Document ID: EPA-HQ-RCRA-2002-0027-0002
Agency: epa
Document Type: Supporting & Related Material
Title: 
Posted Date: 2002-07-25T04:00Z

Department
of
Energy
Washington,
DC
20585
June
13,
2002
Elizabeth
A.
Cotsworth,
Director
Office
of
Solid
Waste
(5301W)
U.
S.
Environmental
Protection
Agency
1200
Pennsylvania
Avenue,
N.
W.
Washington,
D.
C.
20460
Re:
Petition
for
Treatability
Variances
From
the
Land
Disposal
Restrictions
Treatment
Standards
Applicable
to
Certain
Radioactively
Contaminated
Metal­
Containing
Waste
Batteries
Dear
Ms.
Cotsworth:

The
purpose
of
this
letter
is
to
request
treatability
variances,
under
40
CFR
268.44(
a),
from
the
Resource
Conservation
and
Recovery
Act
(RCRA)
Land
Disposal
Restrictions
(LDR)
treatment
standards
for
three
waste
streams
managed
at
facilities
owned
by
the
U.
S.
Department
of
Energy
(DOE):
radioactively
contaminated
mercury­
containing
waste
batteries,
radioactively
contaminated
cadmium­
containing
waste
batteries,
and
radioactively
contaminated
silver­
containing
waste
batteries.

Under
the
LDR
program,
a
restricted
waste
must
meet
the
applicable
treatment
standards
before
it
can
be
land
disposed.
Such
treatment
standards
are
identified
in
40
CFR
268.40
and
are
linked
to
restricted
wastes
by
way
of
a
waste
code
and
a
"waste
description
and
treatment/
regulatory
subcategory."
For
wastes
that
exhibit
the
Toxicity
Characteristic
(TC)
for
cadmium
(D006
waste
code),
two
subcategories
are
named:
one
applies
in
general
to
wastes
exhibiting
the
TC
for
cadmium
and
the
other
applies
to
cadmium­
containing
batteries.
The
radioactively
contaminated
cadmium­
containing
waste
batteries
generated
at
DOE
facilities
are
classified
in
the
D006
Cadmium­
Containing
Batteries
Subcategory.

For
wastes
that
exhibit
the
TC
for
mercury
(D009
waste
code),
six
subcategories
are
named
for
nonwastewaters.
Most
radioactively
contaminated
mercury­
containing
waste
batteries
generated
at
DOE
facilities
are
classified
in
the
D009
High
Mercury­
Inorganic
Subcategory.
For
wastes
that
exhibit
the
TC
for
silver
(D011
waste
code),
there
are
no
regulatory
subcategories.
Thus,
any
radioactively
contaminated
silver­
containing
waste
batteries
exhibiting
the
TC
for
silver
that
are
managed
at
DOE
facilities
are
subject
to
the
general
LDR
treatment
standards
applicable
to
all
D011
wastes
exhibiting
the
TC
for
silver.

As
the
enclosed
petition
further
explains,
for
the
D006
Cadmium­
Containing
Batteries
Subcategory
and
the
D009
High
Mercury­
Inorganic
Subcategory,
the
existing
LDR
treatment
standards
involve
the
use
of
high
temperature
treatment
units
to
volatilize
the
hazardous
metals
and
subsequently
condense
and
collect
them
for
reuse,
leaving
significantly
reduced
metal
concentrations
in
the
residuals.
However,
in
the
cases
of
radioactively
contaminated
mercury­
and
cadmium­
containing
waste
batteries,
the
recovered
metals
would
likely
contain
residual
radioactive
contamination.
The
Department
is
not
aware
of
any
metals
recovery
facility
with
the
capability
to
treat
such
radioactively
contaminated
waste
batteries.
Accordingly,
pursuant
to
40
CFR
268.44(
a)(
2),
DOE
2
believes
the
LDR
treatment
standards
applicable
to
these
waste
batteries
are
not
appropriate.

For
wastes
in
the
D011
waste
code,
the
existing
LDR
treatment
standards
require
treatment
to
meet
constituent
concentration
levels
for
silver
and
any
underlying
hazardous
constituents.
However,
in
the
case
of
radioactively
contaminated
silver­
containing
batteries
within
the
DOE
complex,
which
historically
occur
in
small
numbers
and
typically
are
commingled
with
other
types
of
mixed
waste
batteries,
meeting
these
standards
could
involve
manually
segregating
the
silver­
containing
batteries
from
the
commingled
waste
stream
before
treatment.
Considering
the
potential
increase
in
radiation
exposure
associated
with
such
a
segregation
effort,
DOE
believes,
pursuant
to
40
CFR
268.44(
a)(
2),
that
the
existing
D011
LDR
treatment
standard
is
not
appropriate
for
radioactively
contaminated,
silver­
containing
waste
batteries.

A
single
petition
is
being
submitted
for
the
three
LDR
treatment
variances
because
the
circumstances
causing
the
existing
LDR
treatment
standards
to
be
inappropriate
for
each
radioactively
contaminated,
metal­
containing
battery
waste
stream
are
related.
Furthermore,
the
same
specified
technology
[macroencapsulation
(as
defined
in
40
CFR
268.45)]
is
proposed
as
the
alternative
LDR
treatment
standard
for
each
of
the
waste
streams.
The
petition
proposes
macroencapsulation
as
a
protective
alternative
LDR
treatment
standard
for
these
waste
streams
because
metal­
containing
waste
batteries
are
similar
to
the
types
of
materials
that
EPA
has
identified
as
inherently
hazardous
debris,
for
which
EPA
has
already
determined
macroencapsulation
to
be
an
acceptable
treatment
technology.

In
accordance
with
40
CFR
260.20,
DOE
requests
the
Office
of
Solid
Waste's
consideration
of
the
enclosed
petition,
and
urges
the
Agency
to
approve
the
alternative
LDR
treatment
standards
proposed
for
these
mixed
waste
batteries.
If
there
are
questions
about
the
petition,
or
if
you
need
additional
information
regarding
these
mixed
waste
batteries,
please
contact
Bill
Fortune
of
my
staff
at
(202)
586­
7302
or
william.
fortune@
eh.
doe.
gov.

Sincerely,

Andy
Lawrence
Director
Office
of
Environmental
Policy
&
Guidance
Enclosure
cc:
J.
Berlow,
EPA,
Office
of
Solid
Waste
(5302W)
H.
Davis,
EPA,
Office
of
Solid
Waste
(5302W)
M.
Gilbertson,
DOE,
Office
of
Basic
and
Applied
Research
(EM­
52)