P.R. Laws tit. 12, § 1321
The development and implementation of economically viable and environmentally safe strategies that will encourage the reduction of hazardous waste, is hereby stated as the public policy of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. To such ends, it is necessary to develop a plan to stimulate the reduction of the sources of hazardous waste and promote its management in the place where it is generated, thus reducing the dependence on the existing treatment and management installations.
The following order shall be observed with regard to hazardous waste prevention and management:
(a) Reduce the generation of hazardous waste at its source.
(b) Reuse said waste as ingredients in an industrial process, be it to manufacture a given product, or to be used in a specific function or as an effective substitute for a commercial product.
(c) Recycle waste at its source, or should that not be possible, at another site deemed to be adequate and safe.
(d) Treat hazardous waste to reduce its volume and toxicity.
(e) Store hazardous waste appropriately.
(f) Safely dispose hazardous waste residue, to avoid leakage which may affect health and the environment.
As part of the abovementioned public policy, it is forbidden for any natural or juridical person to import or bring [into] Puerto Rico hazardous waste, as said term is defined in this chapter, that has been generated as such outside of the [Commonwealth] and is transported to this jurisdiction with the intention that it be finally disposed of here, unless prior express authorization, in writing, is obtained from the Chairman of the Environmental Quality Board, requested no less than sixty (60) days prior to the date proposed for the importing of said waste [into] Puerto Rico. When evaluating said requests, the Chairman of the Environmental Quality Board shall take into consideration the specific nature of the waste in question, and the existence and capacity of adequate facilities for the management and disposal of said waste in Puerto Rico.
History —Jan. 19, 1995, No. 10 § 2; May 21, 1999, No. 119, § 1.