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According to EPA data, methane emissions from landfills are the third-largest source of human-related methane emissions in the United States, accounting for approximately 14.4% of these emissions in 2022. “These emissions heat the atmosphere at about 80 times the rate of carbon dioxide over 20 years, but the methane that rises from the decomposing food […]
The EPA must improve oversight of how states implement air emissions regulations for municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills, according to a report published by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) on July 30, 2020. The OIG serves as the EPA’s watchdog.
With an estimated 738 facilities, the municipal solid waste (MSW) landfill sector is one of the largest industry sectors subject to the Clean air Act’s (CAA) National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP).
Based on its Clean Air Act (CAA) Section 112 Residual Risk and Technology Review (RTR), the EPA is proposing amendments to its 2003 National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for the Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Landfill source category.
A federal district court judge ordered the EPA to approve or disapprove plans states have submitted to implement the Agency’s Emission Guidelines and Compliance Times for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills. The complaint against the Agency was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California by eight states that argued that the […]
The AGs from eight states plus the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection have together filed suit against the EPA for its alleged failure to implement the Obama administration’s 2016 municipal landfill emissions guidelines (August 29, 2016, Federal Register (FR)) according to the timeline mandated by the Clean Air Act (CAA).
The EPA has simultaneously issued new rules governing gas emissions from both existing and new, modified, or reconstructed municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills. Gas emitted by MSW landfills comprises methane, carbon dioxide (CO2), and nonmethane organic compounds (NMOCs). Both final rules define affected MSW landfills as those with design capacities of 2.5 million metric tons […]