[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 26 (Wednesday, February 12, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2367-S2368]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Ms. STABENOW.
  S. 383. A bill to amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to prohibit the 
importation of Canadian municipal solid waste without State consent; to 
the Commitment on Environment and Public Works.
  Ms. STABENOW. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce a bill to 
address the growing problem of Canadian waste shipments to Michigan.
  In 2001, Michigan imported almost 3.6 million tons of municipal solid 
waste, more than double the amount that was imported in 1999. This 
gives Michigan the unduly distinction of being the third largest 
dumping ground of waste in the United States.
  My colleagues may be surprised to know that the biggest source of 
this waste was not another State, but our neighbor to north, Canada. 
More than half the waste that was shipped to Michigan in 2001 was from 
Ontario, Canada, and these imports are growing rapidly. On January 1, 
2003, as another Ontario landfill closed its doors, the City of Toronto 
switched from shipping two-thirds of its trash, to shipping all of its 
trash--1.1 million tons--to a Michigan landfill. And this deal could 
last 20 years! Experts predict that soon there will be virtually no 
local disposal capacity in Ontario, which could mean even more waste 
being shipped across the border to Michigan.
  Not only does this waste dramatically decrease Michigan's own 
landfill capacity, but it has a tremendous negative impact on 
Michigan's environment and the public health of citizens. Currently, 
Canadian municipal solid waste is sent to landfills in seven different 
Michigan counties--Genesee, Huron, Macomb, Monroe, Oakland, Washtenaw, 
and Wayne counties. Based on current usage statistics, the Michigan 
Department of Environmental Quality, DEQ, estimates that Michigan has 
capacity for 15-17 years of disposal in landfills. However, with the 
proposed dramatic increase in importation of waste, this capacity is 
less than 10 years. The Michigan DEQ estimates that for every five 
years of disposal of Canadian waste at the current usage volume, 
Michigan is losing a full year of landfill capacity. The Canadian waste 
also hampers the effectiveness of Michigan's State and local recycling 
efforts, since Ontario does not have a bottle law requiring recycling.
  These Canadian waste shipments also present a threat to homeland 
security. Currently, 130 truckloads of waste come into Michigan each 
day from Canada. These trucks cross the Ambassador Bridge and Blue 
Water Bridge and travel through the busiest parts of Metro Detroit. In 
addition to causing traffic delays, and filling our air with the stench 
of exhaust and garbage, these trucks also present a security risk at 
our Michigan-Canadian border, since by their nature trucks full of 
garbage are harder for Customs agent to inspects then traditional 
cargo.
  Last year, I joined with Senator Levin and Congressman Dingell to 
introduce legislation to enforce the protections that Michigan is 
already entitled to which are contained in an international agreement 
between the United States and Canada. I continue to be supportive of 
this bill and I was proud to join as an original co-sponsor when it was 
reintroduced last month. However, with the recent landfill closings in 
Ontario, this problem has spiraled out of control.
  That is why today I am introducing ``the Canadian Waste Import Ban 
Act of 2003.'' This bill would stop these shipments by placing an 
immediate federal ban on the importation of Canadian municipal solid 
waste. The ban will be in place until the EPA enforces ``the Agreement 
Concerning the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Waste.'' Under this 
existing agreement, the EPA is supposed to receive notification of 
Canadian waste shipments, and then would have 30 days to consent or 
object to the shipment. Not only have these notification provisions not 
been enforced, but the EPA has indicated that they would not object to 
the municipal waste shipments.
  In addition, the bill requires the EPA to Michigan's or any State's 
consent before receiving any shipment of Canadian municipal solid 
waste. In enforcing the agreement, the EPA must obtain the consent of 
the receiving State, before consenting to a Canadian municipal solid 
waste shipment. The EPA must also consider the impact of the shipment 
on homeland security, the environment, and public health.
  This legislation will stop the importation of Canadian trash until 
Michigan residents are given the voice they deserve in deciding whether 
or not this waste should be sent to their landfills. We need to give 
the states a real voice in these decisions and my bill guarantees that 
the states through the EPA will get to decide whether or not they want 
to receive this Canadian waste. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent 
that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 383

       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''.

[[Page S2368]]

     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.''.

                          ____________________