340-096-0160 Special Rules Pertaining to Conversion Technology: Applicability (1) These rules, OAR 340-096-0160 to 340-096-0200, apply to all conversion technology facilities. (2) No person may construct or operate a conversion technology facility except as provided in this rule. (3) All conversion technology facilities must comply with the performance standards of OAR 340-096-0170 including those facilities not required to obtain a permit or registration. (4) The following conversion technology facilities are exempt from the application, operations plan, registration, and permit requirements of OAR 340-093-0070, 340-096-0180, 340-096-0190, and 340-096-0200 unless the department determines the conversion technology facility may adversely affect human health or the environment: (a) Any conversion technology facility receiving less than 20 tons of solid waste for processing during any calendar year; (b) Any conversion technology facility that satisfies all of the following criteria: (A) Less than one percent by weight of the waste received by the facility is putrescible; (B) All feedstocks received are source-separated for recovery or have been separated at a material recovery facility to include only the material or group of materials that are compatible with the conversion technology process used at the facility, and do not include mixed solid waste such as auto and appliance shredder wastes or paper, plastic or other materials that have not been separated from each other; (C) The facility either has no discharges of liquids to the ground or to the waters of this state, or has a permit issued under ORS 468B.050 and all applicable requirements of OAR Chapter 340 Divisions 93 through 97 have been met; (D) The facility either has no discharges of contaminants to the air, or has a permit issued under ORS 468A.040 and all applicable requirements of OAR Chapter 340 Divisions 93 through 97 have been met; (E) The facility does not routinely charge a tip fee for the feedstocks used by the conversion technology; and (F) The person who has established or who is proposing to establish the conversion technology facility can demonstrate that the facility operation will be able to comply with the performance standards in OAR 340-096-0170 based on actual operations data from an existing facility using similar technology, and continues to comply with those standards. (c) The owner or operator of a facility claiming an exemption under subsection (b) of this section must notify the department, on a form approved by the department, of the intent to construct a conversion technology facility and the location proposed for the construction, no less than 30 days prior to beginning construction. (d) Used oil processing facilities that have registered with the department as a used oil processor or refiner under 40 CFR 279.51, where used oil processing is their only conversion technology activity; (e) Any conversion technology facility that primarily processes crops grown for energy production, where the percentage of solid waste received by the facility as feedstock, excluding sawdust and vegetative crop residue such as corn stover, wheat straw, mint slugs, and onion skins, is less than 5 percent of the total feedstock processed by the facility or less than 1,000 tons per year, whichever is smaller; (f) Facilities that hold an animal rendering license from the Oregon Department of Agriculture, provided that all the applicable requirements of OAR chapter 340 Divisions 93-97 are met; and (g) Facilities that accept fats, oils, and greases for the production of biodiesel, provided that: (A) The facility complies with applicable storage and collection requirements in OAR 340-093-0210, and (B) The facility complies with the performance standards in OAR 340-096-0170. (5) The owner or operator of a facility claiming an exemption under this rule must maintain documentation that the facility meets the requirements of the exemption and must provide that documentation to the department upon request. (6) If a facility that was exempt under section (4) of this rule no longer meets the criteria for exemption, and is unable to promptly resume meeting the criteria, that facility must within 30 days, either apply for a conversion technology permit or registration under OAR 340-093-0070 or notify the department how they plan to resume meeting the criteria. (7) A conversion technology facility that is not exempt under section (4) of this rule must obtain either a conversion technology permit under OAR 340-096-0200 or a conversion technology registration under OAR 340-096-0190, except as specified in section (8) of this rule. (a) If the department determines that a conversion technology facility presents a low risk to human health or the environment under this section, the facility must obtain a conversion technology registration under OAR 340-096-0190 as described in subsection (7)(c) of this rule. (b) The department will consider a conversion technology facility a “low risk” facility if, based on the feedstocks used, the operational and compliance history of the facility, the owner, or the operator, the information submitted under OAR 340-093-0070, and other information available to the department, the department determines that all of the following apply: (A) The conversion technology facility is not likely to cause unpermitted releases of process water, leachate, or stormwater to surface water; (B) The facility is not likely to cause an adverse impact to surface water or groundwater; (C) The facility is not likely to cause an adverse impact to soil; (D) The facility is not likely to cause odor problems beyond the boundaries of the facility; (E) The materials produced by the conversion technology are not likely to cause a threat to human health or the environment when used in ways the material may reasonably be expected to be used as described in OAR 340-096-0170(12); (F) The facility is not likely to be abandoned and require cleanup by public agencies. Factors that indicate a potential risk of abandonment include, but are not limited to: (i) The technology is new, with fewer than 5 production-scale facilities using this technology known to be operating in the United States, or no production-scale facilities having been successfully operating for longer than five years. (ii) The technology could produce low-value end-products, where a significant risk exists that the products will not be saleable. (iii) There is a significant potential for spills or releases of hazardous substances onsite. (iv) The facility is expected to produce significant amounts of waste products requiring disposal, and (G) The facility does not pose other likely risks to human health or the environment as determined by the department. (c) A conversion technology facility that is determined by the department to present a low risk to human health or the environment must obtain a conversion technology registration under OAR 340-096-0190 prior to commencing operation. Any requirements the department determines are necessary for a facility to operate in compliance with performance standards under OAR 340-096-0170 will be incorporated into the registration approval conditions under OAR 340-096-0190. Approval conditions may include any of the matters addressed in the Operations Plan approval under OAR 340-096-0180. (d) All conversion technology facilities the department determines present a risk of potential adverse effects to human health or the environment must comply with OAR 340-096-0180: Operations Plan Approval. The department will consider a conversion technology facility to present a “risk of potential adverse effects” if the facility does not meet the conditions of a low-risk facility identified in this section. (e) As used in this section, "likely" means that there is a reasonable potential that the event or condition will occur. (8) The department may at any time reevaluate a conversion technology facility under this rule and may assign a facility to a different category. (9) All conversion technology facilities that are not exempt under this rule, including facilities that have not previously been required to have a solid waste permit, must submit the permit application materials required by OAR 340-093-0070 within 180 days after the effective date of this rule. Any conversion technology facility in operation before the effective date of these rules may continue in operation pending a determination by the department and issuance by the department of a registration or a conversion technology permit under OAR 340-096-0190 or 340-096-0200. Conversion technology facilities that are permitted on August 22, 2013 under a solid waste treatment facility permit may either operate under the solid waste treatment facility permit, or may apply for a permit modification to convert the permit to a conversion technology facility permit or registration, as appropriate. (10) Any person proposing to begin operation of a new conversion technology facility or to substantially modify an existing facility that is not exempt under section (4) of this rule must submit application materials under OAR 340-93-0070 at least 180 days before the facility is proposed to begin operation. Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 459.045, 459.205, 459.215, 459A.025 & 468.020 Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS 459.005, 459.015, 459.205, 459.215 & 459.235 History: DEQ 7-2013, f. & cert. ef. 8-29-13