1. The policies for Hazardous Materials are as follows:
a. Hazardous materials are defined as: Any materials or combination of wastes which, if not effectively controlled, pose a potential hazard to human health or living organisms because they are nondegradable, persistent in nature, lethal, or may otherwise cause or tend to cause detrimental cumulative effects. Current estimates place the volume of hazardous wastes produced in the United States at approximately 10 million tons per year. The number of different types of materials being classified as hazardous wastes is continually growing as a result of research in this area.
b. The EPA has published a set of guidelines and regulations in the following areas: The criteria for identifying hazardous waste, standards for generators, standards for transporters, and standards for treatment, storage, and disposal. The operating concept behind these standards and the law is to make the generator of the hazardous waste responsible for the manner in which the waste is ultimately disposed. EPA is trying to implement the concept of segregating hazardous material and the controlled disposal of the hazardous waste. EPA has classified hazardous waste into four categories:
(1) Ignitability -- Substances (liquids, solids, compressed gasses, or oxidizers) that burn readily.
(2) Corrosivity -- Acids and bases which damage (destroy) tissue on contact.
(3) Reactivity -- Unstable substances which may explode and/or give off vapors harmful to human health or the environment.
(4) Toxicity Characteristic (TC) -- Substances which may contaminate ground water supplies if improperly disposed of.
c. Responsibilities of DLA for disposal of assigned hazardous materials shall include, but not necessarily be limited to:
(1) Accomplishing documentation for DLA disposal actions as required under laws and regulations.
(2) Initiating contracts or agreements for disposal.
(3) Accepting accountability for all hazardous materials which have been properly identified, packaged, labeled, and certified in compliance with established criteria.
(4) Accepting custody of hazardous materials with the following guidelines:
(a) Physical custody of hazardous wastes at those DRMO's lacking RCRA permitted storage facilities is determined by the host installation commander.
(b) DRMOs (II) manned by only one employee shall not accept physical custody of hazardous materials or waste due to safety considerations.
(c) DRMO's having RCRA permitted storage facilities shall accept physical custody of hazardous materials and wastes from serviced activities until allowable storage capacity is reached. Hazardous Waste (HW) shall receive priority for storage space. Hazardous Material (HM) may be stored only when there is not immediate HW storage requirements.
Serviced activities should provide advance notification to DRMO's of forthcoming generations to allow for capacity management by the DRMO's.
(d) DRMO's with RCRA permitted storage facilities shall accept physical custody of only those hazardous wastes that are listed in the current RCRA permit.
(5) Providing any required repackaging or handling of hazardous materials subsequent to acceptance of accountability from the generating activity.
(6) Establishing an inventory control system for the types, quantities, and locations of available hazardous materials for which DLA is responsible in the event some other activity might be able to use a particular material.
(7) Providing information to the military departments and defense agencies on the costs associated with disposal in order that this information might serve as an economic incentive to minimize waste generation.
(8) Contracting for disposal technology not available in-house or from DoD components.
(9) Minimizing environmental risks and costs associated with extended care, handling, and storage o hazardous materials by accomplishing disposal within a significantly compressed disposal cycle. Initiate actions and projects with DoD and in conjunction with Federal civil agencies and industry to realize this objective.
(10) Devising a system by which the item of turn-in will be highly visible for hazardous materials to ensure proper application of resources for disposal. DLA should ensure sufficient disposal capability is programmed to preclude extended delays in the hazardous materials disposal process.
(11) Establishing and maintaining an analysis and information distribution capability to:
(a) Evaluate the impact and applicability of current technological advances on DoD hazardous material disposal procedures, and inform DoD components of these developments on a continuing basis.
(b) Ensure DoD components are apprised, on a continuing basis, of any Federal, State, regional and local regulations being developed to control hazardous material disposal.
(12) Becoming DoD focal point to recommend to the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (OASD) matters of policy and guidance for hazardous material disposal.
(13) Establishing procedures relative to assigned responsibility for hazardous material disposal. Unresolved issues will be forwarded to OASD with appropriate comments.
(14) Programming to carry out their responsibilities through normal budgeting channels.
d. Responsibilities of the DoD components in support of the DLA disposal of hazardous materials are:
(1) Where feasible, minimize quantities of hazardous waste through resource recover, recycling, source separation, and acquisition policies.
(2) Provide available technical and analytical assistance, including research and development (R&D) support to DLA to accomplish disposal when requested.
(3) Provide all available information to DLA, as required, to complete environmental documentation; e.g., environmental impact statements associated with disposal.
(4) Properly identify, package, label, and certify conformance with established criteria prior to transfer of accountability to DLA. Subsequent repackaging or handling is the responsibility of DLA.
(5) DoD components will retain custody of hazardous materials within the following guidelines:
(a) Physical custody of hazardous wastes at those DRMO's lacking RCRA permitted storage facilities is determined by the host installation commander.
(b) DRMOs manned by only one employee shall not accept physical custody of hazardous materials or waste due to safety considerations.
(c) DRMO's having RCRA permitted storage facilities shall accept physical custody of hazardous materials and wastes from serviced activities until allowable storage capacity is reached. Hazardous Waste (HW) shall receive priority for storage space. Hazardous Material (HM) may be stored only when there is no immediate HW storage requirement.
Serviced activities should provide the greatest advance notification possible to DRMO's of forthcoming generations to allow for capacity management by the DRMO's.
(d) DRMO's with RCRA permitted storage facilities shall accept physical custody of only those hazardous wastes that are listed in the current RCRA permit.
(e) When a DoD component retains custody of a hazardous material, the accountability will be transferred to DLA.
(6) When requested, DoD components will assist DLA by providing information and comments on Federal, State, regional, and local regulations being developed to control hazardous material disposal, i.e., ability of particular installations to comply and impact
on DoD. DoD components will alert DLA to any local situations which could impact on hazardous materials disposal.
(7) DoD components shall program to carry out their responsibilities through normal budgeting channels.
Source: http://www.almc.army.mil/mmd/0689/web3_008.htm
|
|
|
