Compliance Advisory Reduction of Hazardous Waste Air Emissions April 2018

^tDsr> i mj UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, DC 20460 V ,

-------
•	generate at least 1,000 kilograms of hazardous waste per month and those wastes include organic
hazardous wastes (i.e., large quantity generator or LQG); or

•	recycle organic hazardous wastes, if a unit at the facility is subject to RCRA permitting requirements,

and meet the applicability criteria for certain process vents, equipment, tanks, containers or surface
impoundments containing such organic hazardous wastes as discussed below.

What Requirements does this Advisory Highlight?

This advisory focuses on the RCRA Air Emission Standards of 40 CFR 264/265 Subparts AA, BB & CC summarized
as follows:

Subpart AA - Vents associated with certain processes managing hazardous waste

This regulation applies to owners/operators of facilities that have process vents associated with
distillation, fractionation, thin-film evaporation, solvent extraction, and air or steam stripping operations
and that manage hazardous wastes with organic concentrations of at least 10 parts per million by weight
(ppmw). The owner/operator must reduce total organic emissions released from all affected process
vents either to a level below 3 pounds/hour and 3.1 tons/year, or by use of a control device that reduces
total organic emissions by 95 percent by weight.

Subpart BB - Equipment Leaks

This regulation applies to owners/operators of facilities that handle hazardous wastes with an organic
concentration of at least 10 percent by weight and that are contained in or in contact with equipment
(e.g., valves, pumps, pressure relief devices, connectors) for 300 or more hours per calendar year. The
requirements of this regulation are dependent on the type of equipment in use, but can include, among
other things:

A.	monitoring for and repairing leaking equipment (i.e., implementing a leak detection and repair
(LDAR) program), or

B.	capturing the emissions in a closed vent system that routes the emissions to a control device
(e.g., vapor recovery devices, combustion devices, flares).

Please note: Each piece of equipment regulated under this Subpart must be marked so it can be easily
distinguished from other pieces of equipment and monitored.

For more information on LDAR, see The LDAR Best Practices Guide.

Subpart CC - Waste Storage or Treatment

This regulation requires owners/operators of facilities to control emissions of volatile organic (VO)
hazardous waste that is managed in tanks, containers, and surface impoundments, if the waste has a VO
concentration of at least 500 ppmw at the point of generation. The specific control requirements
depend on factors such as the size of these units and maximum organic vapor pressure limit of the
waste.

In addition to the requirements listed above, Subparts AA, BB & CC also include inspection and monitoring
requirements to ensure proper operation and maintenance. These requirements vary depending on type of
equipment, waste management unit, and air emission controls used. For example, Subpart BB generally requires
Method 21 using monitoring equipment such as Photo Ionization Detectors (PID) and Flame Ionization Detectors

contain carbon, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are a subset of organic chemicals that have a high vapor pressure
at ordinary, room-temperature conditions.

2

-------
(FID) to detect air emissions. Some tanks subject to Subpart CC may require visual inspections while others may
require Method 21. Recordkeeping and reporting requirements may also be required to demonstrate
compliance with the standards.

To learn more about RCRA Subparts AA, BB & CC visit EPA Region 4's RCRA Information Resource Site for
Subparts AA. BB, CC website. You can also read the RCRA, Superfurid & EPCRA Call Center Training Module -
Introduction to Air Emission Standards for additional information.

What are the Compliance Concerns?

During RCRA Subparts AA, BB & CC inspections, EPA inspectors use PIDs and FIDs, as well as use Forward Looking
Infrared (FLIR) cameras to screen (i.e., detect emissions that are not visible to the naked eye) tanks and other
difficult-to-monitor equipment from a distance. The information from the FLIR camera allows the inspector to
focus attention on particular areas of the facility when gathering information on the facility's compliance.
Inspections have identified the following compliance concerns at some facilities that manage organic hazardous
wastes:

• Failure to identify all regulated units or equipment subject to Subparts AA, BB & CC requirements,
due to:

o Improper hazardous waste stream identification and/or characterization;
o Improper application of an exclusion or exemption to a hazardous waste stream; and
o Process and equipment changes in the field that were not communicated to the facility's
environmental staff.

• Failure to maintain required records.

• Not properly monitoring for leaks (e.g., holding the monitoring device too far away from the
equipment being checked).

• Not properly directing and overseeing a contractor who may be implementing a facility's LDAR
program.

• Poor equipment maintenance or running equipment to failure, which results in non-compliant
organic air emissions.

Examples of compliance concerns associated with equipment and tanks that EPA inspectors are finding at
facilities include:

Leaking Pipes

Venting of Large Tanks

(identified with FLIR camera)

Leaking Gaskets

Holes in Tanks

RCRA Air Emission Standards Relationship to the Clean Air Act (CAA)

RCRA Subparts AA, BB & CC regulate air emissions from certain hazardous waste activities whereas the CAA
regulates air emissions more broadly. Because many of the RCRA air emission standards are similar to standards

-------
under the CAA, the RCRA standards include exemptions to avoid overlap with the CAA requirements. Where
there is a potential for facility owners/operators to be subject to both the CAA and RCRA requirements, an
owner/operator may choose to comply with the CAA requirements in place of the RCRA requirements under
certain conditions.

Specifically, for Subparts AA & CC, the RCRA air emission standards exempt any process vent subject to AA and
hazardous waste management unit subject to CC that the facility owner or operator certifies as being equipped
with and operating air emission controls in accordance with an applicable CAA regulation codified under 40 CFR
parts 60, 61, or 63. For Subpart BB, the facility owner or operator elects to determine compliance by
documentation in accordance with an applicable CAA regulation codified under 40 CFR parts 60, 61, or 63.

If specific clarification is needed regarding RCRA Subparts AA, BB & CC and the CAA, the owner/operator should
contact their state and/or EPA Regional officials.

What do I do if I've found a violation? Benefits of EPA's Self-Disclosure Policies

Regulated entities of any size who voluntarily discover, promptly disclose, expeditiously correct, and
take steps to prevent recurrence of potential violations may be eligible for a reduction or elimination
of any civil penalties that otherwise might apply. Most violations can be disclosed and processed via
EPA's automated online "eDisclosure" system (see https://www.epa.gov/compliance/epas-
edisclosure). See also EPA's Audit Policy and New Owner Audit Policy. Many states also offer
incentives for self-policing, please check with the appropriate state agency for more information.

Disclaimer

This Compliance Advisory addresses select provisions of EPA regulatory requirements using plain language.
Nothing in this Compliance Advisory is meant to replace or revise any EPA regulatory provisions or any other
part of the Code of Federal Regulations, the Federal Register, or the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
Additional information is available on the EPA RCRA Compliance Monitoring and enforcement web sites.

-------