04-2820. Land Disposal Restrictions: Site-Specific Treatment Variances for Heritage Environmental Services LLC and Chemical Waste Management Inc.

AGENCY:

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is today proposing to grant three site-specific treatment variances from the Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR) treatment standards for selenium-bearing hazardous wastes from the glass manufacturing industry. EPA is proposing to grant these variances because the chemical properties of the wastes differ significantly from those of the waste used to establish the current LDR standard for selenium (5.7 mg/L, as measured by the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP)), and the petitions have adequately demonstrated that the wastes cannot be treated to meet this treatment standard.

In the “Rules and Regulations” section of the Federal Register, we are publishing a direct final rule that would grant these site-specific treatment variances without prior proposal because we view these actions as noncontroversial and we anticipate no significant adverse comment. We have explained our reasons for this approach in the preamble to the direct final rule. If we receive significant adverse comment on a distinct amendment, however, we will withdraw the direct final action for that amendment and the amendment will not take effect. We will address all public comments in a subsequent final rule based on this proposed rule. We will not institute a second comment period on this action. Any parties interested in commenting on these proposed variances must do so at this time.

DATES:

Written comments must be received by March 12, 2004.

ADDRESSES:

Comments may be submitted by mail to: OSWER Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 5305T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20460, Attention Docket ID No. RCRA-2003-0025. Comments may also be submitted electronically, or through hand delivery/courier. Follow the detailed instructions as provided in the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For general information, contact the RCRA Hotline at 800 424-9346 or TDD 800 553-7672 (hearing impaired). In the Washington, DC, metropolitan area, call 703 412-9810 or TDD 703 412-3323. For more detailed information on specific aspects of this rulemaking, contact Juan Parra at [phone] , send your e-mail to [e-mail], or mail your inquiry to Office of Solid Waste (MC 5302 W), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington, DC 20460.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

 

I. General Information

This document is proposing to grant three site-specific treatment variances from the Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR) treatment standards for selenium-bearing hazardous wastes from the glass manufacturing industry. These selenium wastes will be treated by Heritage Environmental Services LLC and Chemical Waste Management Inc. We have explained our reasons for these actions in the preamble to the direct final rule, and do not believe it necessary to repeat those discussions here. For further information, please see the direct final action that is located in the “Rules and Regulations” section of this Federal Register publication.

A. How Can I Get Copies of This Variance Proposal?

1. Docket. EPA has established an official public docket for this action under Docket ID No. RCRA-2003-0025. The official public docket consists of the documents specifically referenced in this action, any public comments received, and other information related to this action. Although a part of the official docket, the public docket does not include Confidential Business Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. The official public docket is the collection of materials that is available for public viewing at the OSWER Docket in the EPA Docket Center (EPA/DC), EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The EPA Docket Center Public Reading Room is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading Room is [phone], and the telephone number for the OSWER Docket is [phone]. The public may copy a maximum of 100 pages from any regulatory docket at no charge. Additional copies cost $0.15/page.

2. Electronic Access. You may access this Federal Register document electronically through the EPA Internet under the “Federal Register” listings at http://www.epa.gov/​fedrgstr/​ and you can make comments on this proposed rule at the Federal e-rulemaking portal, http://www.regulations.gov.

An electronic version of the public docket is available through EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, EPA Dockets. You may use EPA Dockets at http://www.epa.gov/​edocket/​ to submit or view public comments, access the index listing of the contents of the official public docket, and to access those documents in the public docket that are available electronically. Once in the system, select “search,” then key in the appropriate docket identification number.

Certain types of information will not be placed in the EPA Dockets. Information claimed as CBI and other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute, which is not included in the official public docket, will not be available for public viewing in EPA's electronic public docket. EPA's policy is that copyrighted material will not be placed in EPA's electronic public docket but will be available only in printed, paper form in the official public docket. To the extent feasible, publicly available docket materials will be made available in EPA's electronic public docket. When a document is selected from the index list in EPA Dockets, the system will identify whether the document is available for viewing in EPA's electronic public docket. Although not all docket materials may be available electronically, you may still access any of the publicly available docket materials through the docket facility identified in Section I.A.1. EPA intends to work towards providing electronic access to all of the publicly available docket materials through EPA's electronic public docket.

For public commenters, it is important to note that EPA's policy is that public comments, whether submitted electronically or in paper, will be made available for public viewing in EPA's electronic public docket as EPA receives them and without change, unless the comment contains copyrighted material, CBI, or other information whose disclosure is restricted by statute. When EPA identifies a comment containing copyrighted material, EPA will provide a reference to that material in the version of the comment that is placed in EPA's electronic public docket. The entire printed comment, including the copyrighted material, will be available in the public docket.

Public comments submitted on computer disks that are mailed or delivered to the docket will be transferred to EPA's electronic public docket. Public comments that are mailed or delivered to the Docket will be scanned and placed in EPA's electronic public docket. Where practical, physical objects will be photographed, and the photograph will be placed in EPA's electronic public docket along with a brief description written by the docket staff.

B. How and to Whom Do I Submit Comments?

You may submit comments electronically, by mail, or through hand delivery/courier. To ensure proper receipt by EPA, identify the appropriate docket identification number in the subject line on the first page of your comment. Please ensure that your comments are submitted within the specified comment period. Comments received after the close of the comment period will be marked “late.” EPA is not required to consider these late comments. If you wish to submit CBI or information that is otherwise protected by statute, please follow the instructions in Unit I.C. Do not use EPA Dockets or e-mail to submit CBI or information protected by statute.

1. Electronically. If you submit an electronic comment as prescribed below, EPA recommends that you include your name, mailing address, and an e-mail address or other contact information in the body of your comment. Also include this contact information on the outside of any disk or CD ROM you submit, and in any cover letter accompanying the disk or CD ROM. This ensures that you can be identified as the submitter of the comment and allows EPA to contact you in case EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties or needs further information on the substance of your comment. EPA's policy is that EPA will not edit your comment, and any identifying or contact information provided in the body of a comment will be included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be able to consider your comment.

i. EPA Dockets. Your use of EPA's electronic public docket to submit comments to EPA electronically is EPA's preferred method for receiving comments. Go directly to EPA Dockets at http://www.epa.gov/​edocket, and follow the online instructions for submitting comments. Once in the system, select “search,” and then key in Docket ID No. RCRA-2003-0025. The system is an “anonymous access” system, which means EPA will not know your identity, e-mail address, or other contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment.

ii. E-mail. Comments may be sent by electronic mail (e-mail) to [e-mail], Attention Docket ID No. RCRA-2003-0025. In contrast to EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's e-mail system is not an “anonymous access” system. If you send an e-mail comment directly to the Docket without going through EPA's electronic public docket, EPA's e-mail system automatically captures your e-mail address. E-mail addresses that are automatically captured by EPA's e-mail system are included as part of the comment that is placed in the official public docket, and made available in EPA's electronic public docket.

iii. Disk or CD ROM. You may submit comments on a disk or CD ROM that you mail to the mailing address identified in Unit I.A.1. These electronic submissions will be accepted in WordPerfect or ASCII file format. Avoid the use of special characters and any form of encryption.

2. By Mail. Send your comments to: OSWER Docket, Environmental Protection Agency, Mailcode: 5305T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC, 20460, Attention Docket ID No. RCRA-2003-0025.

3. By Hand Delivery or Courier. Deliver your comments to: EPA Docket Center Reading Room, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution Ave NW., Washington, DC., Attention Docket ID No. RCRA-2003-0025. Such deliveries are only accepted during the Docket's normal hours of operation as identified in Section I.A.1.

C. How Should I Submit CBI to the Agency?

Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI electronically through EPA's electronic public docket or by e-mail. You may claim information that you submit to EPA as CBI by marking any part or all of that information as CBI (if you submit CBI on disk or CD ROM, mark the outside of the disk or CD ROM as CBI and then identify electronically within the disk or CD ROM the specific information that is CBI). Information so marked will not be disclosed except in accordance with procedures set forth in 40 CFR part 2.

In addition to one complete version of the comment that includes any information claimed as CBI, a copy of the comment that does not contain the information claimed as CBI must be submitted for inclusion in the public docket and EPA's electronic public docket. If you submit the copy that does not contain CBI on disk or CD ROM, mark the outside of the disk or CD ROM clearly that it does not contain CBI. Information not marked as CBI will be included in the public docket and EPA's electronic public docket without prior notice. If you have any questions about CBI or the procedures for claiming CBI, please consult the person identified in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section.

II. Description of Proposed Amendments

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency) is today proposing to grant three site-specific treatment variances from the Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR) treatment standards for selenium-bearing hazardous wastes from the glass manufacturing industry.

In its first action, EPA is proposing to grant a variance to Heritage Environmental Services LLC (Heritage) to stabilize a selenium-bearing waste generated by Guardian Industries Corp. (Guardian) at their RCRA permitted facility in Indianapolis, Indiana. If this proposal is finalized, Heritage may treat the specific waste to an alternate selenium treatment standard of 39.4 mg/L, as measured by the TCLP, for the Guardian waste. Heritage may dispose of the treated wastes in a RCRA Subtitle C landfill, provided they meet the applicable LDR treatment standards for the other hazardous constituents in the waste.

In its second and third actions, EPA is proposing to permanently establish two site-specific variances from Land Disposal Restrictions treatment standards for Chemical Waste Management Inc. (CWM), at their Kettleman Hills facility in Kettleman City, California, for two selenium bearing hazardous wastes. EPA previously granted variances to these wastes on a temporary basis on May 26, 1999 (64 FR 28387). On May 28, 2002 (67 FR 36849), EPA renewed these variances for a consecutive three year term with the same condition to investigate treatment technologies and to report effectiveness of their ongoing treatment. These variances expire on May 28, 2005. In light of the information presented by CWM to the Agency and EPA's inability to find selenium recovery capability in the US, EPA is proposing to change the status of CWM variances from temporary to permanent. If this proposal is finalized, CWM will continue to be required to treat these two specific wastes to alternative selenium treatment standards of 51 mg/L, as measured by the TCLP, for the Owens-Brockway waste, and 25 mg/L, as measured by the TCLP, for the St. Gobain (formally Ball Foster) waste. CWM will continue to dispose of the treated wastes in a RCRA Subtitle C landfill provided they meet the applicable LDR treatment standards for the other hazardous constituents in the wastes.

List of Subjects in 40 CFR Part 268

• Environmental Protection
• Hazardous waste
• Variance

Dated: February 4, 2004.

Marianne Lamont Horinko,

Assistant Administrator, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response.