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Frequently Asked Questions About Waste

General Questions

Hazardous Waste Questions

Solid Waste Questions


General Answers

What is RCRA and what does it regulate?
RCRA is the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, which was enacted by Congress in 1976. RCRA's primary goals are to protect human health and the environment from the potential hazards of waste disposal, to conserve energy and natural resources, to reduce the amount of waste generated, and to ensure that wastes are managed in an environmentally sound manner. RCRA regulates the management of solid waste (e.g., garbage), hazardous waste, and underground storage tanks holding petroleum products or certain chemicals.

How can I report environmental problems with waste management?
The public may discuss environmental problems and concerns over waste management with their local or state government waste management division. Another resource for solid and hazardous waste issues is your EPA Regional office. Contacts can be found on our regional page.


Hazardous Waste Answers

What is a RCRA hazardous waste?

Wastes that exhibit certain characteristics may be regulated by RCRA. A waste may be considered hazardous if it is ignitable (i.e., burns readily), corrosive, or reactive (e.g., explosive). A wastes may also be considered hazardous if it contains certain amounts of toxic chemicals. In addition to these characteristic wastes, EPA has also developed a list of over 500 specific hazardous wastes. Hazardous waste takes many physical forms and may be solid, semi-solid, or even liquid.

How much hazardous waste is generated each year in the United States?
In 1999, over 20,000 hazardous waste generators produced over 40 million tons of hazardous waste regulated by RCRA.

How are hazardous waste laws enforced?
In any given state, EPA or a state hazardous waste agency enforces the hazardous waste laws. EPA encourages states to assume primary responsibility for implementing the hazardous waste program through state adoption, authorization, and implementation of the regulations.

What types of businesses generate hazardous waste?
Many types of businesses generate hazardous waste. Some are small companies that may be located in your community. For example, the following types of businesses typically generate hazardous waste: dry cleaners, auto repair shops, hospitals, exterminators, and photo processing centers. Some hazardous waste generators are larger companies like chemical manufacturers, electroplating companies, and petroleum refineries.

Who is regulated by the RCRA hazardous waste program?
The RCRA hazardous waste program regulates commercial businesses as well as federal, state and local government facilities that generate, transport, treat, store, or dispose of hazardous waste. Each of these entities is regulated to ensure proper management of hazardous waste from the moment it is generated until its ultimate disposal or destruction.

How should household hazardous waste (e.g., paint, paint thinner, batteries, used oil) be disposed?
Hazardous wastes that are generated in the home, like mineral spirits and old paint, are not regulated by the federal RCRA program. Many communities provide collection centers or pick-up services for the management of household hazardous waste. Local recycling centers or fire departments may be able to provide more information about locations and details.

What are the safe alternatives to hazardous materials for home use (e.g., lawn products?
Homeowners can use products that are nonhazardous or less hazardous and should use only the amount needed for a project. Leftover materials can be shared with neighbors, donated to a business charity or government agency, or given to a household hazardous waste program. Information on proper use of home and garden chemicals as well as safer alternatives can be found at EPA's Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances Web site for concerned citizens.


Solid Waste Answers

What is a RCRA solid waste?

According to the EPA regulations, solid waste means any garbage, or refuse, sludge from a wastewater treatment plant, water supply treatment plant, or air pollution control facility and other discarded material, including solid, liquid, semi-solid, or contained gaseous material resulting from industrial, commercial, mining, and agricultural operations, and from community activities.

How much municipal solid waste is generated each year in the United States?
In 1998, approximately 220 million tons of municipal solid waste or garbage was generated in the United States. This means each person generated an average of 4.46 pounds of solid waste per day.

Who regulates landfills that accept municipal garbage? Can these municipal landfills accept hazardous waste?<
Landfills that collect household garbage are predominately regulated by State and local governments. EPA has, however, established minimum criteria that these landfills must meet in order to stay open. The only hazardous waste that municipal landfills can accept is household hazardous waste and waste that is exempt from hazardous waste regulation.

What are the benefits of recycling? Are there environmental and/or financial benefits that encourage recycling?
Recycling prevents the emissions of many greenhouse gases and water pollutants, saves energy, supplies valuable raw materials to industry, creates jobs, stimulates the development of greener technologies, conserves resources for future generations, and reduces the need for new landfills and combustors.

What new products come from recycled products? What is the process?
Recycling creates new products such as aluminum cans, newspapers, cereal boxes, paper towels, egg cartons, carpeting, motor oil, car bumpers, nails, trash bags, glass containers, comic books, and laundry detergent bottles. Steps in the recycling process include collecting the recyclable components of municipal solid waste, separating materials by type, processing them into reusable forms, and purchasing and using the goods made with reprocessed materials.

Does the recycling process make more pollution?
Using recovered material generates less solid waste. Recycling helps to reduce the pollution caused by the extraction and processing of virgin materials. Also, when products are made using recovered rather than virgin materials, less energy is used during manufacturing and fewer pollutants are emitted.

How do we get more people to recycle?
Educating the public about the benefits of recycling and/or providing economic incentives will get more people involved in recycling.

 
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