Hazardous Waste: EPA Needs to Clarify the Types of Mercury Waste That Can Be Treated and Disposed of Using the Debris Regulations

United States. Government Accountability Office.

United States. Government Accountability Office.

关键词: Government accountability -- United States.;    natural resources and environment;    hazardous waste;    letter report;   

RP-ID  :  GAO-06-99
RP-ID  :  248837

美国|英语

来源: UNT Digital Library

【 摘 要 】

A letter report issued by the Government Accountability Office with an abstract that begins "The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is responsible for regulating hazardous wastes (such as mercury) under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Under RCRA, mercury-containing hazardous waste must meet specific treatment standards before land disposal. But, certain difficult to manage waste due, in part, to its large particle size, can follow alternate "debris" standards that provide diverse treatment options. This report examines (1) the mechanisms that EPA uses to track the treatment and disposal of mercury-contaminated debris and the quantity of this waste, (2) the extent to which EPA, states, and industry share a common understanding of the types of mercury-containing wastes that can be treated and disposed of as debris, and (3) EPA and state controls that are in place to monitor compliance with EPA's treatment and disposal requirements for mercury-contaminated debris."