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EPA's Region 6 Office

Serving: Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and 66 Tribal Nations

Hazardous Waste Delisting Program

BACKGROUND

Under the RCRA regulations, wastes are designated as hazardous in two ways:

characteristic wastes - solid wastes that exhibit the characteristics of ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, or toxicity.
listed wastes - solid wastes that are specifically listed in 40 CFR Part 261, Subpart D. Characteristic wastes are hazardous for as long as they exhibit a characteristic, whereas Listed wastes remain hazardous until the waste is delisted.

Delisting is a formal agency rulemaking procedure. The delisting program has historically been administered primarily by EPA Headquarters. On October 10, 1995, this program was delegated to the Regions. In Region 6, only Louisiana and Oklahoma are currently authorized for delisting.

REGION 6 DELISTING PROCESS OVERVIEW

  1. Applicant first submits a written request informing Region 6 of Petition interest.
  2. A required face-to-face meeting is scheduled, and the appropriate state will be invited.
  3. The Region reviews the petitioner's sampling and analysis plan to ensure proper data collection.
  4. Applicant submits a complete petition utilizing the Delisting Guidance Manual. Failure to submit a complete petition will result in denial of the petition.
  5. Region 6 has 30 days to review the petition. EPA HQs and the appropriate state will also be given the opportunity to comment on the petition simultaneously.
  6. Applicant has a maximum of 15 working days to correct any identified minor deficiencies. Failure to correct a deficiency in 15 days will result in denial of the petition.
  7. The Region will perform a risk assessment on the petitioner's waste analyses data.
  8. Draft Decision Document will be provided to the appropriate state for comment.
  9. Following state comment, the proposed Decision Document will be finalized and the Federal Register Notice will be issued for public comment in a specified 45 day period.
  10. At the completion of the comment period, the Decision Document will be finalized along with a detailed Responsiveness Summary of all received comments. A final Federal Register Notice will also be published.

The Delisting Process designed by EPA Region 6 employs a number of innovations over those historically utilized by EPA Headquarters:

  • decision making within an average of 180 days
  • streamlined application checklist
  • streamlined Quality Assurance/Quality Control and sampling requirements
  • Updated fate-transport model
  • mandatory up-front meeting between the petitioner and Region 6
  • user-friendly, stand-alone Risk Assessment Software (DRAS) program which calculates the potential risks associated with delisting a petitioned waste
  • modified acceptable risk range to coincide with Agency's 1 x 10-4 to 1 x 10-6
  • coordination of state personnel
  • incorporation of disputes resolution procedures
  • requirement for successful petitioner to notify all affected states
  • formal opportunities for industry input into improving the process

CONTACT/TELEPHONE NUMBER

Ben Banipal, Corrective Action/Waste Minimization Section, (6PD-C) Multimedia Planning and Permitting Division, 1445 Ross Avenue Dallas, TX 75202 (214) 665-7324

Current Delisting Status

The most recent Delisting Information as published in the Federal Register.

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