New developments in the regulation of utility wastes from plants modified for advanced SO2 removal

The management of solid wastes in the U.S. is regulated through programs mandated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976 and subsequent Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA) of 1984. Pursuant to RCRA, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has promulgated a set of regulations aimed at fulfilling its two-fold purpose: to promote resource recovery and safe disposal of waste materials; and to regulate the management of hazardous waste. In so doing, the Agency has created a regulatory definition which designates a subset or solid wastes as hazardous according to the intrinsic properties of the waste. In addition, EPA has a mandate to regulate how wastes in each category (solid or hazardous) must be managed. The authors present a review of how advanced SO/sub 2/ control wastes will be regulated, a survey of how those wastes will be classified, and a survey of the regulations dictating how various jurisdictions require each classification be managed. Prospects for future regulatory developments what will be related to waste classifications are discussed.