Hanford Environmental Report

Privacy & Security Notice

	Hanford Environmental Report
Dedicated to Environmental Compliance

Volume 25, Number 3 - March 14, 2003

From Washington, D.C.:

DOE REVISES THE SCOPE OF THE HANFORD SITE SOLID WASTE PROGRAM ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT

On February 12, 2003, the DOE published a notice (68 FR 7110) in the Federal Register announcing that DOE is revising the scope of the Hanford Site Solid Waste Program Environmental Impact Statement (Draft EIS). The Draft EIS was issued on May 24, 2002 (67 FR 36592) and DOE subsequently issued a Notice of Intent (NOI) to prepare a separate EIS, The Tank Waste Remediation System Supplemental EIS for the Disposal of Immobilized Low-Activity Wastes from Hanford Tank Waste Processing. DOE now has decided to incorporate the scope of the Supplemental EIS into the scope of the Draft EIS. The revised Draft EIS will evaluate the potential environmental impacts of ongoing activities of the Hanford Site Solid Waste Program; disposal of immobilized low-activity waste from tank waste processing; and reasonably foreseeable treatment, storage, and disposal facilities and activities. Changes to the Draft EIS include the addition of the following:

Alternatives for disposal of immobilized low-activity waste from the tank farms and evaluation of the impacts of those alternatives
Alternatives for disposal of low-level waste and mixed waste and evaluation of the impacts of these alternatives
Alternatives for disposal of different waste types (immobilized low-activity waste, low-level waste, mixed waste) and evaluation of the impacts of these alternatives
Information on the impacts of transporting waste especially in Washington and Oregon
DOE responses to major issues from the first Draft EIS.

The revised Draft EIS also will contain additional analyses of alternatives for managing waste generated both on the Hanford Site and waste received from offsite DOE generators that are consistent with decisions resulting from DOE's Final Waste Management Programmatic EIS for low-level waste and mixed waste. In addition, DOE recently issued a NOI to prepare a separate EIS for the treatment and disposal of tank waste and closure of single-shell tanks on the Hanford Site. In the EIS, DOE will evaluate alternative tank waste treatment processes for low activity waste and coordinate this evaluation with the Draft EIS. For more information, contact Wayne_E_Toebe@rl.gov at (509) 372-2359 with Fluor Hanford Compliance Services.

EPA ISSUES RCRA GUIDANCE

On February 25, 2003, EPA published a notice (68 FR 8757) in the Federal Register announcing that the EPA was issuing a final memorandum, "Guidance on Completion of Corrective Action Activities at RCRA Facilities," to regulators and the regulated community. The initial draft guidance was published in the Federal Register on October 2, 2001 (66 FR 50195), followed by publication of a second draft guidance (67 FR 9714) on February 27, 2002. The memorandum provides EPA Regions, States, Tribes, regulated community, members of the public, and other stakeholders with guidance on completion of corrective action activities at RCRA facilities. The guidance identifies two categories of completed RCRA corrective actions - "corrective action complete without controls" and "corrective action complete with controls." Sites are classified as "complete without controls" when all cleanup activities are done and the facility has met site-specific cleanup levels as required by RCRA. Sites are classified as "complete with controls" when the facility has been restored to some sort of industrial and residential use but there are restrictions such as institutional controls placed on the site to ensure protection of human health and the environment. For those sites that have some kind of restriction, the controls would be enforceable through permits, orders, or other mechanisms.

The final memorandum also provides guidance on when each type of completion determination is appropriate and when completion determinations are for less than an entire facility. Additionally, the memorandum provides guidance on procedures for EPA and authorized States when making completion determinations. EPA states in the memorandum that the EPA does not impose legally-binding requirements on EPA, States, or the regulated community and requirements may not apply to a particular situation based on the circumstances. The memorandum indicates that EPA and State decision makers retain discretion to adopt approaches where appropriate on a case-by-case basis that differ from the guidance. The memorandum also states that interested parties are free to raise questions and objections concerning the guidance and the appropriateness of the guidance to a particular situation. For more information, contact Wayne_E_Toebe@rl.gov at (509) 372-2359 with Fluor Hanford Compliance Services.

From Olympia:

ECOLOGY ADOPTS FINAL SOLID WASTE HANDLING STANDARDS RULE

On February 5, 2003, Ecology published the final new Solid Waste Handling Standards rule (WSR 03-03-043), Chapter 173-350 WAC, in the Washington State Register. Ecology adopted the final rule on January 10, 2003, and the rule became effective on February 10, 2003. The rule is a new chapter that combines the Minimum Functional Standards for Solid Waste Handling rule, Chapter 173-304 WAC (adopted in 1985), the Mixed Municipal Solid Waste landfill requirements, Chapter 173-351 WAC, new legislation, improvements in solid waste handling technology since 1985, and outdated references in the existing rule into one rule. The new rule provides the following:

Improvements in organization, readability, and usability. Cross-referencing has been minimized and the Technical Information Memoranda have been incorporated as appropriate
An update of facility standards and definitions. Landfill standards now are performance based with opportunities for flexibility. Permitting requirements for compost facilities and moderate risk waste facilities that collect household hazardous waste are included in the new rule. Surface impoundment standards have been made consistent with water quality regulations and guidance
A process to exempt from permit requirements those activities that beneficially use solid waste and pose no threat, or only a limited threat to human health and the environment
Categorical exemptions from permitting for very low risk solid waste handling practices
A process by which a jurisdictional health department can defer solid waste permits to other environmental permits.

At the same time the rule was adopted, Ecology issued the Concise Explanatory Statement (CES) that provides Ecology's responses to public comments received. Both the rule and CES can be found on the Internet at http://www.ecy.gov, click on Solid Waste under Programs. For more information, contact Wayne_E_Toebe@rl.gov at (509) 372-2359 with Fluor Hanford Compliance Services.

Briefly:

On February 3, 2003, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published a notice (68 FR 5492) in the Federal Register announcing that the OMB was soliciting comments on the draft report to Congress on the Costs and Benefits of Federal Regulations. The OMB is asking for input on how the OMB can improve the quality of their regulatory analysis and how agencies should balance health, safety, and environmental risks with economic growth and technological innovation. The OMB also is requesting comments on their draft guidance for the conduct of regulatory analyses that proposes that agencies perform both a cost-effectiveness analysis and a cost-benefit analysis. Congress requires OMB to prepare this report annually. Comments on the draft report must be received by the OMB on or before April 3, 2003.

On February 11, 2003, DOE published a notice (68 FR 6908) in the Federal Register announcing that the Secretary of the DOE transmitted a response on January 31, 2003 to the Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board's (DNFSB) Recommendation 2002-3 on the requirements for the design, implementation, and maintenance of administrative controls at DOE Defense Nuclear Facilities. The Secretary accepted the DNFSB recommendations and stated that DOE will develop an implementation plan to respond to these recommendations. Comments on the Secretary's response were to be received by DOE on or before March 3, 2003.

On February 13, 2003, EPA published a notice (68 FR 7373) in the Federal Register announcing that applicability determinations, alternative monitoring decisions, and regulatory interpretations that EPA made under the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS), the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP), and the Stratospheric Ozone Protection Program (SOPP) are available on the Applicability Determination Index (ADI) Database System. The ADI is an electronic index on the Internet that contains EPA letters and memoranda regarding the applicability, monitoring, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements of the NSPS, NESHAP, and SOPP, which are posted quarterly on the ADI. In this action, EPA is posting 55 documents that were added to the ADI on December 20, 2002. The documents can be found on the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/compliance/assistance/applicability .

On February 19, 2003, the DOE published a notice (68 FR 7990) in the Federal Register announcing that DOE was adopting procedures and policies on small businesses, small government jurisdictions, and small organizations to ensure that the potential impacts of DOE draft rules were considered during rulemaking processes. The adoption of these procedures and policies responds to the President's Executive Order 13272 issued August 16, 2002, which calls on all agencies to establish procedures and policies to comply with provisions of the Regulatory Flexibility Act. The procedures and policies can be found on the Internet at http://www.gc.doe.gov became effective February 19, 2003.

DOE recently announced plans to form a new office, the Office of Legacy Management, that would monitor and maintain post-cleanup activities at former nuclear weapons production sites. The new office would have responsibility for post-cleanup activities such as groundwater monitoring, records management, oversight of duties assigned to private contractors, and other postclosure responsibilities at the sites. President Bush has proposed $48 million in fiscal year 2004 funding to create this office.

On February 28, 2003, EPA published a notice (68 FR 9614) in the Federal Register announcing that the EPA was extending the comment period on the proposed rule amendments to the New Source Review program under Title 1, Parts C and D of the Clean Air Act (CAA) that were published (67 FR 80290) in the Federal Register on December 21, 2002. The comment period on the proposed rule amendments has been extended from March 3, 2003 to May 2, 2003. The proposed changes provide a future category of activities that would be considered to be routine maintenance, and repair and replacement under the NSR program. Comments on the proposed amendments must be received by EPA on or before May 2, 2003.

*FEDERAL/STATE*
	*REGISTER REVIEW*

68 FR 5288: On February 3, 2003, EPA published a notice announcing that the OMB responses for Information Collection Requests (ICRs) from October 2002 to January 2003 are available.

68 FR 5492: On February 3, 2003, OMB published a notice announcing that the OMB was soliciting comments on the draft report to Congress on the Costs and Benefits of Federal Regulations (refer to briefly, this edition). Comments on the draft report must be received by the OMB on or before April 3, 2003.

68 FR 5870: On February 5, 2003, EPA published a notice announcing that the EPA is adding some additional health assessments to the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) agenda. The notice describes EPA's plans and solicits scientific data and evaluations for consideration in EPA's new assessments. EPA is also announcing a stakeholder workshop on the criteria the IRIS uses to establish annual priorities for assessing chemical substances. The workshop will be held March 4, 2003. Scientific information on the new assessments must be received by EPA on or before April 7, 2003.

68 FR 6082: On February 6, 2003, EPA published a partial withdrawal of a direct final rule on promulgated amendments to the national emission standards for benzene waste operations as the EPA received an adverse comment on one provision. The adverse comments will be addressed in a subsequent proposed rule published in the Federal Register on the same day. The remaining provisions of the direct final rule became effective February 10, 2003.

68 FR 6451: On February 7, 2003, EPA published a notice announcing that the EPA has extended the comment period on the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permits for Storm Water Discharge From Construction Activities to February 13, 2003. Comments on the proposed permits were to be received by EPA on or before that date.

68 FR 6635: On February 10, 2003, EPA published a correction to the NESHAP: Generic Maximum Achievable Control Technology regulation. EPA is adding the definition of process wastewater.

68 FR 6908: On February 11, 2003, DOE published a notice announcing that the Secretary transmitted a response on January 31, 2003 to the DNFSB Recommendation 2002-3 on the requirements for the design, implementation, and maintenance of administrative controls at DOE Defense Nuclear Facilities (refer to "briefly", this edition). Comments on the Secretary's response were to be received by DOE on or before March 3, 2003.

68 FR 7110: On February 12, 2003, DOE published a notice announcing that DOE has decided to revise the scope of the Hanford Site Solid Waste Program Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) (refer to "article", this edition).

68 FR 7373: On February 13, 2003, EPA published a notice announcing that applicability determinations, alternative monitoring decisions, and regulatory interpretations that EPA made under the NSPS, the NESHAP, and the SOPP are available on the ADI Database System. The documents can be found on the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/compliance/assistance/applicability.

68 FR 7990: On February 19, 2003, the DOE adopted procedures and policies to ensure that the potential impacts of DOE draft rules on small businesses, small government jurisdictions, and small organizations properly are considered during the rulemaking process. The procedures and policies became effective February 19, 2003.

68 FR 8757: On February 25, 2003, EPA published a notice announcing that the document entitled, "Guidance on Completion of Corrective Action Activities at RCRA Facilities," was available (refer to "article", this edition). The guidance can be found on the Internet at http://www.epa.gov/correctiveaction.

68 FR 8975: On February 26, 2003, EPA published a notice announcing that the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Interagency Testing Committee (ITC) has released the 51st ITC Report to EPA. The ITC is adding 43 vanadium compounds to and removing 39 chemicals from its Priority Testing List. Comments on the report must be received by EPA on or before March 28, 2003.

68 FR 9098: On February 27, 2003, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) published a notice announcing the NRC was soliciting comments on a document entitled, "Handbook of Parameter Estimation for Probabilistic Risk Assessment." The handbook provides guidance on sources of information and methods of estimating distribution of parameters used in probabilistic risk assessment. Comments on the document must be received by NRC on or before May 23, 2003.

68 FR 9613: On February 28, 2003, the Army Corp of Engineers and EPA published a notice announcing that they were extending the comment period on the advanced notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) on the Clean Water Act (CWA) definition of "Waters of the United States." Comments on the ANPR must be received by EPA on or before April 16, 2003.

68 FR 9614: On February 28, 2003, EPA published a notice announcing that the EPA was extending the comment period on the proposed rule amendments to the NSR program Title 1, Parts C and D of the Clean Air Act that were published (67 FR 80290) in the Federal Register on December 21, 2002 (refer to "briefly", this edition). Comments on the proposed amendments now must be received by EPA on or before May 2, 2003.

68 FR 9648: On February 28, 2003, EPA published a notice announcing that an ICR on NSPS Subpart D, Standards of Performance for Fossil-Fuel-Fired Steam Generating Units, has been forwarded to the OMB for review and approval. Comments on the ICR must be received by EPA on or before March 31, 2003.

WSR 03-03-019: On February 5, 2003, Ecology published a preproposal statement of inquiry to begin rulemaking to amend the Shoreline Management Act (SMA) guidelines. Ecology will be doing a comprehensive update of the SMA during this rulemaking effort. Interested parties can participate in the decision to adopt the new rule by contacting Ecology's Shorelands and Environmental Assistance Program.

WSR 03-03-082: On February 5, 2003, Ecology published a proposed rule amending the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), Chapter 197-11 WAC. The proposed rule amendments are necessary to make the SEPA rule consistent with legislation set forth in Chapter 43.21C RCW statutorily exempting specific proposed actions from SEPA review. Comments on the proposed rule amendments were to be received by Ecology on or before March 5, 2003.

WSR 03-03-043: On February 5, 2003, Ecology published a final new rule Chapter 173-350 WAC, the Solid Waste Handling Standards (refer to "article", this edition). The final rule became effective on February 10, 2003.

WSR 03-03-081: On February 5, 2003, Ecology published a final new rule, Chapter 173-157 WAC, Underground Artificial Storage and Recovery. The final rule establishes standards for review of proposals for artificial storage and recovery projects and for mitigation of any adverse impacts which such projects may cause. The final rule became effective February 15, 2003.

WSR 03-03-047: On February 5, 2003, Ecology published an emergency rule granting a conditional exclusion from the dangerous waste regulations controlled substances that are held as evidence by law enforcement agencies for destruction in incinerators after a case is adjudicated. The emergency rule became effective January 14, 2003.

WSR 03-04-082: On February 19, 2003, Ecology published a proposed rule correcting a typographical error in the original filing of the Surface Water Quality Standards, Chapter 173-201A, which was published in the WSR (WSR 03-01-124) on January 2, 2003. The typo error corrects a citation in the filing with the Code Reviser's Office to change the statutory authority listed from Chapter 90.84 RCW to 90.48 RCW. Comments on the proposed rule change were to be received by Ecology on or before March 7, 2003.

WSR 03-04-081: On February 19, 2003, Ecology published an expedited rulemaking to amend Chapter 173-06 WAC, Delegation of Powers, particularly Chapter 173-06-120 WAC, Delegation, to conform and be consistent with Chapter 43.21A RCW. The expedited rulemaking will provide an administratively manageable framework for delegation of authority from the director to employees of Ecology. Objections to the expedited rulemaking must be received by Ecology on or before April 7, 2003.

WSR 03-04-013: On February 19, 2003, Ecology published a final rule adding a new section, Chapter 173-350-600 WAC, to Financial Assurance Requirements of Chapter 173-350 WAC. The final rule became effective on March 4, 2003.

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For technical questions regarding the subject matter, please send email to: Wayne_E_Toebe@rl.gov