[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 132 (Tuesday, July 11, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 35703-35706]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-16951]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Parts 264, 265, and 271

[FRL 5226-9]


Hazardous Waste Management: Liquids in Landfills

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Direct final rule to grant a petition to add a test method.

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SUMMARY: On November 18, 1992, the Agency promulgated a final rule on 
liquids in landfills. That rule satisfied a statutory requirement in 
the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) as amended by the 
Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments of 1984 regarding the landfill 
disposal of containerized liquids. Specifically, the statute required 
EPA to issue a rule that prohibited the disposal in hazardous waste 
landfills of liquids that have been absorbed in materials that 
biodegrade. The November 18, 1992 rule includes two tests that could be 
used to demonstrate non-biodegradability. Today's rulemaking, which is 
issued in response to a petition, provides increased flexibility to the 
regulated community by adding another test to demonstrate that a 
sorbent is non-biodegradable.
    In the proposed rules section of today's Federal Register, EPA is 
proposing to grant the petition to add the additional test for 
biodegradability and is soliciting public comment on the addition of 
the third test. If significant adverse comments are received, EPA will 
withdraw the direct final rule and address the comments received in a 
subsequent final rule based on the related proposed rule. No additional 
opportunity for public comment will be provided.

DATES: This final action will become effective on September 11, 1995, 
unless EPA receives significant adverse comment on the proposal by 
August 10, 1995. If such comments are received, EPA will withdraw this 
direct final rule, and publish timely notice in the Federal Register.

ADDRESSES: Materials supporting this rulemaking are contained in EPA 
RCRA Docket No. F-95-ALLF-FFFFF, Room M2616, U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency, 401 M St. SW., Washington, DC 20460. The docket is 
open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal 
holidays. Call 202-260-9327 for an appointment to examine the docket. 
Up to 100 pages may be copied free of charge from any one regulatory 
docket. Additional copies are $0.15 per page. Those wishing to notify 
EPA of their intent to submit adverse comments on this action should 
contact David Eberly, Assistance Branch, Permits and State Programs 
Division, Office of Solid Waste (5303W), 401 M St. SW, Washington, DC 
20460, (Docket No. F-95-ALLP-FFFFF).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The RCRA/Superfund Hotline at 1-800-
424-9346 (toll free), or 703-412-9810 in the Washington, DC area. For 
information on technical aspects of this rule, contact David Eberly, 
U.S. EPA, Office of Solid Waste (5303W), 401 M St. SW., Washington, DC 
20460; 260-4288.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Authority

    This rule is being issued under the authority of section 3004(c) of 
the Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the Resource Conservation 
and Recovery Act of 1976 and the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments 
of 1984; 42 U.S.C. 6924(c).

II. Background

    Section 3004(c)(2) of RCRA requires EPA to issue regulations that 
``prohibit the disposal in landfills of liquids that have been absorbed 
in materials that biodegrade * * *''
    To demonstrate that a sorbent is non-biodegradable, the material 
must be listed in paragraph (e)(1) of Sec. 264.314 or paragraph (f)(1) 
of Sec. 265.314 or pass one of two tests cited in paragraph (e)(2) of 
Sec. 264.314 and paragraph (f)(1) of Sec. 265.314. The two tests are 
ASTM Method G21-70, a test for resistance of synthetic polymer 
materials to fungi, and G22-76, a test for determining resistance of 
plastics to bacteria.
    At the time of proposal of the two ASTM tests, the Agency 
recognized that other biodegradability tests existed, but they were not 
identified in the proposal or in the comments received on the proposed 
rule. The Agency, therefore, did not evaluate other tests. Instead, the 
Agency decided to require that further tests be added under the already 
established 40 CFR part 260 petition process.
    The Agency has received a petition for another test for 
biodegradability and, based on its review, has decided to include it as 
one that could be used instead of the ASTM tests. The test is one that 
has been recently adopted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation 
and Development (OECD), of which the United States is a member. The 
test, OECD 301B (Modified Sturm Test), was recommended by an OECD 
Expert Group on Degradation/ Accumulation to determine the 
biodegradability of organic chemicals in water. The Agency has 
concluded that the test is applicable, that it effectively measures the 
biodegradability of sorbents, and that its use in determining 
biodegradability of sorbents in a hazardous waste landfill will not 
have a negative environmental impact.
    The United States was represented on the OECD Expert Group on 
Degradation/Accumulation that evaluated and recommended tests for 
biodegration in 

[[Page 35704]]
water, abiotic degradation, bioaccumulation, and behavior of chemicals 
in soils and sediments. Tests were recommended by the group for each 
situation.
    The OECD adopted three tests for inherent biodegradability (in 
1981) and six tests for ready biodegradability (in 1992), all in an 
aerobic aqueous medium. The guidelines for all nine biodegradability 
tests are in the docket. The tests for inherent biodegradability 
require that the material being tested be soluble in water. As the 
sorbent materials to be tested must clearly not be soluble (otherwise 
they could not be used as sorbents), those tests are not applicable. In 
addition, these tests assume ideal conditions for biodegradability in 
an aerobic environment. Because the conditions to be encountered in a 
hazardous waste landfill are not ideal for either aerobic or anaerobic 
biodegradability, the tests for inherent biodegradability are not 
relevant.
    The tests for ready biodegradability, while not simulating the 
actual conditions to be found in a landfill, do provide an indication 
of the propensity of the material to biodegrade without enhanced 
conditions. Of the six tests adopted for ready biodegradability, test 
301B is best suited for compounds that are poorly soluble, non-
volatile, and absorbing. Sorbents used in spill responses or in sorbing 
liquid wastes share these properties.
    The Agency recognizes that the OECD test 301B is a test for 
biodegradability in an aerobic environment, as are the two ASTM tests 
that were promulgated in the November 18, 1992 rule. The Agency also 
recognizes that the actual environment in which the sorbents will be 
used, i.e., in a container in a landfill, will be anaerobic. The Agency 
does not know, however, of any published, widely accepted, tests for 
the biodegradability of materials in anaerobic conditions that would be 
practical for the purposes of this rule. The Agency believes, however, 
that OECD 301B is an acceptable surrogate for determining if a sorbent 
will biodegrade in containerized liquids in a hazardous waste landfill.

III. State Authority

    Under Section 3006 of RCRA, EPA may authorize qualified States to 
administer and enforce the RCRA program within the State. Following 
authorization, EPA retains enforcement authority under Sections 3008, 
3013, and 7003 of RCRA, although authorized States have primary 
enforcement responsibility. The standards and requirements for 
authorization are found in 40 CFR Part 271.
    Today's amendment to the provisions of the November 18, 1992 
liquids in landfills rule is being promulgated under authority that was 
added to RCRA by the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA) of 
1984. Under RCRA Section 3006(g), new requirements imposed by HSWA take 
effect in authorized States at the same time that they take effect in 
non-authorized States. Today's final rule for containerized liquids in 
landfills is issued under RCRA Section 3004(c), which was added by 
HSWA. These HSWA-based requirements are being added to Table 1 in 40 
CFR 271.1(j), which identifies the Federal program requirements that 
are promulgated pursuant to HSWA.
    Today's final rule adds a third test to the two already allowed 
under existing Federal regulations that were promulgated on November 
18, 1992, and therefore does not qualify as a ``more stringent'' 
requirement. Instead, today's rule in effect makes a technical 
amendment to the definition of ``biodegradability'' that does not 
affect the current regulations' stringency. Authorized States are only 
required to modify their programs when EPA promulgates Federal 
regulations that are more stringent or broader in scope than the 
existing Federal regulations. Therefore, States that are authorized for 
the November 18, 1992 rule are not required to modify their programs to 
adopt today's rule. However, EPA strongly urges States to do so. EPA 
will implement the provisions of today's rule in other States that have 
not been authorized for the liquids in landfills requirements in RCRA 
Section 3004(c)(2) pursuant to RCRA Section 3006(g) until they adopt 
and receive authorization to implement the November 18, 1992 rule. 
EPA's authorization guidance to States will link the November 18, 1992 
rule and today's final amendments.
    Given the minor scope of today's amendment, those States that are 
authorized for the November 18, 1992 rule may submit an abbreviated 
authorization revision application to the Region for today's amendment. 
This application should consist of a letter from the State to the 
appropriate Regional office, certifying that it has adopted provisions 
equivalent to and no less stringent than today's final rule (see the 
December 19, 1994, memorandum from Michael Shapiro, Director of the 
Office of Solid Waste, to the EPA Regional Division Directors that is 
in the docket for today's rule). The State should also submit a copy of 
its final rule or other authorizing authority. A revised Program 
Description, Memorandum of Agreement, and Attorney General's statement 
is not necessary (see 40 CFR 271.21(b)(1)). EPA expects that this 
simplified process will expedite the review of the authorization 
submittal for this rule.
    Finally, States authorized for the containerized liquids in 
landfills requirements may accept results of the OECD test promulgated 
in today's rule, consistent with State law, as evidence of non-
biodegradability, pending EPA review of a State program revision. 
States whose programs accept the OECD test would be no less stringent 
than the Federal program and would therefore be consistent with RCRA 
Section 3004(c)(2).

IV. Regulatory Requirements

A. Executive Order 12866

    Under Executive Order 12866 [58 FR 51735 (October 4, 1993)], EPA 
must determine whether the regulatory action is ``significant'' and 
therefore subject to OMB review and the requirements of the Executive 
Order. The Order defines ``significant regulatory action'' as one that 
is likely to result in a rule that may:
    (1) Have an annual effect on the economy of $100 million or more or 
adversely affect in a material way the economy, a sector of the 
economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public 
health or safety, or State, local or tribal governments or communities;
    (2) Create a serious inconsistency or otherwise interfere with an 
action taken or planned by another agency;
    (3) Materially alter the budgetary impact of entitlements, grants, 
user fees, or loan programs or the rights and obligations of recipients 
thereof; or
    (4) Raise novel legal or policy issues arising out of legal 
mandates, the President's priorities, or the principles set forth in 
the Executive Order.
    EPA has determined that this rule is not a ``significant regulatory 
action'' under the terms of Executive Order 12866 and is, therefore, 
not subject to OMB review.

B. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) 
requires Federal regulatory agencies to prepare a Regulatory 
Flexibility Analysis (RFA) for all regulations that have ``a 
significant economic impact on a substantial number of small 
entities.'' Today's rule simply adds one more test that industry may 
use to test sorbents that are not listed as acceptable in the November 
18, 1992 rule. Additionally, 

[[Page 35705]]
the test need only be used once for each sorbent type. Therefore, EPA 
certifies that today's regulation will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities. As a result, no 
Regulatory Flexibility Analysis is needed.

C. Paperwork Reduction Act

    This rule does not contain any information collection requirements 
subject to Office of Management and Budget review under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq., because no additional 
information is being required to be collected by this rule, and it does 
not require that additional records be retained.
D. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

    Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), P.L. 
104-4, establishes requirements for Federal agencies to assess the 
effects of their regulatory actions on State, local, and tribal 
governments and the private sector. Under section 202 of the UMRA, EPA 
generally must prepare a written statement, including a cost-benefit 
analysis, for proposed and final rules with ``Federal mandates'' that 
may result in expenditures to State, local, and tribal governments, in 
the aggregate, or to the private sector, of $100 million or more in any 
one year. When a written statement is needed for an EPA rule, section 
205 of the UMRA generally requires EPA to identify and consider a 
reasonable number of regulatory alternatives and adopt the least 
costly, most cost-effective or least burdensome alternative that 
achieves the objectives of the rule. The provisions of section 205 do 
not apply when they are inconsistent with applicable law. Moreover, 
section 205 allows EPA to adopt an alternative other than the least 
costly, most cost-effective or least burdensome alternative if the 
Administrator publishes with the final rule an explanation why that 
alternative was not adopted. Before EPA establishes any regulatory 
requirements that may significantly or uniquely affect small 
governments, including tribal governments, it must have developed under 
section 203 of the UMRA a small government agency plan. The plan must 
provide for notifying potentially affected small governments, giving 
them meaningful and timely input in the development of EPA regulatory 
proposals with significant Federal intergovernmental mandates, and 
informing, educating, and advising them on compliance with the 
regulatory requirements.
    Today's rule contains no Federal mandates (under the regulatory 
provisions of Title II of the UMRA) for State, local, or tribal 
governments or the private sector because it imposes no enforceable 
duties on any of these governmental entities or the private sector. The 
rule merely provides an optional alternative test method for 
determining biodegradability to satisfy a specific provision of RCRA. 
In any event, EPA has determined that this rule does not include a 
Federal mandate that may result in estimated costs of $100 million or 
more to either State, local, or tribal governments in the aggregate, or 
to the private sector in any one year. Thus, today's rule is not 
subject to the requirements of sections 202 and 205 of the UMRA. 
Similarly, EPA has determined that this rule contains no regulatory 
requirements that might significantly or uniquely affect small 
governments.

List of Subjects

40 CFR Parts 264 and 265

    Environmental protection, Air pollution control, Hazardous waste, 
Insurance, Packaging and containers, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements, Security measures, Surety bonds, Water supply.

40 CFR Part 271

    Administrative practice and procedure, Confidential business 
information, Hazardous material transportation, Hazardous waste, Indian 
lands, Intergovernmental relations, Penalties, Reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements, Water pollution control, Water supply.

    Dated: June 30, 1995.
Fred Hansen,
Acting Administrator.
    For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 40 CFR parts 264, 265, 
and 271 are amended as follows:

PART 264--STANDARDS FOR OWNERS AND OPERATORS OF HAZARDOUS WASTE 
TREATMENT, STORAGE, AND DISPOSAL FACILITIES

    1. The authority citation for part 264 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912(a), 6924, and 6925.

    2. Section 264.314 is amended by removing the period at the end of 
paragraph (e)(2)(ii) and adding ``; or'' and by adding paragraph 
(e)(2)(iii) to read as follows:


Sec. 264.314  Special requirements for bulk and containerized liquids.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (2) * * *
    (iii) The sorbent material is determined to be non-biodegradable 
under OECD test 301B: [CO2 Evolution (Modified Sturm Test)].
PART 265--INTERIM STATUS STANDARDS FOR OWNERS AND OPERATORS OF 
HAZARDOUS WASTE TREATMENT, STORAGE, AND DISPOSAL FACILITIES

    1. The authority citation for part 265 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912(a), 6924, 6925, 6935, and 6936, 
unless otherwise noted.

    2. Section 265.314 is amended by removing the period at the end of 
paragraph (f)(2)(ii) and adding ``; or'' and by adding paragraph 
(f)(2)(iii) to read as follows:


Sec. 265.314  Special requirements for bulk and containerized liquids.

    (f) * * *
    (2) * * *
    (iii) The sorbent material is determined to be non-biodegradable 
under OECD test 301B: [CO2 Evolution (Modified Sturm Test)].

PART 271--REQUIREMENTS FOR AUTHORIZATION OF STATE HAZARDOUS WASTE 
PROGRAMS

    1. The authority citation for part 271 is amended to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912(a) and 6926.

    2. Section 271.1(j) is amended by adding the following entry to 
Table 1 in chronological order by date of publication:


Sec. 271.1  Purpose and scope.

* * * * *

                                                                        

[[Page 35706]]
    Table 1.--Regulations Implementing the Hazardous and Solid Waste    
                           Amendments of 1984                           
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                        Title of      Federal Register                  
Promulgation date      regulation         reference      Effective date 
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                        
*                  *                  *                  *              
                  *                  *                  *               
July 11, 1995....  Containerized      35705...........  September 11,   
                    Liquids in                           1995.          
                    Landfills.                                          
                                                                        
*                  *                  *                  *              
                  *                  *                  *               
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[FR Doc. 95-16951 Filed 7-10-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P