Trash, ash, and the Phoenix: Waste-to-energy facilities after the Supreme Court decision of May 2, 1994
On May 2, 1994, the Supreme Court ruled in City of Chicago v. Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) that ash generated by municipal waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities is not exempt from regulation as hazardous waste. The opinion required the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to revise its prior position that ash derived from burning household wastes along or in combination with nonhazardous wastes from industrial and commercial sources was exempt from hazardous waste regulation. As a result of the decision, persons who generate WTE combustion ash must determine whether the waste is hazardous under EPA`s hazardous waste identification rules. Since EPA has not listed WTE combustion ash as hazardous waste, generators must test whether the ash exhibits any of the characteristics of hazardous waste. For ash that does exhibit such a characteristic, WTE facilities would have to either treat ash on-site to eliminate the characteristic or make arrangements for the proper disposal of their ash. However, the Supreme Court decision does not necessarily represent the last work on municipal solid waste (MSW) ash management. Either EPA or Congress may take up the issue and craft alternative approaches. Based on general WTE industry data and findings on WTE combustion ash, this paper presents and analyzes legislative and regulatory options and proposals that may result from the Supreme Court decision.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab., Washington, DC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- W-31109-ENG-38
- OSTI ID:
- 100237
- Report Number(s):
- ANL/EA/CP--84184; CONF-950646--29; ON: DE95013706
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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