PERMITTING PROGRAMMATIC OVERVIEW

1. PERMITTING PROGRAMMATIC OVERVIEW RCRAInfo 2008 National Users Conference

2. BACKGROUND • National hazardous waste permitting program implemented pursuant to Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) • RCRA Subtitle C regulates hazardous waste from “cradle to grave.” Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facilities (TSDFs) must meet: • General facility operation and management standards • Specific provisions governing hazardous waste management units • Closure and financial assurance standards • Precautions to protect soil, groundwater, and air resources • To provide each TSDF with a record of the specific requirements applicable to each part of its operation, RCRA requires owners and operators of these facilities to obtain a permit. • Permit serves as a means to track waste management

3. BACKGROUND • Over the years, states and EPA have made great strides to ensure facilities are permitted and have approved controls in place • RCRAInfo plays a significant role in allowing the Permitting Program to communicate performance and progress • Progress is captured in RCRAInfo and allows the program to track facilities through the permitting process • RCRAInfo permitting module “events” document implementation of RCRA Subtitle C program at a particular facility/unit, including actions such as • - Part B permit application approval • - Final determination – issuance or denial of a permit • - Closure or post-closure plan approval Page 3 of 12

4. RCRAInfo/Permitting Program • RCRAInfo offers several reports that reflect the status of RCRA Hazardous Waste facilities, regulated activities, and compliance histories and captures detailed data on the generation of hazardous waste management practices, from treatment, storage and disposal. • Hazardous Waste Progress Towards Annual GPRA Targets Report • • Hazardous Waste Managed Under Approved Controls Report • • Permitting Detailed GPRA Baseline Report • • Summary of Permitting GPRA Progress Report • • Comprehensive Permitting Report • • Process Unit Report • • Permitting GPRA Facilities Meeting the Goal Report • • Permitting GPRA Facilities Not Meeting the Goal Report . Page 4 of 12

5. Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) • Government Performance and Results Act (1993) holds federal agencies accountable for using resources wisely and achieving program results. • GPRA requires EPA along with other agencies to develop plans for what they intend to accomplish, measure how well they are doing, make appropriate decisions based on the information they have gathered, and communicate information about their performance to Congress and the public. • EPA established Hazardous Waste Permitting Program Goals in order to meet GPRA requirements.

6. Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA) • For FY05-FY08 EPA set a Strategic Goal of getting 95% of the facilities on the GPRA Baseline under approved controls in place. • EPA has established a new and ambitious Hazardous Waste Permitting Program Goal for the FY09-FY11 that targets both initial controls (permits) and updated controls (renewals) in a combined measure. • FY11 National Strategic goal is to achieve 500 approved controls in place and updated approved controls (permitting and renewal accomplishments) from FY07-FY11, with an annual goal of 100 per year in FY09 through FY11. • Achieving this goal would bring 98% of the facilities on the permitting baseline under approved control and updated controls.

7. Strategic Goals • EPA Strategic Plans are 6 year plans, but we currently track 5 years • They are set every 3 years. • The tracking overlaps two years with prior strategic plans and overlaps two years with subsequent strategic plans. - Permits and renewals combined - . -

8. Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART) • The Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART) was developed by OMB to assess and improve program performance so that Federal agencies can achieve better results. • A PART review helps identify a programs’ strengths and weaknesses to inform funding and management decisions aimed at making the program more effective. • RCRAInfo provides data to track 2 PART measures: • 1) Performance Measure: Annual increase in the percentage of • facilities with initial approved controls (permits) or updated controls • 2) Efficiency Measure: Facilities under control (permitted) per • million dollars of program costs. . Page 8 of 12

9. RCRAInfo v4 Improvements for Permitting Program • Streamlined permitting event codes • Eliminated over 1000 event codes • Consolidated and added codes resulting in the user being able to select from ~300 event codes • Ability to track permit renewals, permit expiration, final permit effective dates, and standardized permits • Streamlined, re-designed data entry screens for multiple events • Financial Assurance module . Page 9 of 12

10. New RCRAInfo Permitting Reports • Several new GPRA Permitting reports will be introduced in v4, including: • Waste Code Management Report • Permit Progress and Data Gaps Report • Legal/Operating Status With Inconsistent Trigger Events Report • Trigger Events With Inconsistent Legal/Operating Status • Interim Status Verification Report • Permit Future Schedule Trigger Report • Please attend the Hands-on Permitting Training Sessions for more information. . Page 10 of 12

11. Conclusion • The Permitting Program will continue to strive to meet the mandated • goals for achieving accomplishments at RCRA facilities. • OSW looks forward to working with EPA regions and states in our continued effort to bring all RCRA Hazardous Waste Facilities under approved controls as we strive to protect human health and the environment. .

12. IMPORTANT LINKS: Permits and Permitting EPA Home - Wastes . • http://www.epa.gov/osw/hazard/tsd/permit • http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/index.htm • Hazardous Waste Permitting Accomplishment Reports • http://www.epa.gov/osw/hazard/tsd/permit/pgprarpt.htm