EPA to Approve Washington State Dangerous Waste Updates

US EPA has re-opened the public comment period on a proposed rulemaking to authorize changes made to Washington’s State dangerous waste compliance requirements.

The updates, which include a number of more stringent State rules, are listed in the Federal Register.

Changes addressed here include updates made to keep pace with changing Federal regulations as well as changes initiated by the state, including changes to the WAC Part 173 regulations for: 

• Satellite accumulation;
• Facility closure permitting requirements;
• More stringent State rules for academic labs;
• Updates to the P and U Lists of hazardous wastes;
• Updates to the rules for independent qualified registered professional engineer(IQRPE) certifications; and
• Various editorial updates.

 

What Does RCRA State Authorization Mean?

In some cases, the rules officially authorized by EPA in this rulemaking may have been on the books and enforceable in Washington for years already. Because State environmental agencies oversee the vast majority of hazardous waste inspections and enforcement nationwide, these rules were already being enforced by Washington Department of Ecology inspectors.

When US EPA inspects a facility, however, inspectors enforce only State hazardous waste rules already authorized at the Federal level. In other words, the standards against which US EPA measures compliance may be outdated until EPA catches up with an authorization rulemaking.   

Know Your State Hazardous Waste Rules

Under RCRA, most US states are authorized to create and enforce unique requirements for hazardous waste generators. State rules must be at least as stringent as the Federal RCRA requirements and are often more stringent.

Washington Dangerous Waste Online Training

Washington’s hazardous waste regulations are unique and more stringent than RCRA in many ways. In order to avoid civil penalties, facilities must be up-to-date on the latest State rules that impact their operations.

The Washington Dangerous Waste Management Online Course is designed to help satisfy the RCRA annual training requirement for hazardous waste managers and personnel and clearly lays out the differences between US EPA and Washington DOE hazardous waste rules. Learn the latest unique rules you must know to manage dangerous waste in Washington and earn a full year of Lion Membership for ongoing regulatory support in 2018. 
 

Tags: hazardous, new rules, RCRA, state rules, waste