Colorado Regulatory Update
By Roger Doak

Winter 2006

During the 2005 legislative session two bills, SB 05-141 and HB 05-1126, were passed by the Colorado General Assembly that necessitate changes to the state’s Solid Waste Regulations 6 CCR 1007-2 (Regulations). Although SB 05-141 did not specifically require the Department to promulgate regulations, implementation of this bill would be problematic without regulations. HB 05-1126 does mandate that the department promulgate regulations.
In addition, to the aforementioned bills the Department is amending Section 5 (Asbestos Waste Disposal Sites) of the Regulations. The proposed change accomplishes two things. First, it updates the “old” existing Section 5. Secondly, it adds a new Subsection 5.5 that is designed to clarify requirements for identification, on-site management, and disposition of asbestos contaminated soils on sites where the Department has existing solid waste cleanup authority.

SB 05-141

This bill bans the disposal of residentially-generated used oil, tires and lead acid batteries in solid waste landfills. The law primarily affects waste haulers and landfills. Haulers are responsible for educating their residential customers on the waste ban. Landfills must amend their waste characterization plans to include procedures aimed at minimizing the disposal of these wastes. The timing of this requirement has caught some landfills by surprise. While the waste ban itself doesn’t take effect until July 1, 2007, amended waste characterization plans were due to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment by January 1, 2006. This summer, the Department will initiate a stakeholder process to develop regulations implementing the waste ban.

HB 05-1126

The bill requires commercial waste tire haulers to:

Transport waste tires only to a waste tire storage site, waste tire landfill site, permitted municipal, privately owned solid waste landfill site. Additionally, waste tires may also be transported to tire recycling facilities and beneficial users.
Register with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment by January 1, 2006.

We have created a registration application sheet for waste tire transporters titled: Waste Motor Vehicle Tire Hauler Certificate of Registration Application Form. The hyperlink address is: http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/hm/
To post a bond in a form and an amount set by the State Board of Health not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000). The bonding requirements are not effective until the State Board of Health promulgates the rules required by House Bill 05-1126.

We are currently working at the staff and management level on an internal draft of the regulations. We hope to initiate the stakeholder process during early 2006.

Asbestos Regulations

Changes to the existing parts of Section 5 will affect almost exclusively the owners and operators of solid waste disposal facilities that accept asbestos wastes. The most significant changes to the existing regulations include increasing the amount of cover material required for asbestos waste at landfills and will prohibit using equipment to compact asbestos waste material prior to covering it. The other modification to the existing regulations is a change in the restriction for disposal of friable asbestos from no closer than 25 feet (current requirement) from the landfill property line to no closer than 100 feet from the property line. This is a conforming change to match the 100-foot requirement in 5.3.9 where all non-asbestos related activities must be stopped within 100 feet of asbestos placement activities during such activities and no non-essential personnel are allowed within 100 feet of asbestos placement during such placement.

The new Subsection 5.5 requires management or cleanup of asbestos contaminated soils where the contaminated soils are disturbed (re-managed). They do not require anything for known asbestos contamination that is undisturbed and remains on the property; (i.e., the regulations do not require remediation of asbestos contaminated soil that will not be disturbed). These regulations could affect many entities. These include, but may not be limited to: asbestos abatement contractors, builders/developers, construction contractors, environmental consultants, federal agencies and facilities.

On January 17, 2006, the Colorado Board of Health will hear proposed regulation changes presented by the Solid Waste Unit of the Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division (HMWMD). The changes are proposed to reduce risk of exposure to landfill operators, their customers, property developers and the general public to asbestos fibers.

You may obtain additional information regarding theses changes on the Solid Waste Regulations on the HMWMD website at http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/hm/

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