EPA Revises Rule on Hazardous Waste Recycling

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has revised a rule regarding the recycling of hazardous waste materials.

The EPA revised the Definition of Solid Waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The final rule overturns or revises several hazardous waste recycling exclusions previously included, according to a news release.

In a key part of the revision, the EPA replaced the existing transfer-based exclusion with a “verified recycler exclusion.” The new provision requires that all recyclers operating under the provision have RCRA permits or obtain variances prior to reclaiming hazardous waste materials.

The rule retains the exclusion for hazardous secondary materials that are legitimately reclaimed under the control of the generator.

Another significant change in the rule is the codification of legitimacy criteria that all hazardous waste recyclers must meet. Those criteria include that the material must provide a useful contribution to the product, and the recycling process must produce a valuable product, among other factors.

The rule takes effect July 13.