Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 44, November 2, 2024
(a) The
operator of a residual waste landfill shall prepare and submit to the
Department an abatement plan whenever one of the following occurs:
(1) The groundwater assessment plan prepared
and implemented under §
288.256 (relating to groundwater
assessment plan) shows the presence of groundwater degradation for one or more
contaminants at one or more monitoring points and the analysis under §
288.256(c)
indicates that an abatement standard under subsection (c) will not be
met.
(2) Monitoring by the
Department or operator shows the presence of an abatement standard exceedance
from one or more compliance points as indicated in subsection (c) even if a
groundwater assessment plan has not been completed. The operator is not
required to implement an abatement plan under this paragraph if the following
apply:
(i) Within 10 days after receipt of
sample results showing an exceedance of an abatement standard at a point of
compliance described in subsection (c), the operator resamples the affected
wells.
(ii) Analysis from
resampling shows to the Department's satisfaction that an exceedance of an
abatement standard has not occurred.
(b) An abatement plan shall be prepared by an
expert hydrogeologist and submitted to the Department. The plan shall contain
the following information:
(1) The specific
methods or techniques to be used to abate groundwater degradation at the
facility.
(2) The specific methods
or techniques to be used to prevent further groundwater degradation from the
facility.
(3) A schedule for
implementation.
(c) If
abatement is required in accordance with subsection (a), the operator shall
demonstrate compliance with one or more of the following standards at the
identified compliance points:
(1) For
constituents for which Statewide health standards exist, the Statewide health
standard for that constituent at and beyond 150 meters of the perimeter of the
permitted disposal area or at and beyond the property boundary, whichever is
closer.
(2) The background standard
for constituents at and beyond 150 meters of the perimeter of the permitted
disposal area or at and beyond the property boundary, whichever is
closer.
(3) For constituents for
which no primary MCLs under the Federal and State Safe Drinking Water Acts
(42 U.S.C.A. §§
300f-300j-18; and
35 P. S. §§721.1-721.17) exist, the risk-based
standard at and beyond 150 meters of the perimeter of the permitted disposal
area or at and beyond the property boundary, whichever is closer, if the
following conditions are met:
(i) The risk
assessment used to establish the standard assumes that human receptors exist at
the property boundary.
(ii) The
level is derived in a manner consistent with Department guidelines for
assessing the health risks of environmental pollutants.
(iii) The level is based on scientifically
valid studies conducted in accordance with good laboratory practice standards (
40 CFR Part 792 (relating to good laboratory practice standards)) promulgated
under the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C.A. §§
2601-2692) or other scientifically
valid studies approved by the Department.
(iv) For carcinogens, the level represents a
concentration associated with an excess lifetime cancer risk level of 1 x
10-5 at the property
boundary.
(d)
For measuring compliance with secondary contaminants under subsection (c),
paragraph (1) or (3), the Department may approve a compliance point beyond 150
meters on land owned by the owner of the disposal area.
(e) The abatement plan shall be completed and
submitted to the Department for approval within 90 days of the time the
obligation arises under this section unless the date is otherwise modified, in
writing, by the Department.
(f) If
the Department determines that the proposed plan is inadequate, the Department
may modify the plan and approve the plan as modified or require the submission
of an approvable modification.
(g)
The abatement plan shall be implemented within 60 days of approval by the
Department in accordance with the approved implementation schedule.
(h) If, after plan approval or
implementation, the Department finds that the plan is incapable of achieving
the groundwater protection contemplated in the approval, the Department may
issue one or more of the following:
(1) An
order requiring the operator to submit proposed modifications to the abatement
plan.
(2) An order requiring the
operator to implement the abatement plan as modified by the
Department.
(3) An other order the
Department deems necessary to aid in the enforcement of the act.
This section cited in 25 Pa. Code §
288.152 (relating to water quality
monitoring plan); 25 Pa. Code §
288.251 (relating to general
requirements); 25 Pa. Code §
288.256 (relating to groundwater
assessment plan); 25 Pa. Code §
291.315 (relating to water quality
monitoring); 25 Pa. Code §
291.416 (relating to water quality
monitoring); 25 Pa. Code §
293.233 (relating to soil and
groundwater monitoring); 25 Pa. Code §
295.254 (relating to soil and
groundwater monitoring); and 25 Pa. Code §
297.233 (relating to soil and
groundwater monitoring).
