Wash. Admin. Code § 173-351-130 - Location restrictions

(1) Applicability.

(a) On and after November 26, 1993, all MSWLF units must meet the location restrictions of this section unless otherwise specified.

(b) Existing MSWLF units that cannot make the demonstration specified in subsection (2)(a) of this section, pertaining to airports, subsection (3)(a) of this section, pertaining to flood plains, subsection (7)(a) of this section, pertaining to unstable areas, must close by October 9, 1996, and conduct post-closure in accordance with WAC 173-351-500, Closure and post-closure care.

(c) The deadline for closure required by (b) of this subsection may be extended up to two years if the owner or operator demonstrates to the jurisdictional health department during the permitting process of WAC 173-351-700 that:

(i) There is no available alternative disposal capacity; and

(ii) There is no immediate threat to human health and the environment.

Note:

Owners or operators of MSWLFs should be aware that the state department of health has adopted a state wellhead protection program in accordance with section 1428 of the Safe Drinking Water Act. Owners and operators should also be aware of location restrictions which may exist through the process of designating and implementing Groundwater Management Areas, under chapter 173-100 WAC, and through the Special Protection Areas of chapter 173-200 WAC.

(2) Airport safety.

(a) Owners or operators of new MSWLF units, existing MSWLF units, and/or lateral expansions that are located within ten thousand feet (three thousand forty-eight meters) of any airport runway end used by turbojet aircraft or within five thousand feet (one thousand twenty-four meters) of any airport runway end used by only piston-type aircraft must demonstrate that the units are designed and operated so that the MSWLF unit does not pose a bird hazard to aircraft.

(b) Owners or operators proposing to site new MSWLF units within a six-mile (ten kilometer) radius or lateral expansions within a five-mile (eight kilometer) radius of any airport runway end used by turbojet or piston-type aircraft must notify the effected airport and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and conform to all applicable requirements.

(c) The owner or operator must place the demonstration required by (a) of this subsection in the application for a permit under WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6).

(d) For purposes of this subsection:

(i) "Airport" means public-use airport open to the public without prior permission and without restrictions within the physical capacities of available facilities.

(ii) "Bird hazard" means an increase in the likelihood of bird/aircraft collisions that may cause damage to the aircraft or injury to its occupants.

(3) Flood plains.

(a) Owners or operators of new MSWLF units, existing MSWLF units, and lateral expansions located in 100-year flood plains must demonstrate that the unit will not restrict the flow of the 100-year flood, reduce the temporary water storage capacity of the flood plain, or result in washout of solid waste so as to pose a hazard to human health and the environment. The owner or operator must place the demonstration in the application for a permit under WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6).

(b) For purposes of this subsection:

(i) "Flood plain" means the lowland and relatively flat areas adjoining inland and coastal waters, including flood-prone areas of offshore islands, that are inundated by the 100-year flood.

(ii) "100-year flood" or "base flood" means a flood that has a one percent or less chance of recurring in any given year or a flood of a magnitude equaled or exceeded once in one hundred years on the average over a significantly long period.

(iii) "Washout" means the carrying away of solid waste by waters of the base flood.

(4) Wetlands.

(a) New MSWLF units and lateral expansions must not be located in wetlands, unless the owner or operator can make the following demonstrations during the permit process of WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6):

(i) The construction and operation of the MSWLF unit will not:

(A) Cause or contribute to violations of chapter 173-201A WAC, Water quality standards for surface waters of the state of Washington and chapter 173-200 WAC, Water quality standards for groundwaters of the state of Washington;

(B) Violate any applicable toxic effluent standard or prohibition under Section 307 of the Federal Clean Water Act or chapter 173-220 WAC, the National Pollutant discharge elimination system permit program;

(C) Jeopardize the continued existence of endangered or threatened species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of a critical habitat, protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act of 1973; and

(D) Violate any requirement under the Federal Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 for the protection of a marine sanctuary;

(ii) The MSWLF unit will not cause or contribute to significant degradation of wetlands. The owner or operator must demonstrate during the permit process of WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6) the integrity of the MSWLF unit and its ability to protect ecological resources by addressing the following factors:

(A) Erosion, stability, and migration potential of native wetland soils, mud, and deposits used to support the MSWLF unit;

(B) Erosion, stability, and migration potential of dredged and fill materials used to support the MSWLF unit;

(C) The volume and chemical nature of the waste managed in the MSWLF unit;

(D) Impacts on fish, wildlife, and other aquatic resources and their habitat from release of the solid waste;

(E) The potential effects of catastrophic release of solid waste to the wetland and the resulting impacts on the environment; and

(F) Any additional factors, as necessary, to demonstrate during the permit process of WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6) that ecological resources in the wetland are sufficiently protected.

(iii) Where applicable under Section 404 of the Federal Clean Water Act or applicable state wetlands laws and regulations (e.g. chapter 173-22 WAC, Adoption of designations of wetlands associated with shorelines of the state), the presumption that a practicable alternative to the proposed landfill is available which does not involve wetlands is clearly rebutted;

(iv) To the extent required under Section 404 of the Federal Clean Water Act steps have been taken to attempt to achieve no net loss of wetlands (as defined by acreage and function) by:

(A) Avoiding impacts to wetlands to the maximum extent practicable as required by (a)(iii) of this subsection;

(B) Minimizing unavoidable impacts to the maximum extent practicable; and

(C) Finally offsetting remaining unavoidable wetlands impacts through all appropriate and practicable compensatory mitigation actions (e.g., restoration and maintenance of existing degraded wetlands or creation of man-made wetlands);

(v) Sufficient information is available to make a reasonable determination with respect to these demonstrations.

(b) For purposes of this subsection, "wetlands" means those areas that are defined in 40 C.F.R. 232.2(r): Areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands include, but are not limited to, swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas.

(5) Fault areas.

(a) New MSWLF units and lateral expansions must not be located within two hundred feet (sixty meters) of a fault that has had displacement in Holocene time unless the owner or operator demonstrates during the permit process of WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6) that an alternative setback distance of less than two hundred feet (sixty meters) will prevent damage to the structural integrity of the MSWLF unit and will be protective of human health and the environment.

(b) For the purposes of this subsection:

(i) "Fault" means a fracture or a zone of fractures in any material along which strata on one side have been displaced with respect to that on the other side.

(ii) "Displacement" means the relative movement of any two sides of a fault measured in any direction.

(iii) "Holocene" means the most recent epoch of the Quaternary period, extending from the end of the Pleistocene Epoch to the present.

(6) Seismic impact zones.

(a) New MSWLF units and lateral expansions must not be located in seismic impact zones, unless the owner or operator demonstrates during the permit process of WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6) to the jurisdictional health department that all containment structures, including liners, leachate collection systems, and surface water control systems, are designed to resist the maximum horizontal acceleration in lithified earth material for the site. The owner or operator must place the demonstration in the application for a permit under WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6).

(b) For the purposes of this subsection:

(i) "Seismic impact zone" means an area with a ten percent or greater probability that the maximum horizontal acceleration in lithified earth material, expressed as a percentage of the earth's gravitational pull, will exceed 0.10g in two hundred fifty years.

(ii) "Maximum horizontal acceleration in lithified earth material" means the maximum expected horizontal acceleration depicted on a seismic hazard map, with a ninety percent or greater probability that the acceleration will not be exceeded in two hundred fifty years, or the maximum expected horizontal acceleration based on a site-specific seismic risk assessment.

(iii) "Lithified earth material" means all rock, including all naturally occurring and naturally formed aggregates or masses of minerals or small particles of older rock that formed by crystallization of magma or by induration of loose sediments. This term does not include man-made materials, such as fill, concrete, and asphalt, or unconsolidated earth materials, soil, or regolith lying at or near the earth surface.

(7) Unstable areas.

(a) Owners or operators of new MSWLF units, existing MSWLF units, and lateral expansions located in an unstable area must demonstrate that engineering measures have been incorporated into the MSWLF unit's design to ensure that the integrity of the structural components of the MSWLF units will not be disrupted. The owner or operator must place the demonstration in the application for a permit under WAC 173-351-700 or through the permit modification process of WAC 173-351-720(6). The owner or operator must consider the following factors, at a minimum, when determining whether an area is unstable:

(i) On-site or local soil conditions that may result in significant differential settling;

(ii) On-site or local geologic or geomorphologic features; and

(iii) On-site or local human-made features or events (both surface and subsurface).

(b) For purposes of this subsection:

(i) "Unstable area" means a location that is susceptible to natural or human-induced events or forces capable of impairing the integrity of some or all of the landfill structural components responsible for preventing releases from a landfill. Unstable areas can include poor foundation conditions, and areas susceptible to mass movements.

(ii) "Structural components" means liners, leachate collection systems, final covers, run-on/run-off systems, and any other component used in the construction and operation of the MSWLF that is necessary for protection of human health and the environment.

(iii) "Poor foundation conditions" means those areas where features exist which indicate that a natural or man-induced event may result in inadequate foundation support for the structural components of a MSWLF unit.

(iv) "Areas susceptible to mass movement" means those areas of influence (i.e., areas characterized as having an active or substantial possibility of mass movement) where the movement of earth material at, beneath, or adjacent to the MSWLF unit, because of natural or human-induced events, results in the downslope transport of soil and rock material by means of gravitational influence. Areas of mass movement include, but are not limited to, landslides, avalanches, debris slides and flows, soil fluction, block sliding, and rock fall.

Notes

Wash. Admin. Code § 173-351-130

Statutory Authority: RCW 70.95.020(3), 70.95.060(1), and 70.95.260(1), (6). 12-23-009 (Order 07-15), § 173-351-130, filed 11/8/12, effective 12/9/12. Statutory Authority: Chapter 70.95 RCW and 40 CFR 258 . 93-22-016, § 173-351-130, filed 10/26/93, effective 11/26/93.