Proposed Rule2024-04712
Definition of Hazardous Waste Applicable to Corrective Action for Releases From Solid Waste Management Units
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
March 6, 2024
Effective
February 8, 2024
Issuing agencies
Environmental Protection Agency
Abstract
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is extending, until March 26, 2024, the comment period for the proposed rule published in the Federal Register on February 8, 2024. The proposed rule would amend the definition of hazardous waste applicable to corrective action to address releases from solid waste management units at RCRA-permitted treatment, storage, and disposal facilities and make related conforming amendments, thereby providing clear regulatory authority to fully implement the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) statutory requirement that permitted facilities conduct corrective action to address releases not only of substances listed or identified as hazardous waste in the regulations but of any substance that meets the statutory definition of hazardous waste. The proposed rule would also provide notice of EPA's interpretation that the statutory definition of hazardous waste applies to corrective action for releases from solid waste management units at permitted and interim status facilities.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 45 (Wednesday, March 6, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 45 (Wednesday, March 6, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 15967-15968]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-04712]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Parts 260, 261, and 270
[EPA-HQ-OLEM-2023-0085; FRL 9247-03-OLEM]
RIN 2050-AH27
Definition of Hazardous Waste Applicable to Corrective Action for
Releases From Solid Waste Management Units
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule; extension of comment period.
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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is extending, until
March 26, 2024, the comment period for the proposed rule published in
the Federal Register on February 8, 2024. The proposed rule would amend
the definition of hazardous waste applicable to corrective action to
address releases from solid waste management units at RCRA-permitted
treatment, storage, and disposal facilities and make related conforming
amendments, thereby
[[Page 15968]]
providing clear regulatory authority to fully implement the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) statutory requirement that
permitted facilities conduct corrective action to address releases not
only of substances listed or identified as hazardous waste in the
regulations but of any substance that meets the statutory definition of
hazardous waste. The proposed rule would also provide notice of EPA's
interpretation that the statutory definition of hazardous waste applies
to corrective action for releases from solid waste management units at
permitted and interim status facilities.
DATES: The public comment period for the proposed rule published in the
Federal Register (FR) on February 8, 2024 (89 FR 8598), originally
ending March 11, 2024, is being extended by 15 days. Written comments
must be received on or before March 26, 2024.
ADDRESSES: You may send comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-
OLEM-2023-0085, by any of the following methods:
<bullet> Federal eRulemaking Portal: <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/">https://www.regulations.gov/</a>
(our preferred method). Follow the online instructions for submitting
comments.
<bullet> Mail: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, EPA Docket
Center, RCRA Docket, Mail Code 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20460.
<bullet> Hand Delivery/Courier: EPA Docket Center, WJC West
Building, Room 3334, 1301 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004.
The Docket Center's hours of operations are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.,
Monday-Friday (except Federal Holidays).
Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket ID
No. for this rulemaking. Comments received may be posted without change
to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov/">https://www.regulations.gov/</a>, including any personal information
provided. For detailed instructions on sending comments and additional
information on the rulemaking process, see the ``Public Participation''
heading of the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.
Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-RCRA-2023-
0085, at <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a> (our preferred method), or the
other methods identified in the ADDRESSES section of this document.
Once submitted, comments cannot be edited or removed from the docket.
EPA may publish any comment received to its public docket. Do not
submit electronically any information you consider to be Confidential
Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is
restricted by statute. Multimedia submissions (audio, video, etc.) must
be accompanied by a written comment. The written comment is considered
the official comment and should include discussion of all points you
wish to make. EPA will generally not consider comments or comment
contents located outside of the primary submission (i.e., on the web,
cloud, or other file sharing system). For additional submission
methods, the full EPA public comment policy, information about CBI or
multimedia submissions, and general guidance on making effective
comments, please visit <a href="https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets">https://www.epa.gov/dockets/commenting-epa-dockets</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Barbara Foster, Program Information
and Implementation Division, Office of Resource Conservation and
Recovery (5303T)) Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania
Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20460, 202-566-0382, <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#accac3dfd8c9de82cecddececddecdecc9dccd82cbc3da"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="7610190502130458141704141704173613061758111900">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On February 8, 2024, the Agency published in
the Federal Register (89 FR 8598) a proposed rule that would amend the
regulations applicable to RCRA treatment, storage, and disposal
facilities in two related respects. First, it would amend the
definition of hazardous waste applicable to corrective action.
Specifically, it would amend the definition in Sec. 260.10 to
expressly apply the RCRA section 1004(5) statutory definition of
hazardous waste to corrective action requirements under Sec. 264.101
and 40 CFR part 264 Subpart S. Similarly, it would amend the identical
definition in the hazardous waste facility permitting regulations,
Sec. 270.2, to expressly apply the statutory definition of hazardous
waste to the requirements relating to corrective action in Sec.
270.14(d). These proposed revisions would more clearly provide EPA
authority to address, through corrective action for solid waste
management units, releases of the full universe of substances that the
statute intended--not only hazardous waste and hazardous constituents
listed or identified in the regulations, but all substances that meet
the definition of hazardous waste in RCRA section 1004(5) at a
facility. These proposed amendments are consistent with EPA's
longstanding interpretation of the RCRA statute.
Second, this proposed rule would add RCRA sections 3004(u) and (v)
and 3008(h) to the statutory authorities identified in Sec.
261.1(b)(2). That section provides that the statutory definitions of
solid and hazardous waste govern the scope of EPA's authority under
certain sections of RCRA, not the more limited 40 CFR part 261
regulatory definitions. These revisions provide notice of and codify
the Agency's interpretation of the statute--that it provides authority
to address releases from solid waste management units of all substances
that meet the definition of hazardous waste under the statute.
Following publication of the proposed rule, several members of the
public requested that the Agency extend the comment period.
In response to these requests, the Agency is extending the comment
period for 15 days, until March 26, 2024. EPA does not want to
unnecessarily delay this rulemaking and believes that this 15-day
extension provides more than adequate time for reviewers to review the
proposed rule and to submit comments given the very narrow scope of the
rulemaking, and the limited amount of material reviewers need to
review.
Dated: February 28, 2024.
Carolyn Hoskinson,
Director, Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery.
[FR Doc. 2024-04712 Filed 3-5-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P
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