One often overlooked provision of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) is the requirement of hazardous waste generators to have in place a waste minimization plan. Ironically, one of the central goals of RCRA is to reduce the amount of waste generated through source reduction and recycling, a goal that Congress doubled down on in 1990 when it passed the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA), declaring:
"..it to be the national policy of the United States that pollution should be prevented or reduced at the source whenever feasible; pollution that cannot be prevented should be recycled in an environmentally safe manner, whenever feasible..."
I say this is ironic because the EPA does not specify the requirements of a waste minimization plan, nor do they require generators to maintain written descriptions of their waste minimization plan. This will surprise anyone familiar with the strict documentation requirements present elsewhere in RCRA. The result is that one of the most meaningful sustainability policies of this country's body of environmental laws is also its most overlooked by industry. Pollution and prevention (P2) planning under the aforementioned PPA does go a long way to addressing the shortcomings of RCRA's waste minimization policy. P2 plans are not a substitute for a comprehensive waste minimization plan, although they can be part of one. In this article I'll explain how the waste minimization plan requirement differs between generator status and then discuss ways generators can make the most out of their waste minimization efforts.
Only small quantity generators (SQG) and large quantity generators (LQG) are required to participate in waste minimization, but the extent of required participation differs between the two.
Apparently the EPA is also concerned with the affordability of treatment for SQGs. This is a nice thought, but certainly if affordability were a goal of RCRA I would place it firmly in the "L" column. So what does it mean to make a good faith effort to minimize waste generation, and what does a successful waste minimization program look like?
(BTW, this next section is good information to know even if you are not a SQG or LQG.)
Fortunately, the EPA does provide guidance in the form of 6 elements it believes are required for a successful waste minimization plan:
This is great advice on how to implement corporate initiatives generally, but you'll notice the conspicuous absence of any practical suggestions on how one might actually go about minimizing their waste generation and impact. The EPA would undoubtedly say that it is up to individual companies familiar with their own processes to make those determinations and that it is impossible to prescribe generalized waste minimization efforts that will be universally applicable.
Now somebody hold my beer while I suggest some universally applicable waste minimization tips strategies.
This is where your waste minimization and P2 planning intersects. Source reduction is the most impactful waste minimization effort because it eliminates hazardous waste volumes before they are even generated. This does not necessarily mean that less total waste is being generated. Sometimes changes in process can mean the waste being generated is less hazardous. Here are some general steps you can take to reduce sources of hazardous waste generation:
There are many ways generators can go about reducing sources of hazardous waste generation. These efforts tend to have the largest impact, but can sometimes be very challenging to implement. Once source reduction efforts have been exhausted it is time to address the impact and cost of disposal.
If you can't eliminate a waste or it's hazards, the next best thing is to determine whether or not you can recycle it or send it for some kind of reclamation. Under RCRA, there are 5 different levels of regulation for recycled or reclaimed materials. Below I will define these regulatory levels and offer some examples of recyclable material that falls under this category.
Here is the a link to a chart of the full list of specific exemptions. I won't go over each of these specifically - chances are if you generate one of these wastes, you are already aware of its recyclable potential. Wastes that are not exempted specifically from solid waste regulations may still be exempted under a general exemption when recycled in a certain way. The three general criteria for exemption are:
Notice that the common feature of each of these criteria is that the waste cannot be reclaimed prior to re-use. Reclamation is defined as any process used to recover a usable product. That means that if any form of processing - i.e. treatment (which would likely require a permit) - is required to derive a usable product from the waste, that waste cannot be considered exempt from regulation as a solid waste based on these criteria.
Commercial chemical products that are fuels and disposed of by burning for energy recovery as a fuel are also exempt from solid waste regulations because they are being used for their intended purpose.
This regulatory level is pretty straight forward. The following recyclable materials are solid wastes, but not subject to hazardous waste regulations when recycled in the manner specified:
These are, for the most part, pretty industry and process specific so I won't spend a lot of time discussing them. The following wastes are exempted from full regulation as a hazardous waste when recycled, even if the material is listed as a hazardous waste or meets the characteristics of a hazardous waste:
Universal Wastes:
Most wastes handled under the RCRA universal waste rules can be recycled. The most commonly recycled universal wastes are:
Used Oil:
Used petroleum-based and synthetic oils are easily recycled and handled under regulations specific to used oil. I'll be writing about the used oil program in a future post.
Recyclable Materials Used in a Manner Constituting Disposal:
Recyclable materials used in a manner that constitutes disposal (i.e. land application) are alternatively regulated when treated to meet land disposal restriction (LDR) requirements. An example would be hazardous waste that can be used as a fertilizer once LDR requirements have been met.
Materials Utilized for Precious Metal Recovery:
Gold, silver, platinum, palladium, iridium, osmium, rhodium, and ruthenium can be reclaimed from hazardous wastes. Handlers of wastes bearing these metals are subject to reduced requirements when the waste is send for metals recovery due to the economic value of these materials.
Spent Lead-Acid Batteries Being Reclaimed:
This exemption is specific to batteries being collected and stored for regeneration prior to actual reclamation. Facilities that store lead acid batteries that have not been regenerated for reclamation are regulated similar to a TSDF. It should be noted that lead acid batteries can also be handled as a universal waste.
Hazardous Waste Burned in Boilers and Industrial Furnaces:
These alternate standards specially apply to the facilities that burn hazardous waste for fuel recovery due to concerns regarding emissions and are not necessarily relevant for the purposes of this article.
All wastes that do not appear in one of the above regulatory levels are going to be subject to full hazardous waste regulations when recycled. Recycling these materials by sending them for treatment or disposal by a method that constitutes reclamation or recovery can still be a valid part of a facility's waste minimization plan. Here are some examples of hazardous wastes that can be recycled or reclaimed:
Sham recycling refers to illegitimate recycling activities. Always do your due diligence on a new recycler, their facility and their claims before proceeding. The characteristics of sham recycling and legitimate recycling can be found on the the EPA's web page about legitimate vs sham recycling.
So now let's put all this together into a step by step guide to creating an effective waste minimization plan:
Although the EPA does not require written plans to be maintained, it is in every generator's best interest to think about how waste can be minimized. Not only can companies often save a lot of money over time, but the extrinsic benefit to the environment and possible implications for improving worker safety cannot be ignored. Sustainability is no longer a best practice, but a necessity if we want economic growth to continue well into the future.