BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1620
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Date of Hearing: March 20, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND TOXIC MATERIALS
Bob Wieckowski, Chair
AB 1620 (Wieckowski) - As Introduced: February 8, 2012
SUBJECT : Hazardous waste treatment permits.
SUMMARY : Exempts certain hazardous waste management activities
from being regulated as treatment if the activity is conducted
onsite or at a facility that has obtained a hazardous waste
storage permit. Specifically, this bill exempts the following
hazardous waste activities from Department of Toxic Substances
Control (DTSC) treatment permits:
1) Separation of air and particulate matter by physical
means, and
2) Compaction of compatible waste by physical means to
reduce volume if the process does not increase the risk of
fire or cause the release of hazardous gaseous emissions.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires hazardous waste treatment, storage, and disposal
facilities (TSDFs) to obtain a hazardous waste facilities
permit or other grant or authorization from the DTSC.
Generators of hazardous waste who do not treat or store the
wastes for longer than 90 days are exempt from obtaining a
permit, but requires them to comply with specified
requirements relating to labeling and container management, as
well as training and emergency response requirements.
2)Defines treatment of a hazardous waste as any method or
process which changes, or is designed to change, the physical,
chemical or biological character of the hazardous waste.
3)Exempts certain hazardous waste management activities from
being regulated as "treatment" if the activity is conducted
onsite or at a facility that has obtained a hazardous waste
storage permit. The exempted activities include sieving or
filtering, phase separation, and evaporation of hazardous
waste, and combining of compatible waste streams, under the
conditions specified. Exempts the uses of health facility
disinfecting agents (glutaraldehyde and ortho-phthalaldehyde)
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from treatment permitting requirements.
4)The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) requires
anyone who owns or operates a facility where hazardous waste
is treated, stored, or disposed to have a RCRA hazardous waste
permit issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (US
EPA).
FISCAL EFFECT : Not known.
COMMENTS :
1)Need for the bill . According to the sponsors of this bill,
the California Association of Environmental Health
Administrators, "AB 1620 deals with reducing the permitting
requirements for hazardous waste treatment for very low risk
waste treatment. Although technically treatment, an
additional layer of regulation is not required for these
management practices to make sure that removing air from dust
and compacting rags and debris to reduce the volume of the
waste is protective of the environment or public safety."
According to the sponsors, "the proposed categories of low
risk waste management were developed by the Southern
California Technical Hazardous Waste Advisory Group to the
Certified Unified Program Agency (CUPA) Forum Board dealing
with permitting as hazardous waste treatment. The goal of the
proposed statutory exemptions is to remove those activities
that, while technically meeting the definition of treatment,
do not really constitute waste treatment".
2)State regulation of hazardous treatment, storage, and disposal
facilities. Any person who stores, treats or disposes of
hazardous waste as described in the Hazardous Waste Control
Law (Health and Safety Code, Division 20, Chapter 6.5) must
obtain a permit or a grant of authorization from the DTSC.
According the DTSC, hazardous waste treatment facilities use
various processes (such as incineration or oxidation) to alter
the character or composition of hazardous wastes. Some
treatment processes enable waste to be recovered and reused in
manufacturing settings, while other treatment processes
dramatically reduce the amount of hazardous waste.
3)Examples of exempted practices . This bill provides exemptions
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from additional hazardous waste treatment permitting for the
following activities:
a) Hazardous waste collections such as "bag house waste"
are currently required to receive separate treatment
permits because the facility was collecting airborne dust
in a ventilation system and separating the airborne dust
from air.
b) Compaction of compatible waste by physical means to
reduce volume would be characterized by a facility were
compacting oily rags reducing the volume four-fold so with
compaction they can remove a truckload of waste a month
instead of a truckload every week.
Prior legislation : AB 966 (Ackerman) Chapter 506, Statutes of
1998, established the current categories of waste management
practices that were exempted from the treatment permitting
process.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support:
The California Association of Environmental Health
Administrators (sponsors)
Opposition:
None received.
Analysis Prepared by : Bob Fredenburg / E.S. & T.M. / (916)
319-3965