Solid Waste

Overview
   Relevant Activities
   Role of Local Governments
U.S. EPA Resources
Other Resources 
   States
   Associations for Local Officials
Funding & Financing

Overview

Many communities face challenges in managing solid waste. In 2018, Americans generated 292.4 million tons of municipal solid waste (MSW), an increase of 40% since 1990. Per capita waste generation also increased by 7% during this same period. Yet, management of MSW has changed substantially, with recycling and composting increasing from 16% in 1990 to 32.1% in 2018. The amount of waste sent to landfills decreased from 94% of waste generated in 1960 to 50% of the amount generated in 2018, and waste combustion increased from 0 to 12% over the same time period.

The two primary types of disposal practices are storing waste in a landfill and municipal waste combustion, or incineration.  Compliance obligations are defined primarily by state laws, within a framework of federal requirements under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and Clean Air Act (CAA).

The EPA sets general performance criteria; once it has approved state regulations, management and enforcement are principally state concerns. States implement the federal criteria for operating municipal solid waste landfills and may set more stringent requirements, including permit requirements. Absent an approved state program, the federal requirements must be met by waste facilities.

Medical waste is a subset of wastes generated at health care facilities, such as hospitals, physicians' offices, dental practices, blood banks, and veterinary hospitals/clinics, as well as medical research facilities and laboratories. Medical waste is primarily regulated by state environmental and health departments. EPA has not had authority for medical waste since the Medical Waste Tracking Act (MWTA) of 1988 expired in 1991.

Solid waste management is considered primarily local in nature. 

Relevant Activities

Role of Local Governments

Landfill Operations

Local governments often own and operate a solid waste landfill for final disposal and long-term containment of solid waste. The number of landfills in the U.S. has decreased by about 75% over the past 30 years, from ~7,900 in 1988 to ~1,300 in 2018. The size of the average landfill, however, has increased.

The two most common methods for depositing waste into landfills are the area fill and trench methods. In the area fill method, waste is placed in a large open section of a lined landfill and then spread and compacted in uniform layers using heavy equipment. In the trench method, which is more expensive and therefore less common, waste is placed into a trench and the material excavated to dig the trench is used as daily cover. Cover material must be applied on top of the waste mass at the end of each day.

Compliance under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Enacted in 1976, RCRA is the primary federal law in the United States governing the disposal of solid waste and hazardous waste. Subtitle D of RCRA prohibits open dumps and requires the closure of landfills not meeting specified minimum requirements. The Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Regulations (MSWLR) serve as the basis for state regulatory and permitting requirements for landfills operating on or after October 9, 1993.

Regulations under Subtitle D of RCRA cover six aspects of landfill management:

  • Location criteria: suitable geological areas away from airports, floodplains, wetlands, fault areas, seismic impact zones and other unstable areas;
  • Operations: requirements for cover material, disease vector and explosive gas control systems, air, access, run-on/run-off control and surface water, liquids, and recordkeeping;
  • Design: requirements for composite liners constructed to maintain less than a 30cm depth of leachate over the liner;
  • Groundwater monitoring: requirements for systems to determine whether waste materials have escaped from the landfill and appropriate corrective measures;
  • Closure and post-closure care: requirements for systems to control and clean up landfill releases and achieve groundwater protection standards; and
  • Financial assurance: requirements to provide funding for environmental protection during and after landfill closure.

Small landfills (those receiving no more than an average of 20 tons of solid waste per day annually) may be exempt from the design, groundwater monitoring, and corrective action requirements if: (1) there is no evidence of groundwater contamination; (2) the landfill is located in an area with less than 25 inches of precipitation annually; and (3) the community has no other practicable solid waste disposal alternative.

Compliance under the Clean Air Act (CAA). As waste in landfills decomposes, it produces landfill gas, including carbon dioxide, air toxics, and methane. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas with a global warming potential more than 25 times that of carbon dioxide. Most landfills must report greenhouse gas emissions annually pursuant to 40 CFR 98 Subpart HH.

EPA's New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) and Emission Guidelines (EGs) seek to address and reduce methane emissions. The NSPS apply to new, modified, and reconstructed MSW landfills, while the EGs apply to existing MSW landfills. Only landfills that have certain levels of waste design capacity and emissions are subject to the rules. Both rules require regulated landfills to install and operate the best available gas collection and control systems once they meet certain thresholds of landfill gas emissions. On May 10, 2021, EPA adopted final methane rules for landfills in states and Indian country where EPA-approved state plans or Tribal plans for methane are not currently in effect.

Affected landfills are also subject to the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) (40 CFR Part 63 Subpart WWWW), which require landfill operators to (1) develop plans to control toxic air emissions during start-up, malfunction, and shutdown of the landfill; (2) continuously monitor gas control devices; (3) comply with reporting requirements; and (4) take certain steps to reduce toxic air emissions from bioreactor operations. Landfills may also be regulated under CAA provisions regarding prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) and non-attainment areas (NAA).

Compliance under the Clean Water Act (CWA). Landfills may be required to obtain industrial stormwater permits under CWA regulations (see 40 CFR 122.26(b)(14)(v)), which require development of a written stormwater pollution prevention plan and implementation of control measures.

Municipal Waste Combustion

Solid waste combustion involves the incineration of all or a portion of the solid waste stream in specially designed solid waste combustion facilities and the disposal of the residual ash in landfills. Most new incinerators have the capacity to recover and reuse the energy released during combustion (the "waste-to-energy" process). In 2017, the US combusted over 34 million tons of MSW with energy recovery.

Local governments that wish to use solid waste combustion can retrofit existing facilities, build new facilities, or enter into regional partnerships. Building new facilities requires incorporating air pollution controls. Once a combustion facility is in place, the local government must ensure its proper operation, provide a relatively constant flow of waste as a feed stream, and manage and dispose of residual ash.

Compliance under CAA. 40 CFR Part 60 establishes guidelines and standards of performance for municipal waste combustion units, as well as standards of performance for incinerators. The New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for new units and Emission Guidelines (EGs) for existing units are addressed by different regulations for small (subparts AAAA and BBBB), large (subparts Cb, Ea and Eb), and other units (subpart EEEE and FFFF). The rules require implementation of maximum achievable control technology and impose stringent emissions limits for organics, metals, and acid gases. In addition, states that are home to regulated units must either submit implementation plans under Part 62 subparts FFF and JJJ, or comply with Federal Implementation Plan requirements. Other NESHAP and NSPS requirements for major source boiler and process heaters and internal combustion engines may also apply.

Compliance under RCRA. Disposal of residual ash from the combustion of municipal waste, including fly ash and bottom ash, is regulated under RCRA and state laws. Generally, these two types of ash are combined and then disposed in either a municipal landfill or a special ash landfill. Because ash may contain toxic materials, it must be sampled and analyzed regularly to determine whether it is hazardous. Hazardous ash must be managed and disposed of as hazardous waste.

U.S. EPA Resources

Other Resources

  • Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) Publications. Studies, guides, best practices, surveys, and reports (for purchase online).
  • Reducing Contamination in Curbside Recycling Programs. SWANA report discussing the effects of contamination on curbside pick-up programs, including increasing costs and reductions in safety at material recovery facilities. Identifies the key reasons why residents place contaminants in their recycling bins in order to help local governments develop more targeted anti-contamination programs.
  • Combustion Portal. Federal and state compliance information for combustion processes.
  • Trash Stormwater Permit Compendium. Assists Phase I and Phase II Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) permit writers in developing trash-related provisions for MS4 permits. Includes example language, best management practices for reducing trash in stormwater and two case studies.
  • U.S. National Recycling Strategy. First publication in a series from EPA to support the transition to a circular economy. Identifies key actions for the municipal solid waste recycling systems, providing information on improving markets for recycling commodities, increasing collections, improving materials management infrastructure, reducing contamination in material streams, enhancing related policies and programs, standardizing measurement, and increasing data collection.
  • Model Compost Procurement Policy with Commentaries. This model policy created by Natural Resources Defense Council and the Environmental Law Institute can be customized and used by local governments to encourage or require the use of compost products. 
  • Model Ordinance Establishing a Pay-As-You-Throw Program for Residential Municipal Solid Waste. This model policy created by the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Environmental Law Institute can be customized and used by local governments to establish a local pay-as-you-throw program for residential municipal solid waste that incentivizes household recycling.
  • ReFED Insights Engine. Online data hub for food waste insights. 
  • National Waste & Recycling Association. NWRA is a trade association representing for-profit companies in North America that provide solid, hazardous, and medical waste collection, recycling and disposal services, and companies that provide professional and consulting services to the waste services industry.

States

  • Universal Waste Resource Locator. Some common items (batteries, pesticides, etc.) may be exempt from hazardous waste rules. Find out which items are designated as Universal Wastes in your state, link to state regulations, and local contacts at state agencies for more information.
  • Regulated Medical Waste (RMW) Resource Locator. Medical waste is a subset of wastes generated at health care facilities, such as hospitals, physicians' offices, dental practices, blood banks, and veterinary hospitals/clinics, as well as medical research facilities and laboratories. Medical waste is primarily regulated by state environmental and health departments. EPA has not had authority, specifically for medical waste, since the Medical Waste Tracking Act (MWTA) of 1988 expired in 1991. Learn how medical waste is regulated in your state. Link to the rules and compliance resources and locate people you can contact in your state agency for additional assistance.

Associations for Local Officials

  • US Composting Council. A national, non-profit trade and professional organization promoting the recycling of organic materials through composting.
  • Solid Waste Association of North America. SWANA's mission is "to advance the practice of environmentally and economically sound management of municipal solid waste." 
  • Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials (ASTSWMO). An organization supporting the environmental agencies of the states and trust territories. ASTSWMO focuses on the needs of state hazardous waste programs; non-hazardous municipal solid waste and industrial waste programs; sustainability, recycling, waste minimization and reduction programs; Superfund and state cleanup programs; waste management and cleanup activities at federal facilities; and underground storage tank and leaking underground storage tank programs.

Funding & Financing

For more information on funding and financing programs and options for solid waste, please see the Wastes section of LGEAN's Funding & Financing page.

 

Back to Top