| Full title | Resource Conservation and Recovery Act |
|---|---|
| Acronym | RCRA |
| Enacted by the | 96th United States Congress |
| Citations | |
| Public Law | P.L. 94-580 |
| Codification | |
| Act(s) amended | Solid Waste Disposal Act |
| Title(s) amended | 42 (Public Health) |
| U.S.C. sections created | 42 U.S.C. § 6901 et seq. |
| Legislative history | |
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| Major amendments | |
| Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984 | |
| Relevant Supreme Court cases | |
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The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), enacted in 1976, is the principal Federal law in the United States governing the disposal of solid waste and hazardous waste.[1]
Congress enacted RCRA to address the increasing problems the nation faced from its growing volume of municipal and industrial waste. RCRA amended the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965. It set national goals for:
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has published waste management regulations, which are codified in Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations at parts 239 through 282.[3] Regulations regarding management of hazardous waste begin in part 260.[4] As noted below, most states have enacted laws and created regulations that are at least as stringent as the federal regulations. Furthermore, the RCRA statute authorizes states to carry out many of the functions of the federal law through their own hazardous waste programs (as well as their state laws) if such programs have been approved by the EPA.
While RCRA handles many regulatory functions of hazardous and non-hazardous waste, arguably its most notable provisions regard the Subtitle C program which tracks the progress of hazardous wastes from their point of generation, their transport, and their treatment and/or disposal. Due to the extensive tracking elements at all points of the life of the hazardous waste, the overall process has become known as the "cradle to grave" system. The program exacts stringent bookkeeping and reporting requirements on generators, transporters, and operators of treatment, storage and disposal facilities handling hazardous waste.
Non-hazardous solid wastes include certain hazardous wastes which are exempted from the Subtitle C regulations, such as hazardous wastes from households and from conditionally-exempt small quantity generators. Subtitle D also includes garbage (e.g., food containers, coffee grounds), non-recycled household appliances, residue from incinerated automobile tires, refuse such as metal scrap, construction materials, and sludge from industrial and municipal waste water facilities and drinking water treatment plants.
The operation of underground storage tanks (USTs) became subject to the RCRA regulatory program with enactment of the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984 (HSWA).[5] At that time there were about 2.1 million tanks subject to federal regulation, and the EPA program led to closure and removal of most substandard tanks.[6] As of 2009 there were approximately 600,000 active USTs at 223,000 sites subject to federal regulation.[7]
The federal UST regulations cover tanks storing petroleum or listed hazardous substances, and define the types of tanks permitted. EPA established a tank notification system to keep track of UST status. UST regulatory programs are principally administered by state and U.S. territorial agencies.[8]
The regulations set standards for:
The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA) required owners and operators of USTs to ensure corrective action is completed when a tank is in need of repair, or removal, when it is necessary to protect human health and the environment.[9] It is also recommended that above-ground storage tanks are used whenever possible.[10]
RCRA Subtitle J regulated medical waste in four states (New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island) and Puerto Rico, and expired on March 22, 1991. (See Medical Waste Tracking Act.)[11] If determined to be hazardous, medical waste is currently regulated by RCRA Subtitle C for hazardous wastes.
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), also known as "Superfund," was enacted in 1980 to address the problem of remediating abandoned hazardous waste sites, by establishing legal liability, as well as a trust fund for cleanup activities.[12] In general CERCLA applies to contaminated sites, while RCRA's focus is on controlling the ongoing generation and management of particular waste streams. RCRA, like CERCLA, has provisions to require cleanup of contaminated sites that occurred in the past.
In 1984 Congress expanded the scope of RCRA with the enactment of HSWA.[5] The amendments strengthened the law by covering small quantity generators of hazardous waste and establishing requirements for hazardous waste incinerators, and the closing of substandard landfills.[2]
In 1986, SARA addressed cleanup of leaking USTs and other leaking waste storage facilities.[9] The amendments established a trust fund to pay for the cleanup of leaking UST sites where responsible parties cannot be identified.[13]
The Land Disposal Program Flexibility Act of 1996 allowed some flexibility in the procedures for land disposal of certain wastes. For example, a waste is not subject to land disposal restrictions if it is sent to an industrial wastewater treatment facility, a municipal sewage treatment plant, or is treated in a "zero discharge" facility.[14]
Treatment, storage, and disposal facilities (TSDFs) manage hazardous wastes under RCRA Subtitle C and generally must have a permit in order to operate. While most facilities have RCRA permits, some continue to operate under what is called "interim status." Interim status requirements appear in 40 CFR Part 265.[15]
The permitting requirements for TSDFs appear in 40 CFR Parts 264 and 270.[16] TSDFs manage (treat, store, or dispose) hazardous wastes in units that may include: container storage areas, tanks, surface impoundments, waste piles, land treatment units, landfills, incinerators, containment buildings, and/or drip pads. The unit-specific permitting and operational requirements are described in further detail in 40 CFR Part 264, Subparts J through DD.