Compilation of Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia › Department 110 - RULES OF GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY AFFAIRS › Chapter 110-4 - SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT › Subject 110-4-3 - MINIMUM PLANNING STANDARDS AND PROCEDURES FOR SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT › Rule 110-4-3-.03 - Duties and Responsibilities

Current through Rules and Regulations filed through June 27, 2024
(1)
General:
Comprehensive solid
				waste management planning at local and regional levels in the state is critical
				to assisting communities in meeting the statewide goal of reducing waste,
				providing for effective solid waste management, and ensuring ten years of
				collection capability and disposal capacity. In order to effectively implement
				the planning provisions of the Solid Waste Management Act, ongoing cooperation
				must occur among local governments, Regional Development Centers, citizens,
				private industry, and state agencies. The following outlines the
				responsibilities of those involved with implementing solid waste management
				planning.
(2)
Department of
				Community Affairs:
It is the responsibility of the Department to promote
				the policy of the State of Georgia, in furtherance of its responsibility to
				protect the public health, safety, and well-being of its citizens and to
				protect and enhance the quality of its environment, to institute and maintain a
				comprehensive statewide program for effective solid waste management through
				planning and education.
(a) The Department
				shall develop, promote, and establish standards and procedures for solid waste
				management planning; and have plenary authority over solid waste management
				planning in the State of Georgia.
(b) The Department shall assist local
				governments by providing technical assistance in preparing and implementing
				solid waste management plans which address the integrated solid waste
				management needs of their residents.
(c) The Department shall use all available
				resources, including the solid waste management plans of local governments to
				encourage and promote regional alternatives for solid waste
				management.
(d) The Department
				shall undertake and carry out such activities as may be necessary to mediate or
				otherwise assist in resolving conflicts relating to the solid waste management
				planning process, in the same manner as those procedures established pursuant
				the Georgia Planning Act, O.C.G.A. §
										50-8-1
et
				seq.
(e) The Department
				shall coordinate solid waste management planning responsibilities outlined in
				the Act with those of other state agencies, Regional Development Centers, and
				local governments.
(f) The
				Department shall review all solid waste management plans and amendments for
				consistency with the Minimum Planning Standards and Procedures. For plans found
				to be in compliance, the Department will issue a letter notifying the Regional
				Development Center serving the local government(s) within the planning
				jurisdiction that the plan is eligible for local adoption. Once the Department
				receives written confirmation that all local governments in a
				multi-jurisdictional plan, or the local government in a single plan, have
				adopted the plan, the Department will notify the local government(s) in writing
				that their plan is approved and they are eligible for municipal solid waste
				handling and/or facility grants, loans, and permits.
(g) The Department may verify reasonable
				consistency between the data reported by local governments on the Annual Solid
				Waste Survey and in the Full-Cost Report with the information compiled in each
				local government's solid waste management plan. Where reporting is found to be
				in conflict with plans, the Department will require the local government to
				amend either the report or the plan to reflect actual conditions of solid waste
				management programs and activities within the jurisdiction.
(h) The Department will compile the results
				of the Annual Solid Waste Survey and Full-Cost Report, along with information
				gathered by EPD regarding the amount of solid waste handled by permitted
				disposal facilities and remaining capacities at permitted landfills, and report
				that information to the Governor and the General Assembly on an annual
				basis.