This past August, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) aimed at changing the RCRA empty container rules.
What they’re saying: The Reusable Industrial Container Association (RIPA) issued the following public comments in response to the ANPRM on November 22nd:
Why it matters: Certain of the regulatory options EPA identifies would have dire consequences for human health and the environment by reducing or eliminating altogether the beneficial reuse of industrial containers, dramatically increasing the volume of waste sent to our nation’s overburdened landfills, increasing harmful air emissions, and substantially increasing greenhouse gas emissions.
In short, EPA can best protect human health and the environment by driving compliance with existing regulations rather than adopting new rules to paper over challenges already addressed by the regulations EPA adopted more than 40 years ago.
RIPA also offered the EPA model practices on the responsible management of non-empty containers that could be used instead of additional regulations, including:
- Incoming inspection of each container.
- Signed empty container certificates from the emptier.
- Means of identifying the origin of each load of containers.
- Recordkeeping requirements regarding the ultimate disposition of non-conforming containers.
- A written plan describing the reconditioner’s system for managing non-conforming containers.
- A plan for contacting companies that send non-RCRA empty containers to the conditioner.
- Encouraging standard operating practices by container emptiers, including a system ensuring all outgoing containers comply with the RCRA empty container rule.
- Formation of a process to ensure each outgoing container destined for a reconditioning facility can be identified regarding the point of origin.
- Training of personnel engaged in emptying and loading empty containers into transport vehicles.
According to RIPA, implementing these procedures would effectively address the issues EPA identifies in the ANPRM while maintaining the human health and environmental benefits that the reconditioning and reuse of the industrial containers provide.