Q: What’s the effect of the new Definition of Solid Waste Rule on current recycling of hazardous secondary materials?
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A: In short, the new rule has the most effect on recyclers that were conducting operations under the provisions of the 2008 Rule, and that’s not a great many recyclers as the 2008 rule was only in effect in a handful of states.
Several of the key provisions of the new rule include:
- Codification of the definition of “sham recycling” and EPA’s long-standing criteria to determine if legitimate recycling is occurring plus a definition for “sham recycling”
- Revision of the “Generator Controlled Exclusion”
- A new “Verified Recycler Exclusion, and
- A new “Remanufacturing Exclusion”.
The rule does not significantly affect the 32 recycling exemptions and exclusions that existed before the 2008 version of the DSW rule and therefore for recyclers utilizing the 32 pre-2008 exclusions and exemptions, the 2015 DSW final rule has no significant effect on how they conduct their recycling operations.