Louisiana Administrative Code
Title 33 - ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
Part V - Hazardous Wastes and Hazardous Materials
Subpart 1 - Department of Environmental Quality-Hazardous Waste
Chapter 43 - Interim Status
Subchapter T - Containment Buildings
Section V-4703 - Design and Operating Standards
Universal Citation: LA Admin Code V-4703
Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024
A. All containment buildings must comply with the following design standards:
1. the
containment building must be completely enclosed with a floor, walls, and a
roof to prevent exposure to the elements, (e.g., precipitation, wind, run-on)
and to ensure containment of managed wastes;
2. the floor and containment walls of the
unit, including the secondary containment system if required under LAC
33:V.4703.B, must be designed and constructed of materials of sufficient
strength and thickness to support themselves, the waste contents, and any
personnel and heavy equipment that operate within the unit and to prevent
failure due to pressure gradients, settlement, compression, uplift, physical
contact with the hazardous wastes to which they are exposed, climatic
conditions, and the stresses of daily operation, including the movement of
heavy equipment within the unit and contact of such equipment with containment
walls. The unit must be designed so that it has sufficient structural strength
to prevent collapse or other failure. All surfaces to be in contact with
hazardous wastes must be chemically compatible with those wastes. The
administrative authority will consider standards established by professional
organizations which are generally recognized by the industry, such as the
American Concrete Institute (ACI) and the American Society of Testing Materials
(ASTM), in judging the structural integrity requirements of LAC 33:V.4703.A. If
appropriate to the nature of the waste management operation to take place in
the unit, an exception to the structural strength requirement may be made for
light-weight doors and windows that meet these criteria:
a. they provide an effective barrier against
fugitive dust emissions under LAC 33:V.4703.C.1.d; and
b. the unit is designed and operated in a
fashion that ensures that wastes will not actually come in contact with these
openings;
3.
incompatible hazardous wastes or treatment reagents must not be placed in the
unit or its secondary containment system if they could cause the unit or
secondary containment system to leak, corrode, or otherwise fail; and
4. a containment building must have a primary
barrier designed to withstand the movement of personnel, waste, and handling
equipment in the unit during the operating life of the unit and appropriate for
the physical and chemical characteristics of the waste to be managed.
B. For a containment building used to manage hazardous wastes containing free liquids or treated with free liquids (the presence of which is determined by the paint filter test, a visual examination, or other appropriate means), the owner or operator must include:
1. a primary barrier designed and constructed
of materials to prevent the migration of hazardous constituents into the
barrier (e.g. a geomembrane covered by a concrete wear surface);
2. a liquid collection and removal system to
prevent the accumulation of liquid on the primary barrier of the containment
building:
a. the primary barrier must be
sloped to drain liquids to the associated collection system; and
b. liquids and waste must be collected and
removed to minimize hydraulic head on the containment system at the earliest
practicable time that protects human health and the environment;
3. a secondary containment system,
including a secondary barrier designed and constructed to prevent migration of
hazardous constituents into the barrier, and a leak detection system that is
capable of detecting failure of the primary barrier and collecting accumulated
hazardous wastes and liquids at the earliest practicable time:
a. the requirements of the leak detection
component of the secondary containment system are satisfied by installation of
a system that is, at a minimum:
i. constructed
with a bottom slope of 1 percent or more; and
ii. constructed of a granular drainage
material with a hydraulic conductivity of 1 x 10-2
cm/sec or more and a thickness of 12 inches (30.5 cm) or more, or constructed
of synthetic or geonet drainage materials with a transmissivity of 3 x
10-5 m2/sec or
more;
b. if treatment is
to be conducted in the building, an area in which such treatment will be
conducted must be designed to prevent the release of liquids, wet materials, or
liquid aerosols to other portions of the building;
c. the secondary containment system must be
constructed of materials that are chemically resistant to the waste and liquids
managed in the containment building and of sufficient strength and thickness to
prevent collapse under the pressure exerted by overlaying materials and by any
equipment used in the containment building. (Containment buildings can serve as
secondary containment systems for tanks placed within the building under
certain conditions. A containment building can serve as an external liner
system for a tank, provided it meets the requirements of LAC 33:V.4437.E.1. In
addition, the containment building must meet the requirements of LAC
33:V.4437.B and C to be considered an acceptable secondary containment system
for a tank.); and
4. for
existing units other than 90-day generator units, the administrative authority
may delay the secondary containment requirement for up to two years, based on a
demonstration by the owner or operator that the unit substantially meets the
standards of this Subchapter. In making this demonstration, the owner or
operator must:
a. provide written notice to
the administrative authority of their request by February 18, 1993. This
notification must describe the unit and its operating practices with specific
reference to the performance of existing containment systems and specific plans
for retrofitting the unit with secondary containment;
b. respond to any comments from the
administrative authority on these plans within 30 days; and
c. fulfill the terms of the revised plans, if
such plans are approved by the administrative authority.
C. Owners or operators of all containment buildings must:
1. use controls
and practices to ensure containment of the hazardous waste within the unit and,
at a minimum:
a. maintain the primary barrier
to be free of significant cracks, gaps, corrosion, or other deterioration that
could cause hazardous waste to be released from the primary barrier;
b. maintain the level of the stored/treated
hazardous waste within the containment walls of the unit so that the height of
any containment wall is not exceeded;
c. take measures to prevent the tracking of
hazardous waste out of the unit by personnel or equipment used in handling the
waste. An area must be designated to decontaminate equipment and any rinsate
must be collected and properly managed; and
d. take measures to control fugitive dust
emissions such that any openings (doors, windows, vents, cracks, etc.) exhibit
no visible emissions. In addition, all associated particulate collection
devices (e.g., fabric filter, electrostatic precipitator) must be operated and
maintained with sound air pollution control practices. This state of no visible
emissions must be maintained effectively at all times during normal operating
conditions, including when vehicles and personnel are entering and exiting the
unit;
2. obtain and keep
on-site a certification by a qualified professional engineer that the
containment building design meets the requirements of Subsections A-C of this
Section;
3. throughout the active
life of the containment building, if the owner or operator detects a condition
that could lead to or has caused a release of hazardous waste, repair the
condition promptly, in accordance with the following procedures:
a. upon detection of a condition that has led
to a release of hazardous waste (e.g., upon detection of leakage from the
primary barrier) the owner or operator must:
i. enter a record of the discovery in the
facility operating record;
ii.
immediately remove the portion of the containment building affected by the
condition from service;
iii.
determine what steps must be taken to repair the containment building, remove
any leakage from the secondary collection system, and establish a schedule for
accomplishing the cleanup and repairs; and
iv. within seven days after the discovery of
the condition, notify the Office of Environmental Services of the condition
and, within 14 working days, provide a written notice to the administrative
authority with a description of the steps taken to repair the containment
building and the schedule for accomplishing the work;
b. the administrative authority will review
the information submitted, make a determination regarding whether the
containment building must be removed from service completely or partially until
repairs and cleanup are complete, and notify the owner or operator of the
determination and the underlying rationale in writing; and
c. upon completing all repairs and cleanup,
the owner or operator must notify the Office of Environmental Services in
writing and provide a verification, signed by a qualified, registered
professional engineer, that the repairs and cleanup have been completed
according to the written plan submitted in accordance with LAC
33:V.4703.C.3.a.iv; and
4. inspect and record in the facility's
operating record, at least once every seven days, data gathered from monitoring
equipment, leak detection equipment, and containment building and the area
immediately surrounding it to detect signs of releases of hazardous
waste.
D. For containment buildings having areas both with and without secondary containment, the owner or operator must:
1. design and
operate each area in accordance with the requirements in LAC
33:V.4703.A-C;
2. take measures to
prevent the release of liquids or wet materials into areas without secondary
containment; and
3. maintain, in
the facility's operating log, a written description of the operating procedures
used to maintain the integrity of areas without secondary
containment.
E. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Subchapter, the administrative authority may waive requirements for secondary containment for a permitted containment building where the owner or operator demonstrates that the only free liquids in the unit are limited amounts of dust-suppression liquids required to meet occupational health and safety requirements and where containment of managed wastes and liquids can be ensured without a secondary containment system.
AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2180 et seq.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Louisiana may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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