PART 1
 
 

SUBCHAPTER 13B - SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT
 
 

SECTION .0100 - GENERAL PROVISIONS
 
 

Rules .0101 - .0108 of Title 15A Subchapter 13B of the North Carolina Administrative Code (T15A.13B .0101 - .0108); have been transferred and recodified from Rules .0101 - .0108 of Title 10 Subchapter 10G of the North Carolina Administrative Code (T10.10G .0101 - .0108), effective April 4, 1990.
 
 

.0101 DEFINITIONS

The definitions in G.S. 130A-290 and the following definitions shall apply throughout this Subchapter:

(1) "Airport" means public-use airport open to the public without prior permission and without restrictions within the physical capacities of available facilities.

(2) "Blood products" means all bulk blood and blood products.

(3) "Cell" means compacted solid waste completely enveloped by a compacted cover material.

(4) "Demolition landfill" means a sanitary landfill that is limited to receiving stumps, limbs, leaves, concrete, brick, wood, uncontaminated earth or other solid wastes as approved by the Division.

(5) "Division" means the Director of the Division of Solid Waste Management or the Director's authorized representative.

(6) "Explosive gas" means Methane (CH 4).

(7) "Federal act" means the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976, P.L. 94-580, as amended.

(8) "Floodplain" means the lowland and relatively flat areas adjoining inland and coastal waters, including flood-prone areas of offshore islands, which are inundated by the 100-year flood.

(9) "Hazardous waste landfill facility" means any facility or any portion of a facility for disposal of hazardous waste on or in land in accordance with rules promulgated under this article.

(10) "Incineration" means the process of burning solid, semi-solid or gaseous combustible wastes to an inoffensive gas and a residue containing little or no combustible material.

(11) "Leachate" means any liquid, including any suspended components in liquid, that has percolated through or drained from solid waste.

(12) "Lower explosive limit" means the lowest percent by volume of a mixture of explosive gases which will propogate a flame in air at 25EC and atmospheric pressure.

(13) "Microbiological wastes" means and includes cultures and stocks of etiologic agents. The term includes cultures of specimens from medical, pathological, pharmaceutical, research, commercial, and industrial laboratories.

(14) "One-hundred year flood" means a flood that has a one percent or less chance of recurring in any year or a flood of a magnitude equalled or exceeded once in 100 years on the average over a significantly long period.

(15) "Open burning" means any fire wherein the products of combustion are emitted directly into the outdoor atmosphere and are not directed thereto through a stack or chimney, incinerator, or other similar devices.

(16) "Pathological wastes" means and includes human tissues, organs, body parts, secretions and excretions, blood and body fluids that are removed during surgery and autopsies; and the carcasses and body parts of all animals that were exposed to pathogens in research, were used in the production of biologicals or in the in vivo testing of pharmaceuticals, or that died of known or suspected infectious disease.

(17) "Putrescible" means solid waste capable of being decomposed by microorganisms with sufficient rapidity as to cause nuisances from odors and gases, such as kitchen wastes, offal and carcasses.

(18) "Radioactive waste material" means any waste containing radioactive material as defined in G.S. 104E-5(14).

(19) "Regulated Medical Waste" means blood and body fluids in individual containers in volumes greater than 20 ml, microbiological waste, and pathological waste that have not been treated pursuant to Rule .1207 of this Subchapter.

(20) "Respondent" means the person against whom an administrative penalty has been assessed.

(21) "Runoff" means the portion of precipitation that drains from an area as surface flow.

(22) "Sediment" means solid particulate matter both mineral and organic, that has been or is being transported by water, air, gravity, or ice from its site of origin.

(23) "Sharps" means and includes needles, syringes, and scalpel blades.

(24) "Siltation" means sediment resulting from accelerated erosion which is settleable or removable by properly designed, constructed, and maintained control measures and which has been transported from its point of origin within the site land-disturbing activity and which has been deposited, or is in suspension in water.

(25) "Solid waste collector" means any person who collects or transports solid waste by whatever means, including but not limited to, highway, rail, and navigable waterway.

(26) "Solid waste generator" means any person who produces solid waste.

(27) "Spoiled food" means any food which has been removed from sale by the United States Department of Agriculture, North Carolina Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, or any other regulatory agency having jurisdiction in determining that food is unfit for consumption.

(28) "Steam sterilization" means treatment by steam at high temperatures for sufficient time to render infectious waste non-infectious.

(29) "Transfer facility" means a permanent structure with mechanical equipment used for the collection or compaction of solid waste prior to the transportation of solid waste for final disposal.

(30) "Treatment and processing facility" means a facility used in the treatment and processing of putrescible solid waste for final disposal or for utilization by reclaiming or recycling.

(31) "Vector" means a carrier, usually an arthropod, that is capable of transmitting a pathogen from one organism to another.

(32) "Water supply watershed" means an area from which water drains to a point or impoundment, and the water is then used as a source for a public water supply.

(33) "Water table" means the upper limit of the portion of the ground wholly saturated with water.

(34) "Working face" means that portion of the land disposal site where solid wastes are discharged, spread, and compacted prior to the placement of cover material.

(35) "Agricultural Waste" means waste materials produced from the raising of plants and animals, including animal manures, bedding, plant stalks, hulls, and vegetable matter.

(36) "Backyard Composting" means the on-site composting of yard waste from residential property by the owner or tenant for non-commercial use.

(37) "Compost" means decomposed, humus-like organic matter, free from pathogens, offensive odors, toxins or materials harmful at the point of end use. Compost is suitable for use as a soil conditioner with varying nutrient values.

(38) "Composting Pad" means a surface, whether soil or manufactured, where the process of composting takes place, and where raw and finished materials are stored.

(39) "Compost Facility" means a solid waste facility which utilizes a controlled biological process of degrading non-hazardous solid waste. A facility may include materials processing and hauling equipment; structures to control drainage; and structures to collect and treat leachate; and storage areas for the incoming waste, the final products, and residual materials.

(40) "Composting" means the controlled decomposition of organic waste by naturally occurring bacteria, yielding a stable, humus-like, pathogen-free final product resulting in volume reduction of 30 - 75 percent.

(41) "Curing" means the final state of composting, after the majority of the readily metabolized material has been decomposed, in which the compost material stabilizes and dries.

(42) "Pathogens" means organisms that are capable of producing infection or diseases, often found in waste materials.

(43) "Silviculture Waste" means waste materials produced from the care and cultivation of forest trees, including bark and woodchips.

(44) "Soil Group I" means soil group I as defined in 15A NCAC 13B .0807(a)(1)(A) of the Septage Management Rules.

(45) "Windrow" means an elongated compost pile (typically eight feet wide by ten feet high).

(46) "Yard Waste" means "Yard Trash" and "Land-clearing Debris" as defined in G.S. 130A-290, including stumps, limbs, leaves, grass, and untreated wood.

(47) "Residues from Agricultural Products and Processing" means solids, semi-solids or liquid residues from food and beverage processing and handling; silviculture; agriculture; and aquaculture operations that are non-toxic, non-hazardous, and contain no domestic wastewater.

(48) "Treatment and Processing Waste" means waste that is a residual solid from a wastewater treatment or pretreatment facility.

(49) "Industrial Process Waste" means any solid, semi-solid, or liquid waste generated by a manufacturing or processing plant which is a result of the manufacturing or processing process. This definition does not include packaging materials associated with such activities.

(50) "Mulch" means a protective covering of various substances, especially organic, to which no plant food has been added and for which no plant food is claimed. Mulch is generally placed around plants to prevent erosion, compaction, evaporation of moisture, freezing of roots, and weed growth.

(51) "Soil Scientist" means an individual who is a Certified Professional Soil Scientist or Soil Specialist by American Registry of Certified Professional in Agronomy, Crops, and Soils (ARCPACS) or an individual that demonstrates equivalent experience or education.

(52) "Foreign Matter" means metals, glass, plastics, rubber, bones, and leather, but does not include sand, grit, rocks or other similar materials.

(53) "Land clearing waste" means solid waste which is generated solely from land clearing activities such as stumps, trees, limbs, brush, grass, and other naturally occurring vegetative material.

(54) "Land clearing and inert debris landfill" means a facility for the land disposal of land clearing waste, concrete, brick, concrete block, uncontaminated soil, gravel and rock, untreated and unpainted wood, and yard trash.

(55) "Yard trash" means solid waste resulting from landscaping and yard maintenance such as brush, grass, tree limbs, and similar vegetative material.

(56) "Erosion control measure, structure, or device" means physical devices constructed, and management practices utilized, to control sedimentation and soil erosion such as silt fences, sediment basins, check dams, channels, swales, energy dissipation pads, seeding, mulching and other similar items.

(57) "Industrial Solid Waste Landfill" means a facility for the land disposal of "industrial solid waste" as defined in Item (11) of Rule .1602 of this Subchapter, and is not a land application unit, surface impoundment, injection well, or waste pile, as defined under 40 CFR Part 257.
 
 

History Note: Statutory Authority G.S. 130A-294; Amended Eff. October 1, 1995
 
 
 
 

.0102 APPLICABILITY

These solid waste management rules are for general application throughout the State of North Carolina unless otherwise specifically indicated by their context. Rules found in Section .0700 of this Subchapter apply to the Division's program for solid waste management and also to the Division's program for hazardous waste management. All other rules of this Subchapter apply to the Division's program for solid waste management but not to the Division's program for hazardous waste management. Other hazardous waste management program rules are found in 15A NCAC 13A. The official policy and purpose of the State of North Carolina in regard to solid waste control is set forth in Article 9 of Chapter 130A of the North Carolina General Statutes.
 
 

History Note: Statutory Authority G.S. 130A-294; Amended Eff. February 1, 1991
 
 

.0103 GENERAL CONDITIONS

(a) All solid waste shall be stored, collected, transported, separated, processed, recycled, recovered, and disposed of in a manner consistent with the requirements of these Rules. The Division of Solid Waste Management is responsible for the enforcement of these Rules.

(b) No radioactive waste material shall be collected and transported, stored, treated, processed, disposed of or reclaimed, except as specifically authorized by a radioactive material license issued by the Division of Radiation Protection, DEHNR.

(c) Solid waste shall be disposed of at a solid waste disposal site in accordance with the Solid Waste Management Act and the Federal Act. Hazardous waste, lead acid batteries, liquid waste, including used oil, regulated medical waste, and any other wastes that may pose a threat to the environment or the public health, as determined by the Division, are prohibited from disposal at a solid waste disposal site.

(d) The Division has developed a "Procedure and Criteria for Waste Determination" which is used to determine whether a waste is:

(1) hazardous as defined by 15A NCAC 13A, and

(2) suitable for disposal at a solid waste management facility.

Information required for evaluation includes the identity of the generator, identity of the waste and how it was generated, and laboratory results indicating the chemical constituency of the waste. Copies of "Procedure and Criteria for Waste Determination" may be obtained from and inspected at the Division, P.O. Box 27687, Raleigh, N.C. 27611-7687. The waste determination procedure shall be used for: (A) Waste which is generated outside the population and geographic area which the solid waste management facility is permitted to serve under .0504(1)(g).

(B) Waste from a transfer facility other than a facility permitted under these Rules.

(C) Waste generated by a new generator inside the population and geographic area which the Solid Waste Management Facility is permitted to serve if the components of the waste cannot be readily determined otherwise.

(D) Waste generated through a change in industrial process by an existing generator, provided the components of the waste cannot be readily determined otherwise.

(E) A load of waste which a sanitary landfill operator suspects may contain materials which the facility is not permitted to receive.

(F) Requests by a generator interested in transporting waste to an identified solid waste management facility for treatment and processing, transfer or disposal.

(G) All sludges except sludge from water treatment plants.

(H) Other wastes deemed appropriate by the Division for testing before transporting to a solid waste management facility.

(e) No person shall dispose or cause the disposal of solid waste in or on waters in a manner that results in solid waste's entering waters or being deposited upon lands of the state.

(f) White Goods shall not be disposed of at a solid waste disposal site after January 1, 1991.

(g) By July 1, 1991, all solid waste management facilities owned and operated by or on behalf of a local government, except facilities which will receive no waste after July 1, 1992, shall install scales and weigh all solid waste when it is received at the facility.

(h) By July 1, 1991, each local government operating a permitted solid waste management facility shall initiate a solid waste recycling program which shall be designed to achieve the goal of recycling at least 25 percent of the municipal solid waste stream by January 1, 1993, prior to final disposal or incineration at a solid waste disposal facility.

(i) After January 1, 1998, all active sanitary landfills (except land clearing and inert debris landfills) shall be equipped with liners, leachate collection systems and final cover systems as required in Sections .0500 and .1600 of this Subchapter.
 
 

History Note: Filed as a Temporary Amendment Eff. October 28, 1988, for a Period of 180 Days to Expire on April 26, 1989; Statutory Authority G.S. 130A-294; Eff. April 1, 1982; Amended Eff. October 1, 1995; January 4, 1993; February 1, 1991; September 1, 1990.
 
 
 
 

.0104 SOLID WASTE STORAGE

(a) The owner or occupant of any property, except that exempted as specified in Rule .0103(c) of this Subchapter shall be responsible for the sanitary storage of all solid waste accumulated on the property.

(b) Garbage shall be stored in either durable rust resistant, non-absorbent, water-tight, rodent proof, and easily cleanable containers with a close fitting fly-tight cover, when applicable, or other types of containers acceptable to the local governing agency and conforming to the intent of this Section.

(c) Refuse shall be stored in durable containers or as otherwise provided in this Section. Where garbage is stored in combination with refuse, containers shall meet the requirements for garbage containers.

(d) Hazardous waste shall be stored as prescribed in the applicable state or federal rules.

(e) All containers for the storage of solid waste shall be maintained in such a manner as to prevent the creation of a nuisance or insanitary conditions. Containers that are broken or otherwise fail to meet this Rule shall be replaced with acceptable containers. Refuse too large or otherwise not suitable for storage in containers shall be stored in a nuisance free manner consistent with requirements with the unit of local government.

(f) All solid waste shall be stored in such a manner as to prevent the creation of a nuisance, insanitary conditions, or a potential public health hazard.
 
 

History Note: Statutory Authority G.S. 130A-294; Amended Eff. February 1, 1988.
 
 
 
 

.0105 COLLECTION AND TRANSPORTATION OF SOLID WASTE

(a) The solid waste collector shall be responsible for the satisfactory collection and transportation of all solid waste to a permitted disposal site or facility.

(b) The solid waste collector shall transport to a site or facility only those solid wastes which the site or facility is permitted to receive.

(c) Vehicles or containers used for the collection and transportation by whatever means, including but not limited to, highway, rail, and navigable waterway, of garbage, or refuse containing garbage, shall be covered, leakproof, durable, and of easily cleanable construction. These shall be cleaned as often as necessary to prevent a nuisance or insect breeding and shall be maintained in good repair.

(d) Vehicles or containers used for the collection and transportation of any solid waste shall be loaded and moved in such a manner that the contents will not fall, leak, or spill and shall be covered when necessary to keep contents dry and to prevent blowing of material. If spillage should occur, the material shall be picked up immediately by the solid waste collector and returned to the vehicle or container and the area shall be properly cleaned.
 
 

History Note: Statutory Authority G.S. 130A-294; Amended Eff. February 1, 1988.
 
 
 
 

.0106 GENERATOR OF SOLID WASTE

(a) A solid waste generator shall be responsible for the satisfactory storage, collection and disposal of solid waste.

(b) The solid waste generator shall ensure that his waste is disposed of at a site or facility which is permitted to receive the waste.
 
 

History Note: Statutory Authority G.S. 130A-294; Eff. January 1, 1985.
 
 
 
 

.0107 TREATMENT OF INFECTIOUS WASTES PRIOR TO DISPOSAL
 
 

Repealed effective September 1, 1990.
 
 
 
 

.0108 OUT-OF-STATE WASTE IN SANITARY LANDFILLS

(a) No permit shall be granted for the disposal of nonradioactive solid waste generated outside the boundaries of North Carolina unless the following conditions are met:

(1) The source (i.e., all generators) of the waste is disclosed, as required by .0504(g)(ii).

(2) Each load of waste has been inspected by the Solid Waste Regulatory Agency of the nation, state or territory where the waste was generated, and the agency has provided:

(A) a detailed listing of characteristics of all of the waste in the load, and

(B) certification that the waste is noninjurious to human health and safety.

(b) Existing permitted landfills will require a new permit, in accordance with .0504(g)(i) and (ii), before acceptance of waste generated outside the boundaries of North Carolina.
 
  History Note: Statutory Authority G.S. 130A-294; Eff. February 1, 1988.