Hazardous Materials and Waste Management. A Guide for the Professional Hazards Manager

262 Pages·1995·3.33 MB·English

by  Nicholas P. Cheremisinoff and Paul N. Cheremisinoff (Auth.)

ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Nicholas P. Cheremisinoff is the Director of the Center of
Environmental Management at Fairleigh Dickinson University. He
is also advisor and executive director of the National Association
of Safety & Health Professionals, 457 Highway 79, Morganville,
NJ 07751, which provides a national certification and registration
program for hazard materials handling specialists and
environmental managers. Dr. Cheremisinoff has had 20 years of
industry and applied research experience, and is an internationally
recognized expert, having authored, co-authored and edited over
100 engineering textbooks. He received his B.S., M.S., and Ph.D.
degrees in chemical engineering from Clarkson College of
Technology.
Paul N. Cheremisinoff is a registered Professional Engineer and
is full professor in the Civil and Environmental Engineering
Department of New Jersey Institute of Technology. He is
internationally recognized as an expert in pollution control and
hazardous materials handling and remediation technolgies, with
over 40 years of industrial and applied research experience. He is
a consultant to numerous fortune 500 corporations and government
agencies, and has authored, co-authored, or edited over 300
engineering textbooks. He is also editor of The National
Environmental Journal, which reaches over 90,000 environmental
managers and specialists.
PREFACE
The management of hazardous materials and industrial wastes is complex,
requiting a high degree of knowledge over very broad technical and legal subject
areas. Hazardous wastes and materials are diverse, with compositions and
properties that not onlyv ary significantly between industries, but within industries,
and indeed within the complexity of single facilities. Proper management not only
requires an understanding of the numerous and complex regulations governing
hazardous materials and waste streams, but an understanding and knowledge of
the treatment, post-treatment and waste minimization technologies. In fact, today's
environmental manager must face working within 12 environmental management
arenas, all of which may be applicable regardless of the size of the operation or
business.
This volume has been written as a desk reference for the Professional Hazards
Manager (PHM). The PHM is a qualified environmental manager that has the
responsibility of ensuring that his or her facility or division within the corporation
is in compliance with environmental statues and regulations, as well as
participating in the selection of technologies and approaches to remediation,
pollution control and in implementing waste minimization practices. These
decisions require knowledge and understanding of the federal, state and local
environmental regulations, a working knowledge of the best available technologies
and their associated cost. This volume provides an overview of both the
technology and compliance requirements that will assist environmental managers
in addressing facility management of hazardous wastes, pollution control, and
waste minimization. The book has been designed in part as a study guide to help
prepare qualified individuals for the national certification and registration program
of Professional Hazards Managers conducted by the National Association ofS afety
& Health Professionals and other organizations including the Hazard Materials
Control Resources Institute (HMCRI) and Faideigh Dickinson University.
Nicholas P. Cheremisinoff, Ph.D.
Paul N. Cheremisinoff, P.E.
vii
CHAPTER 1
HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT
AND POLLUTION CONTROL
INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW documented. There are numerous dangerous
hazardous waste sites, and until cleaned up
Facilities that generate, transport, transfer or or remedied are catastrophes waiting to
dispose of hazardous wastes require happen.
substantial construction, operating costs and
have become extremely expensive and RCRA (Resource Conservation and
complex. Handling and disposal of Recovery Act)enacted in 1976 established a
hazardous waste and attending requirements comprehensive, national regulatory policy
have been and promise to be substantially for managing hazardous wastes from cradle
expanded and subject not only to technology to grave. EPA under its statutory authority
needs but to the hazardous waste regulatory authorizes states to administer and enforce
environment. hazardous waste programs no less stringent
than the RCRA regulations promulgated by
Improper hazardous waste management is EPA. EPA has promulgated methods for
a most serious environmental problem facing determining whether solid wastes must be
us today. If anyone needs convincing that regulated as hazardous. Hazardous wastes
this is the case, we need only to consult the include any solid waste identified and
newspapers. Hardly a week goes by without deemed hazardous and set out as hazardous
a major new revelation of a hazardous waste regardless of their sources; and wastes that
mishap. Attention can be focused to evems are hazardous from particular sources and
related to waste site conditions, waste processes; and wastes that are hazardous
disposal, air pollution concerns, water regardless of their sources; and wastes that
comamination, garbage disposal, to health are hazardous if from particular sources; as
effects of people having significam well as wastes of discarded chemical
chromosomal aberrations, genetic damage, products.
warnings of presem and future health
problems including cancer, birth defects, In identifying hazardous wastes, wastes are
spomaneous abortions and other problems analyzed for certain characteristics at
requiring further follow up research specified levels of hazards. Characteristics
dictating more monitoring requiremems. considered as classifiers of hazardous waste
And problems are not just limited to the include" toxicity; ignitability; reactivity;
thousands of damage incidems already corrosivity.
2 Hazardous Materials dna Waste Management
Environmental regulations enacted in 1984 landfill leakage and hazardous materials
and amendments to the Superfund program released into the environment is and
discourage landfilling of wastes in favor of promises to be a problem well into the
remedial methods that will treat or destroy future.
wastes. New alternative technologies seek
to destroy, stabilize, or treat hazardous Notwithstanding the existence of regulations,
wastes by changing their chemical, industry has the opportunity to control the
biological or physical characteristics. pattern of hazardous waste management. In
Increasing environmental concerns and an addition to protecting the public health and
increasingly stringent regulatory climate the environment, industry also protects itself
should bring about changes in the hazardous from laws and governmental actions which
waste cleanup business. The wide range of they may find unreasonable.
problems encountered requires specific
solutions often at high costs. The hazardous waste problem can be divided
into two parts. The first problem can be
Control, remediation, and cleanup must be considered a technical problem dealing with
balanced based on the effectiveness of the tens of thousands of generators of
technological techniques and the ultimate hazardous wastes producing millions of tons
action considered in light of the specific of such wastes with ever increasing amounts
situation. Tighter regulations, more being generated each year. The second
environmental concerns, and changes in problem comes to light in the thousands of
control and treatment technologies make the pages of regulations we have to live with.
hazardous waste cleanup business more and Both the technical and regulatory aspects
more complicated. New and emerging present the very serious and difficult
technologies offer a better approach to problems faced. Table I provides a partial
solving these problems. Landfilling listing of typical industrial wastes.
hazardous wastes and the potential for
TABLE I.
TYPICAL INDUSTRIES AND THEIR HAZARDOUS WASTES INCLUDE:
INDUSTRY TYPICAL WASTE TYPICAL FORM
Agriculture Organics, pesticides, Sludge
herbicide residues
Chemical Acids, alkalies, metals, Liquid, sludge solids
organics
Electronics/ Heavy metals, cyanides Sludge
electroplating
Machinery Oils Liquid
Metals refining Heavy metals, cyanides Liquid sludge
Municipal waste Organics, heavy metals Sludge
treatment
Petroleum Heavy metals, acids, alkalis Liquid, solid, sludge
Paint Heavy metals Liquid, sludge
Wood Processing Heavy metals, organics Sludge, solid
suodrazaH Waste tnemeganaM dna noitulloP lortnoC 3
The Complex Web of Laws and Regula- specific, listed wastes and waste streams was
tions to be in effect by May 1990.
The two principal federal laws that try to Has the time finally come when our dispos-
control hazardous wastes are the Resource able, use-it-once and throw-it-away society
Conservation & Recovery Act (RCRA) and must pay the piper at last in forms of vastly
the Comprehensive Environmental Re- greater regulation and control over how we
sponse, Compensation and Liability Act handle the wide range of toxic and hazard-
(CERCLA/Superfund). The U.S. Environ- ous waste materials. These are materials
mental Protection Agency (EPA) adminis- that we really should not have been so
ters both and is designed to ensure that cavalier about in the first place. Industry's
hazardous wastes are not disposed of in such potential exposure to liability for hazardous
a way as to harm human health or the envi- waste disposal is horrendous today and
ronment. regulations don't alleviate that liability one
bit. It is even conceivable that waste prod-
RCRA, which passed in 1976, was strength- ucts we think benign today could prove
ened by the Hazardous and Solid Waste hazardous tomorrow. In the current legal
Amendments of 1984. It provides "cradle to climate, state-of-the-art technology or good
grave" management for more than 450 faith practice is a risky, if not inadequate
chemical wastes listed in the law as hazard- defense.
ous. Specific permits for treatment, storage,
disposal of hazardous wastes, and manifest Treatment Technologies for Hazardous
tracking ensures proper handling of wastes Wastes
generated.
Manufacturing operations in most cases still
Superfund, provides for the cleanup of old generate waste products that need to undergo
waste sites, landfills, waste lagoons/ponds, treatment to destroy or render them environ-
warehouses where hazardous chemicals have mentally acceptable. The numerous technol-
been abandoned. EPA has currently listed ogies applicable to hazardous wastes can be
more than 1000 abandoned sites on its Na- subdivided into chemical, physical, or bio-
tional Priority List. logical classes of which many are widely
used to manage hazardous wastes. Use of
Land-ban rules by Congress listed land combinations of such treatment technologies
disposal deadlines for specific wastes consid- are widely used for cost-effective manage-
ered hazardous and ordered EPA to ban land ment.
disposal of any of these after their deadlines
unless wastes have first been made non Chemical Treatment
hazardous. Materials on the list include
dioxins, certain organic solvents, various Chemical treatment transforms hazardous
chemicals called the California List and a waste streams by a number of successful
long list of other industry waste streams. technologies which include:
One objective has been to drastically reduce
the volume of these chemicals or completely (cid:12)9 Neutralization
stop their generation. The land ban of (cid:12)9 Color Removal
(cid:12)9 Precipitation
4 Hazardous Materials dna Waste tnemeganaM
(cid:12)9 Disinfection Aerobic systems and micro-organisms are
(cid:12)9 Coagulation and most commonly used for industrial
Flocculation wastewater and usually for treatment of
(cid:12)9 Ion Exchange strong organic wastes or sludges from aero-
(cid:12)9 Oxidation and Reduction bic processes. Anaerobic microbes use
(cid:12)9 Stabilization oxygen that is combined chemically with
other elements in compounds such as ni-
Physical Treatment trates, carbonates, and sulfates.
Physical treatment consists of a wide vari- Incineration/Thermal Processes
ety of separation methods that have been
common to industry for many years and Incineration offers a disposal technology for
includes" substances having a high heat release poten-
tial, particularly hydrocarbons. Reduction
(cid:12)9 Screening in volume and weight for bulk wastes make
(cid:12)9 Filtration management simpler and provides advantag-
(cid:12)9 Sedimentation es over other waste treatment processes,
(cid:12)9 Sorption particularly landfilling. Incineration of
(cid:12)9 Clarification hazardous organic wastes affords efficient
(cid:12)9 Evaporation/Distillation destruction with usually controllable air
(cid:12)9 Centrifugation emissions.
(cid:12)9 Stripping
(cid:12)9 Flotation Even though hazardous waste incineration
(cid:12)9 Membrane Technologies has many potential advantages, it also has its
drawbacks which include"
Biological Treatment
0 high initial capital investment,
Biological treatment has proven to be a 0 air emission control requirements,
cost-effective and efficient way for removal 0 high maintenance requirements.
of hazardous wastes from contaminated
wastewater; groundwater; landfill leachate Hazardous wastes incineration has developed
and contaminated soil. Technologies in- from open-pit burning to highly efficient and
clude: sophisticated systems. New facilities and
complex designs and operations have result-
(cid:12)9 Aerobic systems ed in higher costs. In addition to technical
(cid:12)9 Anaerobic systems and economic factors, siting of waste incin-
erators is a highly controversial issue.
Biodegradability is pollutant and system Emerging technologies in the incineration/
specific and particular compounds may not thermal destruction area include the use of
degrade in some systems. Microorganisms oxygen; slagging and vitrification processes
for biological treatment can be categorized and pyrolysis.
as to oxygen utilization and may be classi-
fied as heterotrophic or autotrophic, depend- The Europeans are handling individual waste
ing on their nutrient source. problems in a variety of ways. Some
Hazardous Waste Management dna Pollution lortnoC 5
common threads indicate incineration si the organics and dioxin. The ideal incineration
preferred method for waste destruction, with system minimizes fuel consumption and/or
bottom ash or slag being landfilled. Inciner- maximizes energy recovery while converting
ator capacity as in the U.S. si very tight and wastes to environmentally acceptable forms.
leads to environmental concerns in consider- EPA requires incinerators to achieve at least
ing facility expansion. European environ- a 99.99% Destruction Efficiency of the
mental concerns were originally sparked by Principal Organic Hazardous Constituents
the Seveso, Italy accident in 1976 which (POHCs) present in the waste.
sprayed 2,3,7,8-tetra-chlorodibenzo-p-dio-
xin (TCDD) into the environment. Hazardous Wastes Site Cleanup with On-
Site Technologies
Incineration si increasingly being turned to
for destruction of hazardous wastes and CERCLA (The Comprehensive Environ-
sludges. Industry responsible for much of mental Response, Compensation, and Liabil-
the hazardous wastes generated is no longer ity Act/the Superfund Law) began a broad
able to rely on landfills or such options as national program in the U.S. to clean up
injection wells for wastes disposal. Regula- chemically contaminated sites which are
tions once fully implemented will require estimated to number in the tens of thou-
new and changing disposal and treatment sands. Problems attendent with such sites
strategies. It si estimated that hazardous include" residual disposal; health and safety
wastes incineration will double in the 1990s during cleanup; financial liabilities. Costs
and may even increase five fold by the year are the prime consideration, with multimil-
2000. Estimates are that 21 million metric lion dollar cleanups common. Superfund
tons will be treated by incineration technolo- sites are only a part of the problem and
gy in the year 2000, representing only a costs promise to become increasingly greater
small fraction (5-6%) of the hazardous unless better methods become available in
wastes total produced in the U.S. Hazard- the future.
ous wastes incineration will represent a $6-
billion equipment market annually by the Chemical waste cleanup problems present an
turn of the century. enormous variety of problems. Costly site
specific problems and their many combina-
Disposal practices have heretofore relied tions to treat the wide range of waste mate-
largely on EPA-certified landfills. This rials includes the following technologies for
latter option economically favored ($25-$200 on-site treatment:
per ton of waste) is far below the second
most widely favored alternative, incineration Bioremediation - has been demonstrated as
($500-$2000 per ton). Environmental con- effective for halogenated aliphatics; nitrated
cerns; public and political pressure has compounds; heterocyclics; polynuclear
restricted new landfills as well as closing old aromatics; polar nonhalogen organics. This
ones due to unsuitable geology and viola- technology may be potentially effective for
tions. These factors have made landfilling nonpolar halogenated aromatics, PCBs, and
costs rise substantially. The re-authorized dioxins. Biotreatment si not effective on
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act biotoxic wastes such as heavy metals.
(RCRA) prohibits burying of certain untreat-
ed wastes, including solvents, halogenated
6 Hazardous Materials dna Waste Management
Immobilization - has been demonstrated as Solidification and stabilization
effective for heavy metals. Encapsulation.
Solvent extraction - has been shown effec- Fixation and Solidifications
tive for simple non-halogenated aromatics.
Other methods indicated may be potentially As more attention is focused on incineration
effective in certain situations. Solvent and thermal treatment, the question increas-
extraction methods may also be classed as ingly arises as to the safe disposition of
soil-washing. residues.
Thermal destruction - has been indicated as Stabilization of wastes is essentially a pre-
effective for a wide range of wastes except treatment process before solidification.
for metals. Thermal processes now under These are processes that physically stabilize
consideration though not widely practiced or liquid/semi-liquid waste residues. This term
proven include use of oxygen and is often confused with fixation and should
slagging/vitrification and pyrolysis. be clearly defined and understood when
used. Chemical fixation on the other hand
Thermal desorption (low temperature) - has can be defined as the chemical technology to
shown effectiveness for simple non-haloge- immobilize, insolubilize, detoxify a waste,
nated and halogenated organics. rendering the waste or its components less
hazardous. Heavy metals ion-exchange;
Other on site technologies include neutral- sorption processes on flyash or carbon
ization/volatilization via soil aeration/va- materials are examples. Solidification by
cuum extraction/containment. itself may not reduce hazard potential, but
will reduce solubility and the effective
Technical solutions for cleanup sites may exposed surface to the environment.
also involve either long term containment or Dewatering; filtration; drying are further
immediate attempts for treatment to destroy examples of the solidification process and do
the waste or make it environmentally accept- not involve chemical reaction.
able. Containment technologies are usually Nonchemical methods of solidification in-
only interim solutions. Containment sys- clude dewatering; adsorption and vegetative
tems for hazardous wastes sites include: or crop stabilization. Water may be re-
moved by filtration or drying and is applica-
Groundwater Barriers ble in sludge treatment and handling. Ad-
Slurry walls mixing or adsorption of waste residues has
Grout curtain been practiced and studied. Sorbents vary
Vibrated beam from high capacity adsorbents to by-product
-- Sheet pile wastes themselves such as flyash and munic-
-- Block displacement ipal refuse. Sewage and mine wastes have
been disposed of by spraying, plowing,
O Groundwater pumping spreading into soil. Vegetative stabilization
involves the growing of plants whose roots
0 Subsurface drains stabilize the soil. In this latter case the
0 Runoff controls waste is compatible with vegetation grown
0 Surface and seal caps and therefore may contain plant nutrients.
Hazardous Waste Management dna Pollution Control 7
Final land use resulting from such treatment GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION
is a factor to consider.
Groundwater is the source of approximately
Encapsulation processes employing organic 20 percent of the U.S. domestic, agricultural
systems has great potential. Some systems and industrial water supply and in many
that have been used or considered include: parts of the country is the only dependable
water supply. Groundwater is stored in
Asphalt (bitumen) aquifiers (geological formations of perme-
--
Polyolefin encapsulation able saturated rock, sand or gravel zones)
--
-- Epoxy resins and are recharged as atmospheric precipita-
Polyester resins tion or surface waters drains into them.
--
-- Polybutadiene Wherever or whenever the presence of
-- Urea-formaldehyde chemical contamination in groundwater
-- Acrylamide gels. exists, the result is a problem for human
health and the environment. The presence
Such systems are based on polymerization of many chemicals present serious and
and may be inhibited by the presence of substantial health risks, even in low concen-
water or other constituents. Inorganic sys- trations and may have mutagenic, teratogen-
tems have involved portland cement; port- ic, carcinogenic properties. Sources of
land cement-flyash; lime-portland cement; contamination are many and varied and as
portland cement-sodium silicate. Inorganic chemical usage and industrial activity in-
systems as a rule are lower in cost than crease so has the potential for contamina-
organic solidification. Obviously the waste tion.
nature affects the process choice.
Contaminants of concern include organic
Combining wastes with solidification agents solvents, petroleum products, gasoline,
can be done considering the following op- pesticides and nitrates. Waste disposal
tions" practices present possibly the greatest threat
of groundwater contamination. Landfill
(cid:12)9 In-drum disposal of hazardous wastes was long ac-
-- On-site cepted as a suitable disposal practice. There
-- Off-site are nearly 20,000 abandoned and uncon-
In-situ trolled hazardous waste sites in the U.S.
(cid:12)9
-- Deep soil mixing alone with many of these indicating some
-- Detoxification degree of groundwater contamination.
-- Backhoe mixing Additionally, there are nearly 100,000
Grouting landfills in the U.S. disposing of nonhazard-
(cid:12)9 Plant mixing ous/household wastes and represent a po-
-- Pug mill tential source of groundwater contamination
-- Mobile plants from their leachate production.
-- Special processes
(cid:12)9 Area mixing
8 Hazardous Materials dna Waste tnemeganaM
STORAGE TANKS Operators of above ground
storage tanks must conduct
Environmental hazards involving oil trans- monthly visual inspections
port, transfer and storage, have caused nu- and clean tanks out periodi-
merous instances of drinking water and cally (i.e. every ten years)
water contamination. Storage tanks (wheth- removing bottom sludges;
er under or above ground) as well as the structural integrity and tight-
transportation of petroleum products/che- ness testing.
micals are regulated by environmental law.
Control of storage tanks will depend on tank Tanks temporarily out of
contents, size, design and location. Failure service ( > 30 days) must be
to comply with some of the complex regula- drained to the lowest drawoff
tions such as registration, reporting, design, point; full lines, gauge open-
operating standards and monitoring can ings must be capped or
subject an owner to significant penalties. plugged. Tanks permanently
out of service must be emp-
The scope of the problem can be illustrated tied of liquid/sludge/vapors
by way of New York State as an example. and either be removed or
Existing facilities required to register with filled with solid inert material
the New York State Department of Environ- such as sand or concrete
mental Conservation (DEC) in 1986 num- slurry.
bered some 132,000 tanks containing nearly
4,400 million gallons. New facilities re- New underground storage
quire registration before being placed into tanks must either be made of
service. Another example is the State of fiberglass reinforced plastic,
New Jersey, which has over 80,000 regis- cathodically protected steel
tered commerical and industrial underground for corrosion protection be-
storage tanks (USTs). Many of these tanks tween soil and steel contact,
either leaked due to corrosion, or their or steel clad with fiberglass
piping distribution system's leaked, or many reinforced plastic. Secondary
years of overfilling resulted in contaminating containment provided as ei-
the soil, ultimately causing groundwater ther double walled tanks; a
contamination due to leachate formation. vault; a cut-off wall; imper-
To correct this, UST regulations require vious underlayment.
upgrading to double wall tankage and pip-
ing, as well as the use of overfill ports, For monitoring, underground
automatic leak detection and alarms, and tanks must be equipped with
vapor extraction lines. An industry which double walls with monitor-
many claim has suffered from the UST ing provisions of interstitial
regulations is the gasoline service stations, space; in-tank monitoring sy-
principally because serious contamination is stems; or observation wells.
often found in the soil and water.
New piping systems should
Some of the requirements for operating such be cathodically protected iron
facilities today include: or steel; fiberglass reinforced