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TITLE 30ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
PART 1TEXAS COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
CHAPTER 330MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE
SUBCHAPTER AGENERAL INFORMATION
RULE §330.5Classification of Municipal Solid Waste Facilities

(a) The commission has classified all municipal solid waste (MSW) facilities according to the method of processing or disposal of MSW. Subject to the limitations in §§330.15, 330.171, and 330.173 of this title (relating to General Prohibitions; Disposal of Special Wastes; and Disposal of Industrial Wastes), and with the written approval of the executive director, Type I, IV, V, and VI MSW facilities may also receive special wastes, including Class 1 industrial solid waste and hazardous waste from conditionally exempt small quantity generators, if properly handled and safeguarded in the facility.

  (1) MSW facility - Type I. A Type I landfill unit is the standard landfill for the disposal of MSW. The commission may authorize the designation of special-use areas for processing, storage, and disposal or any other functions involving solid waste. Except as allowed in subsections (b) - (e) of this section, owners or operators shall follow the permit application requirements prescribed in Subchapter B of this chapter (relating to Permit and Registration Application Procedures) and the minimum design and operational requirements of Subchapter D of this chapter (relating to Operational Standards for Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Facilities); Subchapter F of this chapter (relating to Analytical Quality Assurance and Quality Control); Subchapter G of this chapter (relating to Surface Water Drainage); Subchapter H of this chapter (relating to Liner System Design and Operation); Subchapter I of this chapter (relating to Landfill Gas Management); Subchapter J of this chapter (relating to Groundwater Monitoring and Corrective Action); Subchapter K of this chapter (relating to Closure and Post- Closure); Subchapter L of this chapter (relating to Closure, Post-Closure, and Corrective Action Cost Estimates); Subchapter M of this chapter (relating to Location Restrictions); Subchapter T of this chapter (relating to Use of Land Over Closed Municipal Solid Waste Landfills); and Chapter 37, Subchapter R of this title (relating to Financial Assurance for Municipal Solid Waste Facilities). Those landfill units meeting the requirements of subsection (b) of this section shall be referred to as Type IAE landfill units. Type IAE landfill units are authorized to accept the same types of waste as Type I landfill units subject to the limitations in §330.173 of this title, and are exempt from Subchapters H and J of this chapter. Owners or operators of Type I landfill facilities that are authorized to operate a Type IV cell or trench shall operate the cell or trench in accordance with paragraph (2) of this subsection.

  (2) MSW facility - Type IV. A Type IV landfill unit may only accept brush, construction, or demolition waste, and/or rubbish. A Type IV landfill unit may not accept putrescible wastes, conditionally exempt small-quantity generator waste, or household wastes. Except as allowed in subsection (b) of this section, owners or operators shall follow the permit application requirements prescribed in Subchapter B of this chapter and the minimum design and operational standards prescribed in Subchapters D, F, and G of this chapter; §§330.331(d), 330.335, 330.337, 330.339, and 330.341 of this title (relating to Liner System Design and Operation); §330.417 of this title (relating to Groundwater Monitoring at Type IV Landfills); §§330.453, 330.463(a), 330.465, and 330.467 of this title (relating to Closure and Post-Closure); Subchapter M of this chapter; and Chapter 37, Subchapter R of this title. Those landfill units meeting the requirements of subsection (b) of this section shall be referred to as Type IVAE landfill units. Type IVAE landfill units are authorized to accept the same types of waste as Type IV landfill units and are exempt from Subchapters H and J of this chapter.

  (3) MSW facility - Type V. Separate solid waste processing facilities are classified as Type V. These facilities include processing plants that transfer, incinerate, shred, grind, bale, salvage, separate, dewater, reclaim, and/or provide other storage or processing of solid waste. Owners or operators shall follow the minimum design and operational requirements prescribed in Subchapter E of this chapter (relating to Operational Standards for Municipal Solid Waste Storage and Processing Units); Subchapter F of this chapter; Subchapter G of this chapter; Subchapter H of this chapter, if required; Subchapter K of this chapter; Subchapter L of this chapter, if financial assurance is required; Subchapter M of this chapter; and Chapter 37, Subchapter R of this title, except that owners and operators of recycling facilities who store combustible material are required to comply with Chapter 37, Subchapter J of this title (relating to Financial Assurance for Recycling Facilities). Groundwater monitoring may be required by the executive director and shall be maintained in accordance with the requirements of Subchapter J of this chapter.

  (4) MSW facility - Type VI. A Type VI facility or operation is a facility using a new or unproven method of managing or utilizing MSW, including resource and energy recovery projects for processes that are not currently in use in Texas. The commission may limit the size of these facilities until the method is proven. The minimum operational standards are prescribed in Subchapter E of this chapter.

  (5) MSW facility - Type VII. A Type VII facility or operation is a facility for the land management of sludges and/or similar wastes. Operational standards, depending on the particular waste, facility purpose, and method of operation (land application for beneficial use, land disposal to include landfilling and land treatment, etc.) are contained in Chapter 312 of this title (relating to Sludge Use, Disposal, and Transportation).

  (6) MSW facility - Type VIII. Facilities for the management of used or scrap tires are classified as Type VIII. Standards are prescribed in Chapter 328, Subchapter F of this title (relating to Management of Used or Scrap Tires).

  (7) MSW facility - Type IX. A Type IX facility is an energy, material, gas recovery for beneficial use, or landfill mining facility located within or adjacent to a closed disposal facility, an inactive portion of a disposal facility, or an active disposal facility, used for extracting materials for energy and material recovery or for gas recovery for beneficial use. Registration by rule requirements for facilities that recover landfill gas for beneficial use are prescribed in §330.9(k) of this title (relating to Registration Required). Owners or operators of other Type IX facilities shall follow the registration application requirements prescribed in Subchapter B of this chapter. All owners and operators shall follow the minimum design and operational requirements of Subchapter E of this chapter; §330.459 of this title (relating to Closure Requirements for Municipal Solid Waste Storage and Processing Units); §330.461 of this title (relating to Certification of Final Facility Closure); §330.505 of this title (relating to Closure Cost Estimates for Storage and Processing Units); and Chapter 37, Subchapter R of this title. Waste mining activities shall also follow the minimum design and operation requirements of §330.149 of this title (relating to Odor Management Plan); §330.151 of this title (relating to Disease Vector Control); §330.165 of this title (relating to Landfill Cover); and §330.167 of this title (relating to Ponded Water). Owners or operators of an MSW landfill facility applying for a non-beneficial use gas control system for any area within the facility's permit boundary shall apply for a permit modification under §305.70 of this title (relating to Municipal Solid Waste Permit and Registration Modifications). Type IX facility permits and registrations previously issued for the recovery and beneficial use of landfill gas are considered to remain valid under applicable permit provisions until amended, modified, or revoked by the commission. The owner or operator must submit all information necessary to complete the air quality review as prescribed by the commission and be approved by the executive director prior to the Type IX registration by rule becoming effective.

(b) Owners or operators of a Type IAE or Type IVAE landfill facility may qualify for an arid exemption, as follows.

  (1) Owners or operators of new, existing, and lateral expansions of Type IAE or Type IVAE landfill units may qualify for an arid exemption and be exempt from Subchapters H and J of this chapter, provided all of the following conditions are met:

    (A) the facility disposes less than 20 tons per day based on an annual average of authorized waste in a Type IAE landfill unit and/or less than 20 tons per day based on an annual average of authorized waste in a Type IVAE landfill unit for a total waste acceptance rate less than 40 tons per day for the facility considering all waste streams based on an annual average;

    (B) there is no evidence of existing groundwater contamination from the facility;

    (C) the facility serves a community that has no practicable waste management alternative; and

    (D) the facility is located in an area that receives less than or equal to 25 inches of annual average precipitation based on precipitation data from the nearest official precipitation recording station for the most recent 30-year reporting period.

  (2) Requests for exemptions under §330.63(d)(5) of this title (relating to Contents of Part III of the Application) may be approved administratively by the executive director, upon demonstration of compliance with all applicable criteria. The executive director may deny an exemption request if the available information indicates that granting the exemption could result in a substantial threat of groundwater contamination. Existing Type IAE landfill permits, which include a 20 tons per day waste disposal limit, may be revised via a major amendment to allow for disposal of an additional less than 20 tons of authorized waste in a Type IVAE landfill unit located in a separate area of the same facility. Existing Type IAE landfill permits, which do not include a waste disposal limit or include a waste disposal limit in excess of limits allowed for Type IAE landfill units, may be modified consistent with the restrictions for small MSW landfills. Within 180 days of the effective date of the comprehensive rule revisions in this chapter as adopted in 2006 (2006 Revisions), owners and operators of such a permit shall comply with the waste acceptance rate limit for a Type IAE landfill unit or apply to modify such permit to include a Type IVAE landfill unit located in a separate area of the facility. Such permits remain valid until a final decision is made on the modification application. Such a modification must be processed in accordance with §305.70(l) of this title as a modification subject to public notice. Such a modification application must be submitted in conjunction with a corresponding application to modify the revised estimated waste acceptance rate under §330.125(h) of this title (relating to Recordkeeping Requirements).

  (3) Owners or operators may appeal denials of a request for exemption to the commission for decision.

  (4) If the owner or operator of a new, existing, or lateral expansion of a Type IAE or Type IVAE landfill facility who has previously asserted eligibility for the arid exemption has knowledge or becomes aware of groundwater contamination from the facility within a one-mile radius of the unit, the facility no longer meets the definition of a Type IAE or Type IVAE landfill facility, the waste reduction program is ineffective (based upon an evaluation of trends established after a minimum period of a year), or a practicable alternative becomes available, the owner or operator shall notify in writing the executive director of such condition(s) and thereafter comply with Subchapter B, Subchapter H, and Subchapter J of this chapter on a schedule specified by the executive director.

  (5) The executive director may consider the economic investment made by the owner or operator in establishing the schedule for compliance.

  (6) The minimum time allowed for compliance necessitated by loss of Type IAE or Type IVAE landfill facility status or availability of a practicable alternative shall be 18 months.

  (7) A Type IAE or Type IVAE landfill facility that meets the requirements of this subsection shall maintain the integrity of any existing on-site groundwater monitor wells and make them available to the executive director for the collection of groundwater samples.

(c) For MSW landfills that stopped receiving waste before October 9, 1991, and unauthorized MSW sites, the closure provisions of §330.453 of this title (relating to Closure Requirements for Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Units that Stopped Receiving Waste Prior to October 9, 1991, Type IV Landfills, and Municipal Solid Waste Sites) apply. If not previously submitted, owners or operators shall submit a closure report that documents that MSW landfill units or unauthorized MSW sites, or portions thereof, have received final cover.

(d) MSW landfill units that receive waste after October 9, 1991, but stop receiving waste before October 9, 1993, are subject to the final cover requirements specified in §330.455 of this title (relating to Closure Requirements for Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Units that Received Waste on or after October 9, 1991, but Stopped Receiving Waste Prior to October 9, 1993). The final cover must be installed and certified in accordance with the requirements contained in §§330.451, 330.453, 330.455, and 330.457 of this title (relating to Closure and Post-Closure). Owners or operators of MSW landfill units described in this subsection that fail to complete cover installation and certification within the time limits specified in Subchapter K of this chapter will be subject to all the requirements of these regulations.

(e) All MSW landfill units that receive waste on or after October 9, 1993, must comply with all requirements of these regulations, unless otherwise specified.


Source Note: The provisions of this §330.5 adopted to be effective March 27, 2006, 31 TexReg 2502

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