[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 180 (Monday, September 19, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-23114]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: September 19, 1994]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
40 CFR Part 261

[SW-FRL-5075-6]

 

Hazardous Waste Management System; Identification and Listing of 
Hazardous Waste; Final Amendment

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Final amendment.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) today is 
granting a final amendment to an exclusion from the lists of hazardous 
wastes previously granted for certain solid wastes generated by POP 
Fasteners (POP) in Shelton, Connecticut. This action is taken in 
response to a petition for amendment submitted by POP to increase the 
maximum annual waste volume covered in its exclusion. The exclusion was 
granted under regulations that allow generators to petition EPA to 
remove their wastes from hazardous waste control by excluding such 
wastes from the hazardous waste lists.

EFFECTIVE DATE: September 19, 1994.

ADDRESSES: The public docket for this final amendment is located at the 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M Street, SW., Washington, DC 
20460, and is available for viewing (room M2616) from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., 
Monday through Friday, excluding Federal holidays. Call (202) 260-9327 
for appointments. The reference number for this docket is ``F-94-DLPE-
FFFFF''. The public may copy material from any regulatory docket at no 
cost for the first 100 pages, and at a cost of $0.15 per page for 
additional copies.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For general information, contact the 
RCRA Hotline, toll free at (800) 424-9346, or at (703) 412-9810. For 
technical information concerning this notice, contact Shen-yi Yang, 
Office of Solid Waste (5304), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 401 
M Street, SW., Washington, DC 20460, (202) 260-1436.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    On March 5, 1990, POP Fasteners (POP), a division of Black and 
Decker Corporation, of Shelton, Connecticut petitioned the Agency under 
Secs. 260.20 and 260.22, to exclude from hazardous waste control its 
F006 metal hydroxide filter cake resulting from the treatment of 
wastewater originating from its electroplating operation. After 
evaluating the petition, EPA published its final decision in the 
Federal Register (57 FR 57673, December 7, 1992) to exclude POP's waste 
from the lists of hazardous waste contained at Secs. 261.31 and 261.32. 
POP's final exclusion only applied to the process and waste volume (a 
maximum of 300 cubic yards generated annually) covered by its original 
petition. Any waste generated in excess of 300 cubic yards per year 
must be handled as hazardous unless an amendment to POP's final 
exclusion is granted.
    On May 10, 1993, POP petitioned the Agency for an amendment to its 
1992 final exclusion for an increase of its annual maximum waste 
generation from 300 cubic yards to 1,000 cubic yards. After its 
evaluation of POP's request and supporting information, EPA proposed, 
on April 11, 1994, to amend POP's December 7, 1992 exclusion to reflect 
a waste volume increase (see 59 FR 17080).
    Today's rulemaking finalizes the proposed amendment to amend POP's 
existing exclusion.

II. Disposition of Petition for Amendment

    POP Fasteners, Shelton, Connecticut.

A. Proposed Amendment

    As a result of its business growth, POP petitioned the Agency on 
May 10, 1993 for an amendment to its 1992 final exclusion for an 
increase of its annual maximum waste generation from 300 cubic yards to 
1,000 cubic yards.
    POP stated in an April 19, 1993 letter that: (1) the increase in 
the filter cake generation was attributable to an increase in rivet 
production since the petition was filed; (2) there have been no changes 
in the manufacturing process, feed materials, or waste water treatment 
process; and (3) the hours of POP's operation have increased.
    To confirm that the waste characteristics have not changed, POP 
submitted results from the analyses of one filter cake composite for 
all Toxicity Characteristic (TC) constituents listed in 40 CFR 261.24 
and nickel using the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP, 
SW-846 Method 1311). POP also submitted a signed certification dated 
May 10, 1993 stating that all submitted information is true, accurate, 
and complete.
    The Agency reviewed its previous decision to grant POP's original 
delisting petition (57 FR 37921, 57 FR 57673 and the administrative 
record in the RCRA public docket) and the analytical results provided 
by POP in support of its request for an amendment to its existing 
exclusion. The analytical results submitted to support this amendment 
show that the constituents detected in the waste sample, as well as 
their respective leachate concentration levels, are consistent with the 
waste data in POP's original petition. Furthermore, POP has certified 
that there have been no changes in process or feed materials. 
Therefore, the Agency believes that the waste characteristics have not 
changed.
    The Agency evaluated the potential impact of POP's petitioned waste 
on human health and the environment, at the increased annual maximum 
waste volume, following the same approach it used in evaluating POP's 
original petition. Specifically, the Agency evaluated the waste using 
the requested annual maximum waste volume estimate of 1,000 cubic yards 
and the maximum reported leachate concentration of POP's waste using 
the same ground-water model described in the Agency's original decision 
(see 57 FR 37921, August 21, 1992 and the RCRA public docket ``F-92-
PEEP-FFFFF'' to that rule). The Agency notes that the modeling results 
are the same for 300 and 1,000 cubic yards, and the increased waste 
volume has no significant impact. Thus, the Agency believes that the 
constituents in POP's waste would not leach and migrate at 
concentrations above the Agency's health-based levels used in delisting 
decision-making.
    EPA also considered the impact of the increased waste volume on 
potential risks posed by other exposure routes (i.e., air emission, 
surface water). Since the total concentration levels of hazardous 
constituents of concern in the petitioned waste and the active landfill 
area remain unchanged, the Agency believes that no significant exposure 
to contaminants potentially released via air emission and surface 
runoff from POP's petitioned waste is likely. See 57 FR 37921 (August 
21, 1992), 57 FR 57673 (December 7, 1992), and the RCRA public dockets 
for these notices for a detailed description of the evaluation.

B. Response to Public Comments

    The Agency did not receive any comments on the proposed amendment.

C. Final Agency Decision

    For the reasons stated in the proposed amendment and in today's 
notice, the Agency believes that POP's waste is non-hazardous at the 
maximum generation rate of 1,000 cubic yards per year, and should be 
excluded from hazardous waste control. The Agency, therefore, is 
granting the amendment to POP Fastener's exclusion to reflect a waste 
volume increase for waste generated at its Shelton, Connecticut 
facility. This amendment only applies to the process covered by POP's 
original petition, and allows a maximum annual waste volume of 1,000 
cubic yards. All other conditions listed in POP's exclusion remain 
unchanged. Waste generated in excess of 1,000 cubic yards per year or 
from changed processes must be handled as hazardous until a new 
exclusion is granted.

III. Effective Date

    This amendment is effective immediately upon final publication in 
the Federal Register. The Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984 
amended section 3010 of RCRA to allow rules to become effective in less 
than six months when the regulated community does not need the six-
month period to come into compliance. That is the case here because 
this amendment reduces the existing requirements for persons generating 
hazardous wastes. In light of the unnecessary hardship and expense that 
would be imposed on this petitioner by an effective date six months 
after publication and the fact that a six-month deadline is not 
necessary to achieve the purpose of section 3010, EPA believes that 
this amendment should be effective immediately upon final publication. 
These reasons also provide a basis for making this amendment effective 
immediately, upon final publication, under the Administrative Procedure 
Act, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(d).

IV. Regulatory Impact

    Under Executive Order 12866, EPA must conduct an ``assessment of 
the potential costs and benefits'' for all ``significant'' regulatory 
actions. This amendment is not significant, since its effect reduces 
the overall costs and economic impact of EPA's hazardous waste 
management regulations. This reduction is achieved by excluding an 
additional amount of waste generated at a specific facility from EPA's 
lists of hazardous wastes, thereby enabling this facility to treat its 
waste as non-hazardous. There is no additional economic impact due to 
today's rule. Therefore, this rule is not a significant regulation, and 
no cost/benefit assessment is required. The Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) has also exempted this rule from the requirement for OMB 
review under section (6) of Executive Order 12866.

V. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Pursuant to the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601-612, 
whenever an agency is required to publish a general notice of 
rulemaking for any proposed or final rule, it must prepare and make 
available for public comment a regulatory flexibility analysis that 
describes the impact of the rule on small entities (i.e., small 
businesses, small organizations, and small governmental jurisdictions). 
No regulatory flexibility analysis is required, however, if the 
Administrator or delegated representative certifies that the rule will 
not have an impact on any small entities.
    This amendment will not have any adverse economic impact on small 
entities because its effect will be to reduce the overall costs of 
EPA's hazardous waste regulations and will be limited to one facility. 
Accordingly, I hereby certify that this amendment will not have a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
This amendment therefore, does not require a regulatory flexibility 
analysis.

VI. Paperwork Reduction Act

    Information collection and recordkeeping requirements associated 
with this final amendment have been approved by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) under the provisions of the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1980 (P.L. 96-511, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) and have 
been assigned OMB Control Number 2050-0053.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 261

    Hazardous Waste, Recycling, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.

    Dated: September 7, 1994.
Elizabeth A. Cotsworth,
Acting Director, Office of Solid Waste.

    For the reasons set out in the preamble, 40 CFR part 261 is amended 
as follows:

PART 261--IDENTIFICATION AND LISTING OF HAZARDOUS WASTE

    1. The authority citation for part 261 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912(a), 6921, 6922, and 6938.

Appendix IX--[Amended]

    2. In Table 1 of Appendix IX of Part 261, the entry for ``POP 
Fasteners, Shelton, Connecticut'' is revised to read as follows: 

                              Table 1.--Wastes Excluded From Non-specific Sources                               
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
      Facility                Address                                 Waste description                         
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                                
                                                  * * * * * * *                                                 
POP Fasteners........  Shelton, Connecticut.  Wastewater treatment sludge (EPA Hazardous Waste No. F006)        
                                               generated from electroplating operations (at a maximum annual    
                                               rate of 1,000 cubic yards) after [insert date of publication]. In
                                               order to confirm that the characteristics of the waste do not    
                                               change significantly, the facility must, on an annual basis,     
                                               analyze a representative composite sample for the constituents   
                                               listed in Sec. 261.24 using the method specified therein. The    
                                               annual analytical results, including quality control information,
                                               must be compiled, certified according to Sec. 260.22(i)(12),     
                                               maintained on site for a minimum of five years, and made         
                                               available for inspection upon request by any employee or         
                                               representative of EPA or the State of Connecticut. Failure to    
                                               maintain the required records on site will be considered by EPA, 
                                               at its discretion, sufficient basis to revoke the exclusion to   
                                               the extent directed by EPA.                                      
                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                
                                                  * * * * * * *                                                 
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[FR Doc. 94-23114 Filed 9-16-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P