Current through Bulletin 2024-06, March 15, 2024
Section R315-264-554 is written in a special format to make
it easier to understand the regulatory requirements. Like other regulations,
this establishes enforceable legal requirements. For Section R315-264-554 "I"
and "you" refer to the owner/operator.
(a) What is a staging pile? A staging pile is
an accumulation of solid, non-flowing remediation waste, as defined in Section
R315-260-10, that is
not a containment building and is used only during remedial operations for
temporary storage at a facility. A staging pile shall be located within the
contiguous property under the control of the owner/operator where the wastes to
be managed in the staging pile originated. Staging piles shall be designated by
the Director according to the requirements in Section R315-264-554.
(1) For the purposes of Section R315-264-554,
storage includes mixing, sizing, blending, or other similar physical operations
as long as they are intended to prepare the wastes for subsequent management or
treatment.
(b) When may
I use a staging pile? You may use a staging pile to store hazardous remediation
waste, or remediation waste otherwise subject to land disposal restrictions,
only if you follow the standards and design criteria the Director has
designated for that staging pile. The Director shall designate the staging pile
in a permit or, at an interim status facility, in a closure plan or order,
consistent with Subsections
R315-270-72(a)(5)
and (b)(5). The Director shall establish
conditions in the permit, closure plan, or order that comply with Subsection
R315-264-554(d) through (k).
(c)
What information shall I provide to get a staging pile designated? When seeking
a staging pile designation, you shall provide:
(1) Sufficient and accurate information to
enable the Director to impose standards and design criteria for your staging
pile according to Section R315-264-554(d) through (k);
(2) Certification by a qualified Professional
Engineer for technical data, such as design drawings and specifications, and
engineering studies, unless the Director determines, based on information that
you provide, that this certification is not necessary to ensure that a staging
pile will protect human health and the environment; and
(3) Any additional information the Director
determines is necessary to protect human health and the environment.
(d) What performance criteria
shall a staging pile satisfy? The Director shall establish the standards and
design criteria for the staging pile in the permit, closure plan, or order.
(1) The standards and design criteria shall
comply with the following:
(i) The staging
pile shall facilitate a reliable, effective and protective remedy;
(ii) The staging pile shall be designed so as
to prevent or minimize releases of hazardous wastes and hazardous constituents
into the environment, and minimize or adequately control cross-media transfer,
as necessary to protect human health and the environment, for example, through
the use of liners, covers, run-off/run-on controls, as appropriate; and
(iii) The staging pile shall not
operate for more than two years, except when the Director grants an operating
term extension under Subsection R315-264-554(i), entitled "May I receive an
operating extension for a staging pile?". You shall measure the two-year limit,
or other operating term specified by the Director in the permit, closure plan,
or order, from the first time you place remediation waste into a staging pile.
You shall maintain a record of the date when you first placed remediation waste
into the staging pile for the life of the permit, closure plan, or order, or
for three years, whichever is longer.
(2) In setting the standards and design
criteria, the Director shall consider the following factors:
(i) Length of time the pile will be in
operation;
(ii) Volumes of wastes
you intend to store in the pile;
(iii) Physical and chemical characteristics
of the wastes to be stored in the unit;
(iv) Potential for releases from the unit;
(v) Hydrogeological and other
relevant environmental conditions at the facility that may influence the
migration of any potential releases; and
(vi) Potential for human and environmental
exposure to potential releases from the unit;
(e) May a staging pile receive ignitable or
reactive remediation waste? You shall not place ignitable or reactive
remediation waste in a staging pile unless:
(1) You have treated, rendered or mixed the
remediation waste before you placed it in the staging pile so that:
(i) The remediation waste no longer meets the
definition of ignitable or reactive under Sections
R315-261-21
or 23; and
(ii) You have complied
with Subsection
R315-264-17(b);
or
(2) You manage the
remediation waste to protect it from exposure to any material or condition that
may cause it to ignite or react.
(f) How do I handle incompatible remediation
wastes in a staging pile? The term "incompatible waste" is defined in Section
R315-260-10. You
shall comply with the following requirements for incompatible wastes in staging
piles:
(1) You shall not place incompatible
remediation wastes in the same staging pile unless you have complied with
Subsection
R315-264-17(b);
(2) If remediation waste in a
staging pile is incompatible with any waste or material stored nearby in
containers, other piles, open tanks or land disposal units, for example,
surface impoundments, you shall separate the incompatible materials, or protect
them from one another by using a dike, berm, wall or other device; and
(3) You shall not pile remediation
waste on the same base where incompatible wastes or materials were previously
piled, unless the base has been decontaminated sufficiently to comply with
Subsection
R315-264-17(b).
(g) Are staging piles
subject to Land Disposal Restrictions and Minimum Technological Requirements?
No. Placing hazardous remediation wastes into a staging pile does not
constitute land disposal of hazardous wastes or create a unit that is subject
to the minimum technological requirements of RCRA 3004(o).
(h) How long may I operate a staging pile?
The Director may allow a staging pile to operate for up to two years after
hazardous remediation waste is first placed into the pile. You shall use a
staging pile no longer than the length of time designated by the Director in
the permit, closure plan, or order, the "operating term", except as provided in
Subsection R315-264-554(i).
(i)
May I receive an operating extension for a staging pile?
(1) The Director may grant one operating term
extension of up to 180 days beyond the operating term limit contained in the
permit, closure plan, or order, see Subsection R315-264-554(l) for modification
procedures. To justify to the Director the need for an extension, you shall
provide sufficient and accurate information to enable the Director to determine
that continued operation of the staging pile:
(i) Will not pose a threat to human health
and the environment; and
(ii) Is
necessary to ensure timely and efficient implementation of remedial actions at
the facility.
(2) The
Director may, as a condition of the extension, specify further standards and
design criteria in the permit, closure plan, or order, as necessary, to ensure
protection of human health and the environment.
(j) What is the closure requirement for a
staging pile located in a previously contaminated area?
(1) Within 180 days after the operating term
of the staging pile expires, you shall close a staging pile located in a
previously contaminated area of the site by removing or decontaminating all:
(i) Remediation waste;
(ii) Contaminated containment system
components; and
(iii) Structures
and equipment contaminated with waste and leachate.
(2) You shall also decontaminate contaminated
subsoils in a manner and according to a schedule that the Director determines
will protect human health and the environment.
(3) The Director shall include the above
requirements in the permit, closure plan, or order in which the staging pile is
designated.
(k) What is
the closure requirement for a staging pile located in an uncontaminated area?
(1) Within 180 days after the operating term
of the staging pile expires, you shall close a staging pile located in an
uncontaminated area of the site according to Subsections
R315-264-258(a)
and 264-111; or according to
40 CFR
265.258(a) and
265.111,
which are adopted by reference.
(2) The Director shall include the above
requirement in the permit, closure plan, or order in which the staging pile is
designated.
(l) How may
my existing permit, for example, Remedial Action Plan, closure plan, or order
be modified to allow me to use a staging pile?
(1) To modify a permit, other than a Remedial
Action Plan, to incorporate a staging pile or staging pile operating term
extension, either:
(i) The Director shall
approve the modification under the procedures for permit modifications in
Section
R315-270-41;
or
(ii) You shall request a Class
2 modification under Section
R315-270-42.
(2) To modify a
Remedial Action Plan to incorporate a staging pile or staging pile operating
term extension, you shall comply with the Remedial Action Plan modification
requirements under Sections
R315-270-170
and 175.
(3) To modify a closure
plan to incorporate a staging pile or staging pile operating term extension,
you shall follow the applicable requirements under Section
R315-264-112(c)
or
40 CFR
265.112(c), which is adopted
by reference.
(4) To modify an
order to incorporate a staging pile or staging pile operating term extension,
you shall follow the terms of the order and the applicable provisions of
Subsection
R315-270-72(a)(5)
or (b)(5).
(m) Is information about the staging pile
available to the public? The Director shall document the rationale for
designating a staging pile or staging pile operating term extension and make
this documentation available to the public.