Hazardous Waste Reduction Planning Program Guidance Document

Hazardous Waste Reduction Planning Program

Section 27-0908 of the Environmental Conservation Law states that it is in the best interest of the State to require facilities that release hazardous wastes and toxic substances into the environment to reduce, to the maximum extent possible, the volume or quantity and toxicity of waste. To facilitate these reductions, the law requires generators of hazardous wastes to prepare, implement and submit to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) a Hazardous Waste Reduction Plan (HWRP). The HWRP, which will be reviewed for acceptance by the NYSDEC, must be reported on annually, and updated on a biennial basis. All hazardous wastes emitted into the air, discharged into waters, or treated and disposed of in an on-site or off-site permitted facility, including hazardous wastewaters, are covered by the law. The HWRP shall establish opportunities to reduce hazardous waste through implementing technically feasible and economically practical waste reduction technologies, process or operational changes, material substitutions, or by other means.

Facilities required to comply:

• Any generator of twenty-five (25) tons or more of hazardous waste in a calendar year shall prepare, implement and submit to DEC a written HWRP on or before July 1 of the following year.
• Any generator required to hold a Part 373 hazardous waste storage, treatment or disposal permit for the on-site management of hazardous waste shall prepare and submit to DEC a written HWRP on or before July 1 of the following year, or as part of any new Part 373 permit application, and shall thereafter implement the plan.

* Note - When calculating the amount of hazardous waste that would result in a facility being subject to the HWRP program (i.e. generating 25 tons or greater), please note that wastes generated in the following manner are exempt from the HWRP program requirements:

• By corrective action for a release from a hazardous waste treatment, storage, or disposal facility.
• By the remediation of an inactive hazardous waste disposal site.
• The cleanup of a release to the environment reported pursuant to Articles 17, 37 and 40 of the Environmental Conservation Law.
• demolition and construction debris.

• One-time wastes (source code G19), which are otherwise subject to the requirements of Section 27-0908 of the Environmental Conservation Law. Note: If the waste stream recurs at any frequency, it is not a true one-time waste and is not exempt from the HWRP program.

  Please note that universal wastes are also not subject to HWRP program requirements. Please contact us with any questions on whether certain wastes you reported in your Annual Hazardous Waste Report would be subject to HWRP requirements.

Part A - Hazardous Waste Reduction Plan (HWRP) Contents

To comply with the HWRP requirements, the facility shall submit a plan that includes the following information:

1.  Cover Sheet. The cover sheet should include:
   • The facility name
   • The facility address
   • The facility EPA ID number
   • The facility contact information
   • Date of submission
2. Description of Operations. Describe the facility's operations, products created, processes, and hazardous waste outputs. Optionally, you may choose to include a floor plan or facility map which clearly indicates the locations where hazardous waste generation/treatment/disposal are taking place at your facility. 
    
3. 90% of Total Quantity Generated. A listing of at least 90% of the annual amounts and types of hazardous waste generated subject to the law. This listing must be included in Table 1. The hazardous wastes covered by the plan must include:
   • Any quantity of acute hazardous waste (as defined in 6 NYCRR 370 and 6 NYCRR 371), by waste stream generated during the previous calendar year; and
   • Non-acute hazardous wastes (as defined in 6 NYCRR 370 and 6 NYCRR 371), by waste stream during the previous calendar year;
     • Generated in amounts greater than five tons, and
     • Generated in amounts less than or equal to five tons, if acute hazardous wastes and non-acute hazardous wastes generated in amounts greater than five tons do not equal 90% of all hazardous waste generated.

Important: The waste streams should be identified at the point where they exit the unit, process, operation or plant battery limit prior to treatment and/or disposal either on-site or off-site. This includes all aqueous wastes that are either treated on-site prior to discharge or disposed off-site. 

Please see Section IV.D. of DEC's Instructions and Forms - Hazardous Waste Booklet for more information on the reporting of hazardous wastewaters (link is near bottom of the following page): https://dec.ny.gov/environmental-protection/waste-management/hazardous-waste/annual-biennial-reports

TheEPA Hazardous Waste Code(s) and Management Method Code(s) for each waste stream must also be identified for purposes of completing Table 1.  

4.  Narrative Description. For each waste stream, describe narratively the source(s) of generation and the treatment and disposal method(s) of the hazardous wastes. Please also include a simple flow diagram or a block diagram of the unit, process, operation or plant generating the waste stream to facilitate the evaluation of waste reduction efforts. The diagram must include at a minimum:

   • Raw material inputs
   • Major process steps and equipment
   • Product and waste outputs

   Example of a Flow Diagram: 
    

5. Reduction Policy. Describe the facility’s reduction policy, along with a plan for communicating this policy and statement of waste reduction goals to relevant employees and management personnel. This description should include: 

• Specific goals and objectives (short-term and long-term) for hazardous waste volume and/or toxicity reduction. 
• Statement of top-level management commitment to waste minimization.  
• Method(s) used to accomplish top-level management support (i.e., reward and recognition program). 
• Designation of a waste minimization department or team responsible for implementing a waste reduction plan.  
   

6. Cost Estimate. For each waste steam, provide an estimate and basis for such estimate, of the costs incurred for managing each waste, including:

• Storage costs,
• On-site treatment or disposal costs, 
• Transportation costs, and 
• Commercial disposal fees and regulatory fees.

7. Productivity/Activity Index. For each identified waste steam, provide an activity/production index (PI). The activity/production index is a measure of changes in economic and other factors that affect the quantity of hazardous waste generated in a specific year compared to the previous year.  The PI is recorded in Table 1 annually for each waste stream. 

*Note 1: If an index cannot be developed to provide meaningful information on waste reduction, then provide some other measurement technique or provide an explanation why such calculation cannot be provided.

*Note 2: Once a facility establishes a method to calculate the activity/production index, the facility must continue to use the same method for future reduction planning reports.

*Note 3: The PI should not be calculated by dividing waste generation quantities from year to year, as this does not provide a measure of changes in the facility’s production or activity.

PI Example #1 - Increasing Production:

If a firm manufactures tools using a process that generated a hazardous waste stream, the activity/production index would indicate the change in the number of tools produced in 2015 compared to 2014.

1,200 tools were produced in 2015, and 1,000 tools were produced in 2014. The activity/production index equals 1,200 (2015 production) divided by 1,000 (2014 production) = 1.2 (activity/production index).

PI Example #2 - Declining Production:
If a firm that manufactures stainless steel food containers is losing market share to competitors making plastic containers, its production might have declined between 2014 and 2015.

88,000 containers were produced in 2015, and 110,000 containers were produced in 2014. The activity/production index equals 88,000 2015 production) divided by 110,000 (2014 production) = 0.8 (activity/production index).

PI Example #3 - Declining Productivity:

If a laboratory completed 900,000 sample analyses in 2016 and 1,000,000 analyses in 2015, the activity/production index would indicate the change in the number of analyses completed. The activity/production index equals 900,000 (2016 production) divided by 1,000,000 (2015 production) = 0.9 (activity/production index).

8. Evaluation of Feasibility for Reduction. For each subject waste stream identified, provide an evaluation of the technical feasibility and economic practicability of implementing the following waste reduction options:

• Substitution of non-toxic or less toxic inputs to the production process which result in a reduction in the volume or toxcity of such waste,
• Reformulation or redesign of end products to eliminate production inputs or production processes that result in the generation of such waste,
• Modification or redesign of production processes, technologies or equipment which result in a reduction in the volume or toxicity of the waste,
• Changes in materials usage, handling and storage practices, including improved inventory control preventive maintenance, spill and leak prevention and waste segregation, which will reduce the volume or toxicity of such waste,
• The use of closed-loop reclamation, reuse or recycling processes or technologies which directly recycle such wastes back into the production process, and
• The use of on-site or off-site recycling technologies or processes that reduce the amount of such waste that must be treated or disposed. 

Proposed reduction plans/projects need to be summarized on Table 2, as described below. For waste streams where reduction measures are not proposed, provide a rationale for rejecting waste reduction actions; i.e., indicate what waste reduction and/or recycling measures were considered and why they were rejected. This list must be included in the initial HWRP.

 9. Table 2 Reduction Plan Summary. In Table 2, for each waste stream, include the current technically feasible and economically practicable waste reduction measures that have been selected for implementation (from Part A.8 above), along with the return on investment (ROI). 

10. Table 2 Schedule. In Table 2, provide a schedule (goal dates) for implementing the technically feasible and economically practicable waste reduction technology, process or operation changes listed in A 8 above.

11. Waste Reduction Method. Describe the method of waste reduction measurement which will provide a basis for charting waste reduction trends over time.

12. Table 2 Reduction Estimate. For each waste stream listed in Table 2, provide an estimate of the anticipated reduction of the amount of hazardous wastes produced by the facility as a result of the implementation of each of the technically feasible and economically practical waste reduction options (listed in A.9 above.)

13. Transference. Provide an estimate of the extent, if any, to which the implementation of each of the technically feasible and economically practicable waste reduction options (listed in item A.9 above) may result in the transference of hazardous waste into any other environmental media, and the environmental benefits, if any, of the waste reduction option resulting in such transference.

14. Training Program. Describe appropriate (existing and/or planned) employee training programs to assure proper implementation of the economically practicable and technically feasible waste reduction alternatives. The format, frequency and contents of the program should be included. The contents must include, at minimum: 

• Corporate/Facility policy on waste reduction 
• Benefits of waste reduction/pollution prevention 
• Hazardous Waste Reduction Law 
• Reward/Recognition Program 
• Length of initial training program and frequency of retraining 
   

15. Signed Certification Statement. A signed and dated certification page, which needs to include the following statement:
"I am a senior facility manager or authorized facility signatory, and am fully authorized to commit financial and/or staff resources to implementing this HWRP. In addition, I am familiar with the requirements of Article 27, Section 0908 of the Environmental Conservation Law. Further, I have personally examined and am familiar with the information contained in this HWRP. The information contained in this HWRP is, to the best of my knowledge and based on reasonable inquiry, true, accurate, and complete."
 

Hazardous Waste Generation Summary Table 1 Example

Company Name: XYZ Manufacturing Company

EPA I.D. Number: NYD123456789

Hazardous Waste Generation Summary Table 2 Example

Company Name: XYZ Manufacturing Company 
EPA I.D. Number: NYD123456789

*ROI = Return on Investment
AC = Annualized Cost
IRR = Increased Rate of Return
NPV = Net Present Value
PP = Payback Period
PI = Profitability Index

How and Where to Direct Submittals
 

The following forms and documents are provided to help guide your facility through the regulatory requirements of this program. If you have a preferred document format at your facility, you may use the following forms/documents as a template. Please note, you must download and save these blank forms/documents to your device before you can input the data.

Hazardous Waste Reduction Plan Fillable (PDF, 1.83 MB) – Submit this form on the initial year of entering the HWRP Program.

Annual Status Report Fillable Form (PDF, 474 KB)  – Submit this form the second year in the HWRP Program, and every other year subsequently.

Biennial Update Fillable (PDF, 1.58 MB)  – Submit this form the third year in the HWRP Program, and every other year subsequently.

You may use this excel document to fill out your Tables 1 and 2 which are due each year that your facility meets the requirements of the HWRP Program.
 

*If you encounter any issues using any of the above forms, please notify us via email. 

Please send your submittals to the following email address (preferred): 

[email protected] 

Alternatively, you may send hard copies by mail to the following address:

NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
Division of Materials Management
Bureau of Waste Reduction & Recycling
Pollution Prevention Unit
625 Broadway
Albany, NY 12233-7253

NOTE: To ensure a more timely review process, facilities that submitted a hard copy of their Annual Hazardous Waste Report (AHWR) to NYSDEC's Manifest & Reporting Section are requested to attach a copy of the AHWR GM Forms to their HWRP submittal.