Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 17, September 10, 2024
(a) The regulations
in this subpart apply to owners or operators of facilities that incinerate
hazardous waste, except as § 264.1 provides otherwise. The following
facility owners or operators are considered to incinerate hazardous waste:
(1) Owners or operators of hazardous waste
incinerators (as defined in § 260.10 of these regulations); and
(2) Owners or operators who burn or process
hazardous waste in boilers or industrial furnaces (as defined in § 260.10
of these regulations) irrespective of the purpose of burning or processing,
except as provided by paragraphs (b), (c), (d), (e), (g) and (h) of this
section. In this subpart, the term "burn" means burning for energy recovery or
destruction, or processing for materials recovery or as an ingredient. The
emission standards of §
§ 264.342, 264.343, 264.344, and 264.345
apply to facilities operating under interim status or under a RCRA permit as
specified in §
§ 264.340 and 265.140.
(b) After consideration of the waste analysis
included with Part B of the permit application, the Department, in establishing
the permit conditions, may exempt the applicant from all requirements of this
subpart except § 264.341 (Waste analysis) and § 264.346(h)(Closure),
§ 264.346(f) (standards for direct transfer), § 264.347 (regulation
of residues) and the applicable requirements of subparts A through H, BB and CC
of Parts 264 and 265 of these regulations.
(1) If the Department finds that the waste to
be burned is:
(i) Listed as a hazardous waste
in Part 261, Subpart D, of these regulations solely because it is ignitable
(Hazard Code I), corrosive (Hazard Code C), or both; or
(ii) Listed as a hazardous waste in Part 261,
Subpart D, of these regulations solely because it is reactive (Hazard Code R)
for characteristics other than those listed in § 261.23 (a)(4) and (5),
and will not be burned when other hazardous wastes are present in the
combustion zone; or
(iii) A
hazardous waste solely because it possesses the characteristic of ignitability,
corrosivity, or both, as determined by the test for characteristics of
hazardous wastes under Part 261, Subpart C, of these regulations; or
(iv) A hazardous waste solely because it
possesses any of the reactivity characteristics described by §
261.23(a)(1), (2), (3), (6), (7), and (8) of these regulations, and will not be
burned when other hazardous wastes are present in the combustion zone;
and
(2) If the waste
analysis shows that the waste contains none of the hazardous constituents
listed in Part 261, Appendix VIII, of these regulations, which would reasonably
be expected to be in the waste.
(c) If the waste to be burned is one which is
described by paragraphs (b)(1)(i), (b)(1)(ii), (b)(1)(iii), or (b)(1)(iv) of
this Section and contains insignificant concentrations of the hazardous
constituents listed in Part 261, Appendix VIII, of these regulations, then the
Department may, in establishing permit conditions, exempt the applicant from
all requirements of this Subpart, except § 264.341 (Waste analysis),
§ 264.346(h)(Closure), § 264.346(f) (Standards for direct transfer)
and § 264.347 (Regulation of residues), after consideration of the waste
analysis included with Part B of the permit application, unless the Department
finds that the waste will pose a threat to human health and the environment
when burned in an incinerator, boiler or industrial furnace.
(d) The following hazardous wastes and
facilities are not subject to regulation under this subpart:
(1) Used oil burned for energy recovery that
is also a hazardous waste solely because it exhibits a characteristic of
hazardous waste identified in Subpart C of Part 261 of these regulations. Such
used oil is subject to regulation under Part 279 of these
regulations;
(2) Gas recovered from
hazardous or solid waste landfills when such gas is burned for energy
recovery;
(3) Hazardous wastes that
are exempt from regulation under §§ 261.4 and 261.6(a)(3)(iii) and
(iv) of these regulations, and hazardous wastes that are subject to the special
requirements for very small quantity generators under § 262.13 of these
regulations; and
(4) Coke ovens, if
the only hazardous waste burned is EPA Hazardous Waste No. K087, decanter tank
tar sludge from coking operations.
(e) Owners and operators of smelting,
melting, and refining furnaces (including pyrometallurgical devices such as
cupolas, sintering machines, roasters, and foundry furnaces, but not including
cement kilns, aggregate kilns, or halogen acid furnaces burning hazardous
waste) that process hazardous waste solely for metal recovery are conditionally
exempt from regulation under this subpart, except for § 264.347.
(1) To be exempt from §
§ 264.341
through 264.346, and 265.140, an owner or operator of a metal recovery furnace
or mercury recovery furnace must comply with the following requirements, except
that an owner or operator of a lead or a nickel-chromium recovery furnace, or a
metal recovery furnace that burns baghouse bags used to capture metallic dusts
emitted by steel manufacturing, must comply with the requirements of paragraph
(e)(3) of this section, and owners or operators of lead recovery furnaces that
are subject to regulation under the Secondary Lead Smelting NESHAP must comply
with the requirements of paragraph (h) of this section.
(i) Provide a one-time written notice to the
Director indicating the following:
(A) The
owner or operator claims exemption under this paragraph;
(B) The hazardous waste is burned solely for
metal recovery consistent with the provisions of paragraph (e)(2) of this
section;
(C) The hazardous waste
contains recoverable levels of metals; and
(D) The owner or operator will comply with
the sampling and analysis and recordkeeping requirements of this
paragraph;
(ii) Sample
and analyze the hazardous waste and other feedstocks as necessary to comply
with the requirements of this paragraph by using appropriate methods;
and
(iii) Maintain at the facility
for at least three years records to document compliance with the provisions of
this paragraph including limits on levels of toxic organic constituents and Btu
value of the waste, and levels of recoverable metals in the hazardous waste
compared to normal nonhazardous waste feedstocks.
(2) A hazardous waste meeting either of the
following criteria is not processed solely for metal recovery:
(i) The hazardous waste has a total
concentration of organic compounds listed in Part 261, Appendix VIII, of these
regulations exceeding 500 ppm by weight, as-fired, and so is considered to be
burned for destruction. The concentration of organic compounds in a waste
as-generated may be reduced to the 500 ppm limit by bona fide
treatment that removes or destroys organic constituents. Blending for dilution
to meet the 500 ppm limit is prohibited and documentation that the waste has
not been impermissibly diluted must be retained in the records required by
paragraph (e)(1)(iii) of this section; or
(ii) The hazardous waste has a heating value
of 5,000 Btu/lb or more, as-fired, and so is considered to be burned as fuel.
The heating value of a waste as-generated may be reduced to below the 5,000
Btu/lb limit by bona fide treatment that removes or destroys
organic constituents. Blending for dilution to meet the 5,000 Btu/lb limit is
prohibited and documentation that the waste has not been impermissibly diluted
must be retained in the records required by paragraph (e)(1)(iii) of this
section.
(3) To be exempt
from §
§ 264.341 through 264.346, and 265.140, an owner or operator
of a lead or nickel-chromium or mercury recovery furnace, except for owners or
operators of lead recovery furnaces subject to regulation under the Secondary
Lead Smelting NESHAP, or a metal recovery furnace that burns baghouse bags used
to capture metallic dusts emitted by steel manufacturing, must provide a
one-time written notice to the Department identifying each hazardous waste
burned and specifying whether the owner or operator claims an exemption for
each waste under this paragraph or paragraph (e)(1) of this section. The owners
or operator must comply with the requirements of paragraph (e)(1) of this
section for those waste claimed to be exempt under that paragraph and must
comply with the requirements below for those wastes claimed to be exempt under
this paragraph (e)(3).
(i) The hazardous
wastes listed in Appendices XI, XII, and XIII to § 264.348 of these
regulations, and baghouse bags used to capture metallic dusts emitted by steel
manufacturing are exempt from the requirements of paragraph (e)(1) of this
section, provided that:
(A) A waste listed in
Appendix XI to § 264.348 of these regulations must contain recoverable
levels of lead, a waste listed in Appendix XII to § 264.348 of these
regulations must contain recoverable levels of nickel or chromium, a waste
listed in Appendix XIII to § 264.348 of these regulations must contain
recoverable levels of mercury and contain less than 500 ppm of Part 261,
Appendix VIII organic constituents, and baghouse bags used to capture metallic
dusts emitted by steel manufacturing must contain recoverable levels of metal;
and
(B) The waste does not exhibit
the Toxicity Characteristic of § 261.24 of these regulations for an
organic constituent; and
(C) The
waste is not a hazardous waste listed in Subpart D of Part 261 of these
regulations because it is listed for an organic constituent as identified in
Appendix VII of Part 261 of these regulations; and
(D) The owner or operator certifies in the
one-time notice that hazardous waste is burned under the provisions of
paragraph (e)(3) of this section and that sampling and analysis will be
conducted or other information will be obtained as necessary to ensure
continued compliance with these requirements. Sampling and analysis shall be
conducted according to paragraph (e)(1)(ii) of this section and records to
document compliance with paragraph (e)(3) of this section shall be kept for at
least three years.
(ii)
The Director may decide on a case-by-case basis that the toxic organic
constituents in a material listed in Appendices XI, XII, or XIII to §
264.348 of these regulations that contains a total concentration of more than
500 ppm toxic organic compounds listed in Appendix VIII to Part 261 of these
regulations, may pose a hazard to human health and the environment when burned
in a metal recovery furnace exempt from the requirements of this subpart. In
that situation, after adequate notice and opportunity for comment, the metal
recovery furnace will become subject to the requirements of this subpart when
burning that material. In making the hazard determination, the Director will
consider the following factors:
(A) The
concentration and toxicity of organic constituents in the material;
and
(B) The level of destruction of
toxic organic constituents provided by the furnace; and
(C) Whether the acceptable ambient levels
established in Appendices IV or V to § 264.348 of these regulations may be
exceeded for any toxic organic compound that may be emitted based on dispersion
modeling to predict the maximum annual average off-site ground level
concentration.
(f) The management standards for residues
under § 264.347 apply to any incinerator, boiler or industrial furnace
burning hazardous waste.
(g) Owners
and operators of smelting, melting, and refining furnaces (including
pyrometallurgical devices such as cupolas, sintering machines, roasters, and
foundry furnaces) that process hazardous waste for recovery of economically
significant amounts of the precious metals gold, silver, platinum, palladium,
iridium, osmium, rhodium, or ruthenium, or any combination of these are
conditionally exempt from regulation under this subpart, except for §
264.347. To be exempt from §
§ 264.341 through 264.346, and 265.140,
an owner or operator must:
(1) Provide a
one-time written notice to the Director indicating the following:
(i) The owner or operator claims exemption
under this paragraph;
(ii) The
hazardous waste is burned for legitimate recovery of precious metal;
and
(iii) The owner or operator
will comply with the sampling and analysis and recordkeeping requirements of
this paragraph; and
(2)
Sample and analyze the hazardous waste as necessary to document that the waste
contains economically significant amounts of the metals and that the treatment
recovers economically significant amounts of precious metal; and
(3) Maintain at the facility for at least
three years records to document that all hazardous wastes burned are burned for
recovery of economically significant amounts of precious metal.
(h) Owners or operators of lead
recovery furnaces that process hazardous waste for recovery of lead and that
are subject to regulation under the Secondary Lead Smelting NESHAP, are
conditionally exempt from regulation under this subpart. To be exempt, an owner
or operator must provide a one-time notice to the Director identifying each
hazardous waste burned and specifying that the owner or operator claims an
exemption under this paragraph. The notice also must state that the waste
burned has a total concentration of non-metal compounds listed in Part 261,
Appendix VIII, of these regulations of less than 500 ppm by weight, as fired
and as provided in paragraph (e)(2)(i) of this section, or is listed in
Appendix XI to § 264.348 of these regulations.
