You can learn a lot about U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) regulatory priorities—or at least what EPA publicly states about them—if you look in the right place. That is part of what ISRI does for you.
So, what is EPA intending to do this year that could impact the industry? According to the regulatory information website (aptly named,
www.reginfo.gov), EPA intends to do quite a bit:
(1) propose rules for stormwater discharges from developed (including industrial) sites (redo on failed 2012 try);
(2) propose changes to Clean Water Act permitting, including stormwater permits;
(3) finalize (at last!) its use rule on certain brominated flame retardants and materials
containing them (e.g., recycled plastics and refurbished computers);
(4) propose revisions to refrigerant management rules (already happened; see
ISRI’s comment); (5) propose to revise the use authorizations for PCBs under the Toxic Substances Control Act
(TSCA), perhaps affecting the recycling of shredder plastics;
(6) finalize hazardous waste export-import rule, affecting, for instance, spent lead-acid batteries
being exported for recycling;
(7) finalize “improvements” to the hazardous waste generator regulations; and
(8) propose to revise the petition process for Title V Clean Air Act permits.
In the coming months, EPA will roll out its Spring 2016 Semiannual Regulatory Agenda, and you can read about it here next time. If you have any environmental questions or concerns, please contact David Wagger, director of environmental management, at (202) 662-8533.