A Few Things You Need to Know About the 2015 Hazardous Waste Report

Now that the calendar has hit February, it’s time to remind you in-case you forgot that your 2015 Hazardous Waste Report must be submitted to your state or regional Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) office by March 1, 2016.

With that deadline approaching, let’s take a closer look at a few of the requirements.

Who Must File a Report?

Anyone who met the definition of being a RCRA Large Quantity Generator (LQG) during the 2015 calendar or who stored, treated, or disposed RCRA-defined hazardous waste on-site during 2015.

You are a LQG if you generate greater than or equal to 2,200 pounds of hazardous waste, or greater than 2.2 pounds of any acute hazardous waste, or greater than 220 pounds of contaminated waste, soil, or other remnants resulting from spill cleanup.

If you meet the above criteria, it’s imperative for you to know the in-depth requirements of this report.

Who Doesn’t Need to File a Report?

If your disposal site did not qualify as a RCRA LQG site and you did not store, treat, or dispose of RCRA hazardous waste at that location, you likely do not need to file a 2015 Hazardous Waste Report.

However, as many have more stringent requirements, it’s always vital to check your state’s reporting requirements before making any assumptions.

Additionally, unless it is required by your state, if all of your hazardous waste was exported directly from the United States to another country during the 2015 calendar year, you do not need to file the report.

What Documents Can Help Fill Out the 2015 Hazardous Waste Report?

This is where the importance of organized record-keeping can make your life a whole lot easier. Consulting records on the types and amounts of hazardous waste your location generated, managed, shipped, or received during the 2015 calendar year will prove valuable. Items that may be helpful are, as follows:

• Hazardous Waste Report forms submitted in previous years
• Hazardous waste manifests
• Results of lab analyses of your waste
• Copies of permits for on-site waste management systems
• Documents of the quantities of hazardous waste generated or accumulated on-site
• Agreements and/or contracts with any off-site facility managing your waste

Having these items on hand will ideally make the process go much more smoothly.

Don’t be intimidated when it comes to filing your 2015 Hazardous Waste Report. If you’re organized and have your documents readily available, and don’t mind spending a little time reading through some directions, filing the report isn’t much of a burden.

And while this post answers the basic question of whether or not you need to file a report, it’s certainly not all-encompassing. If you’d like to learn more about the process or precisely how to fill out some of the forms involved, here’s more info and instructions courtesy of the EPA.