Posted on March 30, 2017 by Donald Stever
On November 28, 2016, EPA released its somewhat euphemistically titled “Hazardous Waste Generator Improvement Rule” (81 Fed. Reg. 85732) which, in a whopping 97 pages of miniscule federal register text, revises the structure, and in some cases the substance of the rules that apply to generators of hazardous waste under RCRA. I have no space in a blog to detail the substantive changes, tweaks and repositioning to Parts 257, 260, 261, 262, 263, 264, 265, 268, 270 and 279, but I will mention some highlights. This is, of course, a major rule, but it is also an important rule in that it sensibly addresses a wide range of longstanding problems in both the organization and substance of the regulatory provisions that govern the conduct of entities that generate hazardous waste.
The largely needed and helpful changes made by the rule include (1) subtle modifications to the definitions of the three generator categories, (2) refinement of how accumulation of both hazardous waste and acutely hazardous waste is treated, (3) adding a definition of “central accumulation area, (4) adding a requirement that partial reclamation facilities and recyclers who receive manifested hazardous waste submit biennial reports, (5) and a substantial reorganization of § 262.10 by deleting and re-numbering several of its subsections while amending them in the process. In addition, EPA added new requirements for making hazardous waste determinations, attempts to define what “generator knowledge” means in connection with testing, changes certain recordkeeping requirements, and requires small quantity and large quantity generators to identify waste codes associated with their waste. The rule specifies procedures for counting hazardous waste, revises the mixture rule, amends the marking and labeling requirements by adding very specific requirements, adds not insubstantial new requirements for the use of satellite accumulation areas (my favorite sub-amendment is EPA’s effort to define the term “three days”), adds new closure requirements, revises the conditions for exemption from various requirements for all three generator categories, imposes a new “re-notification requirement” to obtaining an ID number, modifies the criteria for episodic generation events, and imposes new requirements for emergency planning,
There are other changes, a few of them, well, mystifying. My favorite is what appears to be a meaningless nomenclature change. From November 19, 1980 until November, 2016, if you generated 100 kg or less of hazardous waste or 1 kg or less of acutely hazardous waste you were called a “Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generator”. After the effective date of the ‘Generator Improvement Rule” you are now called a “Very Small Quantity Generator”. EPA’s explanation for this change is truly wonderful – EPA felt that the term “conditionally exempt small quantity generator” was confusing because “all three categories of generators are conditionally exempt” from certain requirements. 82. Fed. Reg. 85740. Gee, I was never confused nor, to my knowledge, were any of my generator clients. I was also amused that EPA felt it necessary to try to define the term “three days” in connection with a provision pertaining to satellite accumulation.
Overall, however, this is a major, beneficial, rule. So what is the point of the heading to this blog? In the required boilerplate at the end of the preamble prior to the twenty-five pages of the actual rule, EPA concludes, as it must, that it is not required to subject the rule to scrutiny under the Congressional Review Act because the action is “not a major rule” as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2). The Congressional Review Act? Hmmm. Is that all? No. In order to push this clearly beneficial rule out the door, not only did EPA employees have to generate 69 pages of notice-and-comment verbiage, but, in addition, also the Agency had to (a) submit the rule to OMB per Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 because though not “major”, it is a “significant regulatory action” in that it “may raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of legal mandates”, (b) satisfy the Paperwork Reduction Act by demonstrating that the rule is necessary, (c) satisfy the Regulatory Flexibility Act by demonstrating that the rule will not have a significant economic impact on small entities, and, in addition, also demonstrate that (d) it does not contain an unfunded mandate in violation of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act, (e) it does not have “federalism implications” per Executive Oder 13132, (f) it does not have sufficient “tribal implications” to trigger review per EO 13175, (g) it does not present a disproportionate risk to children per EO 13045, (h) it does not significantly affect energy supply, distribution or use per EO 13211, (i) it does have environmental justice implications per EO 12898, and (j) it does not involve technology transfer.
Just think of the number of employee hours it took for EPA to make these largely sensible modifications to the RCRA generator requirements. If Mr. Pruitt gets his wish to shrink EPA staff by 30% how is the Agency going to get anything accomplished?
Tags: Hazardous waste, regulation, EPA