H. B. 2204


(By Delegate Prunty)

[Introduced January 24, 1995; referred to the

Committee on the Judiciary.]





A BILL to amend and reenact section ten, article fifteen, chapter twenty-two of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to solid waste disposal and limiting to three percent the amount of solid waste originating from out-of-state sources that may be disposed of at solid waste facilities.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section ten, article fifteen, chapter twenty-two of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:

ARTICLE 15. SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT.
§22-15-10. Prohibitions; permits required; priority of disposal.
(a) Open dumps are prohibited and it is unlawful for any person to create, contribute to or operate an open dump or for any landowner to allow an open dump to exist on the landowner's property unless that open dump is under a compliance schedule approved by the director. Such compliance schedule shall contain an enforceable sequence of actions leading to compliance and shall not exceed two years. Open dumps operated prior to the first day of April, one thousand nine hundred eighty-eight, by a landowner or tenant for the disposal of solid waste generated by the landowner or tenant at his or her residence or farm are not a violation of this section if such open dump did not constitute a violation of law on the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred eighty-eight, and unauthorized dumps which were created by unknown persons do not constitute a violation of this section: Provided, That no person shall contribute additional solid waste to any such dump after the first day of April, one thousand nine hundred eighty-eight, except that the owners of the land on which unauthorized dumps have been or are being made are not liable for such unauthorized dumping unless such landowners refuse to cooperate with the division in stopping such unauthorized dumping.
(b) It is unlawful for any person, unless the person holds a valid permit from the division to install, establish, construct, modify, operate or abandon any solid waste facility. All approved solid waste facilities shall be installed, established, constructed, modified, operated or abandoned in accordance with this article, plans, specifications, orders, instructions and rules in effect.
(c) Any permit issued under this article shall be issued in compliance with the requirements of this article, its rules and article eleven of this chapter and the rules promulgated thereunder, so that only a single permit is required of a solid waste facility under these two articles. Each permit issued under this article shall have a fixed term not to exceed five years: Provided, That the director may administratively extend a permit beyond its five-year term if the approved solid waste facility is in compliance with this article, its rules and article eleven of this chapter and the rules promulgated thereunder: Provided, however, That such administrative extension may not be for more than one year. Upon expiration of a permit, renewal permits may be issued in compliance with rules promulgated by the director.
(d) For existing solid waste facilities which formerly held division of health permits which expired by law and for which complete permit applications for new permits pursuant to this article were submitted as required by law, the division may enter an administrative order to govern solid waste activities at such facilities, which may include a compliance schedule, consistent with the requirements of the division's solid waste management rules, to be effective until final action is taken to issue or deny a permit for such facility pursuant to this article, or until further order of the division.
(e) No person may dispose in the state of any solid waste, whether such waste originates in state or out of state, in a manner which endangers the environment or the public health, safety or welfare as determined by the director: Provided, That the carcasses of dead animals may be disposed of in any solid waste facility or in any other manner as provided for in this code. Upon request by the director, the commissioner of the bureau of public health shall provide technical advice concerning the disposal of solid waste or carcasses of dead animals within the state.
(f) A commercial solid waste facility shall first ensure that the disposal needs of the wasteshed in which it is located are met. If one or more local solid waste authorities in the wasteshed in which the facility is located determine that the present or future disposal needs of the wasteshed are not being, or will not be, met by the commercial solid waste facility, such authorities may apply to the director o to modify the applicable permit. The director, in consultation with the solid waste management board, may then modify the applicable permit in order to reduce the total monthly tonnage of out of wasteshed waste the facility is permitted to accept by an amount that shall not exceed the total monthly tonnage necessary to ensure the disposal needs of the wasteshed in which the facility is located.
(g) No solid waste facility may accept any solid waste originating from out-of-state sources in excess of three percent of the total amount of solid waste received at that facility. In order to protect the public health and the environment of the state, the director of the division of natural resources shall coordinate disposal of solid waste originating from out-of-state sources and shall monitor the total tonnage of solid waste generated and disposed at solid waste facilities in this state. The director is authorized and shall enforce compliance with the provisions of this section.
(g) (h) In addition to all the requirements of this article and the rules promulgated hereunder, a permit to construct a new commercial solid waste facility or to expand the spatial area of an existing facility, not otherwise allowed by an existing permit, may not be issued unless the public service commission has granted a certificate of need, as provided in section one-c, article two, chapter twenty-four of this code. If the director approves a permit or permit modification, the certificate of need shall become a part of the permit and all conditions contained in the certificate of need shall be conditions of the permit and may be enforced by the division in accordance with the provisions of this article.
(h) (i) The director shall promulgate legislative rules pursuant to article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code which reflect the purposes as set forth in this section.
The director of the department division of natural resources shall promulgate rules pursuant to chapter twenty-nine-a of this code which reflect the purposes as set forth in this article.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to limit disposal of solid waste at any single facility originating from out-of-state to not more than 3% of the total tonnage of solid waste disposed in that facility.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.