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Vol. 58 No.  29 Tuesday, February 16, 1993  p 8658

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

40 CFR Parts 260, 264, 265, 268, 270 and 271

[FRL-4555-7]

RIN 2050-AB80

Corrective Action Management Units and Temporary Units; Corrective Action Provisions Under Subtitle C

AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Final rule.

SUMMARY: The Environmental Protection Agency is promulgating today certain corrective action-related regulations under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The specific provisions finalized in this rulemaking address two new units that will be used for remedial purposes under RCRA corrective action authorities: corrective action management units (CAMUs), and temporary units (TUs). These specific provisions were proposed as part of a more comprehensive corrective action rulemaking on July 27, 1990.

EFFECTIVE DATE: These final regulations are effective on April 19, 1993.

ADDRESSES: The official record for this rulemaking is located in the RCRA Docket, located in room 2427 at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M Street, SW., Washington, DC 20460. The telephone for the RCRA Docket is (202) 260-9327. The record is available for inspection, by appointment only, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. As provided in 40 CFR part 2, a reasonable fee may be charged for copying services.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Questions relating to the technical content of this rule should be directed to Anne Price or David Fagan, Corrective Action Programs Branch, Office of Solid Waste (5303W), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, at (703) 308-8657 or (703) 308-8620. Other inquiries should be directed to the RCRA/Superfund Hotline, at (800) 424-9346 or at (202) 260-3000.

>>>> Preamble has not been included in this file. <<<<

	For the reasons set out in the preamble, title 40, chapter I, of the Code of Federal Regulations, is amended as follows:

PART 260-HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM: GENERAL

	1. The authority citation for part 260 continues to read as follows:

	Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912(a), 6921-6927, 6930, 6934, 6935, 6937, 6938, 6939, and 6974.

	2. Section 260.10 is amended adding, in alphabetical order, definitions for "Corrective action management unit" and "Remediation waste," and by revising the definitions for "Disposal Facility," "Facility," "Landfill," and "Miscellaneous Unit" to read as follows:

§ 260.10  Definitions.

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	"Corrective action management unit" or "CAMU" means an area within a facility that is designated by the Regional Administrator under part 264 subpart S, for the purpose of implementing corrective action requirements under § 264.101 and RCRA section 3008(h). A CAMU shall only be used for the management of remediation wastes pursuant to implementing such corrective action requirements at the facility.

*	*	*	*	*

	"Disposal facility" means a facility or part of a facility at which hazardous waste is intentionally placed into or on any land or water, and at which waste will remain after closure. The term disposal facility does not include a corrective action management unit into which remediation wastes are placed.

*	*	*	*	*

	"Facility" means:

	(1) All contiguous land, and structures, other appurtenances, and improvements on the land, used for treating, storing, or disposing of hazardous waste. A facility may consist of several treatment, storage, or disposal operational units (e.g., one or more landfills, surface impoundments, or combinations of them).

	(2) For the purpose of implementing corrective action under § 264.101, all contiguous property under the control of the owner or operator seeking a permit under subtitle C of RCRA. This definition also applies to facilities implementing corrective action under RCRA Section 3008(h).

*	*	*	*	*

	"Landfill" means a disposal facility or part of a facility where hazardous waste is placed in or on land and which is not a pile, a land treatment facility, a surface impoundment, an underground injection well, a salt dome formation, a salt bed formation, an underground mine, a cave, or a corrective action management unit.

*	*	*	*	*

	"Miscellaneous unit" means a hazardous waste management unit where hazardous waste is treated, stored, or disposed of and that is not a container, tank, surface impoundment, pile, land treatment unit, landfill, incinerator, boiler, industrial furnace, underground injection well with appropriate technical standards under 40 CFR part 146, containment building, corrective action management unit, or unit eligible for research, development, and demonstration permit under § 270.65.

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	"Remediation waste" means all solid and hazardous wastes, and all media (including groundwater, surface water, soils, and sediments) and debris, which contain listed hazardous wastes or which themselves exhibit a hazardous waste characteristic, that are managed for the purpose of implementing corrective action requirements under § 264.101 and RCRA section 3008(h). For a given facility, remediation wastes may originate only from within the facility boundary, but may include waste managed in implementing RCRA sections 3004(v) or 3008(h) for releases beyond the facility boundary.

*	*	*	*	*

PART 264-STANDARDS FOR OWNERS AND OPERATORS OF HAZARDOUS WASTE TREATMENT, STORAGE, AND DISPOSAL FACILITIES

	3. The authority for part 264 continues to read as follows:

	Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912(a), 6924, and 6925.

	4. Section 264.3 is amended by revising the first paragraph (and the comment remains unchanged) to read as follows:

§ 264.3  Relationship to interim status standards.

	A facility owner or operator who has fully complied with the requirements for interim status -- as defined in section 3005(e) of RCRA and regulations under § 270.70 of this chapter -- must comply with the regulations specified in part 265 of this chapter in lieu of the regulations in this part, until final administrative disposition of his permit application is made, except as provided under 40 CFR part 264 subpart S.
*	*	*	*	*

	5. Paragraph (b) of § 264.101 is revised to read as follows:

§ 264.101  Corrective action for solid waste management units.

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	(b) Corrective action will be specified in the permit in accordance with this section and subpart S of this part. The permit will contain schedules of compliance for such corrective action (where such corrective action cannot be completed prior to issuance of the permit) and assurances of financial responsibility for completing such corrective action.

*	*	*	*	*

	6. 40 CFR part 264 is amended by adding subpart S to read as follows:

Subpart S-Corrective Action for Solid Waste Management Units

Sec.

264.552 Corrective Action Management Units (CAMU).

264.553 Temporary Units (TU).

Subpart S-Corrective Action for Solid Waste Management Units

§ 264.552  Corrective Action Management Units (CAMU).

	(a) For the purpose of implementing remedies under § 264.101 or RCRA Section 3008(h), the Regional Administrator may designate an area at the facility as a corrective action management unit, as defined in § 260.10, in accordance with the requirements of this section. One or more CAMUs may be designated at a facility.

	(1) Placement of remediation wastes into or within a CAMU does not constitute land disposal of hazardous wastes.

	(2) Consolidation or placement of remediation wastes into or within a CAMU does not constitute creation of a unit subject to minimum technology requirements.

	(b)(1) The Regional Administrator may designate a regulated unit (as defined in § 264.90(a)(2)) as a CAMU, or may incorporate a regulated unit into a CAMU, if:

	(i) The regulated unit is closed or closing, meaning it has begun the closure process under § 264.113 or § 265.113; and

	(ii) Inclusion of the regulated unit will enhance implementation of effective, protective and reliable remedial actions for the facility.

	(2) The subpart F, G, and H requirements and the unit-specific requirements of part 264 or 265 that applied to that regulated unit will continue to apply to that portion of the CAMU after incorporation into the CAMU.

	(c) The Regional Administrator shall designate a CAMU in accordance with the following:

	(1) The CAMU shall facilitate the implementation of reliable, effective, protective, and cost-effective remedies;

	(2) Waste management activities associated with the CAMU shall not create unacceptable risks to humans or to the environment resulting from exposure to hazardous wastes or hazardous constituents;

	(3) The CAMU shall include uncontaminated areas of the facility, only if including such areas for the purpose of managing remediation waste is more protective than management of such wastes at contaminated areas of the facility;

	(4) Areas within the CAMU, where wastes remain in place after closure of the CAMU, shall be managed and contained so as to minimize future releases, to the extent practicable;

	(5) The CAMU shall expedite the timing of remedial activity implementation, when appropriate and practicable;

	(6) The CAMU shall enable the use, when appropriate, of treatment technologies (including innovative technologies) to enhance the long-term effectiveness of remedial actions by reducing the toxicity, mobility, or volume of wastes that will remain in place after closure of the CAMU; and

	(7) The CAMU shall, to the extent practicable, minimize the land area of the facility upon which wastes will remain in place after closure of the CAMU.

	(d) The owner/operator shall provide sufficient information to enable the Regional Administrator to designate a CAMU in accordance with the criteria in § 264.552.

	(e) The Regional Administrator shall specify, in the permit or order, requirements for CAMUs to include the following:

	(1) The areal configuration of the CAMU.

	(2) Requirements for remediation waste management to include the specification of applicable design, operation and closure requirements.
	(3) Requirements for ground water monitoring that are sufficient to:

	(i) Continue to detect and to characterize the nature, extent, concentration, direction, and movement of existing releases of hazardous constituents in ground water from sources located within the CAMU; and

	(ii) Detect and subsequently characterize releases of hazardous constituents to ground water that may occur from areas of the CAMU in which wastes will remain in place after closure of the CAMU.

	(4) Closure and post-closure requirements.

	(i) Closure of corrective action management units shall:

	(A) Minimize the need for further maintenance; and

	(B) Control, minimize, or eliminate, to the extent necessary to protect human health and the environment, for areas where wastes remain in place, post-closure escape of hazardous waste, hazardous constituents, leachate, contaminated runoff, or hazardous waste decomposition products to the ground, to surface waters, or to the atmosphere.

	(ii) Requirements for closure of CAMUs shall include the following, as appropriate and as deemed necessary by the Regional Administrator for a given CAMU:

	(A) Requirements for excavation, removal, treatment or containment of wastes;

	(B) For areas in which wastes will remain after closure of the CAMU, requirements for capping of such areas; and

	(C) Requirements for removal and decontamination of equipment, devices, and structures used in remediation waste management activities within the CAMU.

	(iii) In establishing specific closure requirements for CAMUs under § 264.552(e), the Regional Administrator shall consider the following factors:

	(A) CAMU characteristics;

	(B) Volume of wastes which remain in place after closure;

	(C) Potential for releases from the CAMU;

	(D) Physical and chemical characteristics of the waste;

	(E) Hydrological and other relevant environmental conditions at the facility which may influence the migration of any potential or actual releases; and

	(F) Potential for exposure of humans and environmental receptors if releases were to occur from the CAMU.

	(iv) Post-closure requirements as necessary to protect human health and the environment, to include, for areas where wastes will remain in place, monitoring and maintenance activities, and the frequency with which such activities shall be performed to ensure the integrity of any cap, final cover, or other containment system.

	(f) The Regional Administrator shall document the rationale for designating CAMUs and shall make such documentation available to the public.

	(g) Incorporation of a CAMU into an existing permit must be approved by the Regional Administrator according to the procedures for Agency-initiated permit modifications under § 270.41 of this chapter, or according to the permit modification procedures of § 270.42 of this chapter.

	(h) The designation of a CAMU does not change EPA's existing authority to address clean-up levels, media-specific points of compliance to be applied to remediation at a facility, or other remedy selection decisions.

§ 264.553  Temporary Units (TU).

	(a) For temporary tanks and container storage areas used for treatment or storage of hazardous remediation wastes, during remedial activities required under § 264.101 or RCRA section 3008(h), the Regional Administrator may determine that a design, operating, or closure standard applicable to such units may be replaced by alternative requirements which are protective of human health and the environment.

	(b) Any temporary unit to which alternative requirements are applied in accordance with paragraph (a) of this section shall be:

	(1) Located within the facility boundary; and

	(2) Used only for treatment or storage of remediation wastes.

	(c) In establishing standards to be applied to a temporary unit, the Regional Administrator shall consider the following factors:

	(1) Length of time such unit will be in operation;

	(2) Type of unit;

	(3) Volumes of wastes to be managed;

	(4) Physical and chemical characteristics of the wastes to be managed in the unit;

	(5) Potential for releases from the unit;

	(6) Hydrogeological and other relevant environmental conditions at the facility which may influence the migration of any potential releases; and

	(7) Potential for exposure of humans and environmental receptors if releases were to occur from the unit.

	(d) The Regional Administrator shall specify in the permit or order the length of time a temporary unit will be allowed to operate, to be no longer than a period of one year. The Regional Administrator shall also specify the design, operating, and closure requirements for the unit.

	(e) The Regional Administrator may extend the operational period of a temporary unit once for no longer than a period of one year beyond that originally specified in the permit or order, if the Administrator determines that:

	(1) Continued operation of the unit will not pose a threat to human health and the environment; and

	(2) Continued operation of the unit is necessary to ensure timely and efficient implementation of remedial actions at the facility.

	(f) Incorporation of a temporary unit or a time extension for a temporary unit into an existing permit shall be:

	(1) Approved in accordance with the procedures for Agency-initiated permit modifications under § 270.41; or

	(2) Requested by the owner/operator as a Class II modification according to the procedures under § 270.42 of this chapter.

	(g) The Regional Administrator shall document the rationale for designating a temporary unit and for granting time extensions for temporary units and shall make such documentation available to the public.

PART 265-INTERIM STATUS STANDARDS FOR OWNERS AND OPERATORS OF HAZARDOUS WASTE TREATMENT, STORAGE, AND DISPOSAL FACILITIES

	7. The authority citation for part 265 continues to read as follows:
	Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912(a), 6924, 6925, and 6935.

	8. Section 265.1(b) is amended by adding the phrase ", and of 40 CFR 264.552 and 40 CFR 264.553," immediately after the phrase "standards of this part" in the first sentence.

PART 268-LAND DISPOSAL RESTRICTIONS

	9. The authority citation for part 268 continues to read as follows:

	Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912(a), 6921, and 6924.

	10. Section 268.2 is amended by revising paragraph (c) to read as follows:

§ 268.2  Definitions applicable in this part.

*	*	*	*	*

	(c) "Land disposal" means placement in or on the land, except in a corrective action management unit, and includes, but is not limited to, placement in a landfill, surface impoundment, waste pile, injection well, land treatment facility, salt dome formation, salt bed formation, underground mine or cave, or placement in a concrete vault, or bunker intended for disposal purposes.

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PART 270-EPA ADMINISTERED PERMIT PROGRAMS: THE HAZARDOUS WASTE PERMIT PROGRAM

	11. The authority citation for part 270 continues to read as follows:

	Authority: 42 U.S.C. 6905, 6912, 6924, 6925, 6927, 6939, and 6974.

	12. Section 270.2 is amended by adding, in alphabetical order, a definition for "Corrective action management unit," and by revising the definition for "Disposal facility" to read as follows:

§ 270.2  Definitions.

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	"Corrective Action Management Unit" or "CAMU" means an area within a facility that is designated by the Regional Administrator under part 264 subpart S, for the purpose of implementing corrective action requirements under § 264.101 and RCRA section 3008(h). A CAMU shall only be used for the management of remediation wastes pursuant to implementing such corrective action requirements at the facility.

*	*	*	*	*

	"Disposal facility" means a facility or part of a facility at which hazardous waste is intentionally placed into or on the land or water, and at which hazardous waste will remain after closure. The term disposal facility does not include a corrective action management unit into which remediation wastes are placed.

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	13. Appendix I to § 270.42 is amended by adding a new section N, to read as follows:

§ 270.42  Permit modification at the request of the permittee.

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Appendix I to §270.42-Classification of Permit Modification		
Modification	Class	
*		*		*		*		*	*	
N. Corrective Action:		
1. Approval of a corrective action management unit pursuant to § 264.552	3	
2. Approval of a temporary unit or time extension for a temporary unit pursuant to §264.553.	2	
*		*		*		*		*	*	

>>>> Part 271 has not been included because it is not required as part of a State's Hazardous Waste
Program. <<<<

[FR Doc. 93-3154 Filed 2-12-93; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P