A generator’s hazardous waste status is based on the quantity of hazardous waste generated each month. So do all your generated hazardous wastes need to be counted? Yes, but no. The federal regulation at 40 CFR 261.5(c) and (d) sets forth a list of wastes that are exempt from being counted in connection with ascertaining generator status.
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Although 40 CFR 261.5 is titled “Special Requirements for Hazardous Waste Generated by Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators” and does predominately concern this generator class, it is the one Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) regulation that addresses counting generated hazardous waste and its counting exemptions apply to all classes of hazardous waste generators.
I have long held the belief that proper waste management means compliance with the INTENT not just the letter of the law. Trying to scrape by and do the minimum may well be legal, but it isn’t ethical. There are more than enough production and manufacturing people that look for the low road in EHS compliance. It is the responsibility of the EHS manager to be PROFESSIONAL and to the right thing…even if it is more costly.
If people (in general and) responsible for regulatory compliance thought the way you do — with an emphasis on ethical behavior rather than following the “letter of the law” and/or doing the bare minimum to avoid being cited, OSHA inspectors would have a lot less to do.