{"operation":"document","citation":"01-0199","title":"State of Iowa — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2001-10-04","effective_on":null,"summary":"01-0199 response to State of Iowa concerning 171.1.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-01-0199.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-01-0199.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-01-0199","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2001/010199.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nof Transportation\nU.S. Department\n400 Seventh St., S.W.\nWashington, D.C. 20590\nResearch and\nOCT 1* 4.2001\nSpecial Programs\nAdministration\nMr. John Wessel\nRef. No. 01-0199\nState of lowa\nDepartment of Natural Resources\nWallace State Office Building\n502 E 94 Street\nDes Moines, Iowa 50319-0034\nDear Mr. Wessel:\nThis responds to your July 26, 2001 letter requesting clarification of the applicability of the Hazardous\nMaterials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) to your hazardous waste collection centers.\nSpecifically, you ask if the HMR apply to the transportation of hazardous waste and hazardous\nmaterials collected by your government operated hazardous waste collection program.\nAccording to your letter, your Department has created several Regional Collection Centers (RCCs) to\nassist small business generators meeting the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) definition of a\nConditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generator (CESQG) with the disposal of their waste materials.\nYour questions are summarized and answered as follows:\nQ1 Are CESQG businesses required to follow the HMR when bringing waste to the RCCs for\ndisposal?\nAl.\nCESQG wastes generally are not considered hazardous wastes under the HMR because they\nare not subject to EPA's Hazardous Waste Manifest requirements (see § 171.8). However,\nCESQG wastes that meet the definition of a specific hazard class or that are listed as a\nhazardous substance in Appendix A to § 172.101 are subject to the HMR.\nQ2.\nOne of the primary functions of the RCCs is education in the management of hazardous\nmaterials generated by households and CESQG businesses. According to EPA, CESQG\nhazardous waste is not required to be managed as hazardous waste. Are the RCCs required to\nadvise CESQG businesses of DOT regulations when the CESQG business is transporting its\nwaste to the RCC for disposal?\nA2.\nNo. It is the offeror/shipper's responsibility to comply with the applicable requirements of the\nHMR, including properly classing, packaging, and describing a hazardous material for\ntransportation. Of course, we appreciate any assistance in the education of those entities\nsubject to the HMR.\n010199\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\nQ3.\nIf the RCC is receiving payment by a local community to stage a one-day collection of\nhousehold hazardous materials at no charge to residents, is the RCC required to follow DOT\nhazardous materials regulations when the hazardous materials are being transported by the\nRCCs back to their facilities?\nA3.\nNo. The HMR govern the safe transportation of hazardous materials in commerce as specified\nin § 171.1. \"In commerce\" generally means in furtherance of a commercial enterprise. A state\nagency or local jurisdiction that transports hazardous materials using its own personnel for\ngovernment purposes is not subject to the HMR. Even though communities that are part of an\nRCC sometimes reimburse each other for various services, they are conducting a non-\ncommercial enterprise that is not considered to be transportation in commerce. However, if the\nstate agency or local jurisdiction transports hazardous materials for a commercial purpose or\noffers a hazardous material for transportation to a commercial carrier, then the HIMR apply.\nQ4. Do the HMR apply to the RCCs in Iowa?\nA4.\nSee response in A3.\nI hope this answers your inquiry.\nSincerely,\nDelmer F. Billings\nChief, Standards Development\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\nBoothe\n3171.1\nTOWa\nApplica bilite\nFields:of Opportunities\nSTATE OF IOWA\nTHOMAS J. VILSACK, GOVERNOR\nSALLY J. PEDERSON, LT. GOVERNOR\nDEPARTMENT QF NATURAL RESOURCES\nJEFFREY R. VONK, DIRECTOF\nJuly 26, 2001\n01-0194\nDel Billing DHM-11\nResearch and Special Programs Administration\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\n400 7th St. SW\nWashington, DC 20590\nDear Mr. Billings:\nthe disposal of Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generator (CESQG) waste. The Iowa\nWe are requesting your assistance to resolve several questions that have recently arisen regarding\nto assist small business generators (meeting the Environmental Protection Agency's definition of\nDepartment of Natural Resources (IDNR) has been working sirice 1994 to implement a program\nof several Regional Collection Centers (RCCs) throughout the state.\nCESQG) with hazardous waste disposal. One facet of this program has been the establishment\nThe RCCs are permanent collection facilities that educate the public on hazardous waste\nRCCs work with CESQG businesses in the area of hazardous waste management education and\nmanagement issues and accept hazardous waste from residents at no charge. Additionally, the\nwill dispose of CESQG hazardous waste for a small fee. -\nThe RCCs are located at landfills, recycling centers or ön landfill-owned property throughout\nIowa. Each RCC has an established service area, or region of the state, that it provides support\nto. The RCCs are required to hold permits from the Solid Waste Section of the IDNR. These\npermits are generally issued as amendments to the current landfill permit. The RCCs are\nlocal entities (e.g. city, county or 28E established governing bodies) that participate in the\ngovernmental operations that are funded partially through the IDNR and partially through the\nprogram. Local entities pay a per capita fee annually to participate in the RCC program. This\n28E entity.\nfee is paid directly to the RCC. All RCC employees are paid by the city, county or governing\nTo assure that all hazardous wastes being accepted are managed safely and properly, all RCC\nannual refresher courses and are required to complete additional continuing education. The RCC\nemployees are required to complete 40-hour hazardous waste operator training (HAZWOPER)\nmanagers meet on a quarterly basis with the Department of Natural Resources to learn from each\ncompliance questions which may have arisen.\nothers programs, address any problems which may have arisen and to address any regulatory\nMany of the RCCs have mobile collection units, which are used to stage one-day collection\nevents for larger population centers located in their service areas. The collection events are\nWALLACE STATE OFFICE BUILDING / DES MOINES, IOWA 50319\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\ncollaborative efforts between the RCC and the local community. The collection events are also\nconducted at no charge to the residents. CESQG businesses are not eligible to participate. The\nemployees operating the RCC mobile units have had DOT training in hazardous waste\nmanagement.\nThe following questions have arisen regarding the regulations governing the Regional Collection\nCenters.\nAre CESQG businesses required to follow DOT hazardous waste or hazardous materials\ntransportation regulations when bringing waste to the RCCs for disposal?\nOne of the primary functions of the RCCs is education in the management of hazardous\nmaterials generated by households and CESQG businesses. According to EPA, CESQG\nhazardous waste is not required to be managed as hazardous waste. Are the RCCs required to\nadvise CESQG businesses of DOT regulations when the CESQG business is transporting its\nwaste to the RCC for disposal?\nIf an RCC picks up hazardous materials/waste from a CESQG site in a government vehicle and\n• charges that CESQG a nominal fee for disposal, is the RCC subject to the DOT's hazardous\nmaterials regulations for transporting hazardous materials?\nIf the RCC is receiving payment by a local community to stage a one day collection event of\nhousehold hazardous materials at no charge to residents, is the RCC required to follow DOT\nhazardous materials regulations when the hazardous materials are being transported by the RCCs\nback to their facilities?\nWe have a copy of a letter from you to Mr. Dave Vail dated June 21, 2000, Ref. No. 00-0042, in\nwhich you state that the HIVIR do not apply to the transportation of household hazardous waste\ncollected by the governmentally operated Southeastern Minnesota household hazardous waste\ncollection program. The department is seeking a similar finding for the State of Iowa. Could\nyou furnish us with a similar letter stating that the HMR do not apply to the RCCs in Iowa?\nSincerely,\nJohn\nWised\nJohn Wessel, Environmental Specialist\nWaste Management Assistance Division\nC: Arthur Fleener, U.S. Department of Transportation\nCapt. Tom Sever, Iowa Department of Transportation\nLiz Christiansen, Iowa Department of Natural Resources","truncated":false,"body_characters":8366}