Ala. Admin. Code r. 335-14-6-.11 - Surface Impoundments
(1)
Applicability. The requirements of 335-14-6-.11 apply
to owners and operators of facilities that use surface impoundments to treat,
store, or dispose of hazardous waste except as
335-14-6-.01(1)
provides otherwise.
(2)
Design and operating
requirements.
(a) The owner or
operator of each new surface impoundment unit, each lateral expansion of a
surface impoundment unit, and each replacement of an existing surface
impoundment unit, must install two or more liners and a leachate collection and
removal system above and between the liners, and operate the leachate
collection and removal system, in accordance with
335-14-5-.11(2)(c),
unless exempted under
335-14-5-.11(2)(d), (e), or
(f) .
(b) The owner or operator of each unit
referred to in 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) must notify the Department at least sixty
days prior to receiving waste. The owner or operator of each facility
submitting notice must file a Part B application within six months of the
receipt of such notice.
(c) The
owner or operator of any replacement surface impoundment unit is exempt from
335-14-6-.11(2)(a) if:
1. The existing unit
was constructed in accordance with the design standards of Sections
3004(o)(1)(A)(i) and (o)(5) of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act and
the AHWMMA; and
2. There is no
reason to believe that the liner is not functioning as designed.
(d) The double liner requirement
set forth in 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) may be waived by the Department for any
monofill if:
1. The monofill contains only
hazardous wastes from foundry furnace emission controls or metal casting
molding sand, and such wastes do not contain constituents which would render
the wastes hazardous for reasons other than the EP toxicity characteristics in
335-14-2-.03(5);
2.
(i)
(I) The monofill has at least one liner for
which there is no evidence that such liner is leaking. For the purposes of
335-14-6-.11(2) the term "liner" means a liner designed, constructed,
installed, and operated to prevent hazardous waste from passing into the liner
at any time during the active life of the facility, or a liner designed,
constructed, installed, and operated to prevent hazardous waste from migrating
beyond the liner to adjacent subsurface soil, groundwater, or surface water at
any time during the active life of the facility. In the case of any surface
impoundment which has been exempted from the requirements of 335-14-6-.11(2)(a)
on the basis of a liner designed, constructed, installed, and operated to
prevent hazardous waste from passing beyond the liner at the closure of such
impoundment the owner or operator must remove or decontaminate all waste
residues, all contaminated liner material, and contaminated soil to the extent
practicable. If all contaminated soil is not removed or decontaminated, the
owner or operator of such impoundment must comply with appropriate post-closure
requirements, including but not limited to groundwater monitoring and
corrective action:
(II) The
monofill is located more than one-quarter mile from an "underground source of
drinking water" (as that term is defined in
335-14-1-.02
); and
(III) The monofill is in
compliance with generally applicable groundwater monitoring requirements for
facilities with permits under Division 335-14; or
(ii) The owner or operator demonstrates that
the monofill is located, designed, and operated so as to assure that there will
be no migration of any hazardous constituent into groundwater or surface water
at any future time.
(e) In the case of any unit which the liner
and leachate collection system has been installed pursuant to the requirements
of 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) and in good faith compliance with 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) and
with guidance documents governing liners and leachate collection systems under
335-14-6-.11(2)(a), no liner or leachate collection system which is different
from that which was so installed pursuant to 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) will be
required for such unit by the Department when issuing the first permit to such
facility, except that the Department will not be precluded from requiring
installation of a new liner when the Department has reason to believe that any
liner installed pursuant to the requirements of 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) is
leaking.
(f) A surface impoundment
must maintain enough freeboard to prevent any overtopping of the dike by
overfilling, wave action or a storm. Except as provided in 335-14-6-.11(2)(b),
there must be at least 60 centimeters (two feet) of freeboard.
(g) A freeboard level less than 60
centimeters (two feet) may be maintained if the owner or operator obtains
certification by a qualified professional engineer that alternate design
features or operating plans will, to the best of his knowledge and opinion,
prevent overtopping of the dike. The certification, along with a written
identification of alternate design features or operating plans preventing
overtopping must be maintained at the facility.
(h) Surface impoundments that are newly
subject to 335-14-6-.11 due to the promulgation of additional listings or
characteristics for the identification of hazardous waste must be in compliance
with 335-14-6-.11(2)(a), (c), and (d) not later than 48 months after the
promulgation of the additional listing or characteristic. This compliance
period shall not be cut short as the result of the promulgation of land
disposal prohibitions under 335-14-9 or the granting of an extension to the
effective date of a prohibition pursuant to Rule
335-14-9-.01(5),
within this 48-month period.
(3)
Action leakage
rate.
(a) The owner or operator
of surface impoundment units subject to 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) must submit a
proposed action leakage rate to the Director when submitting the notice
required under 335-14-6-.11(2)(b). Within 60 days of receipt of the
notification, the Director will: establish an action leakage rate, either as
proposed by the owner or operator or modified using the criteria in
335-14-6-.11(3); or extend the review period for up to 60 days. If no action is
taken by the Director before the original 60 or extended 120 day review
periods, the action leakage rate will be approved as proposed by the owner or
operator.
(b) The Director shall
approve an action leakage rate for surface impoundment units subject to
335-14-6-.11(2)(a). The action leakage rate is the maximum design flow rate
that the leak detection system (LDS) can remove without the fluid head on the
bottom liner exceeding one foot. The action leakage rate must include an
adequate safety margin to allow for uncertainties in the design (e.g., slope,
hydraulic conductivity, thickness of drainage material), construction,
operation, and location of the LDS, waste and leachate characteristics,
likelihood and amounts of other sources of liquids in the LDS, and proposed
response actions (e.g., the action leakage rate must consider decreases in the
flow capacity of the system over time resulting from siltation and clogging,
rib layover and creep of synthetic components of the system, overburden
pressures, etc.).
(c) To determine
if the action leakage rate has been exceeded, the owner or operator must
convert the weekly or monthly flow rate from the monitoring data obtained under
335-14-6-.11(7)(b), to an average daily flow rate (gallons per acre per day)
for each sump. Unless the Director approves a different calculation, the
average daily flow rate for each sump must be calculated weekly during the
active life and closure period, and if the unit closes in accordance with
335-14-6-.11(9)(a)2., monthly during the post-closure care period when monthly
monitoring is required under 335-14-6-.11(7)(b).
(4)
Containment
system. All earthen dikes must have a protective cover, such as
grass, shale or rock, to minimize wind and water erosion and to preserve their
structural integrity.
(5)
Response actions.
(a) The owner or operator of surface
impoundment units subject to 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) must develop and keep on-site
until closure of the facility a response action plan. The response action plan
must set forth the actions to be taken if the action leakage rate has been
exceeded. At a minimum, the response action plan must describe the actions
specified in 335-14-6-.11(5)(b).
(b) If the flow rate into the leak detection
system exceeds the action leakage rate for any sump, the owner or operator
must:
1. Notify the Director in writing of the
exceedance within seven days of the determination;
2. Submit a preliminary written assessment to
the Director within 14 days of the determination, as to the amount of liquids,
likely sources of liquids, possible location, size, and cause of any leaks, and
short-term actions taken and planned;
3. Determine to the extent practicable the
location, size, and cause of any leak;
4. Determine whether waste receipts should
cease or be curtailed, whether any waste should be removed from the unit for
inspection, repairs, or controls, and whether or not the unit should be
closed;
5. Determine any other
short-term and longer-term actions to be taken to mitigate or stop any leaks;
and
6. Within 30 days after the
notification that the action leakage rate has been exceeded, submit to the
Director the results of the analyses specified in 335-14-6-.11(5)(b)3., 4., and
5., the results of actions taken, and actions planned. Monthly thereafter, as
long as the flow rate in the leak detection system exceeds the action leakage
rate, the owner or operator must submit to the Director a report summarizing
the results of any remedial actions taken and actions planned.
(c) To make the leak and/or
remediation determinations in 335-14-6-.11(5)(b)3., 4., and 5., the owner or
operator must:
1.
(i) Assess the source of liquids and amounts
of liquids by source,
(ii) Conduct
a fingerprint, hazardous constituent, or other analyses of the liquids in the
leak detection system to identify the source of liquids and possible location
of any leaks, and the hazard and mobility of the liquid; and
(iii) Assess the seriousness of any leaks in
terms of potential for escaping into the environment; or
2. Document why such assessments are not
needed.
(6)
Waste analysis and trial tests.
(a) In addition to the waste analyses
required by 335-14-6-.042(4), whenever a surface impoundment is to be used to:
1. Chemically treat a hazardous waste which
is substantially different from waste previously treated in that impoundment;
or
2. Chemically treat hazardous
waste with a substantially different process than any previously used in that
impoundment; the owner or operator must, before treating the different waste or
using the different process:
(i) Conduct
waste analyses and trial treatment tests (e.g., bench scale or pilot plant
scale tests); or
(ii) Obtain
written, documented information on similar treatment of similar waste under
similar operating conditions; to show that this treatment will comply with
335-14-6-.02(8)(b).
(7)
Monitoring and inspection.
(a) The owner or operator must inspect:
1. The freeboard level at least once each
operating day to ensure compliance with 335-14-6-.11(3); and
2. The surface impoundment, including dikes
and vegetation surrounding the dike, at least once a week to detect any leaks,
deterioration or failures in the impoundment.
3. These inspections must be documented in an
inspection log as required by Rule
335-14-6-.02(6)(d).
(b)
1. An owner or operator required to have a
leak detection system under 335-14-6-.11(2)(a) must record the amount of
liquids removed from each leak detection system sump at least once each week
during the active life and closure period.
2. After the final cover is installed, the
amount of liquids removed from each leak detection system sump must be recorded
at least monthly. If the liquid level in the sump stays below the pump
operating level for two consecutive months, the amount of liquids in the sumps
must be recorded at least quarterly. If the liquid level in the sump stays
below the pump operating level for two consecutive quarters, the amount of
liquids in the sumps must be recorded at least semi-annually. If at any time
during the post-closure care period the pump operating level is exceeded at
units on quarterly or semi-annual recording schedules, the owner or operator
must return to monthly recording of amounts of liquids removed from each sump
until the liquid level again stays below the pump operating level for two
consecutive months.
3. "Pump
operating level" is a liquid level proposed by the owner or operator and
approved by the Director based on pump activation level, sump dimensions, and
level that avoids backup into the drainage layer and minimizes head in the
sump. The timing for submission and approval of the proposed "pump operating
level" will be in accordance with 335-14-6-.11(3)(a).
(8)
[Reserved]
(9)
Closure and post-closure
care.
(a) At closure, the owner
or operator must:
1. Remove or decontaminate
all waste residues, contaminated containment system components (liners, etc.),
contaminated subsoils, and structures and equipment contaminated with waste and
leachate, and manage them as hazardous waste unless
335-14-2-.01(3)(d)
applies; or
2. Close the impoundment and provide
post-closure care for a landfill under Rule
335-14-6-.07
and
335-14-6-.14(11),
including the following:
(i) Eliminate free
liquids by removing liquid wastes or solidifying the remaining wastes and waste
residues;
(ii) Stabilize remaining
wastes to a bearing capacity sufficient to support the final cover;
and
(iii) Cover the surface
impoundment with a final cover designed and constructed to:
(I) Provide long-term minimization of the
migration of liquids through the closed impoundment;
(II) Function with minimum
maintenance;
(III) Promote drainage
and minimize erosion or abrasion of the cover;
(IV) Accommodate settling and subsidence so
that the cover's integrity is maintained; and
(V) Have a permeability less than or equal to
the permeability of any bottom liner system or natural subsoils
present.
(VI) To meet the
requirements of 335-14-6-.11(9)(a)2.(iii) the final cover must meet the
requirements of
335-14-6-.14(11)(b)1.
through 3., unless Rule
335-14-6-.14(11)(c)
applies.
(b) In addition to the
requirements of Rule
335-14-6-.07
and
335-14-6-.14(11),
during the post-closure care period, the owner or operator of a surface
impoundment in which wastes, waste residues or contaminated materials remain
after closure in accordance with the provisions of 335-14-6-.11(9)(a)2. must:
1. Maintain the integrity and effectiveness
of the final cover, including making repairs to the cover as necessary to
correct the effects of settling, subsidence, erosion, or other
events;
2. Maintain and monitor the
leak detection system in accordance with
335-14-5-.11(2)(c)2.(iv)
and
335-14-5-.11(2)(c)3.,
and 335-14-6-.11(7)(b) and comply with all other applicable leak detection
system requirements of 335-14-6;
3.
Maintain and monitor the groundwater monitoring system and comply with all
other applicable requirements of Rule
335-14-6-.06;
and
4. Prevent run-on and run-off
from eroding or otherwise damaging the final cover.
(10)
Special
requirements for ignitable or reactive waste. Ignitable or
reactive waste must not be placed in a surface impoundment unless the waste and
impoundment satisfy all applicable requirements of 335-14-9, and:
(a) The waste is treated, rendered, or mixed
before or immediately after placement in the impoundment so that:
1. The resulting waste, mixture, or
dissolution of material no longer meets the definition of ignitable or reactive
waste under
335-14-2-.03(2)
or (4); and
2.335-14-6-.02(8)(b)
is complied with; or
(b)
1. The
waste is managed in such a way that it is protected from any material or
conditions which may cause it to ignite or react; and
2. The owner or operator obtains a
certification from a qualified professional engineer or qualified chemist that
to the best of his knowledge and opinion, the design features or operating
plans of the facility will prevent ignition or reaction; and
3. The certification and basis for it are
maintained at the facility; or
(c) The surface impoundment is used solely
for emergencies.
(11)
Special requirements for incompatible wastes.
Incompatible wastes and materials (see 33 5-14-6 -Appendix V for examples) must
not be placed in the same surface impoundment, unless
335-14-6-.02(8)(b)
is complied with.
(12)
Air emission
standards. The owner or operator shall manage all hazardous waste
placed in a surface impoundment in accordance with the applicable requirements
of
335-14-6-.27,
335-14-6-.28,
and
335-14-6-.29.
Notes
Authors: Stephen C. Maurer; James W. Hathcock; C. Edwin Johnston; Michael B. Champion; Bradley N. Curvin; Theresa A. Maines
Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, ยงยง 22-30-11, 22-30-16.
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