Hazardous waste management : reducing the risk

337 Pages·1986·7.657 MB·English

by  Benjamin A. Goldman, Lee B. Thomas, Cameron Johnson, , James A. Hulme

Hazardous Waste Management
In memory of Robert W. Scrivner
REDUCING
Foreword Lee B. Thomas, Jr.
Project Benjamin A. Goldman
Directors James A. Hulme
Cameron Johnson
Research Alexander C. Stewart, Jr.
Bridget Weighart
Editors Alice Tepper Marlin
Steven S. Ross
1MJCIDIID~IITID®IIDit
THE RISK
Council on Economic Priorities
Washington, D.C. o Covelo, California
Island Press publishes, markets, and distributes the most advanced thinking on the conservation
of our natural resources-books about soil, land, water, forests, wildlife, and hazardous and
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© 1986 by Council on Economic Priorities
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means
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Island Press, 1718 Connecticut Avenue NW, Suite 300, Washington, D.C. 20009.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Goldman, Benjamin A.
Hazardous waste management.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Hazardous waste management industry-United States.
2. Hazardous waste sites-United States. I. Hulme, james A. II. johnson, Cameron.
III. Marlin, Alice Tepper. N. Ross, Steven S. V. Council on Economic Priorities.
VI. Title.
HD9975.U52G65 1986 363.7'28 36-2748
ISBN 0-933280-30-0
ISBN 0-933280-31-9 (pbk.)
Text and cover design Rodelinde Albrecht
Copyediting Toni Murray
Proofreading Janine Hannel
Line art Irene Imfeld
Indexing Kate Gross
Production Coordination Rodelinde Albrecht
Composition Graphic Typesetting Service
Printing and binding The Maple-Vail Book Manufacturing Group
.,.... • Manufactured in the United States of America
Grateful acknowledgment is made to the following
for permission to reprint material previously published:
Table 3-2 derived from State of tbe Environment: An Assessment at Mid-Decade, <> 1984, The
Conservation Foundation. Table 5-4 reprinted from the May 16, 1984 issue of Cbemical Wi?ek
by special permission, <> 1984, by McGraw-Hill, Inc., New York, NY. Figure 6-2 from Chemical
Catastrophes: Regulating Environmental Risk through Pollution Liability Insurance, by Martin
T. Katzman (Homewood, IL: Richard D. Irwin, 1985), p. 117. Table 6-2 and Figure 6-3 repro
duced with permission oflnstitute of Chemical Engineering, Rugby, England. Reprinted by special
permission from Chemical Engineering, April 1, 1985, © 1985 by McGraw-Hill, Inc., New York,
NY 10020. Table 6-3 and Figure 6-5 derived from Environmental Management, Inc., "Technical
Criteria for Identification and Screening of Sites for Hazardous Waste Facilities" (West Chester,
PA: Delaware River Basin Commission and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection,
August 1981).
Contents
Figures, ix
Tables, xi
Foreword, by Lee B. Thomas, Jr., xiii
Acknowledgments, xv
About CEP, xvii
Abbreviations, xix
CEP FINDINGS
ONE. Busting the Shell Game:
Where CEP Looked and What CEP Found, 3
A CHRONICLE OF ACHIEVEMENTS AND GROWING PAINS, 4. THE
REGULATORS: STATES AND REGIONAL EPAs, 5. EVALUATION
METHODS, 5. SUMMARY OF THE EVALUATIONS, 6. The Companies, 6.
The Facilities, 7. WHO NEEDS INFORMATION ABOUT HAZARDOUS
WASTE MANAGEMENT? 7. THE BOTTOM LINE, 8.
rwo. Recommendations:
A Starting Point for Individual Perspectives, 9
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR INDUSTRY AND LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS,
9. For Generators, 9. For Host Communities, 10. For Generators and
the Public, 11. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR CONGRESS AND
REGULATORS, 12. For Superfund and RCRA Administrators, 12. Risk
Assessment, 13. Improve Information Management, 13.
v
vi CONTENTS
PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS
THREE. Setting the Stage:
Some Technical and Legal Background, 17
WHAT IS HAZARDOUS WASTE? 17. THE REASONS FOR PUBLIC
CONCERN, 18. THE TWO KEY HAZARDOUS WASTE LAWS, 22. The
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, 22. The Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, 29. SELF
REGULATION, 31. Environmental Auditing, 32. Risk Management, 32. THE
REALITIES OF REGULATION: INDEPENDENT ASSESSMENT IS IN THE
GENERATOR'S INTEREST, 33.
A New Industry:
FOUR
Commercial Hazardous Waste Management, 3 7
FINE TUNING THE MARKET FORCES, 38. THE GROWTH OF
COMMERCIAL HAZARDOUS WASTE MANAGEMENT, 39. WASTE
GENERATION, MANAGEMENT, AND REGULATION: WHAT THE
LITERATURE SHOWS, 40. The Westat Survey, 40. The Hart Report, 47.
NEIC Reports, 48. The Sanjour Memo Highlighted a Regulatory
Oversight, 49. Tracking CERCLA Wastes, 51. The Thomas Memos, 52. The
Congressional Ground-Water Monitoring Survey, 53. ARE THE DATA ON
THE BIG EIGHT CONSISTENT? 56. Financial Accountability, 57. Conflict
of Interest? 60. Leaks Are Disconcerting, 64. BUILDING PUBLIC
CONFIDENCE, 65.
FIVE. Hazardous Waste Management:
Strategies and Technologies, 67
MATCHING MANAGEMENT TECHNOLOGIES TO WASTES, 67. WASTE
ELIMINATION AND REDUCTION STRATEGIES, 67. Source Segregation
and Separation, 68. Process Modification, 69. Raw Material or Product
Substitution, 69. Recovery and Recycling, 72. TREATMENT
TECHNOLOGIES, 73. Physical Treatment Technologies, 78. Biological
Treatment Technologies, 85. Chemical Treatment Technologies, 87.
Thermal Treatment Technologies, 89. DISPOSAL TECHNOLOGIES, 91.
EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES, 96.
CONTENTS vii
siX. How to Choose:
Tools for Evaluating Facilities, 99
RELEASE RANKING SYSTEMS, 99. U.S. EPA'S HAZARD RANKING
SYSTEM, 100. How U.S. EPA Applies the HRS, 101. Applying the HRS to
Controlled and Uncontrolled Sites, 104. WEAKNESSES IN THE
APPLICATION OF HRS TO ACTIVE FACILITIES, 105. The Time Factor in
HRS Ratings, 105. Management Performance and the HRS, 105. How the
HRS Rates Technology, 106. HRS Ratings and the Site, 107. INHERENT
DEFICIENCIES OF THE HRS, 108. Waste Characteristics, 108. Ground
Water, 109. Surface Water, 111. Air, 112. Scoring Biases and
Omissions, 113. CHECKLISTS, 114. FAULT TREES, 116. HAZOP AND
HAZAN, 116. RCRA RISK-COST ANALYSIS, 120. SITE EVALUATION
SYSTEMS, 122. WHICH SYSTEM DID CEP CHOOSE? 124.
CASE STUDIES
sEVEN. The Big Eight:
Corporate Comparisons, 127
THE COMMERCIAL MARKET, 127. THE BIG EIGHT, 128. EVALUATION
OF THE BIG EIGHT, 128. Average Rankings and Grades, 129. Current
Revenues and Financial Viability, 131. Potential Hazardous Waste
Liabilities, 135. Corporate and Public Relations, 136. Compliance with
Government Regulations, 137. Ground Water Monitoring, 137.
Technology, 138. Management Overview, 138. FACILITY EVALUATIONS,
139. PROFILE: AMEC AND ITS SUBSIDIARY, USEC, 140. PROFILE:
BFI AND ITS SUBSIDIARY, CECOS, 150. PROFILE: ENSCO, 153. PROFILE:
IT, 156. PROFILE: IU AND ITS SUBSIDIARIES, 159. PROFILE: RES
AND ITS SUBSIDIARIES, 162. PROFILE: USPCI, INC. AND ITS
SUBSIDIARIES, 165. PROFILE: WMI AND ITS OPERATING GROUP, 168.
EIGHT. Picking a Winner:
CEP Comparative Facility Evaluation Method, 173
AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION, 173. PART B OF RCRA PERMIT
APPLICATIONS, 174. CORPORATE DISTRIBUTION, 176. CEP MODIFIES
THE HRS, 176. Air Releases, 176. Regulated Unit within a Facility over
Time, 178. Liner Systems, 178. Letter Grades, 179. CEP Additions to
HRS, 181. CEP Root-Mean-Square Grades, 183.
viii CONTENTS
NINE. Report Cards:
Ten Hazardous Waste Management Facilities, 185
FROM BEST TO WORST, 185. THE REPORT CARDS, 187. DIFFERENCES
IN SITE AND TECHNOLOGY, 191. CERCLA HAZARD? 194. FACILITY
DESCRIPTION: USPCI UT, 197. Site, 198. Management, 199.
Technology, 203. History, 203. FACILITY DESCRIPTION: CWM IL, 203.
Site, 204. Management, 204. Technology, 205. History, 206. r'ACILITY
DESCRIPTION: CWM LA, 207. Site, 207. Management, 208.
Technology, 209. History, 210. FACILITY DESCRIPTION: CECOS NY, 211.
Site, 211. Management, 212. Technology, 214. History, 215. FACILITY
DESCRIPTION: ENSCO AR, 216. Site, 216. Management, 217.
Technology, 219. History, 219. FACILITY DESCRIPTION: RES (LA), 220.
Site, 221. Management, 221. Technology, 224. History, 225. FACILITY
DESCRIPTION: TECO TX, 225. Site, 226. Management, 226.
Technology, 228. History, 228. FACILITY DESCRIPTION: IT CA, 229.
Site, 229. Management, 230. Technology, 232. History, 232. r'ACILITY
DESCRIPTION: ESII ID, 233. Site, 233. Management, 234. Technology, 236.
History, 236. FACILITY DESCRIPTION: CECOS OH, 237. Site, 237.
Management, 238. Technology, 240. History, 240.
TEN. Information Management:
Ranking the Regulators, 243
AN INFORMATION SYSTEM'S THREE-FOLD FUNCTION, 243. Gathering
Information, 243. Processing Information, 244. Communicating
Information, 244. GRADES FOR U.S. EPA AND THE STATES, 244.
GATHERING INFORMATION ABOUT GENERAL AREAS OF
CONCERN, 246. Transportation, 246. Air, 251. Ground Water, 252.
Financial Instruments, 255. Inspections, 256. Occupational Safety and
Health, 257. PROCESSING INFORMATION, 259. Determining Scale, 259.
Characterization, 260. Enforcement, 262. COMMUNICATION, 266. South
Central Tops in Communication; Southeast Is at Bottom, 266. Good State
Communication, 268. Hotlines and Tangled Lines, 269. SPEAKING THE
SAME LANGUAGE, 269.
APPENDIX A: Evaluating a Hazardous Waste Facility, 273
APPENDIX B: Federal Hazardous Waste Databases, 281
Notes, 285
Glossary, 305
Index, 311
Also Available from Island Press, 315
Figures
3-1. General Steps for Managing Health Risks, 34
4-1. Major Interrelations among Key Parties Affecting and Affected by
Hazardous Waste Management, 38
4-2. Number of Generators Shipping Hazardous Waste Off Site
in 1981,40
4-3. Regional Distribution of Hazardous Waste Generators in 1981, 45
4-4. Concentration of Hazardous Waste Generation in the United States
in 1981,46
4-5. Quantities of Wastes Produced by Generators without TSDFs, and
Quantities Received from Off Site by TSDFs in 1981, 47
4-6. Total Superfund Sites with Cleanup Activity, 50
5-1. Options for Managing Hazardous Waste, 68
5-2. Physical Treatment: Distillation Process for Recovering Recyclable
Organics, 85
5-3. Biological Treatment of Industrial Waste, 86
5-4. Chemical Treatment: Neutralization, Precipitation, and Chemical
Oxidation/Reduction, 88
5-5. Rotary Kiln Incinerator with Heat Recovery and Air-Pollution
Control, 90
5-6. Schematic of an FMUComposite Double liner System for a
Landfill, 93
5-7. Ideal Injection Well and Site, 94
6-1. How HRS Deals with Depth to Aquifer of Concern, 110
6-2. Fault Tree That Traces the Potential for and Cost of Human
Exposure to Ground Water Contamination, 117
6-3. Methods for Identifying and Assessing Plant Hazards, 118
6-4. WET Computing Diagram, 121
6-5. Hypothetical Application of Siting Criteria, 124
9-1. Locations of Ten RCRA Facilities, 193
10-1. The U.S. EPA Regions Identified, 246
ix