RCRA Hazardous Waste: Key Compliance Requirements for Facilities
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) is the federal law governing the management of hazardous and non-hazardous solid waste. For industrial facilities that generate hazardous waste, RCRA imposes a comprehensive set of requirements — from generator obligations at the source to requirements for transporters and treatment, storage, and disposal facilities. RCRA compliance data in EPA ECHO appears in EmissionsLookup facility profiles as "hazardous waste quarters with noncompliance."
The Generator Classification System
RCRA classifies hazardous waste generators by the quantity of waste they generate monthly: Large Quantity Generators (LQGs, generating over 2,200 lbs/month), Small Quantity Generators (SQGs, 220–2,200 lbs/month), and Very Small Quantity Generators (VSQGs, under 220 lbs/month). LQGs face the most comprehensive requirements — weekly inspections of waste accumulation areas, emergency planning, on-site training, and maximum 90-day accumulation limits. VSQGs have minimal requirements.
Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facilities
Facilities that treat, store, or dispose of hazardous waste — rather than just generating it — are subject to RCRA "TSD facility" requirements, which are among the most stringent in environmental law. TSD facilities require comprehensive permit systems, groundwater monitoring, financial assurance (to cover cleanup costs if the facility fails), and detailed operating records. These facilities appear prominently in ECHO\'s RCRA compliance data and often in EmissionsLookup enforcement records.
Corrective Action
RCRA also requires facilities with existing contamination to undergo "corrective action" — a cleanup process for releases that occurred from solid waste management units at the facility. Corrective action is distinct from Superfund (CERCLA) cleanup, though both address contaminated sites. Facilities undergoing RCRA corrective action may appear in ECHO with specific corrective action milestones tracked over years or decades.
Reading RCRA Data in EmissionsLookup
The RCRA compliance quarters on facility profiles reflect inspections and self-reported violations documented in EPA\'s RCRA Info database. Because RCRA violations typically require an inspector to find them (unlike NPDES self-reporting), RCRA violation rates are partly a function of inspection frequency. Browse facilities with hazardous waste enforcement actions at the enforcement index. For context on communities near hazardous waste facilities, CensusDepth provides neighborhood income and demographic data.