Document ID: EPA-HQ-OW-2021-0547-0418
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2021-09-15T04:00Z

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MEMORANDUM

TO:	ELG Planning Record  -  Landfills Preliminary Category Review	
FROM:	Julie Bridstrup, ERG
	Jill Lucy, ERG	
DATE:	September 7, 2021	
SUBJECT: Data for the Landfills Industry Profile	
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As part of EPA's preliminary review of the effluent limitations guidelines and standards (ELGs) for landfills regulated under 40 CFR Part 445, ERG reviewed publicly available information for an industry profile. ERG reviewed information to identify changes to the landfills industry since the initial rulemaking in 2000. The Landfills Category ELGs (40 CFR Part 455) includes two subparts with the following applicability:
 Subpart A -- RCRA Subtitle C Hazardous Waste Landfill. Applies to discharges of wastewater from landfills subject to the provisions of 40 CFR part 264, Standards for Owners and Operators of Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facilities, Subpart N-(Landfills); and 40 CFR part 265, Interim Status Standards for Owners and Operators of Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facilities, Subpart N-(Landfills).
 Subpart B  -- RCRA Subtitle D Non-Hazardous Waste Landfill. Applies to discharges of wastewater from landfills subject to the provisions of 40 CFR part 258, Criteria for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills; and 40 CFR part 257, Criteria for Classification of Solid Waste Disposal Facilities and Practices.
The Landfills Category ELGs applicability specifically excludes 1) discharges of contaminated ground water or wastewater from recovery pumping wells and 2) most discharges from landfills operated in conjunction with other industrial or commercial operations. 
Industry Profile Data Sources 
ERG gathered data to begin developing a profile of the landfills industry using facility data from EPA's Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO) database and information in the 2000 Development Document for Final Effluent Limitations Guidelines and Standards for the Landfills Point Source Category (EPA, 2000). 
The ECHO database (available at https://echo.epa.gov/) allows users to query the database using defined criteria and provides facility-specific output results. ERG used the "Facility Search" page and the following criteria to query ECHO and identify facilities that may be subject to the requirements at 40 CFR Part 445:
 North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) codes 562211 (Hazardous Waste Treatment and Disposal) and 562212 (Solid Waste Landfill).
 Active and nonactive facilities.
The results include 12,299 facilities and their data including facility identification (e.g., name, address, state); applicable NAICS codes; and EPA program information.ERG conducted further data review to identify potential in-scope facilities for the Landfills Category ELGs (see Section 1.2).
ERG used data from EPA (2000) to identify the total number of landfills (at the time of the rulemaking) and number of landfills generating in-scope wastestreams. 
EPA's 2020 Preliminary Review of Industrial Point Source Categories (EPA, 2021) presents the status and preliminary results, including the industry profile, of the Landfills Category review.
Industry Profile Data Review 
As part of its review of the ECHO data, ERG used the following assumption and identified the following limitations of the data sources:
ERG assumed NAICS Codes and Part 445 Subpart applicability can be directly correlated (see Table 1).
NAICS 562211 includes non-landfill hazardous waste treatment facilities (e.g., combustors, incinerators); therefore, ECHO data results include facilities that are out of scope (i.e., not landfills). 
Part 445 excludes landfills co-located at commercial and industrial sites; therefore, ECHO data results include facilities that are out of scope of the ELGs. 
ECHO data do not provide information on landfill wastestreams (i.e., to identify all in-scope landfills, specifically indirect dischargers and zero- discharge facilities). ECHO data do include NPDES permit identification details for direct dischargers.
    
Table 1. Correlation Between 40 CFR Part 445 Subparts and NAICS Codes 
40 CFR Part 445 Subpart
Corresponding NAICS Code Definition
Subpart A -- RCRA Subtitle C Hazardous Waste Landfill
NAICS 562211  -  "establishments primarily engaged in (1) operating treatment and/or disposal facilities for hazardous waste or (2) the combined activity of collecting and/or hauling of hazardous waste materials within a local area and operating treatment or disposal facilities for hazardous waste" (U.S. Census Bureau, 2021). In addition to landfills, this code includes combustors, incinerators, and other hazardous waste treatment plants.
Subpart B  -- RCRA Subtitle D Non-Hazardous Waste Landfill
NAICS 562212  -  "establishments primarily engaged in (1) operating landfills for the disposal of nonhazardous solid waste or (2) the combined activity of collecting and/or hauling nonhazardous waste materials within a local area and operating landfills for the disposal of nonhazardous solid waste. These establishments may produce byproducts, such as methane" (U.S. Census Bureau, 2021).

ERG refined the data to address two of the ECHO data limitations. In its ECHO Data spreadsheet (ERG, 2021), ERG used the reported NAICS codes and faclity names to identify facilities that are non-landfill hazardous waste treatment facilities (e.g., combustors, incinerators) or landfills co-located at commercial and industrial sites. ERG excluded these facilities from the industry profile counts.
To refine the data, ERG added fields to the ECHO information collected to identify facilities that may be subject to the Landfills Category ELGs:
 RCRA Subtitle  -  Identifies the applicable Part 445 Subpart. ERG added "C" for facilities in NAICS code 562211, "D" for facilities in NAICS code 562212, and "C,D" for facilities with both NAICS codes listed.
 Other NAICS?  -  Yes/No field to identify if other industrial codes apply to the facility. ERG entered "No" if only NAICS code 562211 and/or 562212 are reported in ECHO and "Yes" if one or more additional NAICS code applies.
 Industry Type  -  Identifies landfills that meet the applicability criteria of 40 CFR Part 445. Based on the NAICS code and, in some cases, facility name, ERG assigned an industry type as detailed in the ECHO Data spreadsheet (ERG, 2021). 
 Table 2 presents the estimated number of landfills based on the ECHO data. In general, the industry counts:
 Include all ECHO facilities with only NAICS codes 562211 and/or 562212 (Other NAICS? = "No"). Note: this may overestimate the number of landfills because NAICS 562211 includes non-landfill hazardous waste treatment facilities.
 These include facilities that list other NAICS codes 56* except for NAICS codes 562213, 562219, and 5629 which underwent further review for the industry profile.
 Include facilities that also list NAICS codes 562213 (combustor, incinerator), 562219 (other waste operation), and 5629 (remediation) if the facility name implies that waste operations include a landfill. For example, the count includes FRSID 110012694110 (Santa Maria Landfill), which lists NAICS codes 562211, 562212, and 562213. However, the count does not include FRSID 110038448999 (Pavers Supply Portable Trench Burner), which lists NAICS codes 562211 and 562213.
 Include facilities that also list NAICS codes 54 (professional, scientific, and technical Services) or 81 (other services, except public administration) if the facility name implies that the facility is a landfill. For example, the count includes FRSID 110003167340 (Reno County Landfill), which lists NAICS codes 562112, 81131, and 562212.
 Include facilities that also list NAICS codes 486 (other pipeline transportation), 71 (arts, entertainment, and recreation), or (92 (public administration) unless the facility name implies it does not conduct waste management operations. ERG assumed these NAICS codes apply to ancillary operations occurring along with the waste management. For example, the industry count includes the following:
 FRSID 110033518076 (Blue Ridge Landfill) and FRSID 110034168512 (Foothills Environmental), which lists NAICS codes 562212 and 486210.
 FRSID 110006749411 (Otter Creek Park Landfill), which lists NAICS codes 562211 and 711110. However, the count does not include FRSID 110033637198 (Titusville Municipal Marina), which lists NAICS codes 713930 and 562211.
 FRSID 110000755601 (Newport Chemical Depot Reuse Authority), which lists NAICS codes 561431, 562212, and 928110. However, the count does not include FRSID 110038449266 (Premont Trench Burner), which lists NAICS codes 562211 and 921190.
 Exclude ECHO facilities reporting other NAICS codes:
 
 NAICS 11 (Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing, and Hunting)
 NAICS 21 (Mining)
 NAICS 22 (Utilities)
 NAICS 23 (Construction) 
 NAICS 31  -  33 (Manufacturing)
 NAICS 42 (Wholesale Trade)
 NAICS 44  -  45 (Retail Trade)
 NAICS 48  -  49 (Transportation and Warehousing), except NAICS code 486
 NAICS 51 (Information)
 NAICS 52 (Finance and Insurance)
 NAICS 53 (Real Estate and Rental and Leasing)
 NAICS 61 (Educational Services)
 NAICS 62 (Health Care and Social Assistance).
 
 
 See the Landfills ECHO Data spreadsheet (ERG, 2021) for for further details. 
 
Table 2. Count of Landfills from 2021 ECHO Data
                                  NAICS Code
                               Part 445 Subpart
                              2021 ECHO Count[a]
             NAICS 562211: Hazardous Waste Treatment and Disposal
                 A - RCRA Subtitle C Hazardous Waste Landfills
                                  829  -  964
                      NAICS 562212: Solid Waste Landfills
               B- RCRA Subtitle D Non-Hazardous Waste Landfills
                               10,375  -  10,510
                                    TOTAL 
                                    11,339
a  -  A range is presented because 135 facilities listed both NAICS codes and so may be covered under Subpart A or Subpart B. 
References
 EPA. 2000. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Development Document for Final Effluent Limitations Guidelines and Standards for the Landfills Point Source Category. (January). EPA-821-R-99-019. Document Control Number (DCN) PFAS00183.
 EPA. 2021. 2020 Preliminary Review of Industrial Point Source Categories (September). DCN 11104.
 ERG. 2021. Eastern Research Group, Inc. Landfills ECHO Data (spreadsheet). Downloaded June 30, 2021. (September 7). DCN PFAS00188.
 U.S. Census Bureau. North American Industry Classification System (website). https://www.census.gov/naics/
    
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