United States       
Environmental Protection   
Agency    

Solid Waste and Emergency  Response  
Office of Solid Waste (5305)

Note:  Office of Solid Waste, OSW, was renamed Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, ORCR, on January 18, 2009

EPA530-F-95-008
March 1995

ENVIRONMENTAL 
FACT SHEET:    Report to Congress on Flow Control and Mu-
               nicipal Solid Waste

Background

  Flow controls are legal provisions that allow state and
local governments to designate the places where municipal
solid waste (MSW) is taken for processing, treatment, or
disposal. Because of flow controls, designated facilities
may hold monopolies on local MSW and/or recoverable materials. Consequently, flow control has become a heavily debated
issue among state and local governments, the waste management and recycling industries, and environmental groups. 

  In 1992, Congress directed the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) to review flow control as it pertains to
municipal solid waste management. Specifically, Congress
directed EPA to:

     Review and compare states with and without flow control
     authority;

     Identify the impact of flow controls on human health
     and the environment; and

     Describe the impacts of flow control on the development
     of state and local waste management capacity, and on
     the achievement of state and local goals set for source
     reduction, reuse, and recycling.

Action

  EPA's Report to Congress on Flow Control and Municipal
Solid Waste indicates that flow controls are an administratively efficient tool for local governments to plan and fund
solid waste management systems. However, protection of human
health and the environment is directly related to the
implementation and enforcement of federal, state, and local
environmental regulations rather than to the existence of
flow control measures. Data also indicate that flow control
is not essential for developing MSW management capacity, or
for achieving recycling goals.

  The Agency examined flow control nation-wide, finding
that 35 states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin
Islands authorize flow control directly. Four additional
states authorize flow control through mechanisms such as
solid waste management plans and home rule authority. Eleven
states have no flow control authority. It is important to
recognize that the Report presents a national perspective on
flow control, and that the needs and objectives of state and
local jurisdictions may differ significantly from a national
viewpoint. Factors such as local waste generation rates,
financial and market conditions, demographics, and the local
economy affect the planning and implementation of local
solid waste management systems.

More Information
  
  The Executive Summary, the full Report, and this fact
sheet are available in electronic format on the Internet
System through the EPA Public Access Server at
gopher.epa.gov. From the main menu, choose: EPA Offices and
Regions; then, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response
(OSWER); finally, Office of Solid Waste/ Nonhazardous
Waste/Municipal Solid Waste/General.

Note:  Office of Solid Waste, OSW, was renamed Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, ORCR, on January 18, 2009
  
  Additional information or free paper copies of the Executive Summary (EPA530-S-95-008) may be obtained from the RCRA
Hotline Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. EST. The
national, toll-free number is (800) 424-9346; TDD (800) 553-7672 (hearing impaired). Paper copies of the full Report
(EPA530-R-95-008) are available for a fee from the National
Technical Information Service (NTIS) at 1-703-487-4650.

  Copies of documents applicable to this Report may be
obtained by writing: RCRA Information Center (RIC), U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Solid Waste
(5305), 401 M Street SW, Washington, D.C. 20460.

Note:  Office of Solid Waste, OSW, was renamed Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, ORCR, on January 18, 2009