Section 11-58.1-17 - Municipal solid waste landfills - closure and post-closure care(a) Closure criteria. (1) Owners or operators of all MSWLF units must install a final cover system that is designed to minimize infiltration and erosion. The final cover system must be comprised of an erosion layer underlain by an infiltration layer as follows: (A) Have a permeability less than or equal to the permeability of any bottom liner system or natural subsoils present, or a permeability no greater than 1 x 10-5 cm/sec, whichever is less, and(B) Minimize infiltration through the closed MSWLF by the use of an infiltration layer that contains a minimum eighteen inches of earthen material, and(C) Minimize erosion of the final cover by the use of an erosion layer that contains a minimum six inches of earthen material that is capable of sustaining native plant growth.(2) The director may approve an alternative final cover design that includes: (A) An infiltration layer that achieves an equivalent reduction in infiltration as the infiltration layer specified in paragraph (1)(A) and (1)(B); and(B) An erosion layer that provides equivalent protection from wind and water erosion as the erosion layer specified in paragraph (1)(C).(3) The owner or operator must prepare a written closure plan that describes the steps necessary to close all MSWLF units at any point during its active life in accordance with the cover design requirements in paragraph (1) or (2), as applicable. The closure plan, at a minimum, must include the following information: (A) A description of the final cover, designed in accordance with paragraph (1) and the methods and procedures to be used to install the cover;(B) An estimate of the largest area of the MSWLF unit ever requiring a final cover as required under paragraph (1) at any time during the active life;(C) An estimate of the maximum inventory of wastes ever on-site over the active life of the landfill facility; and(D) A schedule for completing all activities necessary to satisfy the closure criteria in this subsection.(4) The owner or operator must notify the director that a closure plan has been prepared and placed in the operating record by October 9, 1993, or by the initial receipt of waste, whichever is later.(5) Before beginning closure of each MSWLF unit as specified in paragraph (6), an owner or operator must notify the director that a notice of intent to close the unit has been placed in the operating record.(6) The owner or operator must begin closure activities of each MSWLF unit within thirty days after the date on which the MSWLF unit receives the known final receipt of wastes or, if the MSWLF unit has remaining capacity and there is a reasonable likelihood that the MSWLF unit will receive additional wastes, within one year after the most recent receipt of wastes. Extensions beyond the one-year deadline for beginning closure may be granted by the director if the owner or operator demonstrates that the MSWLF unit has the capacity to receive additional wastes and the owner or operator has taken and will continue to take all steps necessary to prevent threats to human health and the environment from the unclosed MSWLF unit.(7) The owner or operator of all MSWLF units must complete closure activities of each MSWLF unit in accordance with the closure plan within one hundred eighty days following the beginning of closure as specified in paragraph (6). Extensions of the closure period may be granted by the director if the owner or operator demonstrates that closure will, of necessity, take longer than one hundred eighty days and the owner or operator has taken and will continue to take all steps to prevent threats to human health and the environment from the unclosed MSWLF unit.(8) Following closure of each MSWLF unit, the owner or operator must notify the director that a certification, signed by an independent registered professional engineer or approved by the director, verifying that closure has been completed in accordance with the closure plan, has been placed in the operating record.(9)(A) Following closure of all MSWLF units, the owner or operator must record a notation on the deed to the landfill facility property, or some other instrument that is normally examined during title search, and notify the director that the notation has been recorded and a copy has been placed in the operating record.(B) The notation on the deed must in perpetuity notify any potential purchaser of the property that: (i) The land has been used as a landfill facility; and(ii) Its use is restricted under subsection (b) (3) (C).(10) The owner or operator may request permission from the director to remove the notation from the deed if all wastes are removed from the facility.(b) Post-closure care requirements. (1) Following closure of each MSWLF unit, the owner or operator must conduct post-closure care. Post-closure care must be conducted for thirty years, except as provided under paragraph (2) , and consist of at least the following: (A) Maintaining the integrity and effectiveness of any final cover, including making repairs to the cover as necessary to correct the effects of settlement, subsidence, erosion, or other events, and preventing run-on and run-off from eroding or otherwise damaging the final cover;(B) Maintaining and operating the leachate collection system in accordance with the requirements in section 11-58.1-14, if applicable. The director may allow the owner or operator to stop managing leachate if the owner or operator demonstrates that leachate no longer poses a threat to human health and the environment;(C) Monitoring the ground water in accordance with the requirements of section 11-58.1-16 and maintaining the ground-water monitoring system, if applicable; and(D) Maintaining and operating the gas monitoring system in accordance with the requirements of section 11-58.1-15(d).(2) The length of the post-closure care period may be: (A) Decreased by the director if the owner or operator demonstrates that the reduced period is sufficient to protect human health and the environment and this demonstration is approved by the director; or(B) Increased by the director if the director determines that the lengthened period is necessary to protect human health and the environment.(3) The owner or operator of all MSWLF units must prepare a written post-closure plan that includes, at a minimum, the following information: (A) A description of the monitoring and maintenance activities required in paragraph (1) for each MSWLF unit, and the frequency at which these activities will be performed;(B) Name, address, and telephone number of the person or office to contact about the facility during the post-closure period; and(C) A description of the planned uses of the property during the post-closure period. Post-closure use of the property shall not disturb the integrity of the final cover, liner(s), or any other components of the containment system, or the function of the monitoring systems unless necessary to comply with the requirements in sections 11-58.1-11 through 11-58.1-18. The director may approve any other disturbance if the owner or operator demonstrates that disturbance of the final cover, liner, or other component of the containment system, including any removal of waste, will not increase the potential threat to human health or the environment.(4) The owner or operator must notify the director that a post-closure plan has been prepared and placed in the operating record no later than the effective date of this Subchapter, October 9, 1993, or by the initial receipt of waste, whichever is later.(5) Following completion of the post-closure care period for each MSWLF unit, the owner or operator must notify the director that a certification, signed by an independent registered professional engineer or approved by the director, verifying that post-closure care has been completed in accordance with the post-closure plan, has been placed in the operating record.Haw. Code R. § 11-58.1-17
[Eff JAN 13 1994] (Auth: HRS §§ 342H-53, 342H-55)