Md. Code Regs. 26.13.05.14 - Landfills
A. Applicability.
This regulation applies to owners and operators of facilities that dispose of
hazardous waste in landfills, except as Regulation .01 of this chapter provides
otherwise.
B. Design and Operating
Requirements.
(1) Any landfill not covered by
§B(3) of this regulation or COMAR
26.13.06.22C
shall have a liner system for all portions of the landfill, except for existing
portions of the landfill. The liner system shall:
(a) Have a liner that is designed,
constructed, and installed to prevent any migration of wastes out of the
landfill to the adjacent subsurface soil or ground water or surface water at
any time during the active life, including the closure period, of the landfill.
The liner shall be constructed of materials that prevent wastes from passing
into the liner during the active life of the facility. The liner shall be:
(i) Constructed of materials that have
appropriate chemical properties and sufficient strength and thickness to
prevent failure due to pressure gradients, including static head external
hydrogeologic forces, physical contact with the waste or leachate to which they
are exposed, climatic conditions, the stress of installation, and the stress of
daily operation;
(ii) Placed upon a
foundation or base capable of providing support to the liner and resistance to
pressure gradients above and below the liner to prevent failure of the liner
due to settlement, compression, or uplift;
(iii) Installed to cover all surrounding
earth likely to be in contact with the waste or leachate; and
(iv) Located entirely above natural seasonal
high water table. Minimal distance will be specified by the Secretary in the
permit.
(b) Have a
leachate collection and removal system immediately above the liner that is
designed, constructed, maintained, and operated to collect and remove leachate
from the landfill. The Secretary will specify design and operating conditions
in the permit to ensure that the leachate depth over the liner does not exceed
30 cm (1 foot). The leachate collection and removal system shall be:
(i) Constructed of materials that are
chemically resistant to the waste managed in the landfill and the leachate
expected to be generated, and of sufficient strength and thickness to prevent
collapse under the pressures exerted by overlying wastes, waste cover
materials, and by any equipment used at the landfill; and
(ii) Designed and operated to function
without clogging through the scheduled closure of the landfill.
(c) Be located in a geohydrologic
setting which is compatible with hazardous waste land disposal as determined by
the Secretary. Compatibility criteria shall include but not be limited to the:
(i) Attenuative capacity of the in-situ
soils;
(ii) Hydraulic conductivity
of the in-situ soils;
(iii)
Thickness and classification of in-situ soils; and
(iv) Water table surface or potentiometric
surface of each aquifer within 50 feet of the facility boundaries.
(2) The owner or
operator will be exempted from the requirements of §B(1) of this regulation if
the Secretary finds, based on a demonstration by the owner or operator, that
alternative design and operating practices, together with location
characteristics, will prevent the migration of any hazardous constituents (see
Regulation .06-1B of this chapter) into the ground water or surface water at
any future time. In deciding whether to grant an exemption, the Secretary shall
consider:
(a) The nature and quantity of the
wastes;
(b) The proposed alternate
design and operation;
(c) The
hydrogeologic setting of the facility, including the attenuative capacity and
thickness of the liners and soils present between the landfill and ground water
or surface waters; and
(d) All
other factors which would influence the quality and mobility of the leachate
produced and the potential for it to migrate to ground water or surface
water.
(3) The owner or
operator of each new landfill, each new landfill unit at an existing facility,
each replacement of an existing landfill unit, and each lateral expansion of an
existing landfill unit, shall install two or more liners and a leachate
collection and removal system above and between the liners, subject to the
following:
(a) The liners and leachate
collection systems shall protect human health and the environment;
(b) The liner system shall include:
(i) A top liner designed, operated, and
constructed of materials to prevent the migration of any constituent into the
liner during the period the facility remains in operation, including any
post-closure monitoring period; and
(ii) A composite bottom liner, consisting of
at least two components, that satisfies the requirements of §B(3)(c) and (d) of
this regulation;
(c) The
upper component of a composite bottom liner shall be designed and constructed
to prevent the migration of any constituent into the upper component during the
active life of the landfill and the post-closure care period;
(d) The lower component of a composite bottom
liner shall be:
(i) Designed and constructed
of materials to minimize the migration of hazardous constituents if a breach in
the upper component were to occur; and
(ii) Constructed of at least a 3-foot thick
layer of recompacted clay or other natural material with a hydraulic
conductivity of no more than 1 x 10-7 centimeter per
second;
(e) The liners
shall meet the requirements of §B(1)(a) of this regulation; and
(f) The leachate collection and removal
system immediately above the top liner shall be designed, constructed,
operated, and maintained:
(i) To collect and
remove leachate from the landfill during the active life and post-closure care
period;
(ii) In accordance with
conditions specified by the Department in the facility permit to ensure that
the leachate depth over the liner does not exceed 30 centimeters (1 foot);
and
(iii) In compliance with the
requirements of 40 CFR §
264.301(c)(3)(iii) and (iv),
and the requirements of §D of this regulation.
(4) The Secretary may approve substitution of
alterative design and operating practices for the requirements of §B(3) of this
regulation if the owner or operator demonstrates to the Secretary that
alternative design and operating practices, together with location
characteristics, will:
(a) Prevent the
migration of any hazardous constituent into the ground water or surface water
at least as effectively as the liners and leachate collection and removal
systems specified in §§B(3) and D of this regulation; and
(b) Allow detection of leaks of hazardous
constituents through the top liner at least as effectively as the leak
detection system required by §D(2) of this regulation.
(5) The double liner requirement set forth in
§B(3) of this regulation may be waived by the Secretary for any monofill, if:
(a) The monofill contains only hazardous
wastes from foundry furnace emission controls or metal casting molding sand,
and these wastes do not contain constituents which would render the wastes
hazardous for reasons other than exhibiting the toxicity characteristic in
COMAR 26.13.02.14 for one or more of EPA
hazardous waste numbers D004-D017; and
(b) One of the following applies:
(i) The monofill has at least one liner for
which there is no evidence that the liner is leaking, the monofill is located
more than 1/4 mile from an underground source of drinking water, as defined in
40 CFR §
144.3, and the monofill is in compliance with
generally applicable ground water monitoring requirements for facilities with
permits under COMAR 26.13.07; or
(ii) The owner or operator demonstrates that
the monofill is located, designed, and operated so as to assure that there will
be no migration of any hazardous constituent into ground water or surface water
at any future time.
(6) The owner or operator shall design,
construct, operate, and maintain a run-on control system capable of preventing
flow onto the active portion of the landfill during peak discharge from at
least a 25-year storm.
(7) The
owner or operator shall design, construct, operate, and maintain a run-off
management system to collect and control at least the water volume resulting
from a 24-hour, 25-year storm.
(8)
Collection and holding facilities (for example, tanks or basins) associated
with run-on and run-off control systems shall be emptied or otherwise managed
expeditiously after storms to maintain design capacity of the system.
(9) If the landfill contains any particulate
matter which may be subject to wind dispersal, the owner or operator shall
cover or otherwise manage the landfill to control wind dispersal.
(10) The Secretary will specify in the permit
all design and operating practices that are necessary to ensure that the
requirements of this section are satisfied.
C. Monitoring and Inspection. The owner or
operator shall:
(1) Inspect, during
construction or installation, liners, except in the case of existing portions
of liners exempt from §B of this regulation, and cover systems such as
membranes, sheets, or coatings for uniformity, damage, and imperfections, such
as holes, cracks, thin spots, or foreign materials;
(2) Inspect, immediately after construction
or installation:
(a) Synthetic liners and
covers to ensure tight seams and joints and the absence of tears, punctures, or
blisters; and
(b) Soil-based and
admixed liners and covers for imperfections including lenses, cracks, channels,
root holes, or other structural non-uniformities that may cause an increase in
the permeability of the liner or cover;
(3) While a landfill is in operation, inspect the
landfill weekly and after storms to detect evidence of any of the following:
(a) Deterioration, malfunctions, or improper
operation of run-on and run-off control systems;
(b) The presence of liquids in leak detection
systems;
(c) Proper functioning of
wind dispersal control system, when present; and
(d) The presence of leachate in and proper
functioning of leachate collection and removal systems, when present;
and
(4) For a landfill
required to have a leak detection system under §B(3) or (4) of this regulation:
(a) During the active life and closure period
of the landfill, record the amount of liquids removed from each leak detection
sump at least once each week; and
(b) After the final cover is installed,
record the amount of liquid removed from each leak detection system sump in
accordance with the schedule specified in
40 CFR §
264.303(c), substituting
"Secretary" for "Regional Administrator".
D. Leachate Collection and Removal System and
Leak Detection.
(1) This section establishes
requirements for a leachate collection and removal system required by §B(3) of
this regulation.
(2) A leachate
collection and removal system identified in §D(1) of this regulation is:
(a) Also a leak detection system;
and
(b) Required to be capable of
detecting, collecting, and removing leaks of hazardous constituents at the
earliest practicable time through all areas of the top liner likely to be
exposed to waste or leachate during the active life and post-closure care
period.
(3) Except as
provided in §B(4) of this regulation, the owner or operator shall ensure that a
leak detection system is, at a minimum, designed, constructed, and operated in
compliance with the requirements of
40 CFR §
264.301(c)(3)(i)-(v), (4), and
(5).
E. Action Leakage Rate.
(1) This section establishes requirements
concerning the maximum design flow rate that the leak detection system required
by §B(3) or (4) of this regulation can remove without the fluid level on the
bottom of the liner exceeding 1 foot.
(2) For the purposes of this section, "action
leakage rate" means the maximum design flow rate described in §E(1) of this
regulation.
(3) The owner or
operator shall provide the Department with information that the Department
considers necessary for the specification of a valid action leakage rate that
incorporates an adequate margin of safety to allow for uncertainties, as
described in §E(4) of this regulation.
(4) For a landfill subject to §B(3) of this
regulation, the Department shall specify an action leakage rate that:
(a) Includes an adequate safety margin,
considering:
(i) Uncertainties in the design,
construction, operation, and location of the leak detection system;
(ii) The characteristics of the waste and
leachate;
(iii) The likelihood that
other sources may contribute to liquids in the leak detection system, and the
amounts of these liquids from other sources; and
(iv) Proposed response actions; and
(b) If exceeded, obligates the
owner or operator to respond as provided in §F of this
regulation.
(5) To
determine if the action leakage rate has been exceeded, the owner or operator
shall:
(a) Convert the weekly or monthly flow
rate from the monitoring data obtained in accordance with §C(4) of this
regulation to an average daily flow rate in gallons per acre per day for each
sump; and
(b) Unless the Department
approves a different calculation, calculate the average daily flow rate for
each sump:
(i) Each week, during the active
life and closure period,; and
(ii)
Monthly during the post-closure care period if monthly monitoring is required
under 40 CFR §
264.303(c).
F. Response Action Plan.
(1) Before managing waste in a landfill
subject to §B(3) or (4) of this regulation, the owner or operator shall:
(a) Develop a response action plan that:
(i) Specifies the actions that will be taken
if the action leakage rate has been exceeded; and
(ii) Meets the requirements of §F(2) of this
regulation; and
(b)
Obtain the approval of the Department for the response action plan.
(2) The owner or operator shall
ensure that the response action plan:
(a) At a
minimum, describes the actions specified in
40 CFR §
264.304(b), except that, in
complying with 40 CFR §
264.304(b), the owner or
operator shall substitute "the Department" for "the Regional Administrator";
and
(b) Incorporates the procedures
in 40 CFR
264.304(c).
(3) If the action leakage rate specified
under §E of this regulation is exceeded, the owner or operator shall respond as
specified in the approved response action plan.
G.-H. (Reserved)
I. Surveying and Record keeping. The owner or
operator of a landfill shall maintain the following items in the operating
record required under Regulation .05D:
(1) On
a map, the exact location and dimensions, including depth of each cell with
respect to permanently surveyed benchmarks; and
(2) The contents of each cell and the
approximate location of each hazardous waste type within each cell.
J. Closure and Post-Closure Care.
(1) At final closure of the landfill or upon
closure of any cell the owner or operator shall cover the landfill or cell with
a final cover designed and constructed to:
(a) Provide long-term minimization of
migration of liquids through the closed landfill;
(b) Function with minimum
maintenance;
(c) Promote drainage
and minimize erosion or abrasion of the cover;
(d) Accommodate settling and subsidence so
that the cover's integrity is maintained; and
(e) Have a permeability less than or equal to
the permeability of any bottom liner system or natural subsoils
present.
(2) After final
closure, the owner or operator shall comply with all post-closure requirements,
contained in Regulation .07G-J of this chapter, including maintenance and
monitoring throughout the post-closure care period. The owner or operator
shall:
(a) Maintain the integrity and
effectiveness of the final cover, including making repairs to the cap as
necessary to correct the effects of settling, subsidence, erosion, or other
events;
(b) Continue to operate the
leachate collection and removal system:
(i)
During post-closure period; or
(ii)
Until leachate is no longer detected;
(c) Maintain and monitor the ground water
monitoring system and comply with all other applicable requirements of
Regulations .06-.06-7 of this chapter;
(d) Prevent run-on and run-off from eroding
or otherwise damaging the final cover;
(e) Protect and maintain surveyed benchmarks
used in complying with §I of this regulation;
(f) Maintain and monitor the leak detection
system in accordance with 40
CFR §
264.301(c)(3)(iv) and,
and §C(4) of this regulation; and
(g) Comply with all applicable leak detection
system requirements of this chapter.
K. Reserved.
L. Special Requirements for Ignitable or
Reactive Waste.
(1) Except as provided in
§L(1)(b) of this regulation, a person may not place ignitable or reactive waste
in a landfill, unless the waste is treated, rendered, or mixed before or
immediately after placement in the landfill so that:
(a) The resulting waste, mixture, or
dissolution of material no longer meets the definition of ignitable or reactive
waste under COMAR
26.13.02.11 or .13; and
(b) Regulation .02H(2) of this chapter is
complied with.
(2) Except
for prohibited wastes as described in COMAR
26.13.09.02B that
remain subject to treatment standards in 40 CFR Part 268, Subpart D, a person
may place a container of an ignitable waste in a landfill without meeting the
requirements of §L(1) of this regulation if the waste is:
(a) Disposed of in a manner that protects the
waste from any materials or conditions that may cause the waste to
ignite;
(b) Contained within a
nonleaking container;
(c) Carefully
handled and placed so as to avoid heat, sparks, rupture, or any other condition
that might cause ignition of the waste;
(d) Covered daily with soil or other
noncombustible material to minimize the potential for ignition of the waste;
and
(e) Not disposed of in cells
that contain or will contain other wastes that that may generate heat
sufficient to cause ignition of the waste.
M. Special Requirements for Incompatible
Wastes. Incompatible wastes, or incompatible wastes and materials (see
Regulation .24 of this chapter for example), may not be placed in the same
landfill cell, unless Regulation .02H(2) of this chapter is complied
with.
N. Special Requirements for
Liquid Waste.
(1) A person may not place waste
which contains free liquids in a landfill, including bulk waste,
non-containerized waste, or waste in containers.
(2) To demonstrate the absence or presence of
free liquids, a person shall use Method 9095, Paint Filter Liquids Test, as
described in "Test Methods for Evaluating Solid Waste, Physical/Chemical
Methods", EPA Publication SW-846, which is incorporated by reference in COMAR
26.13.01.05A(4).
O. Special Requirements for Containers.
Unless the containers are very small, such as ampules, an owner or operator
shall ensure that containers are:
(1) At
least 90 percent full when placed in a landfill; or
(2) Crushed, shredded, or similarly reduced
in volume to the maximum extent practicable before burial in a
landfill.
P. Special
Requirements for Hazardous Wastes F020, F021, F022, F023, F026, and F027.
(1) Hazardous Wastes F020, F021, F022, F023,
F026, and F027 may not be placed in a landfill unless the owner or operator
operates the landfill in accord with a management plan for these wastes that is
approved by the Secretary under the standards set out in this section, and in
accord with all other applicable requirements of this chapter. The factors to
be considered are:
(a) The volume, physical,
and chemical characteristics of the wastes including their potential to migrate
through the soil or to volatilize or escape into the atmosphere;
(b) The attenuative properties of underlying
and surrounding soils or other materials;
(c) The mobilizing properties of other
materials co-disposed with these wastes; and
(d) The effectiveness of additional
treatment, design, or monitoring requirements.
(2) The Secretary may determine that
additional design, operating, and monitoring requirements are necessary for
landfills managing hazardous wastes F020, F021, F022, F023, F026, and F027 in
order to reduce the possibility of migration of these wastes to ground water,
surface water, or air so as to protect human health and the
environment.
Notes
Regulations .14 amended, effective February 13, 1984 (11:3 Md. R. 202)
Regulation .14B, C amended effective April 18, 1988 (15:8 Md. R. 1009)
Regulations .14A_C, J, L, amended effective July 30, 1984 (11:15 Md. R. 1330)
Regulation .14P adopted effective April 18, 1988 (15:8 Md. R. 1009)
Regulation .14B, N amended effective December 23, 1991 (18:25 Md. R. 2759)
Regulation .14N amended effective September 10, 1997 (24:5 Md. R. 413); amended effective 49:1 Md. R. 14, eff.
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