardous debris, reduce worker exposures, and promote further advancement in
new technologies for disposal. The use of containers are expected to be less costly than
extrusion coatings and, therefore, this action would be cost neutral to cost beneficial to the
Department of Energy and other generators of radioactive lead solids (70 FR 27510, 27640; May
16, 2005).
The information in this document is not by any means a complete representation of EPA's regulations or policies,
but is an introduction to the topic used for training purposes.
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