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- Laws & Regulations
- RCRA History
- Hazardous Waste Regulations
- Non-Hazardous Waste Regulations
- Guidance & Policy
Hazardous Waste Regulations
RCRA Docket
The RCRA docket provides users with all the materials critical to each stage in the development of a rule, such as Federal Register notices and technical documents. Regulations.gov -the government-wide centralized docket management system- allows users to search the Agency's rulemaking dockets online, view the indices, and access those materials that are available online. Users may also submit comments online when a docket is open for public comment.
Hazardous Waste Laws
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) is a US law that provides, in broad terms, the general guidelines for the waste management program envisioned by Congress. It includes a Congressional mandate directing EPA to develop a comprehensive set of regulations to implement the law. The hazardous waste program, under RCRA Subtitle C, establishes a system for controlling hazardous waste from the time it is generated units its ultimate disposal – in effect, from “cradle to grave.”
In any given State, EPA or the State hazardous waste regulatory agency enforces hazardous waste laws. EPA encourages States to assume primary responsibility for implementing a hazardous waste program through State adoption, authorization, and implementation of the regulations.
Hazardous Waste Regulations
EPA regulations, or rulemakings, translate the general mandate of RCRA into a set of requirements for the Agency and the regulated community. The RCRA hazardous waste program regulates commercial businesses as well as federal, State, and local government facilities that generate, transport, treat, store, or dispose of hazardous waste.
Hazardous waste is a waste with properties that make it dangerous or potentially harmful to human health or the environment. In regulatory terms, a RCRA hazardous wastes fall into two categories:
- Listed Wastes, which appear on one of the four hazardous wastes lists established by EPA regulations:
- The F-list (non-specific source wastes), which can be found in the regulations at 40 CFR §261.31.
- The K-list (source-specific wastes), which can be found in the regulations at 40 CFR §261.32.
- The P-list and the U-list (discarded commercial chemical products), which can be found in the regulations at 40 CFR §261.33.
- Characteristic wastes, which exhibit one or more of four characteristics defined in 40 CFR Part 261 Subpart C:
- Ignitability, as described in 40 CFR §261.21.
- Corrosivity, as described in 40 CFR §261.22 .
- Reactivity, as described in 40 CFR §261.23.
- Toxicity – as described in 40 CFR §261.24.
40 CFR Part 260 contains all of the RCRA regulations governing hazardous waste identification, classification, generation, management and disposal. Part 260 – Hazardous Waste Management System: General
- Part 261 – Identification And Listing Of Hazardous Waste
- Part 262 – Standards Applicable To Generators Of Hazardous Waste
- Part 263 – Standards Applicable To Transporters Of Hazardous Waste
- Part 264 – Standards For Owners And Operators Of Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, And Disposal Facilities
- Part 265 – Interim Status Standards For Owners And Operators Of Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, And Disposal Facilities
- Part 266 – Standards For The Management Of Specific Hazardous Wastes And Specific Types Of Hazardous Waste Management Facilities
- Part 267 – Standards For Owners And Operators Of Hazardous Waste Facilities Operating Under A Standardized Permit
- Part 268 – Land Disposal Restrictions
- Part 270 – EPA Administered Permit Programs: The Hazardous Waste Permit Program
- Part 271 – Requirements For Authorization Of State Hazardous Waste Programs
- Part 272 – Approved State Hazardous Waste Management Programs
- Part 273 – Standards For Universal Waste Management
- Part 279 – Standards For The Management Of Used Oil
- Part 280 – Technical Standards And Corrective Action Requirements For Owners And Operators Of Underground Storage Tanks (UST)
- Part 281 – Approval Of State Underground Storage Tank Programs
- Part 282 – Approved Underground Storage Tank Programs
- Parts 283 to 299 [Reserved]