[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 35 (Tuesday, February 22, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9772-9774]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-3866]


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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[EPA-R09-RCRA-2011-0103; FRL-9269-3]


Adequacy of Arizona Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Permit Program

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION: Notice of Tentative Determination of Adequacy and Opportunity 
to Comment.

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SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency Region IX is proposing to 
approve a modification to Arizona's municipal solid waste landfill 
(MSWLF) permit program to allow the State to issue research, 
development, and demonstration (RD&D) permits for new and existing 
MSWLF units and lateral expansions. The modification will allow the 
Director of the approved State program to provide a variance from 
certain MSWLF criteria, provided that the MSWLF owner/operator 
demonstrates that compliance with the RD&D permit will not increase 
risk to human health and the environment. The Director may provide a 
variance from existing requirements of MSWLF criteria for run-on 
control systems, liquids restrictions, and final cover. EPA is seeking 
public comment on its tentative determination of adequacy of Arizona's 
RD&D modification to its MSWLF permit program.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before April 25, 2011. If 
sufficient public interest is expressed, EPA will hold a public hearing 
on April 25, 2011 at 4 p.m. in Room 145, Arizona Department of 
Environmental Quality, 1110 West Washington Street, Phoenix, Arizona. 
If by April 11, 2011, EPA does not receive sufficient public interest 
for a public hearing, EPA may cancel the public hearing with no further 
notice. If

[[Page 9773]]

you are interested in attending the public hearing, contact Karen Ueno 
at (415) 972-3317 to verify that a hearing will be held.

ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. EPA-R09-
RCRA-2011-0103 by one of the following methods:
     http://www.regulations.gov: Follow the on-line 
instructions for submitting comments.
     E-mail: [email protected].
     Fax: (415) 947-3530.
     Mail: Karen Ueno (WST-7), Environmental Protection Agency 
Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901.
     Hand Delivery: Environmental Protection Agency Region IX, 
75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901. Such deliveries are 
only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation, and 
special arrangements should be made for deliveries of boxed 
information.
    Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA-R09-RCRA-
2011-0103. EPA's policy is that all comments received will be included 
in the public docket without change and may be made available online at 
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided, unless the comment includes information claimed to be 
Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose 
disclosure is restricted by statute. Do not submit information that you 
consider to be CBI or otherwise protected through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. The http://www.regulations.gov Web site 
is an ``anonymous access'' system, which means EPA will not know your 
identity or contact information unless you provide it in the body of 
your comment. If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without 
going through http://www.regulations.gov your e-mail address will be 
automatically captured and included as part of the comment that is 
placed in the public docket and made available on the Internet. If you 
submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name 
and other contact information in the body of your comment and with any 
disk or CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to 
technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA 
may not be able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid 
the use of special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of 
any defects or viruses.
    Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the http://www.regulations.gov index. Although listed in the index, some 
information is not publicly available, e.g., CBI or other information 
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other materials, 
such as the State's prior applications for MSWLF permit program 
approval, are available only in hard copy. Publicly available docket 
materials are available either electronically in http://www.regulations.gov or in hard copy at the Environmental Protection 
Agency Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CA 94105-3901. 
This Docket facility is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, excluding legal holidays. It is located in a secured building. 
To review docket materials at the Docket facility, it is recommended 
that the public make an appointment by calling the Docket facility at 
(415) 947-4406 during normal business hours.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Karen Ueno, Waste Management Division, 
WST-7, Environmental Protection Agency Region IX, 75 Hawthorne Street, 
San Francisco, CA 94105-3901; telephone number: (415) 972-3317; fax 
number: (415) 947-3530; e-mail address: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. General Information

A. Background

    On March 22, 2004, EPA issued a final rule amending the municipal 
solid waste landfill criteria at 40 CFR 258.4 to allow for RD&D 
permits. (69 FR 13242). This rule allows for variances from specified 
criteria for a limited period of time. Specifically, the rule allows 
the Director of an approved State to issue a time-limited RD&D permit 
for a new MSWLF unit, existing MSWLF unit, or lateral expansion, for 
which the owner or operator proposes to use innovative and new methods 
which vary from either or both of the following: (1) The run-on control 
systems at 40 CFR 258.26, and/or (2) the liquids restrictions at 40 CFR 
258.28(a), provided that the MSWLF unit has a leachate collection 
system designed and constructed to maintain less than a 30-cm depth of 
leachate on the liner. The rule also allows the Director of an approved 
State to issue a time-limited RD&D permit for which the owner or 
operator proposes to use innovative and new methods that vary from the 
final cover criteria at 40 CFR 258.60(a)(1) and (2), and (b)(1), 
provided that the owner or operator demonstrates that the alternative 
cover system will not contaminate groundwater or surface water, or 
cause leachate depth on the liner to exceed 30 cm. An RD&D permit 
cannot exceed three years and a renewal of an RD&D permit cannot exceed 
three years. Although multiple renewals of an RD&D permit can be 
issued, the total term for an RD&D permit including renewals cannot 
exceed twelve years.
    RD&D permits are only available in States with approved MSWLF 
permit programs that have been modified to incorporate the RD&D permit 
authority. Although a State is not required to seek approval for the 
RD&D permit provision, a State must obtain EPA approval before it may 
issue such a permit. Requirements for State program determination of 
adequacy and approval procedures are contained in 40 CFR Part 239.
    In 1994, EPA Region IX approved the State of Arizona's municipal 
solid waste landfill (MSWLF) permit program pursuant to Subtitle D of 
the Federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). With its 
application, dated June 28, 2010, as updated on January 26, 2011, the 
State of Arizona is seeking EPA approval for a modification to the 
State's existing MSWLF permit program to include RD&D permits.

II. EPA's Action

A. Tentative Determination

    After completing a thorough review, EPA is proposing to tentatively 
approve Arizona's RD&D permit program modification. Arizona has 
lawfully promulgated and fully enacted regulations for the RD&D permit 
program, and these regulations are adequate to ensure compliance with 
the Federal criteria at 40 CFR 258.4. In conformance with the Federal 
regulations, and in addition to Arizona-specific requirements, an owner 
or operator is required to maintain less than a 30-cm depth of leachate 
on liner and demonstrate that compliance with the RD&D permit will not 
increase risk to human heath and the environment over compliance with a 
standard MSWLF permit.
    Following the close of the public comment period and in 
consideration of comments received, EPA will issue a final 
determination. If approved, Arizona will be able to issue variances for 
run-on control systems, liquid restrictions, and final cover criteria 
to allow for innovative and new methods, such as bioreactor landfills.

B. Submitting Comments on EPA's Tentative Determination

    Tips for Preparing Your Comments. When submitting comments, 
remember to:
     Identify the rulemaking by docket number and other 
identifying

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information (subject heading, Federal Register date and page number).
     Follow directions--The agency may ask you to respond to 
specific questions or organize comments by referencing a Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) part or section number.
     Explain why you agree or disagree; suggest alternatives 
and substitute language for your requested changes.
     Describe any assumptions and provide any technical 
information and/or data that you used.
     If you estimate potential costs or burdens, explain how 
you arrived at your estimate in sufficient detail to allow for it to be 
reproduced.
     Provide specific examples to illustrate your concerns, and 
suggest alternatives.
     Explain your views as clearly as possible, avoiding the 
use of profanity or personal threats.
     Make sure to submit your comments by the comment period 
deadline identified.
    Submitting Confidential Business Information (CBI). Do not submit 
this information to EPA through http://www.regulations.gov or e-mail. 
Clearly mark the part or all of the information that you claim to be 
CBI. For CBI information in a disk or CD-ROM that you mail to EPA, mark 
the outside of the disk or CD-ROM as CBI and then identify 
electronically within the disk or CD-ROM the specific information that 
is claimed as CBI. In addition to one complete version of the comment 
that includes information claimed as CBI, a copy of the comment that 
does not contain the information claimed as CBI must be submitted for 
inclusion in the public docket. Information so marked will not be 
disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 40 CFR Part 
2.
    Docket Copying Costs. Copying arrangements will be made through the 
Docket facility and billed directly to the recipient. Copying costs may 
be waived depending on the total number of pages copied.

    Authority: Sections 2002, 4005, and 4010(c) of the Solid Waste 
Disposal Act, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 6912, 6945, and 6949(a). 
Delegation 8-46. State/Tribal Permit Programs for Municipal Solid 
Waste Landfills.

    Dated: February 11, 2011.
Jared Blumenfeld,
Regional Administrator, Region IX.
[FR Doc. 2011-3866 Filed 2-18-11; 8:45 am]
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