[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 383 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
108th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 383
To amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to prohibit the importation of
Canadian municipal solid waste without State consent.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 12, 2003
Ms. Stabenow introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to prohibit the importation of
Canadian municipal solid waste without State consent.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Canadian Waste Import Ban Act of
2003''.
SEC. 2. CANADIAN MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE.
(a) In General.--Subtitle D of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42
U.S.C. 6941 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 4011. CANADIAN MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE.
``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Agreement.--The term `Agreement' means--
``(A) the Agreement Concerning the Transboundary
Movement of Hazardous Waste between the United States
and Canada, signed at Ottawa on October 28, 1986 (TIAS
11099) and amended on November 25, 1992; and
``(B) any regulations promulgated to implement and
enforce that Agreement.
``(2) Canadian municipal solid waste.--The term `Canadian
municipal solid waste' means municipal solid waste that is
generated in Canada.
``(3) Municipal solid waste.--
``(A) In general.--The term `municipal solid waste'
means--
``(i) material discarded for disposal by--
``(I) households (including single
and multifamily residences); and
``(II) public lodgings such as
hotels and motels; and
``(ii) material discarded for disposal that
was generated by commercial, institutional, and
industrial sources, to the extent that the
material--
``(I)(aa) is essentially the same
as material described in clause (i); or
``(bb) is collected and disposed of
with material described in clause (i)
as part of a normal municipal solid
waste collection service; and
``(II) is not subject to regulation
under subtitle C.
``(B) Inclusions.--The term `municipal solid waste'
includes--
``(i) appliances;
``(ii) clothing;
``(iii) consumer product packaging;
``(iv) cosmetics;
``(v) debris resulting from construction,
remodeling, repair, or demolition of a
structure;
``(vi) disposable diapers;
``(vii) food containers made of glass or
metal;
``(viii) food waste;
``(ix) household hazardous waste;
``(x) office supplies;
``(xi) paper; and
``(xii) yard waste.
``(C) Exclusions.--The term `municipal solid waste'
does not include--
``(i) solid waste identified or listed as a
hazardous waste under section 3001, except for
household hazardous waste;
``(ii) solid waste, including contaminated
soil and debris, resulting from--
``(I) a response action taken under
section 104 or 106 of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liability Act (42 U.S.C. 9604,
9606);
``(II) a response action taken
under a State law with authorities
comparable to the authorities contained
in either of those sections; or
``(III) a corrective action taken
under this Act;
``(iii) recyclable material--
``(I) that has been separated, at
the source of the material, from waste
destined for disposal; or
``(II) that has been managed
separately from waste destined for
disposal, including scrap rubber to be
used as a fuel source;
``(iv) a material or product returned from
a dispenser or distributor to the manufacturer
or an agent of the manufacturer for credit,
evaluation, and possible potential reuse;
``(v) solid waste that is--
``(I) generated by an industrial
facility; and
``(II) transported for the purpose
of treatment, storage, or disposal to a
facility (which facility is in
compliance with applicable State and
local land use and zoning laws and
regulations) or facility unit--
``(aa) that is owned or
operated by the generator of
the waste;
``(bb) that is located on
property owned by the generator
of the waste or a company
with which the generator is affiliated; or
``(cc) the capacity of
which is contractually
dedicated exclusively to a
specific generator;
``(vi) medical waste that is segregated
from or not mixed with solid waste;
``(vii) sewage sludge or residuals from a
sewage treatment plant;
``(viii) combustion ash generated by a
resource recovery facility or municipal
incinerator; or
``(ix) waste from a manufacturing or
processing (including pollution control)
operation that is not essentially the same as
waste normally generated by households.
``(b) Ban on Canadian Municipal Solid Waste.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2),
until the date on which the Administrator promulgates
regulations to implement and enforce the Agreement (including
notice and consent provisions of the Agreement), no person may
import into any State, and no solid waste management facility
may accept, Canadian municipal solid waste for the purpose of
disposal or incineration of the Canadian municipal solid waste.
``(2) Election by governor.--The Governor of a State may
elect to opt out of the ban under paragraph (1), and consent to
the importation and acceptance by the State of Canadian
municipal solid waste before the date specified in that
paragraph, if the Governor submits to the Administrator a
notice of that election by the Governor.
``(c) Authority of Administrator.--
``(1) In general.--Beginning immediately after the date of
enactment of this section, the Administrator shall--
``(A) perform the functions of the Designated
Authority of the United States described in the
Agreement with respect to the importation and
exportation of municipal solid waste under the
Agreement; and
``(B) implement and enforce the Agreement
(including notice and consent provisions of the
Agreement).
``(2) Consent to importation.--In considering whether to
consent to the importation of Canadian municipal solid waste
under article 3(c) of the Agreement, the Administrator shall--
``(A) obtain the consent of each State into which
the Canadian municipal solid waste is to be imported;
and
``(B) consider the impact of the importation on
homeland security, public health, and the
environment.''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of contents of the Solid Waste
Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. prec. 6901) is amended by adding after the item
relating to section 4010 the following:
``Sec. 4011. Canadian municipal solid waste.''.
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