Section 250-RICR-140-05-1.5 - DefinitionsA. As used in this Part: 1. "Active life" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill Units, the period of operation beginning with the initial receipt of solid waste and ending at completion of closure activities per §2.1.9 of this Subchapter.2. "Active portion" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill Units, that part of a facility or unit that has received or is receiving wastes and that has not been closed in accordance with §2.1.9 of this Subchapter.3. "Adulterated wood waste" means wood waste that has been treated, painted, coated, stained, soiled, contaminated, or similarly altered from its clean or virgin state.4. "Aerated static pile composting" means a method of composting in which oxygen and temperature levels are mechanically controlled by forced aeration using blowers. A series of perforated pipes (or equivalent) air distribution system runs underneath the compost pile and is connected to a blower that either draws or blows air through the pile. Little or no pile turning is performed.5. "Aeration" (for composting) means bringing about contact of air and composting solid organic matter, by means of turning or ventilating, to allow aerobic microbial metabolism of the organic matter.6. "Aerobic" means occurring in the presence of oxygen.7. "Aerobic composting" means decomposition of organic materials by bacteria in the presence of oxygen.8. "Agricultural by-product" means discarded organic materials produced from the raising of plants and animals as part of agronomic, floricultural, horticultural, silvicultural, vinicultural or viticultural operations including, but not limited to, animal manure, bedding materials, plant stalk, leaves, other vegetative matter and discarded by-product from the on-farm processing of fruits and vegetables.9. "Agricultural composting" means the composting of agricultural byproducts and/or other specified compostable materials on an "agricultural unit," resulting in compost products for agricultural and horticultural uses.10. "Agricultural composting facility" means that part of an agricultural unit upon which agricultural composting takes place. Such facilities must meet the requirements of the Division of Agriculture.11. "Agricultural unit" means farmland as designated under R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-27-3 upon which agricultural operations as defined in R.I. Gen. Laws § 2-23-4 are undertaken by a farmer.12. "Airport" means a public-use airport open to the public without prior permission and without restrictions within the physical capacities of available facilities, as defined in 40 C.F.R. § 257.3-8(e)(1) (1979).13. "Anaerobic" means occurring in the absence of oxygen.14. "Anaerobic digestion" means decomposition of organic material in the absence of oxygen.15. "Anaerobic digestion facility" means an Organic Waste Recycling facility licensed by the Department that employs a closed vessel to perform a closed process of accelerated biodegradation of Organic Materials and/or organic solid wastes into biogas and digestate, using microorganisms under controlled conditions in the absence of oxygen.16. "Apparent opening size" means the number of the U.S. Bureau of Standards sieve, or its opening size in millimeters or inches, having openings closest in size to the diameter of uniform particles which will allow five percent (5%) or less by weight to pass through.17. "Applicant" means a person seeking a new license or license renewal for a Solid Waste Management Facility or Organics Waste Recycling Facility or a new registration or registration renewal for a Composting Facility. It shall also include persons seeking to construct or add new equipment to an existing Solid Waste Management Facility or Organics Waste Recycling Facility, whether licensed or registered.18. "Aquifer" means a geologic formation, group of formations, or part of a formation that contains sufficient saturated, permeable material to yield significant quantities of water to wells and springs.19. "Arrangements" mean the process by which cities and towns plan for, implement and carry out the separation, weighing, collecting, hauling and disposal of municipal solid waste and recyclable materials.20. "Asbestos" means actinolite, amosite, anthophyllite, chrysotile, crocidolite, and tremolite.21. "Ash residue" means all the solid residue and any entrained liquids resulting from the combustion of solid waste or solid waste in combination with fossil fuel at a solid waste incinerator, including bottom ash, boiler ash, fly ash, and the solid residue of any air pollution control device used at a solid waste incinerator.22. "Backyard composting" means the composting on a residential site of certain wastes generated only at that site and where the compost produced is utilized on site and is not distributed or marketed. Wastes which may be composted include leaf and yard waste, certain food wastes including fruits and vegetables, tea leaves, coffee grounds, and eggshells; hair, sawdust, manures from animals that eat only plants, and other wastes acceptable to the Department for backyard composting.23. "Base flood" means a flood that has a one percent (1%) or greater chance of recurring in any year or a flood of magnitude equaled or exceeded once in one hundred (100) years on the average over a significantly long period, as defined in 40 C.F.R. § 257.3-1(b)(1) (2017) incorporated above at § 1.3(A) of this Part.24. "Bedrock" means solid rock, commonly called ledge that forms the earth's crust.25. "Biodegradable" means capable of being broken down (degraded) by microorganisms into simpler compounds or natural elements.26. "Biogas" means the gas mixture produced in an anaerobic digestion process which is primarily composed of methane and carbon dioxide and also contains impurities such as hydrogen sulfide.27. "Bird hazard" means an increase in the likelihood of bird/aircraft collisions that may cause damage to the aircraft or injury to its occupants (40 C.F.R. § 257.3-8(e)(2)) (2017) incorporated above at § 1.3(A) of this Part.28. "Bottom ash" means the ash residue remaining after combustion of solid waste or solid waste in combination with fossil fuel in a solid waste incinerator that is discharged through and from the grates, combustor, or stoker.29. "Buffer" means any distance, topographical feature, vegetative, or manmade structure that allows for mitigation of impacts of composting or other Solid Waste Management Facility activity on neighboring land uses.30. "Buffer zone" means an area of land between an Organic Waste Recycling Facility or Solid Waste Management Facility and neighboring facilities or homes which shield these abutters from negative impacts of the Organic Waste Recycling Facility or Solid Waste Management Facility operations.31. "Bulking agent" means a material added to composting wastes to provide structure to those wastes, to lower total moisture content and to allow air to reach and be held in small pockets within the waste, by preventing settling and compaction of the waste. Most bulking agents are carbonaceous, thereby providing a source of carbon to the composting mix, and are frequently chipped or shredded wastes, such as sawdust, wood chips or yard trimmings.32. "Bulky waste" means large items of solid waste such as appliances, furniture, auto parts, stumps, etc.33. "Bypass waste" means any solid waste that is either within the control of the operator of a solid waste incinerator or processing facility or within the control of another person that requires treatment at the facility but cannot be so treated, and includes: a. "Downtime waste" means any treatable or burnable solid waste accumulated during a scheduled or unscheduled maintenance period of the facility; orb. "Excess waste" means solid waste which cannot be treated because the facility is operating at the approved design capacity.c. "Control" means control exercised by contract, local law, or any other means.34. "Carbon to Nitrogen ratio" or "C:N ratio" means the numerical ratio of the mass of carbon to the mass of nitrogen in an organic material or in a mix of materials and which determines the composting potential of the organic material or the mix of materials.35. "Cell" means compacted solid wastes that are completely enclosed by natural soil or cover material.36. "Co-composting" means a composting operation which includes the use of septic waste or sewage sludge as part of its process for composting portions of the solid waste stream.37. "Coefficient of permeability" and "Hydraulic conductivity" means the rate of laminar flow of water through a unit cross-sectional area of a porous medium under a unit hydraulic gradient at a standard temperature. The units of "coefficient of permeability" and "hydraulic conductivity" shall be expressed in centimeters per second (cm/sec.).38. "Collection station" means a Solid Waste Management Facility where refuse arrives by automobile or vehicles other than collection vehicles from sites separate from the collection station for transfer to another Solid Waste Management Facility.39. "Combined ash" means the mixture of bottom ash and fly ash.40. "Combustion" means the thermal treatment of solid waste in a device which uses elevated temperatures as the primary means to change the chemical, physical, or biological character and composition of the waste. Examples of combustion processes include incineration, pyrolysis, and fluidized bed.41. "Commercial waste" means solid waste generated by stores, offices, institutions, restaurants, warehouses and activities at industrial facilities.42. "Compost" means a soil amending material resulting from the aerobic, thermophilic, microbial processing of organic materials.43. "Compostable" means organic material that can be biologically decomposed under aerobic conditions.44. "Compost class" means the designation of compost, according to its physical, chemical, and biological characteristics.45. "Composting" means any aerobic, thermophilic process which allows for the conversion of raw organic materials into a stable soil amendment.46. "Composting facility" means a facility, excluding any facility which composts only sewage sludge, which employs a composting process to produce compost from the organic fraction of the received solid waste stream.47. "Composting pad" means the surface area within the Composting Facility upon which organic materials are composted.48. "Construction certification report" means a report submitted to the Department upon completion of the construction of a Solid Waste Management Facility which includes, at a minimum, the resulting information prepared in accordance with the this Subchapter and the license issued thereto.49. "Construction and demolition debris facility" means a Solid Waste Management Facility that is either a construction and demolition debris processing facility or a construction and demolition debris separation facility.50. "Construction and demolition debris processing facility" means a Solid Waste Management Facility that receives and processes construction and demolition debris. These facilities shall demonstrate, through records maintained at the facility and provided to the Department, that seventy-five percent (75%) of all material received by the facility is processed and removed from the site within six (6) weeks of receipt on a continuous basis, and that in no case stores material on site for over three (3) months, provided, however, such facilities do not include compost facilities.51. "Construction and demolition debris separation facility" means a Solid Waste Management Facility that receives, separates, and/or screens construction and demolition debris into its components for subsequent resale or processing which includes but is not limited to grinding, shredding, crushing, or landfilling at another location separate and apart from the location in which the separation occurs.52. "Construction and demolition debris" or "C&D" means non-hazardous solid waste resulting from the construction, remodeling, repair, and demolition of utilities and structures; and uncontaminated solid waste resulting from land clearing. Such waste includes, but is not limited to wood (including painted, treated and coated wood and wood products), land clearing debris, wall coverings, plaster, drywall, plumbing fixtures, non-asbestos insulation, roofing shingles and other roofing coverings, glass, plastics that are not sealed in a manner that conceals other wastes, empty buckets ten (10) gallons or less in size and having no more than one inch (1") of residue remaining on the bottom, electrical wiring and components containing no hazardous liquids, and pipe and metals that are incidental to any of the above. Solid waste that is not C&D debris (even if resulting from the construction, remodeling, repair, and demolition of utilities, structures, and roads and land clearing) includes, but is not limited to, asbestos waste, garbage, corrugated container board, electrical fixtures containing hazardous liquids such as fluorescent light ballasts or transformers, fluorescent lights, carpeting, furniture, appliances, tires, drums, containers greater than ten (10) gallons in size, any containers having more than one inch (1") of residue remaining on the bottom, and fuel tanks. Also excluded from the definition of C&D debris is solid waste resulting from any processing technique that renders individual waste components unrecognizable, such as pulverizing or shredding, at a facility that processes C&D debris.53. "Corporation" means the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation.54. "Corrugated cardboard" means corrugated containers, substantially clean and dry, empty and free of wood, plastic, polystyrene and other packing materials. Wax coated and/or wood reinforced corrugated is excluded from this definition.55. "Cover material" means clean soil or earth or other material approved by the Director that is used to cover compacted solid waste in a sanitary landfill.56. "Critical habitat" means for a threatened or endangered species defined in the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. § 1532, and also includes State species of concern as identified by the Department.57. "Curing" means the final stage of composting, after much of the readily metabolized organic material has been decomposed, in which the compost material further stabilizes at a slower rate and at a lower temperature than during the initial active composting phase.58. "Curing area" means the area of the composting facility where curing of the compost occurs.59. "Decomposition" means the breakdown of organic matter by microbial activity.60. "Department" or "DEM", or "RIDEM" means the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.61. "Destruction" or "Adverse modification" (of a critical habitat of endangered or threatened species) means a direct or indirect alteration of a critical habitat which appreciably diminishes the likelihood of the survival and recovery of threatened or endangered species using that habitat, as defined in 40 C.F.R. § 257.3-2(c)(2) (2017) incorporated above at § 1.3(A) of this Part.62. "Digestate" means the solid and liquid substances remaining following anaerobic digestion of organic materials and wastes.63. "Director" means the Director or the Commissioner of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and his or her designee.64. "Discharge" means the term "discharge" as defined in the Clean Water Act of 1977, 33 U.S.C. § 1322(a)(9), and for the purposes of these Rules and Regulations, it includes leaching and releases.65. "Disposal" means the abandonment, discard or final disposition of waste.66. "Distribute" means to offer for sale, sell, barter, or otherwise supply compost products derived from organic solid waste.67. "Distributor" means the person or company which distributes or markets composted products derived from organic solid waste.68. "Diversion rate" means the total amount (reflected as a percentage) of a material, diverted from disposal through waste prevention, recycling, or reuse.69. "Dredged material" means as defined in the Clean Water Act of 1977, 33 U.S.C. § 1402.70. "Enclosed vessel" or "In-vessel composting" means the composting of materials within an enclosed vessel in which adequate mixing, aeration, and moisture control are provided.71. "Endangered species" or "Threatened species" means as defined in the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. §§ 1532(6) and (20), and also includes State species of concern as identified by the National Heritage Program.72. "Energy recovery" means treatment by which energy is derived or extracted from solid waste.73. "Energy recovery incinerator" means an incinerator in which household waste and nonhazardous industrial/commercial waste are combusted for energy production.74. "Environmental management district" means the area located in the Town of Johnston and the City of Cranston bounded by Plainfield Pike on the South; Peck Hill Road on the west; Central Avenue on the north; and I-295 on the east.75. "Existing SWLF unit" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill (SWLF) Units, any Solid Waste Landfill that is receiving solid waste as of October 9, 1993. Waste placement in existing units must be consistent with past operating practices or modified practices to ensure good management.76. "Facility" means a Solid Waste Management Facility as defined in § 1.5(A) (189) of this Part.77. "Facilities that process construction and demolition debris" means facilities that receive and process construction and demolition debris.78. "Farmer" means an individual, partnership or corporation who operates a farm and meets the requirements of R.I. Gen. Laws § 2-1-22(j).79. "Final cover" means cover material which will be permanently exposed to the environment.80. "Finished compost" or "finished product" means compost that meets at least minimum requirements for public health, safety and environmental protection and is suitable for use as defined by compost quality standards or as approved by the Department.81. "Flood plain" means, "that land area adjacent to a river or stream or other body of flowing water which is, on the average, likely to be covered with flood waters resulting from a one hundred (100) year frequency storm," as defined in R.I. Gen. Laws § 2-1-20, the R.I. Fresh Water Wetlands Act, and in Part 150-15-1 of this Title, Rules and Regulations Governing the Administration and Enforcement of the Fresh Water Wetlands Act.82. "Fly ash" means the ash residue from the combustion of solid waste or solid waste in combination with fossil fuel that is entrained in the gas stream of a solid waste combustion facility and removed by the air pollution control equipment.83. "Food chain crops" mean crops consumed by humans as well as crops grown as feed for animals whose products, in-turn, are consumed by humans.84. "Foreign matter" means the inorganic and organic constituents that are not readily decomposed and which may be present in finished compost. Examples include, but are not limited to, glass, plastics, metals, rubber, bones and leather.85. "Friable asbestos material" means any material that contains more than one percent (1%) asbestos by weight and that can be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder, when dry, by hand pressure.86. "Generator" means any person whose act or process produces a solid waste or whose act first causes solid waste to be subject to regulation under this Subchapter.87. "Geocomposite" means a manufactured material using geotextiles, geogrids, geomembranes, or combinations of same, in a laminated or composite form.88. "Geogrid" means a deformed or non-deformed netlike polymeric material used with foundation, soil, rock, earth, or any other geotechnical engineering-related material as an integral part of the man-made structure or system to provide reinforcement to soil slopes.89. "Geomembrane" means an essentially impermeable membrane used with foundation, soil, rock, earth, or any other geotechnical engineering-related material as an integral part of a man-made structure or system designed to limit the movement of liquid or gas in the system.90. "Geonet" means a type of geogrid that allows planar flow of liquids and serves as a drainage system.91. "Geosynthetics" mean the generic classification of all synthetic materials used in geotechnical engineering applications, including geotextiles, geogrids, geomembranes, and geocomposites.92. "Geotextile" means any permeable textile used with foundation, soil, rock, earth, or any other geotechnical engineering-related material as an integral part of a man-made structure or system designed to act as a filter to prevent the flow of soil fines into drainage systems, to provide planar flow for drainage, or to serve as a cushion to protect geomembranes, or to provide structural support.93. "Groundwater" means water found underground which completely fills the open spaces between particles of sediment and within rock formations.94. "Groundwater recharge area" means the land surface from which water is added to the zone of saturation. The recharge area for a particular well or aquifer, for instance, is that land surface from which water moves to the well or aquifer or may move to the well or aquifer under certain hydraulic conditions.95. "Groundwater reservoir" refers to those stratified drift deposits having a saturated thickness greater than or equal to forty feet (40') and a transmissivity greater than or equal to four thousand feet (4,000') squared per day which have been determined by the Director to be potentially significant sources of water.96. "Hazardous waste" means any waste as defined in Subchapter 10 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Hazardous Waste Management.97. "Health", "RIDOH" or "DOH" means the Rhode Island Department of Health.98. "Heavy metals" means metallic elements with higher molecular weights and at certain concentrations, some of these elements may present health risks to humans and animals and may be toxic to plants.99. "Humus" means a complex amorphous aggregate, formed during the microbial decomposition or alteration of plant and animal residues and products synthesized by soil organisms; principal constituents are derivatives of lignins, proteins, and cellulose combined with inorganic soil constituents and for water absorption.100. "Impermeable" or "Impervious" means not permitting the passage of liquids through its substance.101. "Impermeable liner" means a layer of natural or man-made material of sufficient thickness, density and composition so as to impede the passage of a fluid to a degree that will satisfy the standards required by the Department. For natural materials, this standard shall be 1 x 10-7 cm/sec. For man-made materials, this standard shall be 1 x 10-12 cm/sec.102. "Incinerator" means an arrangement of chambers and equipment designed for burning solid, semi-solid or gaseous combustible waste to a gas and residue. Incinerators used only for the combustion of solid waste generated on site shall not be covered by this definition.103. "Initial cover" means cover material that is spread and compacted on the top, side slopes, and the face of compacted solid waste at least at the end of each operating day in accordance with §2.3.4(A) of this Subchapter.104. "Inocula" or "Inoculum" means preconditional microorganisms or compost added to a raw material to assure that appropriate microorganisms are present so as to sustain decomposition of organic material in a composting process.105. "Inorganic materials" mean materials in which there are no carbon-to-carbon bonds, such as minerals, and which, therefore, will not undergo biological decomposition.106. "Intermediate cover" means cover material which must resist erosion for a longer period of time because it is applied in accordance with §2.3.4(B) of this Subchapter on areas where additional cells are not to be constructed for extended periods of time.107. "Landfill cell" means a discrete volume of a landfill which uses a liner system to provide isolation of solid waste from adjacent cells of solid waste.108. "Landfill gas recovery facility" means a facility in which gases produced from the decomposition of solid wastes are collected for the purpose of the control of landfill gas migration and/or for the recovery of energy.109. "Land reclamation" means the restoration of productivity to lands made barren through processes such as erosion, mining, or land clearing.110. "Large-scale leaf and yard waste composting facility" means a facility that is required to be registered with the Department and is designed and operated to receive and compost only leaf and yard waste. The facility's capacity is greater than six hundred (600) cubic yards or more of leaf and yard waste in the staging, storing, processing and curing stages. Only finished compost is excluded.111. "Large-scale putrescible waste composting facility" means a facility that is required to be registered with the Department and is designed and operated to receive and compost only putrescible waste. The facility's capacity is greater than six hundred (600) cubic yards or more of waste in the staging, storing, processing and curing stages. Only finished compost is excluded.112. "Lateral expansion" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill (SWLF) Units, a horizontal expansion of the waste boundaries of an existing SWLF Unit.113. "Leachate" means a liquid that has percolated through, or originated in solid waste and is presumed by these Rules and Regulations to contain dissolved or suspended materials from solid waste.114. "Lead-free" means any soil, compost, sludge, or other designated medium that either contains no lead, or contains lead in amounts less than the maximum acceptable environmental lead levels established in 216-RICR- 50-15-3 (Lead Poisoning Prevention).115. "Lead-safe" means any soil, compost, sludge, or other designated medium that contains lead in amounts less than the maximum permissible environmental lead levels established in 216-RICR- 50-15-3, Lead Poisoning Prevention; which poses no significant environmental lead exposure hazard despite having a lead concentration above that required for a designation as "Lead free."116. "Leaf and yard waste" means seasonal deposition of leaves from deciduous and coniferous trees and shrubbery, grass clippings, weeds, herbaceous garden waste, shrub and tree prunings, seaweed, Christmas trees and brush.117. "Licensing agency" means the Department of Environmental Management.118. "Lift" means a compacted layer of solid waste plus its overlying cover material in a sanitary landfill.119. "Liner system" means a continuous layer of natural and man-made materials, beneath or on the sides of a surface impoundment, landfill, or landfill cell, which restricts the downward or lateral escape of solid waste, any constituents of such wastes, or leachate and which complies with these Rules and Regulations.120. "Manure" means a waste composed of excreta of animals.121. "Materials recovery facility" or "MRF" or "Intermediate processing facility" or "IPF" means a facility consisting of structures, machinery, or devices utilized to sort, bale, or otherwise process or ready to transport to processors, only Source Segregated Recyclable Materials prior to conveyance to market outlets. Facilities meeting the above requirements are not required to apply for a Solid Waste Management Facility license except for facilities that accept, store, or process waste tires pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 23-63.122. "Mature compost" means compost that has stabilized and has undergone a reduction of pathogens below the level of human risk. It is characterized as containing readily available forms of plant nutrients, poor in phytotoxic acids and phenols, and low in available carbon compounds.123. "Medium-scale composting facility" means a composting facility that is required to be registered with the Department and is designed and operated to compost between twenty-five (25) cubic yards and no more than six hundred (600) cubic yards of leaf, yard and/or putrescible waste on the property at any given time. The maximum quantity includes unincorporated feedstock and feedstock that is staged, stored, processed or in the curing stage. Only finished compost is excluded.124. "Microorganisms" mean living organisms visible only with a microscope.125. "Mixed solid waste" means heterogeneous and commingled solid waste, which may include readily biodegradable organic wastes, as well as other organic wastes which are not readily biodegradable and may also contain inorganic, non-compostable wastes.126. "Mixed solid waste composting facility" means a Solid Waste Management Facility that utilizes organic waste recycling by producing compost from the compostable portion of a mixed solid waste input stream.127. "Monofill" means a landfill or landfill cell into which only one (1) homogeneous type of waste is placed.128. "Municipal solid waste" means that solid waste generated by the residents of a municipality in the course of their daily living, the disposal of which the governing body of the municipality has undertaken in the discharge of its duties to protect the health of the municipality. Municipal Solid Waste does not include solid waste generated by residents of a municipality in the course of their employment or that is generated by any manufacturing or commercial enterprise.129. "New SWLF unit" means relative to Solid Waste Landfill Units, any Solid Waste Landfill Unit that has not received waste prior to October 9, 1993.130. "Non-compostable" means incapable of decomposing naturally or of yielding safe, non-toxic end products, after decomposition.131. "Non-hazardous liquid and semi-liquid waste" means any discarded material that is liquid or semi-liquid and which is not hazardous waste, as defined in the Hazardous Waste Management Act, R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 23-19.1, or Rules and Regulations promulgated pursuant to such Act.132. "Oil spill cleanup debris" means waste resulting from the cleanup of debris caused by spilling, depositing or placing of petroleum distillates, including but not limited to crank case oil, lubricants and hydraulic oil, penetrant oils, tramp oils, quenching oils, kerosene, gasoline, aviation fuels, diesel, and Nos. 2, 4, and 6 heating oil, onto the land or into the waters of the State.133. "On-farm" means on farmland owned by the agricultural composting facility owner.134. "Open burning" means the combustion of solid waste without: a. Control of combustion air to maintain adequate temperature for efficient combustion,b. Containment of the combustion reaction in an enclosed device to provide sufficient residence time and mixing for complete combustion, andc. Control of the emission of the combustion products.135. "Operating an organic waste recycling facility" means receiving Organic Waste Materials at any facility, whether knowingly or unknowingly. Any property owner is considered to be operating an Organic Waste Recycling Facility if an amount of Organic Waste Materials greater than twenty-five (25) cubic yards exists on their property. For purposes of disposal, any property owner will be considered to be operating a Solid Waste Management Facility if the amount of solid waste at the property is greater than three (3) cubic yards.136. "Operating a solid waste management facility" means receiving solid waste at any facility, whether knowingly or unknowingly. For purposes of disposal, such receipt must be in an amount greater than three (3) cubic yards, per R.I. Gen. Laws § 23-18.9-5; and any property owner is considered to be operating a Solid Waste Management Facility if an amount of solid waste greater than three (3) cubic yards exists on their property.137. "Operator" means the person, corporation, or entity responsible for daily operations or activities at an Organic Waste Recycling Facility or Solid Waste Management Facility, whether licensed, unlicensed, registered or unregistered.138. "Organic material" or "Organic waste materials" mean materials that are the organic portion of the solid waste stream, contain carbon-to-carbon bonds and are biodegradable, such as paper, wood, food scraps, food processing residue, leaves, and yard waste.139. "Organic waste recycling facility" means a compost facility or Anaerobic Digestion Facility.140. "Owner" means any person, corporation, or entity who owns an Organic Waste Recycling Facility or Solid Waste Management Facility and who may also own the real property upon which the facility is located and/or constructed, whether licensed, unlicensed, registered or unregistered.141. "Passive windrow composting" means composting of wastes in windrows in which wastes are turned at least twice per year.142. "Pathogens" mean organisms or microorganisms including viruses, bacteria, fungi, helminth, and protozoa capable of producing an infection or disease in a susceptible host.143. "Percent moisture" (relative to composting) means weight of water in a material divided by the total weight of the material, multiplied by one hundred (100).144. "Percolation" means the downward movement of water or liquids through the pores or spaces of material or soil.145. "Permeability" means the ability of water or liquids to percolate through a material or soil.146. "Person" means an individual, firm, joint stock company, partnership, association, private or municipal corporation, government or quasi-governmental corporation, State, commission, political subdivision of a State, any interstate body, municipality or the Federal government or any agency or subdivision thereof.147. "Petroleum contaminated soil" means soil that is contaminated from an aboveground or underground leak or spill of a petroleum product. The soil must be contaminated with only virgin (unused) petroleum products. Included in this group are the following products: a. Unused distillate and residual oil including, but not limited to, gasoline, aviation fuels, kerosene, diesel, and Nos. 2, 4, and 6 heating oil;b. Unused crankcase oil, lubricants, hydraulic oils, penetrant oils, tramp oils, quench oils, and other industrial oils.148. "pH" means the logarithm of the reciprocal of the hydrogen ion concentration (base ten (10)) and shall be a measure of how acidic (pH less than seven (7)) or basic (pH greater than seven (7)) a material is. A pH of seven (7) is considered neutral.149. "Physical contaminants" means any non-biodegradable material such as plastic, metal, glass, stones or masonry debris.150. "Phytotoxic" means detrimental, because of toxicity, to plant growth.151. "Pollutant" means any material or effluent which may alter the chemical, physical, biological, or radiological characteristics and/or integrity of water, including but not limited to, dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, cellar dirt or industrial, municipal, agricultural, or other waste, petroleum or petroleum products, including but not limited to, oil.152. "Pollution" means the entrance or discharge of any pollutant into any waters of the State including groundwaters, in such quantity, either by itself or in connection with other materials so discharged, as to alter the physical, chemical, biological or radiological characteristics and/or integrity of said waters, including change in temperature, taste, color, turbidity or odor, and, to cause or be likely to cause damage to the public, or to any person having a right to use said waters for human consumption, commercial or domestic uses, for boating, fishing or other purposes, or owning property in, under or bordering upon same.153. "Practice" means the act of disposal of solid waste, as defined in 40 C.F.R. § 257.2 (2017), incorporated above at § 1.3(A) of this Part.154. "PFRP" means the Process to Further Reduce Pathogens required during the composting process.155. "Processable material" means those Recyclable Materials that meet criteria of purity and condition as defined by the Corporation and the Department in conjunction with the operator of the MRF.156. "Project engineer" means the official representative of the permittee who is licensed to practice engineering in the State of Rhode Island, who will direct an engineering design team in development projects throughout the entire cycle from initial permit application through completion. In addition, the project engineer shall be responsible for documenting and certifying that the construction activities related to Solid Waste Management Facilities were performed in accordance with applicable Solid Waste Regulations, engineering standards and approved engineering plans. All certifications must bear his seal, his signature, and the date of certification.157. "Putrescible waste" means solid waste including, but not limited to, fish waste and other food wastes which contains organic matter capable of being decomposed by microorganisms and that has a tendency to form foul-smelling by-products, during decomposition, and may provide food for vectors or birds.158. "Quality assurance" means the application of standards and procedures to ensure that a product or facility meets or exceeds desired performance criteria, and documentation to verify the results obtained. "Quality Assurance" includes "quality control" and refers to actions taken to assure conformity of the construction with the Department approved quality assurance plan, engineering plans, reports, and specifications.159. "Quality control" means those actions which provide a means to measure and regulate the characteristics of an item or service to contractual and regulatory requirements. Quality control includes those actions taken before construction to ensure that the materials chosen and workmanship comply with the Department approved quality control plan, engineering plans, reports and specifications.160. "Recycling" means the reuse or remanufacture of recovered resources in manufacturing, agriculture, power production or other processes.161. "Recyclable material" means any material listed as a recyclable material in Subchapter 20 Part 2 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Municipal Solid Waste, and Subchapter 20 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Commercial and Non-Municipal Residential Solid Waste, or R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 23-60, "Batter Deposit and Control", or oil subject to the hard-to-dispose-of tax as stated in R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 37-15.1.162. "Recyclables" means for purposes of these Rules and Regulations, any residual recyclable material remaining in a solid waste stream after removal (source segregation) of recyclable material by the original generator(s) of the solid waste, in accordance with Subchapter 20 Part 2 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Municipal Solid Waste, and Subchapter 20 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Commercial and NonMunicipal Residential Solid Waste, and/or other recyclable material not defined as such or not regulated by these municipal and commercial recycling Rules and Regulations.163. "Refining" means (relative to composting) screening and other procedures (if applicable) which may be required to meet product quality standards and meet market requirements.164. "Refuse" means Solid Waste as defined in § 1.5(A)(186) of this Part.165. "Refuse derived fuel" means treated solid waste that is used as a fuel.166. "Refuse derived fuel processing facility" means the combination of structures, machinery, or devices utilized to reduce or alter the volume of mixed solid waste before delivery to a solid waste incinerator.167. "Registered compost facility" means a Medium-Scale Composting Facility, a Large-Scale Leaf and Yard Waste Composting Facility or a Large-Scale Putrescible Waste Composting Facility that has received registration acceptance from the Department. The Registered Compost Facility shall operate in accordance with the information submitted on the Composting Operation/Facility registration form on file at the Department and in accordance with Part 8 of this Subchapter, Solid Waste Regulation No. 8, Rhode Island Organic Waste Recycling Facilities.168. "Release" means any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing into the environment. For purposes of these Rules and Regulations, release also includes any storage, disposal, or abandonment of any substance or material in a manner which presents a substantial threat of release as herein defined.169. "Resident" means of a city or town means anyone residing in that municipality for any period of time.170. "Residue" means any solid that remains after completion of solid waste processing including incineration products such as bottom ash, fly ash and grate siftings.171. "Resource recovery" means the processing of solid waste in such a way as to produce materials or energy which may be used in manufacturing, agriculture and other processes.172. "Resource recovery facility" means a processing facility which accepts solid waste for the purpose of resource recovery.173. "Run-off" means any rainwater, leachate, or other liquid that drains over land from any part of a facility.174. "Run-on" means any rainwater, leachate, or other liquid that drains over land onto any part of a facility.175. "Sanitary landfill" means a licensed land disposal site employing an engineered method of disposal of solid waste in a manner that absolutely minimizes environmental hazards, including: spreading the solid waste in thin layers, compacting the solid waste to the smallest practical volume; and applying cover material at the end of each operating day, or at such more frequent intervals as may be necessary. A sanitary landfill also means a Solid Waste Landfill.176. "Screening of compost" means the process of passing compost through a screen or sieve to remove large particles of organic and inorganic materials, so as to improve the consistency and quality of the end product.177. "Screenings" means facilities that separate or process construction and demolition debris, means that material that is separated out of the construction and demolition debris waste stream by passage through or retention on a screen.178. "Seed materials" means, relative to composting, additives or inocula added to the waste to accelerate or activate the composting process.179. "Segregated solid waste" means solid waste that has been separated into Recyclable Materials and non-recyclable wastes in compliance with these Regulations.180. "Septic waste" means any solid, liquid, or semi-solid waste removed from septic tanks or cesspools, lagoons, trucks, or other sources.181. "Sewage sludge" means a semi-liquid substance consisting of settled sewage solids combined with water and dissolved materials in varying amounts.182. "Shredding" means breaking up waste materials into small pieces, usually in the form of irregularly shaped strips that is generally performed by mechanical methods.183. "Size reduction" means the breaking up of solid waste or other materials into smaller pieces, through abrasion, thermal dissociation, tearing, screening, tumbling, rolling, crushing, chipping, shredding, grinding, shearing, etc., in order to make the waste material easier to separate and relative to composting processes, to increase the surface area for composting.184. "Small-scale composting operation" means a composting operation that is designed and operated to compost twenty-five (25) cubic yards or less of leaf, yard and/or putrescible waste on the property at any given time. The maximum quantity includes unincorporated feedstock and feedstock that is staged, stored, processed or in the curing stage. Only finished compost is excluded.185. "Soil amendment" means a soil additive which stabilizes the soil, improves the resistance to erosion, increases its permeability to air and water, improves its texture and the resistance of the surface to crusting, makes it easier to cultivate, or otherwise improves its quality.186. "Soil amendment ingredient" means a substitute which improves the physical characteristics of the soil.187. "Solid waste" means garbage, refuse and other discarded solid, semi-solid liquid and containerized gaseous wastes materials generated by residential, institutional, commercial, industrial and agricultural sources but does not include solids or dissolved material in domestic sewage or sewage sludge, nor does it include hazardous waste, as defined by Subchapter 10 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Hazardous Waste Management, nor does it include used asphalt, concrete, Portland concrete cement, or tree stumps generated on-site.188. "Solid waste landfill unit" or "SWLF" means a discrete area of land or an excavation that receives solid waste and that is not a land application unit, surface impoundment, injection well, or a waste pile as defined per 40 C.F.R. § 257.2 (2017), incorporated above at § 1.3(A) of this Part. A SWLF Unit may receive all types of RCRA Subtitle D wastes, such as commercial solid waste, C & D wastes, certain non-hazardous sludges, and industrial solid waste. Such a landfill may be publicly or privately owned. A SWLF Unit may be a new SWLF Unit, an existing SWLF Unit or a lateral expansion.189. "Solid waste management facility" means any plant, structure, equipment, real and personal property that receives solid waste, except mobile equipment or incinerators with a capacity of less than one thousand (1,000) pounds per hour.190. "Source segregated recyclable materials" means useful material which has been separated from the waste stream at the point of generation for the purpose of recovering and recycling these materials.191. "Source separated solid waste" or "Source segregated solid waste" means solid waste that has been segregated into recyclable and non-recyclable materials at the point of generation and in compliance with Subchapter 20 Part 2 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Municipal Solid Waste, and Subchapter 20 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Commercial and NonMunicipal Residential Solid Waste.192. "Stability" (relative to composting) means the degree to which a composted material can be stored or used without giving rise to nuisances (odors or vectors) or can be applied to the soil without causing problems.193. "Stabilization" means the second (2nd) stage of composting (following decomposition) characterized by slow metabolic processes, lower heat production, and the formation of humus-like material.194. "Staging area" means the temporary holding area where solid waste is received, mixed, or debagged before moving it to the processing and/or composting area.195. "State" means the State of Rhode Island.196. "Street sweepings" means sand that may have been mixed with salt and then applied to public or private streets, roads, highways, and parking areas during winter storm operations, and that is ultimately swept or cleaned from these areas and recovered.197. "Surface public water supply" means surface water that supplies piped water for human consumption by means of a system having at least fifteen (15) service connections or regularly serving at least twenty-five (25) individuals for at least sixty (60) days of the year.198. "Surface water" means a body of water whose top surface is exposed to the atmosphere including rivers, ponds, lakes, etc.199. "Take" means, "to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to attempt to engage in any such conduct," as defined in the Endangered Species Act, 16 U.S.C. § 1532.200. "Thermophylic" means occurring in a high temperature range, usually forty-five degrees (45° C) to seventy-five degrees (75° C) centigrade.201. "Toe" means the bottom of the working face or side slope of a land disposal site where deposited solid waste is in contact with virgin ground or a previous lift.202. "Transfer station" means a Solid Waste Management Facility, other than a materials recovery facility or intermediate processing facility that can have a combination of structures, machinery, or devices where solid waste is taken from collection vehicles and ultimately placed in other transportation units for movement to another Solid Waste Management Facility.203. "Uppermost aquifer" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill Units, the geologic formation nearest the natural ground surface that is an aquifer, as well as lower aquifers that are hydraulically interconnected with this aquifer within the facility's property boundary.204. "Vector" means a carrier, usually an insect or rodent that is capable of transmitting a pathogen from one (1) organism to another.205. "Washout" means the carrying away of solid waste by waters of the base flood, as defined in 40 C.F.R. § 257.3-1 (2017), incorporated above at § 1.3(A) of this Part.206. "Waste" means discarded or abandoned solid, semi-solid or liquid material.207. "Waste management" means actions taken to effectuate the receipt, storage, transportation, processing for resource recovery, recycling, and/or the ultimate disposal of solid waste.208. "Waste management unit boundary" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill Units, a vertical surface located at the hydraulically down gradient limit of the unit. This vertical surface extends down into the uppermost aquifer.209. "Waste tire storage and recycling facility" means a facility for used vehicle tire recycling or recovery and/or where greater than four hundred (400) used vehicle tires are stored or are intended to be stored.210. "Water table" means the upper surface of the zone of saturation in an unconfined aquifer.211. "Wellhead protection area" means the critical portion of a three (3) dimensional zone, designated by the Director, surrounding a public well or well-field through which water will move toward and reach such well or well-field.212. "Windrow" means an elevated pile of solid waste, formed for the purpose of composting, no larger than any dimension constraints specified in these Rules and Regulations, and which is oriented along the fall line of the compost pad and fits within the perimeter of the compost pad.213. "Windrow composting" means the composting of organic materials that are arranged in a series of windrows and which are turned periodically to aerate and mix the waste materials to speed up decomposition and reduce or prevent odors.214. "Working face" means that portion of a land disposal site where solid waste is discharged by collection and/or haulage vehicles and is spread and compacted prior to placement of cover material.215. "Yard waste" means leaves, grass clippings, weeds, herbaceous garden waste, shrub and tree prunings, and brush.250 R.I. Code R. 250-RICR-140-05-1.5
Amended effective4/22/2020
Amended effective 12/31/2020
Amended effective 4/29/2021