Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1200-01-07-.09 - WASTE DISPOSAL REDUCTION GOAL

(1) General Purpose

(a) The goal of the state is to reduce by twenty-five percent (25%) the amount of solid waste disposed of at municipal solid waste disposal facilities and incinerators by December 31, 2003, as measured on a per capita basis within Tennessee by weight. The goal shall also apply to each municipal solid waste region; but does not apply to individual disposal facilities or incinerators. Individual disposal facilities or incinerators are used only as measurement locations for assessing the achievement of a region's waste reduction efforts. As an alternative to calculating the waste reduction goal on a per capita basis, regions shall have the option of calculating the goal on an economic growth basis using the method prescribed by the Department and approved by the Municipal Solid Waste Advisory Committee.

(2) Waste Reduction Methods

(a) The Department may consider a variety of options that a region shall take into account in meeting the twenty-five percent (25%) goal. As used in rule 1200-01-07-.09, "municipal solid waste" (MSW) means any garbage, refuse, industrial lunchroom or office waste, household waste, household hazardous waste, yard waste and any other material resulting from the operation of residential, municipal, commercial or institutional establishments and from community activities which are required to be disposed of in a Class I landfill, as defined in regulations adopted pursuant to T.C.A. Title 68, Chapter 211; provided, that "municipal solid waste" does not include the following:

1. Radioactive waste;

2. Hazardous waste as defined in T.C.A. § 68-212-104;

3. Infectious wastes;

4. Materials that are being transported to a facility for reprocessing or reuse; provided further, that reprocessing or reuse does not include incineration or placement in a landfill; and

5. Industrial waste which may include office, domestic or cafeteria waste, managed in a privately owned solid waste disposal system or resource recovery facility, if such waste is generated solely by the owner of the solid waste disposal system or resource recovery facility.

(b) Waste reduction methods or activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Any "municipal solid waste" diverted from a Class I disposal facility to a Class III or Class IV disposal facility as provided under rules 1200-01-07-.01 through 1200-01-07-.04 adopted pursuant to the provisions of T.C.A. Title 68, Chapter 211, Part 1.

2. Composting of "municipal solid waste". The composting of municipal solid waste must have a market for such composted product in order to be considered as a method for waste reduction.

3. Recycling. Recycling constitutes a method of waste reduction so long as the recovered materials are marketed for recycling, or are stored for recycling at a solid waste management facility and at least seventy-five percent (75%) of the stored material must be marketed within the succeeding twelve (12) months. The following processes shall not be considered as marketing of recyclable materials nor counted toward the 25% waste reduction goal:

(i) Collection or material handling in preparation for buyers.

(ii) Storage of unprocessed or processed materials. Unprocessed municipal solid waste is not considered as being recyclable.

4. Source reduction of "municipal solid waste". Source reduction measures as a method of waste reduction may include industrial process modification, feedstock substitutions or improvements in feedstock purity, various housekeeping and management practices, increases in the efficiency of machinery, and recycling within a process.

(i) Source reduction may also include reduction in the amount and toxicity of waste generated by residential and commercial sectors, through such measures as product substitution, home composting and recycling.

(ii) Source reduction may also be achieved through the encouragement of consumer habits that include the selection of products that have reduced and recyclable packaging, and the re-use of durable goods.

5. Problem waste diversion. The diversion of waste tires, used oil, lead-acid batteries, paints and other problem waste, as determined and identified by the Department, from a Class I disposal facility for recycling constitutes waste reduction. Problem wastes diverted from a Class I disposal facility and stored for recycling at a municipal solid waste management facility until marketed qualifies as waste reduction when diverted.

6. Mulching of "municipal solid waste". Any non-treated wood waste that may be converted to a mulch must have a market in order to be considered as a method for waste reduction.

(3) Region's Waste Reduction Plan

(a) A region's waste reduction plan shall be consistent with the guidelines issued by the Division. Such a plan shall explain the region's waste reduction methods. The region may use any combination of methods; however, the following methods or practices will not be considered in the calculation for the region's waste reduction plan:

1. Incineration;

2. Unmarketed municipal solid waste compost;

3. Recovered materials (other than problem wastes) stored for recycling without being marketed as prescribed by rule 1200-01-07-.09(2)(b) 3; and

4. Illegal or unauthorized storage or disposal of municipal solid waste.

(b) The twenty-five percent (25%) goal applies to only the waste that has been going to Class I landfills or municipal solid waste incinerators. Measurements of waste are to be based on the amount of waste entering a disposal facility prior to combustion or landfilling. Materials recovered or collected for recycling at these facilities prior to combustion or landfilling shall be weighed and deducted from the total amount being disposed.

(c) The region shall present its calculation of the twenty-five percent (25%) reduction on a per capita basis or the economic growth basis to be prescribed by the Department in accordance with paragraph (1) of this rule.

(d) The region plan shall utilize the base year of 1995 for measuring waste reduction unless a region can demonstrate that the 1995 data is clearly in error. A region may receive credit toward the waste reduction goal from recycling and source reduction programs prior to 1995, but no earlier than 1985. The region shall notify in writing the Division Director of such an error and request approval of any adjustment to the 1995 data.

(e) By March 31 of each year, each region shall submit an annual report to the Division. Pursuant to T.C.A. §§ 68-211-863 and 68-211-871, such reports shall include, at a minimum, the amount and type of recycled materials collected in the region.

(4) Qualitative Assessment Methods

(a) An assessment method shall be developed by the Department of Environment and Conservation and approved by the Municipal Solid Waste Advisory Committee. This assessment will be applied to Municipal Solid Waste Planning Regions that failed to meet the twenty-five percent (25%) waste reduction and diversion goal stated in T.C.A. § 68-211-861(a) according to the 2003 Annual Progress Report submitted to the Division. The qualitative assessment will objectively assess the activities and expenditures of both the Municipal Solid Waste Planning Region and the local governments in the region to determine whether the region's program is qualitatively equivalent to other regions that meet the goal and whether the failure is due to factors beyond the control of the region.

(b) The qualitative assessment shall be done in the following two steps:

1. The Department shall use the waste and diversion reported by the solid waste region for the most current reporting period to determine whether in that year twenty-five percent of the solid waste generated in that year was either diverted from class I facilities or recycled. If it was, the region meets the qualitative assessment and the department does not proceed to the next step.

2. The Department shall evaluate the programs in those regions that do not satisfy subparagraph (2)(a) above to determine if they are qualitatively equivalent to those that did meet the 25% recycling and diversion goal by evaluating at least the following solid waste program activities for the most current reporting period, giving the first two items the greatest weight:

(i) waste reduction and recycling programs and systems;

(ii) waste diversion programs and systems;

(iii) solid waste education programs and systems;

(iv) waste collection and handling systems; and

(v) solid waste program budgets and staffing.

The methodology shall make comparisons between regions that are as similar as possible in terms of population and socio-economic level to the region that failed to meet the goal.

Notes

Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1200-01-07-.09

Original rule filed July 15, 1993; effective September 29, 1993. Amendment filed May 7, 1997; effective July 21, 1997. Amendment filed April 17, 2000; effective July 1, 2000. Amendment filed July 27, 2001; effective October 10, 2001. Amendments filed May 23, 2006; effective August 6, 2006.

Authority: T.C.A. §§ 68-203-103(b)(3), 68-211-102(a), 68-211-105(c), 68-211-106(a)(1), 68-211-107(a), 68-211-111(d)(1), 68-211-111(d)(2), 68-211-851(a), 68-211-852, 68-211-853, 68-211-861, and Uniform Administrative Procedures Act (T.C.A., Title 4, Chapter 5 et seq.).