READ FIRST TIME 03/02/05.   

     AN ACT Relating to ensuring the lawful transport and handling of recyclable materials; amending RCW 70.95.305; reenacting and amending RCW 70.95.020; adding new sections to chapter 70.95 RCW; creating a new section; and prescribing penalties.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   It is the intent of the legislature to improve recycling, eliminate illegal disposal of recyclable materials, protect consumers from sham recycling, and to further the purposes of RCW 70.95.020 and the goal of consistency in jurisdictional treatment of the statewide solid waste management plan adopted by the department of ecology.

Sec. 2   RCW 70.95.020 and 1998 c 156 s 1 and 1998 c 90 s 1 are each reenacted and amended to read as follows:
     The purpose of this chapter is to establish a comprehensive statewide program for solid waste handling, and solid waste recovery and/or recycling which will prevent land, air, and water pollution and conserve the natural, economic, and energy resources of this state. To this end it is the purpose of this chapter:
     (1) To assign primary responsibility for adequate solid waste handling to local government, reserving to the state, however, those functions necessary to assure effective programs throughout the state;
     (2) To provide for adequate planning for solid waste handling by local government;
     (3) To provide for the adoption and enforcement of basic minimum performance standards for solid waste handling, including that all sites where recyclable materials are generated and transported from shall provide a separate container for solid waste;
     (4) To encourage the development and operation of waste recycling facilities needed to accomplish the management priority of waste recycling, ((and)) to promote consistency in the requirements for such facilities throughout the state, and to ensure that recyclable materials diverted from the waste stream for recycling are routed to facilities in which recycling occurs;
     (5) To provide technical and financial assistance to local governments in the planning, development, and conduct of solid waste handling programs;
     (6) To encourage storage, proper disposal, and recycling of discarded vehicle tires and to stimulate private recycling programs throughout the state; and
     (7) To encourage the development and operation of waste recycling facilities and activities needed to accomplish the management priority of waste recycling and to promote consistency in the permitting requirements for such facilities and activities throughout the state.
     It is the intent of the legislature that local governments be encouraged to use the expertise of private industry and to contract with private industry to the fullest extent possible to carry out solid waste recovery and/or recycling programs.

Sec. 3   RCW 70.95.305 and 1998 c 156 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the department may by rule exempt from the requirements to obtain a solid waste handling permit any category of solid waste handling facility that it determines to:
     (a) Present little or no environmental risk; and
     (b) Meet the environmental protection and performance requirements required for other similar solid waste facilities.
     (2) This section does not apply to any facility or category of facilities that:
     (a) Receives municipal solid waste destined for final disposal, including but not limited to transfer stations, landfills, and incinerators;
     (b) Applies putrescible solid waste on land for final disposal purposes;
     (c) Handles mixed solid wastes that have not been processed to segregate solid waste materials destined for disposal from other solid waste materials destined for a beneficial use or recycling;
     (d) Receives or processes organic waste materials into compost in volumes that generally far exceed those handled by municipal park departments, master gardening programs, and households; or
     (e) Receives solid waste destined for recycling or reuse, the operation of which is determined by the department to present risks to human health and the environment.
     (3) Rules adopted under this section shall contain such terms and conditions as the department deems necessary to ensure compliance with applicable statutes and rules. If a facility does not operate in compliance with the terms and conditions established for an exemption under subsection (1) of this section, the facility is subject to the permitting requirements for solid waste handling under this chapter.
     (4) This section shall not be deemed to invalidate the exemptions or determinations of nonapplicability in the department's solid waste rules as they exist on June 11, 1998, which exemptions and determinations are recognized and confirmed subject to the department's continuing authority to modify or revoke those exemptions or determinations by rule.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   A new section is added to chapter 70.95 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) For the purposes of this section and section 5 of this act, "transporter" means any person or entity that transports recyclable materials from commercial or industrial generators over the public highways of the state of Washington for compensation, and who are required to possess a permit to operate from the Washington utilities and transportation commission under chapter 81.80 RCW. "Transporter" includes commercial recycling operations of certificated solid waste collection companies as provided in chapter 81.77 RCW. "Transporter" does not include:
     (a) Carriers of commercial recyclable materials, when such materials are owned or being bought or sold by the entity or person, and being carried in their own vehicle, when such activity is incidental to the conduct of an entity or person's primary business;
     (b) Entities or persons hauling their own recyclables or hauling recyclables they generated or purchased and transported in their own vehicles;
     (c) Nonprofit or charitable organizations collecting and transporting recyclable materials from a buyback center, drop box, or from a commercial or industrial generator of recyclable materials;
     (d) City municipal solid waste departments or city solid waste contractors; or
     (e) Common carriers under chapter 81.80 RCW whose primary business is not the transportation of recyclable materials.
     (2) All transporters shall register with the department prior to the transportation of recyclable materials. The department shall supply forms for registration.
     (3) A transporter who transports recyclable materials within the state without a transporter registration required by this section is subject to a civil penalty in an amount up to one thousand dollars per violation.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   A new section is added to chapter 70.95 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) A transporter may not deliver any recyclable materials for disposal to a transfer station or landfill.
     (2) A transporter shall keep records of locations and quantities specifically identified in relation to a generator's name, service date, address, and invoice, documenting where recyclables have been sold, delivered for processing, or otherwise marketed. These records must be retained for two years from the date of collection, and must be made accessible for inspection by the department and the local health department.
     (3) A transporter who violates the provisions of this section is subject to a civil penalty of up to one thousand dollars per violation.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   A new section is added to chapter 70.95 RCW to read as follows:
     Any person damaged by a violation of sections 4 through 8 of this act may bring a civil action for such a violation by seeking either injunctive relief or damages, or both, in the superior court of the county in which the violation took place or in Thurston county. The prevailing party in such an action is entitled to reasonable costs and attorneys' fees, including those on appeal.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 7   A new section is added to chapter 70.95 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) All facilities that recycle solid waste, except for those facilities with a current solid waste handling permit issued under RCW 70.95.170, must notify the department in writing within thirty days prior to operation, or ninety days from the effective date of this section for existing recycling operations, of the intent to conduct recycling in accordance with this section. Notification must be in writing, and include:
     (a) Contact information for the person conducting the recycling activity;
     (b) A general description of the recycling activity;
     (c) A description of the types of solid waste being recycled; and
     (d) A general explanation of the recycling processes and methods.
     (2) Each facility that recycles solid waste, except those facilities with a current solid waste handling permit issued under RCW 70.95.170, shall prepare and submit an annual report to the department by April 1st on forms supplied by the department. The annual report must detail recycling activities during the previous calendar year and include the following information:
     (a) The name and address of the recycling operation;
     (b) The calendar year covered by the report;
     (c) The annual quantities and types of waste received, recycled, and disposed, in tons, for purposes of determining progress towards achieving the goals of waste reduction, waste recycling, and treatment in accordance with RCW 70.95.010(4); and
     (d) Any additional information required by written notification of the department that is needed to determine progress towards achieving the goals of waste reduction, waste recycling, and treatment in accordance with RCW 70.95.010(4).
     (3) Any facility, except for product take-back centers, that recycles solid waste materials within the state without first obtaining a solid waste handling permit under RCW 70.95.170 or completing a notification under this section is subject to a civil penalty of up to one thousand dollars per violation.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   A new section is added to chapter 70.95 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The department may adopt rules that establish financial assurance requirements for recycling facilities that do not already have financial assurance requirements under this chapter, or are not already specifically exempted from financial assurance requirements under this chapter. The financial assurance requirements must take into consideration the amounts and types of recyclable materials recycled at the facility, and the potential closure and postclosure costs associated with the recycling facility; which assurance may consist of posting of a surety bond in an amount sufficient to meet these requirements or other financial instrument, but in no case less than ten thousand dollars.
     (2) A recycling facility is required to meet financial assurance requirements adopted by the department by rule, unless the facility is already required to provide financial assurance under other provisions of this chapter.
     (3) Facilities that collect, recover, process, or otherwise recycle scrap metal, processed scrap metal, unprocessed home scrap metal, and unprocessed prompt scrap metal are exempt from the requirements of this section.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 9   If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.