La. Admin. Code tit. 33 § V-305

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024

Section V-305 - Scope of the Permit

A. A permit is required for the treatment, storage, and disposal of any hazardous waste as identified or listed in LAC 33:V.Chapter 49. The terms treatment, storage, disposal, and hazardous waste are defined in LAC 33:V.109. Owners and operators of hazardous waste management units must have permits during the active life (including the closure period) of the unit. Owners or operators of surface impoundments, landfills, land treatment units, and waste pile units that received wastes after July 26, 1982, or that certified closure (according to LAC 33:V.4387) after January 26, 1983, must have post-closure permits, unless they demonstrate closure by removal or decontamination as provided under Subsections F and G of this Section, or obtain an enforceable document in lieu of a post-closure permit, as provided under Subsection H of this Section. If a post-closure permit is required, the permit must address applicable groundwater monitoring, unsaturated zone monitoring, corrective action, and post-closure care requirements. The denial of a permit for the active life of a hazardous waste management facility or unit does not affect the requirement to obtain a post-closure permit under this Section.

B. Specific Inclusions. Owners and operators of certain facilities require hazardous waste permits as well as permits under other programs for certain aspects of the facility operation. Permits are required for:

1. facilities which treat, store, and/or dispose of hazardous wastes controlled by this program, as listed in LAC 33:V.105, less listed exclusions in LAC 33:V.105.D;

2. all associated surface facilities for injection wells that treat, store, and/or dispose of hazardous waste;

3. treatment, storage, or disposal of hazardous waste at facilities requiring a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit;

4. barges or vessels that dispose of hazardous waste under a valid federal permit by ocean disposal and onshore hazardous waste treatment, or storage facilities associated with an ocean disposal operation. However, the facility will be deemed to have a permit for ocean disposal from the barge or vessel itself if it complies with the requirements of LAC 33:V.305.C.

C. Specific Exclusions and Exemptions. The following persons are not required to obtain a hazardous waste permit:

1. facilities with injection wells that dispose of hazardous waste. Those wells are regulated by the Office of Conservation prior to February 1, 1984. After that date, such permits shall be issued by the Department of Environmental Quality pursuant to Act 97 of 1983;

2. generators who accumulate hazardous waste on-site in compliance with all of the conditions for exemption provided in LAC 33:V1009, 1011, 1013, and 1015;

3. farmers who dispose of hazardous waste pesticides from their own use as provided in LAC 33:V.1003.C;

4. persons who own or operate facilities solely for the treatment, storage, or disposal of hazardous waste excluded from regulation under LAC 33:V.105.D or 1009 (very small quantity generator exemption);

5. owners or operators of totally enclosed treatment facilities (see definition in LAC 33:V.Chapter 1);

6. owners and operators of elementary neutralization units or wastewater treatment units (see definitions in LAC 33:V.Chapter 1);

7. transporters storing manifested shipments of hazardous waste in containers meeting all applicable requirements at a transfer facility for a period of 10 days or less, if so approved by the administrative authority (see definition in LAC 33:V.109);

8. persons adding absorbent material to waste in a container and persons adding waste to absorbent material, provided that this action occurs at the time waste is first placed in the container and that the action complies with all applicable sections in LAC 33:V.Chapter 21;

9. a person is not required to obtain a permit for those activities he carries out to immediately contain or treat a spill of hazardous waste or material which, when spilled, becomes a hazardous waste. This exclusion is intended to relieve persons of the necessity of obtaining a RCRA permit where the treatment or storage of hazardous waste is undertaken as part of an immediate response to a spill. After the immediate response activities are completed, any treatment, storage, or disposal of spilled material or spill residue or debris that is undertaken must be covered by interim status, permit or emergency permit;

10. owners and operators of facilities granted a research development and demonstration permit under Section 3005(g) of Subtitle C of RCRA, is so specifically exempted by the administrative authority;

11.universal waste handlers and universal waste transporters (as defined in LAC 33:V.3813) handling the wastes listed below. These handlers are subject to regulation under LAC 33:V.Chapter 38, when handling the below listed universal wastes:

a. batteries as described in LAC 33:V.3803;

b. pesticides as described in LAC 33:V.3805;

c. mercury-containing equipment as described in LAC 33:V.3807;

d. lamps as described in LAC 33:V.3809;

e. electronics as described in LAC 33:V.3810; and

f. antifreeze as described in LAC 33:V.3811;

12. the owner or operator of a facility permitted, licensed, or registered to manage municipal or industrial solid waste, if the only hazardous waste the facility treats, stores, or disposes of is excluded from regulation by LAC 33:V.Subpart 1;

13. a person, not required to obtain a RCRA permit for treatment or containment activities taken during immediate response to any of the following situations:

a. a discharge of a hazardous waste;

b. an imminent and substantial threat of a discharge of hazardous waste;

c. a discharge of a material which, when discharged, becomes a hazardous waste;

d. an immediate threat to human health, public safety, property, or the environment from the known or suspected presence of military munitions, other explosive material, or an explosive device, as determined by an explosives or munitions emergency response specialist as defined in LAC 33:V.109;

14. any person who continues or initiates hazardous waste treatment or containment activities after the immediate response is over is subject to all applicable requirements of LAC 33:V.Chapters 3, 5, and 7 for those activities; or

15. in the case of emergency responses involving military munitions, the responding military emergency response specialist's organizational unit must retain records for three years identifying the dates of the response, the responsible persons responding, the type and description of material addressed, and its disposition.

D. RCRA Permits by Rule

1. Notwithstanding any other provision, the following shall be deemed to have a permit if the conditions listed are met.

a. The owner or operator of a barge or other vessel which accepts hazardous waste for ocean disposal, if he or she has a valid federal permit for ocean dumping which is duly authorized and meets permit conditions, hazardous waste regulations, identification numbers, uses the manifest system, reports manifest discrepancies, operating records, annual reports, and reports of any unmanifested waste. Where required by the administrative authority, evidence of the above conditions must be presented. On-shore storage or treatment facilities shall be permitted as required by LAC 33:V.Subpart 1.

b. The owner or operator of an injection well disposing of hazardous waste if he or she has a valid permit for underground injection issued under LAC 43:XVII.Subparts 1 and 2 and is in compliance with such permit and LAC 43:XVII.203.F, and associated surface facilities are permitted under LAC 33:V.Subpart 1. For underground injection permits issued after November 8, 1984, the owner or operator must comply with LAC 33:V.3322. Where the underground injection well is the only unit at a facility which requires a RCRA permit, the owner or operator must comply with LAC 33:V.516 and with the following information requirements for solid waste management units.

i. The following information is required for each solid waste management unit at a facility seeking a permit:

(a). the location of the unit on the topographic map;

(b). designation of type of unit;

(c). general dimensions and structural description (supply any available drawings);

(d). information on when the unit was operated; and

(e). specification of all wastes that have been managed at the unit, to the extent available.

ii. The owner or operator of any facility containing one or more solid waste management units must submit all available information pertaining to any release of hazardous wastes or hazardous constituents from such unit or units.

iii. The owner/operator must conduct and provide the results of sampling and analysis of groundwater, land surface, and subsurface strata, surface water, or air, which may include the installation of wells, where the administrative authority ascertains it is necessary to complete a RCRA Facility Assessment that will determine if a more complete investigation is necessary.

2. Publicly Owned Treatment Works. The owner or operator of a POTW can accept hazardous waste for treatment, if the owner or operator has an NPDES permit, complies with the conditions of that permit, and complies with the following regulations:

a. receives an identification number as provided in LAC 33:V.303.H.4;

b. receives all hazardous waste under a designated manifest system;

c. provides a mechanism by which discrepancies in manifested discharges and receipts can be reconciled;

d. maintains a description and quantity of each hazardous waste received and subsequent treatment including methods and dates;

e. submits annual reports summarizing activities relating to receptions and treatment of each hazardous waste;

f. submits a complete report within five days of receiving any hazardous waste on an unmanifested basis;

g. complies with all recordkeeping requirements of LAC 33:V.Subpart 1; and

h. for NPDES permits issued after November 8, 1984, complies with LAC 33:V.3322.

3. The owner or operator can accept the hazardous waste if it meets all federal, state, and local pretreatment requirements which would be applicable to the waste and if it is discharged into the POTW through a sewer, pipe, or similar conveyance.

E. Permits for Less Than an Entire Facility. The administrative authority may issue or deny a permit for one or more units at a facility without simultaneously issuing or denying a permit to all of the units at the facility. The interim status of any unit for which a permit has not been issued or denied is not affected by the issuance or denial of a permit to any other unit at the facility.

F. Closure by Removal. Owners/operators of surface impoundments, land treatment units, and waste piles closing by removal or decontamination under LAC 33:V.Chapter 43 standards must obtain a post-closure permit unless they can demonstrate to the administrative authority that the closure met the standards for closure by removal or decontamination in LAC 33:V.2911, 2719.D.4, or 2315, respectively. The demonstration may be made in the following ways.

1. If the owner/operator has submitted an application for a post-closure permit, the owner/operator may request a determination, based on information contained in the application, that LAC 33:V.Subpart 1 closure-by-removal standards were met. If the administrative authority believes that LAC 33:V.Subpart 1 standards were met, he or she will notify the public of this proposed decision, allow for public comment, and reach a final determination according to the procedures in LAC 33:V.305.G.

2. If the owner/operator has not submitted a Part II application for a post-closure permit, the owner/operator may petition the administrative authority for a determination that a post-closure permit is not required because the closure met the applicable LAC 33:V.Chapters 10, 11, 15, 17, 19,21, 23, 25, 27, 28, 29, 31, 32, 33, 35, and 37 closure standards.

a. The petition must include data demonstrating that closure met removal or decontamination standards, or it must demonstrate that the unit was closed under state requirements that met or exceeded the applicable LAC 33:V.Subpart 1 closure-by-removal standards.

b. The administrative authority shall approve or deny the petition according to the procedures outlined in LAC 33:V.305.G.

G. Procedures for Closure Equivalency Determination

1. If a facility owner/operator seeks an equivalency demonstration under LAC 33:V.305.F, the administrative authority will provide the public through a newspaper notice, the opportunity to submit written comments on the information submitted by the owner/operator within 30 days from the date of the notice. The administrative authority will also, in response to a request or at his or her own discretion, hold a public hearing whenever such a hearing might clarify one or more issues concerning the equivalence of the LAC 33:V.Chapter 43 closure to the LAC 33:V.Chapter 35 closure. The administrative authority will give public notice of the hearing at least 30 days before it occurs. (Public notice of the hearing may be given at the same time as notice of the opportunity for the public to submit written comments, and the two notices may be combined.)

2. The administrative authority will determine whether the LAC 33:V.Chapter 43 closure met the requirements of LAC 33:V.Chapter 35 closure by removal or decontamination within 90 days of its receipt. If the administrative authority finds that the closure did not meet the applicable LAC 33:V.Chapter 35 standards, he or she will provide the owner/operator with a written statement of the reasons why the closure failed to meet LAC 33:V.Chapter 35 standards. The owner/operator may submit additional information in support of an equivalency demonstration within 30 days after receiving such written statement. The administrative authority will review any additional information submitted and make a final determination within 60 days.

3. If the administrative authority determines that the facility did not close in accordance with LAC 33:V.Chapter 35 closure-by-removal standards, the facility is subject to post-closure permitting requirements.

H. Enforceable Documents for Post-Closure Care. At the discretion of the administrative authority, an owner or operator may obtain, in lieu of a post-closure permit, an enforceable document imposing the requirements of LAC 33:V.4396. Enforceable document means an order, plan, or other document issued by EPA or by the department under an authority that meets the requirements of 40 CFR 271.16(e) including, but not limited to, a corrective action order issued by EPA under Section 3008(h), a CERCLA remedial action, or a closure or post-closure plan.

La. Admin. Code tit. 33, § V-305

Promulgated by the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Solid and Hazardous Waste, Hazardous Waste Division, LR 10:200 (March 1984), amended LR 10:496 (July 1984), LR 13:84 (February 1987), LR 13:433 (August 1987), LR 16:220 (March 1990), LR 16:614 (July 1990), LR 17:658 (July 1991), LR 20:1000 (September 1994), LR 20:1109 (October 1994), LR 21:944 (September 1995), LR 23:567 (May 1997), amended by the Office of Waste Services, Hazardous Waste Division, LR 24:1105 (June 1998), LR 24:1690, 1759 (September 1998), LR 25:435 (March 1999), amended by the Office of Environmental Assessment, Environmental Planning Division, LR 27:708 (May 2001), amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Affairs Division, LR 31:3116 (December 2005), LR 33:1625 (August 2007), LR 34:619 (April 2008), Amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Affairs and Criminal Investigations Division, LR 46900 (7/1/2020).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2180 et seq.