La. Admin. Code tit. 33 § VII-719

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 8, August 20, 2024

Section VII-719 - Standards Governing All Type III Processing and Disposal Facilities

A. Location Characteristics. The information on location characteristics listed in this Subsection is required and shall be provided for all Type III solid waste processing and disposal facilities.

1. Area master plans shall include location maps and/or engineering drawings. The scale of the maps and engineering drawings shall be legible. Area master plans shall show:

a. the facility;

b. the road network;

c. major drainage systems;

d. drainage-flow patterns;

e. the location of the closest population centers;

f. if the facility processes or disposes of putrescible solid waste, the location of any public-use airport used by turbojet aircraft or piston-type aircraft (if within a 5-mile radius);

g. the location of the 100-year flood plain based on the most recent data; and

h. other pertinent information.

2. Access to facilities by land or water transportation shall be by all-weather roads or waterways that can meet the demands of the facility and are designed to avoid, to the extent practicable, congestion, sharp turns, obstructions, or other hazards conducive to accidents. The surface roadways shall be adequate to withstand the weight of transportation vehicles.

3. Facilities that compost putrescible solid waste shall not be located within 10,000 feet of the end of any public-use airport runway used by turbojet aircraft or within 5,000 feet of the end of any public-use airport runway used by only piston-type aircraft.

4. Facilities located in, or within 1,000 feet of, swamps, marshes, wetlands, estuaries, wildlife-hatchery areas, habitat of endangered species, archaeological sites, historic sites, publicly-owned recreation areas, and similar critical environmental areas shall be isolated from such areas by effective barriers that eliminate probable adverse impacts from facility operations. The following information on environmental characteristics shall be provided:

a. a list of all known historic sites, recreation areas, archaeological sites, designated wildlife-management areas, swamps, marshes, wetlands, habitats for endangered species, and other sensitive ecological areas within 1,000 feet of the facility perimeter, or as otherwise appropriate;

b. documentation from the appropriate state and federal agencies substantiating the historic sites, recreation areas, archaeological sites, designated wildlife-management areas, swamps, marshes, wetlands, habitats for endangered species, and other sensitive ecological areas within 1,000 feet of the facility perimeter; and

c. a description of the measures planned to protect the areas listed from the adverse impact of operation at the facility.

5. A letter shall be acquired from the appropriate agency or agencies regarding any facility receiving waste generated off-site, stating that the facility will not have a significant adverse impact on the traffic flow of area roadways and that the construction, maintenance, or proposed upgrading of such roads is adequate to withstand the weight of the vehicles.

6. A description shall be included of the total existing land use within 3 miles of the facility (by approximate percentage) including, but not limited to:

a. residential;

b. health-care facilities and schools;

c. agriculture;

d. industrial and manufacturing;

e. other commercial;

f. recreational; and

g. undeveloped.

7. A current aerial photograph, representative of the current land use, of a 1-mile radius surrounding the facility is required. The aerial photograph shall be of sufficient scale to depict all pertinent features.

8. Processing or disposal facilities may be subject to a comprehensive land-use or zoning plan established by local regulations or ordinances.

9. A statement of the estimated population, the source of the estimation, and the population density within a 3-mile radius of the facility boundary is required of all facilities.

10. A wetlands demonstration, if applicable is required, in accordance with LAC 33:VII.709.A.8.

B. Facility Characteristics. The following facility characteristics are required for all Type III solid waste facilities.

1. Elements of the process or disposal system employed shall be provided, including, as applicable, property lines, original contours (shown at not greater than 5-foot intervals), buildings, units of the facility, drainage, ditches, and roads.

2. Perimeter barriers and other control measures, such as security and signs, shall be provided as follows.

a. Facilities shall have a perimeter barrier around the facility that prevents unauthorized ingress or egress, except by willful entry.

b. During operating hours, each facility entry point shall be continuously monitored, manned, or locked.

c. During nonoperating hours, each facility entry point shall be locked.

d. Facilities that receive wastes from off-site sources shall post readable signs that list the types of wastes that can be received at the facility.

3. Buffer Zones

a. Buffer zones of not less than 50 feet shall be provided between the facility and the property line. Buffer zones of not less than 200 feet shall be provided between the facility and the property line for any new facility. The requirement for a 200 foot buffer zone between the facility and the property line shall not apply to any facility existing on November 20, 2011, to any portion of such facility that has been closed or that has ceased operations, or to future expansions of the permitted disposal area of any such facility. Buffer zones of not less than 300 feet shall be provided between the facility and the property line when the property line is adjacent to a structure currently being used as a church and having been used as a church prior to the submittal of a permit application. The requirement for a 300 foot buffer zone between the facility and a church shall not apply to any landfill or disposal facility existing prior to April 1, 2010, to any portion of such facility that has been closed or that has ceased operations, or to future expansions of the permitted disposal area of any such facility. A reduction in this requirement shall be allowed only with permission, in the form of a notarized affidavit, from all landowners having an ownership interest in property located less than 50 feet from the facility (for facilities existing on November 20, 2011), less than 200 feet from the facility (for facilities constructed after November 20, 2011), or less than 300 feet from the facility (for facilities located less than 300 feet from a church). The facility's owner or operator shall enter a copy of the notarized affidavit(s) in the mortgage and conveyance records of the parish or parishes in which the landowners' properties are located. Buffer zone requirements may be waived or modified by the administrative authority for areas of woodwaste/construction/demolition-debris landfills that have been closed in accordance with these regulations and for existing facilities. Notwithstanding this Paragraph, Type III air curtain destructors and composting facilities that receive putrescible, residential, or commercial waste shall meet the buffer zone requirements in LAC 33:VII.717.B.3. In addition, air curtain destructors shall maintain at least a 1,000-foot buffer from any dwelling other than a dwelling or structure located on the property on which the burning is conducted (unless the appropriate notarized affidavit waivers are obtained).

b. No storage, processing, or disposal of solid waste shall occur within the buffer zone.

4. Fire Protection and Medical Care. All facilities shall have access to required fire protection and medical care, or such services shall be provided internally.

a. A plan outlining facility operations and emergency procedures to be followed in case of accident, fire, explosion, or other emergencies shall be developed and filed with the Office of Environmental Services and with the local fire department and the closest hospital or clinic. The plans shall be updated annually or when implementation demonstrates that a revision is needed.

b. Training sessions concerning the procedures outlined in Subparagraph B.4 of this Section shall be conducted annually for all employees working at the facility. A copy of the training program shall be filed with the Office of Environmental Services.

5. Landscaping. All facilities, other than those that are located within the boundaries of a plant, industry, or business that generates the waste to be processed or disposed of, shall provide landscaping to improve the aesthetics of the facility.

6. Devices or Methods for Receiving and Monitoring Incoming Wastes

a. All processing or disposal facilities shall be equipped with a device or method to determine quantity (by wet-weight tonnage), sources (whether the waste was generated in-state or out-of-state), and types of incoming waste. All facilities shall also be equipped with a device or method to control entry of the waste and prevent entry of unrecorded or unauthorized deliverables (i.e., hazardous, unauthorized, or unpermitted solid waste).

b. All processing or disposal facilities shall be equipped with a central control and recordkeeping system for tabulating the information required in Subparagraph B.6.a of this Section.

7. Discharges from operating units of all facilities shall be controlled and shall conform to applicable state and federal laws. Applications for applicable state and federal discharge permits shall be filed before a standard permit may be issued.

C. Surface Hydrology

1. Facilities located in a flood plain, wetlands, or areas historically subject to overflow from floods shall be filled to bring site elevation above flood levels or otherwise protected by measures approved on a site-specific basis. Perimeter levees or other measures shall provide and maintain adequate protection against a 100-year flood.

2. Facilities located in, or within 1,000 feet of, an aquifer recharge zone shall be designed to protect the areas from adverse impacts of operations at the facility.

3. Surface-runoff-diversion levees, canals, or devices shall be installed to prevent drainage from the units of the facility that have not received final cover. The proposed system shall be designed to collect and control at least the water volume resulting from a 24-hour/25-year storm event and/or the peak discharge from a 25-year storm event.

4. Specific Surface Hydrology Standard for Type III Composting Facilities. The topography of the facility shall provide for drainage to prevent standing water and shall allow for drainage away from the facility.

D. Facility Geology

1. Except as provided in Paragraph D.2 of this Section, facilities shall have natural stable soils of low permeability for the area occupied by the solid waste facility, including vehicle parking and turnaround areas, that shall provide a barrier to prevent any penetration of surface spills into groundwater aquifers underlying the area or to a sand or other water-bearing stratum that would provide a conduit to such aquifers.

2. A design for surfacing natural soils that do not meet the requirement in Paragraph D.l of this Section shall be prepared and installed under the supervision of a professional engineer, licensed in the state of Louisiana, with expertise in geotechnical engineering and hydrogeology. Written certification by the engineer that the surface satisfies the requirements of Paragraph D.l of this Section shall be provided to the Office of Environmental Services.

3. Specific requirements for Type III facilities are found in LAC 33:VII.Chapter 8.

E. Implementation Plans. The implementation plans for all facilities shall include the following:

1. a construction schedule for existing facilities, which shall include beginning and ending time frames and time frames for the installation of all major features; and

2. details on phased implementation, if any proposed facility is to be constructed in phases.

La. Admin. Code tit. 33, § VII-719

Promulgated by the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Solid and Hazardous Waste, Solid Waste Division, LR 19:187 (February 1993), amended by the Office of Environmental Assessment, Environmental Planning Division, LR 26:2527 (November 2000), amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Affairs Division, LR 31:2495 (October 2005), LR 33:1065 (June 2007), LR 33:2149 (October 2007), LR 34:613 (April 2008), LR 35:926 (May 2009), LR 37:3252 (November 2011), repromulgated LR 37:3511 (December 2011), amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Division, LR 40:295 (February 2014).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2001 et seq.