BILL REQ. #:  H-4311.2 

Read first time 01/16/08.   Referred to Committee on Select Committee on Environmental Health.

     AN ACT Relating to the duties of the office of waste reduction and sustainable production within the department of ecology; amending RCW 70.95C.010, 70.95C.020, 70.95C.030, 70.95C.040, and 70.95C.070; and adding a new section to chapter 70.95C RCW.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 70.95C.010 and 1990 c 114 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     The legislature finds that:
     (1) Land disposal and incineration of solid and hazardous waste can be both harmful to the environment and costly to those who must dispose of the waste.
     (2) There are adverse effects on human health and the environment from persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic (PBT) chemicals, heavy metals, and other chemicals found in the products we buy and use.
     (3) Toxic chemicals end up in our soil, storm water, streams, lakes, rivers, Puget Sound, and the bodies of all human and nonhuman residents of the state; with children at a higher risk of harm from exposure to toxic chemicals than adults.
     (4) The public has a right to know about the potential human health and environmental impacts of chemicals found in consumer products.
     (5) Citizens, parents, businesses, workers, and government need adequate tools and information to make informed choices about safer chemical alternatives.
     (6) It is practical and cost-effective to employ a systematic approach to prevent the use and release of toxic chemicals where cumulative costs exceed benefits due to significant or irreparable harm to human health or the environment.
     (7) In order to ((address this problem)) approach the management of solid and hazardous waste in the most cost-effective and environmentally sound manner, and to implement the highest waste management priority as articulated in RCW 70.95.010 and 70.105.150, public and private efforts should focus on reducing the generation of waste and reducing the use of toxic chemicals. Waste and toxic chemicals use reduction can be achieved by encouraging voluntary efforts to redesign industrial, commercial, production, and other processes to result in the reduction or elimination of waste byproducts and to maximize the in-process reuse or reclamation of valuable spent material.
     (8) In the interest of protecting the public health, safety, and the environment, the legislature declares that it is the policy of the state of Washington to encourage reduction in the use of hazardous substances and reduction in the generation of hazardous waste whenever economically and technically practicable.
     ((The legislature finds that)) (9) Hazardous wastes are generated by numerous different sources including, but not limited to, large and small business, households, and state and local government. ((The legislature further finds that))
     (10) A goal against which efforts at waste reduction may be measured is essential for an effective hazardous waste reduction program. The Pacific Northwest hazardous waste advisory council has endorsed a goal of reducing, through hazardous substance use reduction and waste reduction techniques, the generation of hazardous waste ((by fifty percent by 1995. The legislature adopts this as a policy goal for the state of Washington)). ((The legislature recognizes that))
     (11) A goal against which efforts at toxic chemicals use reduction may be measured is essential for an effective hazardous waste and toxic chemicals reduction program. The legislature endorses a goal of reducing, through hazardous substance use reduction and waste reduction techniques, the use of toxic chemicals in the state by fifty percent by 2020 and adopts this as a policy goal for the state.
     (12) Many individual businesses have already reduced the generation of hazardous waste through appropriate hazardous waste reduction techniques. The legislature ((also)) recognizes that there are some basic industrial processes which by their nature have limited potential for significantly reducing the use of certain raw materials or substantially reducing the generation of hazardous wastes. Therefore, the goal of reducing hazardous waste generation and use of toxic chemicals by fifty percent cannot be applied as a regulatory requirement.
     (13) Pollution prevention plan requirements in RCW 70.95C.200 and RCW 70.95E.030 must be evaluated for their ability to help meet the 2020 toxic chemicals use reduction goal. The legislature directs the department to convene a balanced stakeholder group and report its findings and recommendations by December 31, 2008.

Sec. 2   RCW 70.95C.020 and 1991 c 319 s 313 are each amended to read as follows:
     ((As used in)) The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter((, the following terms have the meanings indicated)) unless the context clearly requires otherwise.
     (1) "Department" means the department of ecology.
     (2) "Director" means the director of the department of ecology or the director's designee.
     (3) "Dangerous waste" shall have the same definition as set forth in RCW 70.105.010(5) and shall specifically include those wastes designated as dangerous by rules adopted pursuant to chapter 70.105 RCW.
     (4) "EPA/state identification number" means the number assigned by the EPA (environmental protection agency) or by the department of ecology to each generator and/or transporter and treatment, storage, and/or disposal facility.
     (5) "Extremely hazardous waste" shall have the same definition as set forth in RCW 70.105.010(6) and shall specifically include those wastes designated as extremely hazardous by rules adopted pursuant to chapter 70.105 RCW.
     (6) "Fee" means the annual hazardous waste fees imposed under RCW 70.95E.020 and 70.95E.030.
     (7) "Generate" means any act or process which produces hazardous waste or first causes a hazardous waste to become subject to regulation.
     (8) "Hazardous substance" means any hazardous substance listed as a hazardous substance as of March 21, 1990, pursuant to section 313 of Title III of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act, any other substance determined by the director by rule to present a threat to human health or the environment, and all ozone depleting compounds as defined by the Montreal Protocol of October 1987.
     (9)(a) "Hazardous substance use reduction" means the reduction, avoidance, or elimination of the use or production of hazardous substances without creating substantial new risks to human health or the environment.
     (b) "Hazardous substance use reduction" includes proportionate changes in the usage of hazardous substances as the usage of a hazardous substance or hazardous substances changes as a result of production changes or other business changes.
     (10) "Hazardous substance user" means any facility required to report under section 313 of Title III of the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act, except for those facilities which only distribute or use fertilizers or pesticides intended for commercial agricultural applications.
     (11) "Hazardous waste" means and includes all dangerous and extremely hazardous wastes, but does not include radioactive wastes or a substance composed of both radioactive and hazardous components and does not include any hazardous waste generated as a result of a remedial action under state or federal law.
     (12) "Hazardous waste generator" means any person generating hazardous waste regulated by the department.
     (13) "Office" means the office of waste reduction and sustainable production.
     (14) "Plan" means the plan provided for in RCW 70.95C.200.
     (15) "Person" means an individual, trust, firm, joint stock company, partnership, association, state, public or private or municipal corporation, commission, political subdivision of a state, interstate body, the federal government, including any agency or officer thereof, and any Indian tribe or authorized tribal organization.
     (16) "Process" means all industrial, commercial, production, and other processes that result in the generation of waste.
     (17) "Recycled for beneficial use" means the use of hazardous waste, either before or after reclamation, as a substitute for a commercial product or raw material, but does not include: (a) Use constituting disposal; (b) incineration; or (c) use as a fuel.
     (18) "Recycling" means reusing waste materials and extracting valuable materials from a waste stream. Recycling does not include burning for energy recovery.
     (19) "Toxic chemicals" means chemicals with an adverse effect on human health and the environment. "Toxic chemicals" includes but is not limited to those that are persistent, bioaccumulative, toxic, endocrine disruptive, carcinogenic, mutagenic, neurotoxic, immunotoxic, toxic to reproduction, or have degradation products that exhibit any of these characteristics. "Toxic chemicals" also includes critical materials designated in RCW 90.52.010.
     (20) "Treatment" means the physical, chemical, or biological processing of waste to render it completely innocuous, produce a recyclable by-product, reduce toxicity, or substantially reduce the volume of material requiring disposal as described in the priorities established in RCW 70.105.150. Treatment does not include incineration.
     (((20))) (21) "Used oil" means (a) lubricating fluids that have been removed from an engine crankcase, transmission, gearbox, hydraulic device, or differential of an automobile, bus, truck, vessel, plane, heavy equipment, or machinery powered by an internal combustion engine; (b) any oil that has been refined from crude oil, used, and as a result of use, has been contaminated with physical or chemical impurities; and (c) any oil that has been refined from crude oil and, as a consequence of extended storage, spillage, or contamination, is no longer useful to the original purchaser. "Used oil" does not include used oil to which hazardous wastes have been added.
     (((21))) (22) "Waste" means any solid waste as defined under RCW 70.95.030, any hazardous waste, any air contaminant as defined under RCW 70.94.030, and any organic or inorganic matter that shall cause or tend to cause water pollution as defined under RCW 90.48.020.
     (((22))) (23) "Waste generator" means any individual, business, government agency, or any other organization that generates waste.
     (((23))) (24) "Waste reduction" means all in-plant practices that reduce, avoid, or eliminate the generation of wastes or the toxicity of wastes, prior to generation, without creating substantial new risks to human health or the environment. As used in RCW 70.95C.200 through 70.95C.240, "waste reduction" refers to hazardous waste only.

Sec. 3   RCW 70.95C.030 and 1998 c 245 s 133 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) There is established in the department an office of waste reduction and sustainable production. The office shall use its authorities to encourage the voluntary reduction of hazardous substance usage and waste generation by waste generators and hazardous substance users, and encourage the production of safer consumer products. The office ((shall prepare and submit a quarterly progress report to the director)) will promote the following purposes through research, development, technology demonstration, technology transfer, education, outreach, recognition, and training programs:
     (a) Innovative and cost-effective methods for reducing or eliminating the use of toxic substances in manufacturing and other processes through research and development of environmental technologies that result in sustainable production and toxic chemical use reduction over the course of product life cycles;
     (b) Pollution prevention as a means for preventing the risks associated with the use and production of hazardous substances, including risks to human health and the environment;
     (c) Pollution prevention as a means for reducing energy and resource consumption, and reducing or eliminating the generation of hazardous substances, pollution, and waste;
     (d) Implementation of affordable and cost-effective methods of achieving pollution prevention as a means of sustaining and safeguarding the competitive advantage of large and small businesses in the state and advancing innovation in the reduction of energy and resource consumption and the reduction or elimination of hazardous substances, pollution, and waste; and
     (e) Voluntary implementation of pollution prevention as a means for meeting the requirements of state or federal environmental laws or regulations.
     (2) The office shall prepare and submit a biennial progress report to the legislature.
     (3) The office shall: (a) Be the coordinating center for all state agency programs that provide technical assistance to waste generators and hazardous substance users; (b) work with federal, state, and local agencies and private organizations administering programs related to pollution prevention, energy consumption, resource consumption, the use and generation of hazardous substances, or the generation of waste or pollution; and ((shall)) (c) serve as the state's lead agency and promoter for such programs.
     (4) In addition to ((this)) the coordinating function under subsection (3) of this section, the office shall encourage hazardous substance use reduction and waste reduction by:
     (a) Providing for the rendering of advice and consultation to waste generators and hazardous substance users on hazardous substance use reduction and waste reduction techniques, including assistance in preparation of plans provided for in RCW 70.95C.200;
     (b) Sponsoring or co-sponsoring with public or private organizations technical workshops and seminars on waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction;
     (c) Administering a waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction database and hot line providing comprehensive referral services to waste generators and hazardous substance users;
     (d) Administering a waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction research and development program;
     (e) Coordinating a waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction public education program that includes the utilization of existing publications from public and private sources, as well as publishing necessary new materials on waste reduction;
     (f) Recommending to institutions of higher education in the state courses and curricula in areas related to waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction; and
     (g) Operating an intern program in cooperation with institutions of higher education and other outside resources to provide technical assistance on hazardous substance use reduction and waste reduction techniques and to carry out research projects as needed within the office.

Sec. 4   RCW 70.95C.040 and 1990 c 114 s 5 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The office shall establish a waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction consultation program to be coordinated with other state waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction consultation programs.
     (2) The director may grant a request by any waste generator or hazardous substance user for advice and consultation on waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction techniques and assistance in preparation or modification of a plan, executive summary, or annual progress report, or assistance in the implementation of a plan required by RCW 70.95C.200. Pursuant to a request from a facility such as a business, governmental entity, or other process site in the state, the director may visit the facility making the request for the purposes of observing hazardous substance use and the waste-generating process, obtaining information relevant to waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction, rendering advice, and making recommendations. No such visit may be regarded as an inspection or investigation, and no notices or citations may be issued, or civil penalty be assessed, upon such a visit. A representative of the director providing advisory or consultative services under this section may not have any enforcement authority.
     (3) Consultation and advice given under this section shall be limited to the matters specified in the request and shall include specific techniques of waste reduction and hazardous substance use reduction tailored to the relevant process. In granting any request for advisory or consultative services, the director may provide for an alternative means of affording consultation and advice other than on-site consultation.
     (4) Any proprietary information obtained by the director while carrying out the duties required under this section shall remain confidential and shall not be publicized or become part of the database established under RCW 70.95C.060 without written permission of the requesting party.
     (5) The consultation program shall provide engineering technical assistance services to businesses and manufacturers in the state seeking to use safer chemical alternatives, reduce waste, increase efficiency, and redesign industrial processes. The director may award, on a competitive basis, within amounts appropriated, contracts to public or private institutions able to offer these services.

Sec. 5   RCW 70.95C.070 and 1988 c 177 s 7 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The office ((may)) shall administer a waste reduction and safer chemical alternatives research and development program. The director may contract with any public or private organization for the purpose of developing methods and technologies that achieve waste and toxic chemical use reduction. The office shall develop a toxic chemicals registry of critical materials as designated in RCW 90.52.010 and establish reduction strategies for the highest priority chemicals, create reduction programs for those chemicals, and maintain a database of chemicals used in the state. A safer chemical alternatives advisory committee may assist the department with development of the registry and reduction strategies.
     (2) All research performed and all methods or technologies developed as a result of a contract entered into under this section shall become the property of the state and shall be incorporated into the database system established under RCW 70.95C.060.
     (((2))) (3) Any contract entered into under this section shall be awarded only after requests for proposals have been circulated to persons, firms, or organizations who have requested that their names be placed on a proposal list. The director shall establish a proposal list and shall review and evaluate all proposals received.
     (4) The waste reduction and safer chemical alternatives research and development program may establish or participate in a multistate chemicals clearinghouse to collect and share information and resources related to safer chemical alternatives. Responsibilities for the clearinghouse include the following:
     (a) Share information on safer chemicals initiatives at the state and local level;
     (b) Collaborate on interstate efforts;
     (c) Provide fact sheets and guidance documents on chemical use, hazards, and substitutes;
     (d) Provide a forum for receiving and disseminating United States environmental protection agency or other suitable chemical use and hazard data; and
     (e) The department may, on a biennial basis, convene a one-day conference that brings together representatives from large and small businesses, government agencies, private agencies, and the general public to discuss progress and exchange ideas consistent with toxic chemicals use reduction.
     (5) Companies using toxic chemicals or selling products in the state containing toxic chemicals shall provide toxicity data on their chemicals and products to the department. Companies are encouraged to share with the office toxicity data provided to meet other regulatory requirements. If the office deems the toxicity data adequate to meet the goals of this section, no further toxicity data is required. Any proprietary information obtained by the department while carrying out the duties required under this section must remain confidential as required in RCW 43.21A.160.
     (6) The office will determine, with consultation if necessary, what toxicity information is required to be submitted if toxicity data is insufficient. This information will enable consumers to make informed decisions on the toxicity of the products they buy.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   A new section is added to chapter 70.95C RCW to read as follows:
     The department may adopt rules to fully implement this chapter.