Diverse processes in industrial facilities can present complex challenges, particularly in the handling of hazardous waste. One of the most common offenses observed by inspectors is companies’ failure to identify which materials or chemicals have dangerous characteristics.

Proper hazardous waste collection in Utah is not only crucial to economic and safety concerns, but it can also affect human and environmental health. Because of this, businesses not handling their wastes according to regulations receive severe penalties and fines. To prevent this from happening to your business, follow these tips :

Know the Regulating Bodies

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is the national governing body regulating hazardous waste in the USA. In 1976, the agency developed the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), which governs the process of dangerous waste from creation to disposal. At the state and local levels, specific hazardous waste management regulations are also in effect.

Identify All the Hazardous Wastes in Your Facility

The RCRA includes a list of hazardous waste that should be appropriately handled in all industrial facilities nationwide. However, it also states that the generator or the facility that created the waste should identify all the residues that it produces and to indicate which ones are hazardous. This means that it is your company’s responsibility to list all the waste that your facility creates and to show which is considered dangerous based on the RCRA regulations.

Documenting Hazardous Waste

Under RCRA, generators should fully document the fate of the waste they produce. This means that your company is required to create a documentation of the entire process of how a waste your facility produced was generated, identified, handled, treated, and recycled.

Transporting Hazardous Waste

Aside from EPA, the transfer of hazardous waste from an industrial facility to a disposal or recycling facility is under the regulation of the US Department of Transportation (DOT). Both bodies will regulate and approve your action to transport hazardous waste to a facility that can treat, store, dispose of, or recycle it.

Storage, Recycling, and Disposal

Many hazardous scraps are treated and burned in incinerators or disposed of in landfills, but some can be safely and effectively recycled. When recovered, hazardous waste offers many benefits. It dramatically reduces the volume of trash that should be treated and disposed of. At the same time, it minimizes the use of raw materials in industrial facilities.

EPA however, has identified the health and environmental issues of the improper storage and disposal of hazardous waste. Because of this, treatment storage and disposal facilities (TSDFs) were designed. They are strictly regulated facilities that provide temporary storerooms for large volumes of hazardous waste. They also have treatment and disposal facilities as the final destination for most hazardous waste in the USA.

The TSDF also includes regulations on how industrial facilities should recycle hazardous waste to ensure that your business protects human health and the environment.

In any industrial facility, safety is always first. The proper management of hazardous waste is crucial if you want your business to have a safe operation. Following regulations can also help you avoid regulatory fines.

Meta Title: What the Governments Says About Hazardous Waste

Meta Description: Do you want to make sure that hazardous waste doesn’t pose any threat? Here are some pointers.

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