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Bureau of Solid and Hazardous Waste Management
P.O. Box 414
401 East State Street
Trenton, New Jersey 08625-0414
Telephone: (609) 984-6985 Telecopier: (609) 633-9839

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/rrtp/index.htm

GUIDANCE DOCUMENT for the BENEFICIAL USE PROJECT (BUD) APPROVAL PROCESS
Revised 12/11/03

The information outlined herein is intended to serve only as guidance to applicants who wish to obtain a Certificate of Authority to Operate (CAO) for a beneficial use project determination (BUD), pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g) from the Division of Solid and Hazardous Waste, Bureau of Resource Recovery and Technical Programs.

This guidance must be consulted in conjunction with the solid waste regulations at N.J.A.C. 7:26 et seq. to understand the complete beneficial use regulatory requirements of N.J.A.C. 7:26. For the reader's convenience, an unofficial version of N.J.A.C. 7:26 et seq. can be found using the "NJ Regulations" selection on the Department's Division of Solid and Hazardous Waste web page at http://www.state.nj.us./dep/dshw or directly by using the Web link http://www.state.nj.us./dep/dshw/resource/rules.htm . This Web page regulation copy is provided as a public service. The official version of New Jersey Regulations can be found in the New Jersey Administrative Code published by WEST PUBLISHING COMPANY (PHONE: 1-800-808-WEST/ 1-800-808-9378).

INTRODUCTION

The Department's Solid Waste Regulations require that the materials classified as non-hazardous ID 27 Dry Industrial and other types of solid waste must be directed to a solid waste facility permitted to receive such waste for disposal. However, the Department is very interested in supporting and encouraging the beneficial use of materials that would otherwise be waste, in environmentally sound applications. This preserves valuable landfill space for essential disposal uses and helps conserve natural resources by using valuable existing materials. To date, the Department has issued over 290 CAOs authorizing beneficial use of different materials for more than approximately 3.9 million cubic yards of these materials. The CAOs for beneficial use projects are issued under the exemptions to the solid waste regulations as specified at N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.1(a)1 and N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g), allowing non-putrescible material separated at the point of generation to be sent to an approved facility for beneficial use or for on-site beneficial use at the site of generation.

The term "BUD", an acronym for the term "beneficial use determination," has been adopted by many states and the public as a general reference to regulatory beneficial use approvals. In New Jersey the use of the term BUD may reference the process of an applicant obtaining a CAO for a beneficial use project, and can also mean the actual approval or project.

MATERIALS EXEMPTED FROM THE CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORITY TO OPERATE (CAO) A BENEFICIAL USE PROJECT APPROVAL PROCESS

There are some categories of material that have been exempted from the requirement to obtain a Certificate of Authority to Operate (CAO) a beneficial use project. These exemptions are provided under the solid waste regulations, and are determined by the source of the material and/or the circumstances of the material reuse as follows:

1. Materials Produced By a Recycling Center: (N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g)2)
The materials produced at a permitted recycling center as regulated pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:26A are deemed to be approved for beneficial use provided the recycled product is used or reused directly as a product or as a substitute for raw material that is incorporated into a product meets the generally accepted products specifications and standards for a similar manufactured product or raw material, and provided the recycled product poses no greater risk to human health or the environment than the use of the product or raw material it is replacing.

Pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.13, the Department may exercise this Burden of Proof provision to require persons claiming an exclusion or exemption from a regulation to demonstrate such to the Department's satisfaction in order to ensure legitimate use of materials.

2. Materials Used/Reused Directly as a Product or Raw Material Substitute: (N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g)3)

The requirement to obtain a Certificate of Authority to Operate a beneficial use project is not applicable to materials used or reused directly as a product or as a substitute for raw material which is incorporated into a product that meets the original product specifications, provided the material poses no greater risk to human health or the environment than the use of the product or raw material it is replacing.

Pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.13, the Department may exercise this Burden of Proof provision to require persons claiming an exclusion or exemption from a regulation to demonstrate the applicability of the exemption to the Department's satisfaction in order to ensure legitimate use of materials.

3. Specific Materials Exempted Under the Beneficial Use Regulations: (N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g)4)

The materials identified below are categorically approved for beneficial use and require no formal approval or authorization for use or reuse provided they are used or reused in a manner consistent with N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.1:

a. aggregate in asphalt or concrete applications;

b. tire chips that are used as aggregate for road base materials or asphalt pavements in accordance with New Jersey Department of Transportation standard specifications, or whole tires or tire chips when they are used for energy recovery;

c. Soils for on-site reuse that contain contaminants at levels below the most stringent site clean-up levels established by the Department for that specific site, except for sites located in the Pinelands Area.

d. Contaminated soil that has been decontaminated to the satisfaction of the Department and is used or reused in a manner acceptable to the Department.

e. Non-hazardous solid waste, paper mill fiber (fiber from either virgin pulp or recycled paper mills) or paper fiber combustion ash (ash produced by incineration of paper mill fiber and paper de-inking sludge by-products) approved in advance by the Department for use or reuse as cover material, landfill liner, cap material, or other landfill design and management components. The approval requirements for landfill material can be found at N.J.A.C. 7:26-2A.8(b).

f. Coal combustion bottom ash or paper fiber combustion ash (ash produced by incineration of paper mill fiber and paper de-inking sludge by-products) that is used or reused as a component in the manufacture of roofing shingles or bituminous asphalt products.

g. Coal combustion fly ash, gas scrubbing by-products or paper fiber combustion ash (ash produced by incineration of paper mill fiber and paper de-inking sludge by-products) that is used as an ingredient to produce light-weight block, light-weight aggregate, manufactured gypsum or manufactured calcium chloride.

h. Coal combustion fly ash, coal combustion bottom ash or paper fiber combustion ash (ash produced by incineration of paper mill fiber and paper de-inking sludge by-products) that is used as a cement or aggregate substitute in structural concrete, structural concrete products, as a raw feedstock in the manufacture of cement or as a cement substitute for structural grade products, or sub-base in roadway construction.

i. Coal combustion fly ash, coal combustion bottom ash or paper fiber combustion ash (ash produced by incineration of paper mill fiber and paper de-inking sludge by-products) that is used as an aggregate substitute in structural asphalt product.

Additional categories of exemption are under consideration for future regulatory adoption.

CAO APPLICATION SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

In order to use materials that would otherwise be solid waste pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:26 et seq. for beneficial use projects pursuant to the exemption to the solid waste regulations at N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g), this office normally requires the following items.

-NOTE: the following information is intended only as a guide to completing and filing an application for a CAO for a beneficial use project. The Department may require additional information or amend an application at any time due to modified application requirements, project-specific requirements, or other reasons. Filing an application for a CAO a beneficial use project does not convey any authority for any person to transport, move or use any material unless a CAO is issued in writing from the Department.

1. A letter sent to the Division of Solid and Hazardous Waste (Division) from the generator, certifying the material proposed for beneficial use is analyzed or does not meet any other criteria or characteristic and is free of any other contaminant or waste that would either: 1) cause the material to be classified as a hazardous waste in New Jersey; 2) make the material subject to Land Disposal Restrictions Phase IV at 40 C.F.R. 268; or 3) otherwise make the material ineligible for consideration for regulation pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g). A hazardous waste classification or other information may be requested at the discretion of the Department.

An application sent to the Division that includes the following:

2. The generator must include in the application, a letter from the receiving facility, agreeing to accept the specified amount of material from the generator, its intention to beneficially use the material, details of the beneficial use project pursuant to N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7 (g) and the time frame for such activity from the date of receipt of material at the receiving facility. In addition, we request the generator send this information directly to the solid waste coordinator of the county of the material's origin.

3. All materials for land applications within the State of New Jersey must be sampled and analyzed in accordance with standard DEP quality assurance standards and practices at a minimum as specified at N.J.A.C. 7:26E to fully characterize the contaminants in the latest Soil Cleanup Criteria (SCC) http://www.state.nj.us/dep/srp/regs/scc/index.html or other contaminants as specified on a case-by-case basis. For further guidance in this area, these standards are referenced at N.J.A.C. 7:26E, the Technical Requirements for Site Remediation adopted May 19th, 1997, which are available at Web link http://www.state.nj.us/dep/srp/regs/techrule/tecmenu.htm . Generally for most circumstances of beneficial use, materials for land application must contain contaminants below the most restrictive Direct Contact or Impact to Groundwater (IGW) SCC. The Department may require IGW analysis if a contaminant is present in the proposed beneficial use material. The Division may allow reduced sampling and analytical plans depending on the nature of the material, historical sampling and specified use, following review on a case-by-case basis. Materials being considered for land applications in New Jersey may need to be tested for dioxins/furans (17 congeners) in accordance with SW 846, Method 1613B, 1 ppt detection limit, at a New Jersey certified laboratory. Detailed standard sampling plan guidance may be obtained from the Bureau of Resource Recovery and Technical Programs. The Department may also request an Environmental Health and Risk Assessment and/or a natural resource analysis and information regarding aquifer classifications as required on a case-specific basis.

Radionuclides: All material being considered for beneficial use in New Jersey must describe the material's known or suspected naturally-occurring radionuclide material (NORM) or any other radiological characteristics resulting in the material having radioactivity above any background level or which could pose a health or environmental concern under any circumstance; and/or which would cause the material to be regulated in any manner for a radioactive characteristic by any State or Federal agency. In addition, the generator and/or owner who originally produced the material being considered for beneficial use in New Jersey must disclose if the material is regulated pursuant to the Atomic Energy Act or any regulations for radioactive materials administered by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission ("NRC") or other agencies, is classified as technologically enhanced naturally-occurring radionuclide material (TENORM) which is ID 27 Dry Industrial Solid Waste in New Jersey, or contains any radionuclide over the levels established in the "Soil Remediation Standards for Radioactive Materials" at N.J.A.C. 7:28-12. Radionuclide analysis is required for manufacturing wastes and other wastes where radionuclides are suspect. The samples should be analyzed by gamma spectroscopy for the natural series of radionuclides. The representative samples should be dried, sealed and counted after 21 days. The minimum detectable concentration requirement for Ra-226 and Th-232 daughter nuclides should be 0.5 picoCuries per gram (pCi/g) on dried material. Provide laboratory documentation of analysis and methodology. The laboratories must be certified by the Department's Office of Quality Assurance (OQA) for radionuclides in soil analysis (SHW09.60130). Contact Mr. Vas Komanduri of OQA at (609) 984-0855 for a current list of certified laboratories.

For out-of-state shipments:
1. letters or other supporting documentation certifying that the material does not contain contaminants that would cause the material to be classified as hazardous waste, documentation from the receiving facility stating that the owner agrees to accept the specified amount of material and indicating the receiving facility owner's intention to use the material and the time frame for such activity, documentation that the information required at N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g) 8ii has been sent to the Solid Waste Coordinator of the county of the material's origin, and documentation from the appropriate regulatory agencies of the state where the reuse facilities are located or copies of the current facility permits, verifying the facility is operating in accordance with applicable rules and regulations and can accept the material specified above for the declared reuse or beneficial use purpose.

2. Once the material is delivered to the reuse facility, the generator and/or owner who originally produced the material for use in a beneficial use project shall submit on an annual basis a report to the Department detailing the amount of material used, the date(s) of such use, the location(s) of the use, and any other information as required by the Department in the certificate of authority to operate.

Note: for in-state and out-of-state beneficial use projects, the Department will share all application information, such as material history, enforcement issues, analytical data and related information concerning the material with the receiving facility, related parties of interest and relevant State regulatory agencies during the application review and confirmation process.

The Department will issue or deny a certificate of authority to operate a beneficial use project in the State of New Jersey in writing to the applicant within ninety (90) days of receipt of a complete application. The Department will issue or deny a certificate of authority to operate an out-of-state beneficial use project in writing to the applicant within forty-five (45) days of receiving a complete application.

APPLICATION FORM, INSTRUCTIONS and REVIEW CHECKLIST

An electronic copy of the Application Form and Instructions for Completing the Certificate of Authority to Operate (CAO) a Beneficial Use Project can be found at http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/rrtp/benuseap.htm To ensure all the information needed to complete the review is included on the CAO application, a CAO-Approval Application Review Checklist is provided at the following web link: www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/rrtp/budchkls.pdf .

Applications, attachments and relevant fees should be submitted to:

Chief, Bureau of Resource Recovery and Technical Programs
Division of Solid and Hazardous Waste
NJDEP
P.O. Box 414
Trenton, NJ 08625-0414

For further information regarding the CAO approval process, including assistance with sampling and analytical plans, application requirements, beneficial use project evaluations and status of project reviews, please feel free to contact the Beneficial Use Section of this Bureau at 609-984-6985.

AUTHORIZED NEW JERSEY BENEFICIAL USE PROJECTS

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/rrtp/abenusep.htm

MATERIALS BENEFICIAL USE INFORMATION WEB LINKS

Asphalt Millings Guidance Document:
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/rrtp/amgd.htm

Contaminated Soil Guidance Document:
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/rrtp/contsoil.htm

Management of Road Wastes (Street Sweepings) Guidance Document:
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/rrtp/ss.htm

RELATED WEB LINKS

Soil Cleanup Criteria:
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/srp/regs/scc/index.html

Technical Requirements for Site Remediation:
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/srp/regs/techrule/tecmenu.htm

Additional Division of Solid and Hazardous Waste Forms:
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/resource/forms.htm

EXCERPT OF N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.1(a)1 and N.J.A.C. 7:26-1.7(g) FROM THE SOLID WASTE REGULATIONS

http://www.state.nj.us/dep/dshw/rrtp/njac726g.htm

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Department of Environmental Protection
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Last Updated: September 22, 2005