Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 310 CMR - DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Title 310 CMR 16.00 - Site Assignment For Solid Waste Facilities › Part I - PROCEDURES FOR SUBMISSION AND REVIEW OF SITE ASSIGNMENT APPLICATIONS › Section 16.02 - Definitions

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
The following words when used in
				  310 CMR 16.00, except as
				  otherwise required by the context, shall have the following meaning:
Abutter
means the owner of land
				  sharing a common boundary or corner with the site of the proposed activity in
				  any direction, including, but not limited to, land located directly across a
				  street, way, creek, river, stream, brook or canal.
Adjacent Area
means a parcel of land
				  contiguous to a site or in close enough proximity to be directly impacted by
				  water, air or soil borne pollutants, not exceeding a ½ mile radius from
				  the site.
Adjudicatory Hearing or Hearing
means the portion of the adjudicatory proceeding initiated by filing a notice
				  of claim with the Office of Administrative Appeals pursuant to
				  310
				  CMR 1.01:
Adjudicatory Proceeding
				  Rules for the Department of Environmental Protection
, where parties
				  may present evidence on issues of fact and argument on issues of law, and
				  concluded by the Commissioner's issuance of a final decision pursuant to
				  310
				  CMR 1.01(14):
Decisions
.
Adjudicatory Proceeding
means a
				  proceeding under M.G.L. c. 30A that may culminate in an adjudicatory hearing
				  and the Commissioner's issuance of a final decision pursuant to
				  310
				  CMR 1.01(14):
Decisions
. It is a proceeding before the Department in which
				  the legal rights, duties or privileges of specifically named persons are
				  required by constitutional right, by provisions of M.G.L. c. 30A, or by any
				  other provision of the General Laws to be determined after opportunity for a
				  Department hearing, but does not include the types of proceedings described in
				  M.G.L. c. 30A, § 1(a) through (f).
Adverse Impact
means an injurious
				  impact which is significant in relation to the public health, safety, or
				  environmental interest being protected.
Aerobic Digestion
means a process of
				  accelerated biodegradation of organic materials using microorganisms under
				  controlled conditions in the presence of oxygen.
Aggrieved Person
means any person
				  who, because of an act or failure to act by the Department, may suffer an
				  injury in fact which is different either in kind or magnitude from that
				  suffered by the general public and which is within the scope of the interests
				  protected by
				  310 CMR 16.00.
Agricultural Material
means organic
				  materials produced from the raising and processing of plants and animals as
				  part of agronomic, horticultural, aquacultural or silvicultural operations
				  including, but not limited to, animal manures, animal products and by-products
				  (including carcasses), bedding materials and plant materials.
Anaerobic Digestion
means a process
				  of accelerated biodegradation of organic materials using microorganisms under
				  controlled conditions in the absence of oxygen.
Applicant
means the person named in
				  the application as the owner of a property interest in the site or the operator
				  of the proposed facility or operation where the owner has entered into an
				  agreement with an operator at the time the application is filed.
Area of Critical Environmental Concern
				  (ACEC)
means an area designated by the Secretary of the Executive
				  Office of Environmental Affairs pursuant to
				  301 CMR 12.00:
Areas
				  of Critical Environmental Concern
.
Asphalt Pavement, Brick, and Concrete
				  Rubble
means rubble that contains only weathered (cured) asphalt
				  pavement, clay bricks and attached mortar normally used in construction, or
				  concrete that may contain rebar. The rubble shall not be painted, coated or
				  impregnated with any substance. The rubble shall not be mixed with or
				  contaminated by any other wastes or debris.
Biodegradable or Biodegradation
means capable of being broken down into carbon dioxide, water and humus by
				  biological organisms including, but not limited to, microorganisms.
Biodegradable Product
means a
				  product that meets the standards of the American Society for Testing and
				  Materials (ASTM) D6400 and D6868 as of November 23, 2012.
Board of Health or (Board)
means the
				  legally designated health authority of the municipality or other legally
				  constituted governmental unit within the Commonwealth having the usual powers
				  and duties of the board of health of a municipality, or its authorized agent or
				  representative; provided that in any case in which a solid waste management
				  facility extends into two or more municipalities, said boards may coordinate
				  activities in effecting compliance with
				  310 CMR 16.00 for the
				  management of solid waste or recycling, composting or conversion operations.
				  Unless otherwise explicitly stated, "the board of health" means the board of
				  health of the municipality in which the proposed activity is located.
Clean Wood
means discarded material
				  consisting of trees, stumps and brush including, but not limited to, sawdust,
				  chips, shavings, bark, and new or used lumber. Clean wood does not
				  include:
(a) wood from commingled construction and demolition
				  waste;
(b) engineered wood products; and
(c) wood containing or likely to contain:
1. asbestos;
2. chemical preservatives such as, but not limited to,
				  chromated copper arsenate (CCA), creosote or pentachlorophenol; or
3. paints, stains or other coatings, or adhesives.
Combustion Facility
means a facility
				  established in accordance with a valid site assignment and Department-issued
				  permit and employing an enclosed system including, but not limited to, a refuse
				  disposal incerator using controlled flame combustion, the primary purpose of
				  which is to thermally break down solid waste and producing ash that contains
				  little or no combustible materials.
Commissioner
means the Commissioner
				  of the Department of Environmental Protection or his or her designee.
Composting or Composted
means a
				  process of accelerated biodegradation of organic materials using microorganisms
				  under controlled conditions in the presence of oxygen using windrows or piles
				  including, but not limited to, covered aerated piles or bays. For the purposes
				  of
				  310 CMR 16.00, composting is
				  not aerobic digestion or conversion.
Construction and Demolition Waste
means the waste building materials and rubble resulting from the construction,
				  remodeling, repair or demolition of buildings, pavements, roads or other
				  structures. Construction and demolition waste includes, but is not limited to,
				  concrete, bricks, asphalt pavement, masonry, plaster, gypsum wallboard, metal,
				  lumber, and wood.
Conversion
means aerobic or
				  anaerobic digestion or enzymatic, thermal or chemical degradation of organic
				  materials. For purposes of
				  310 CMR 16.00, conversion
				  does not include composting.
Department
means the Department of
				  Environmental Protection.
Department Report on Suitability
means the report issued by the Department pursuant to M.G.L. c. 111, §
				  150A, stating whether a site proposed for a solid waste management facility in
				  an application for a site assignment is suitable.
Disposal
means the final dumping,
				  land filling or placement of solid waste into or on any land or water or the
				  combustion of solid waste.
Disposal Facility
means any
				  combustion facility or any landfill.
Downgradient
means:
(a) in reference to surface water, the direction
				  perpendicular to lines of equal elevation over a distance in which elevation
				  continuously decreases, measured from the point or area in question; or
(b) in reference to groundwater, the direction perpendicular
				  to lines of equipotential over a distance in which total head continuously
				  decreases, measured from the point or area in question.
Expand a Site
means to move or
				  expand a solid waste facility's operation to a previously unassigned site that
				  is contiguous to the original site or to modify a solid waste facility's
				  operations causing it to exceed any capacity or total volume limit stated in
				  its current site assignment.
Facility
means a site or works, and
				  other appurtenances thereto, which is, has been or will be used for the
				  handling, storage, transfer, processing, treatment or disposal of solid waste,
				  including all land, structures and improvements which are directly related to
				  solid waste activities.
Food Material
means material
				  produced from human or animal food production, preparation and consumption
				  activities and which consists of, but is not limited to, fruits, vegetables,
				  grains, and fish and animal products and by products.
Group of Ten Persons
means a group
				  of at least ten persons who are residents of Massachusetts.
Handling
means processing, storing,
				  transferring or treating a material or solid waste.
Handling Area
means an area used for
				  the processing, storage, transfer or treatment of solid waste, excluding weigh
				  stations or access roads.
Handling Facility
means any facility
				  that is not a disposal facility including, but not limited to, a transfer
				  station, storage facility and any other facility used primarily for the
				  storage, processing or treatment of solid waste.
Interim Wellhead Protection Area
				  (IWPA)
means that wellhead area established pursuant to
				  310 CMR 22.02:
Definitons
.
Issuance
means the date on which the
				  Department sends its permit decision to the applicant.
Land Actively Devoted to Agricultural or
				  Horticultural Uses
means that land as defined at M.G.L. c. 61A,
				  § 3.
Landfill
means a facility or part of
				  a facility established in accordance with a valid site assignment and
				  Department-issued permit for the disposal of solid waste into or on
				  land.
Medical or Biological Waste
means
				  medical or biological waste as defined in
				  105 CMR 480.000:
Minimum Requirements for the Management of Medical or Biological Waste
				  (State Sanitary Code Chapter VIII
).
New Site
means a parcel of land for
				  which an applicant seeks site assignment as a solid waste facility which has
				  not been previously assigned and is not contiguous to an existing site assigned
				  area.
Non-potential Drinking Water Source
				  Area
means that area defined by
				  310 CMR
				  40.0006:
Terminology, Definitions and
				  Acronyms
.
Operation
means recycling,
				  composting or conversion activities, subject to
				  310 CMR
				  16.03,
				  16.04
				  or
				  16.05,
				  and the property on which any such activities take place.
Operator
means any person who has
				  care, charge or control of a facility, operation or activity subject to
				  310 CMR 16.00 including,
				  without limitation, an agent or lessee of the owner or an independent
				  contractor.
Organic Material
means any of the
				  following source-separated materials: vegetative material; food material;
				  agricultural material; biodegradable products; biodegradable paper; clean wood;
				  or yard waste. It does not include sanitary wastewater treatment facility
				  residuals.
Owner
means any person who alone or
				  in conjunction with others has legal ownership, a leasehold interest, or
				  effective control over the real property upon which a facility or operation is
				  located, or the airspace above said real property; "owner" does not mean
				  persons holding bare legal title for the purpose of providing security for
				  financing.
Perennial Water Course
means a
				  stream or river that flows year round.
Person(s)
means any individual,
				  partnership, association, firm, company, corporation, department, agency,
				  group, public body (including a city, town, district, county, authority, state,
				  federal, or other governmental unit), trust or any other entity responsible in
				  any way for any activity, facility or operation subject to
				  310 CMR 16.00.
Pollution
shall have the same
				  meaning as in
				  310 CMR 19.006:
Defintions
.
Post-consumer Recyclables
means the
				  following materials which have served their intended use and have been
				  pre-sorted:
(a) containers, films and wraps and other forms of packaging
				  made from metal, glass, plastic or paper; and
(b) newspaper, office paper, cardboard and other grades of
				  paper.
Potential Private Water Supply
means
				  a potable water supply as defined at
				  314 CMR
				  5.11:
Ground Water
				  Standards
, capable of yielding water of sufficient quality and
				  quantity which is located under a parcel of land that at the time of the
				  earlier of the following two filings, the Site Assignment Application or, where
				  applicable, the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act Environmental
				  Notification Form, is:
(a) zoned residential or commercial;
(b) not served by a public water supply; and
(c) subject to a subdivision plan or a building permit
				  application approved by the appropriate municipal authority.
Potentially Productive Aquifer
means:
(a) any aquifers delineated by the U.S. Geological Survey
				  (USGS) as a high or medium yield aquifer; and
(b) any aquifers located east of the Cape Cod Canal (Cape
				  Cod), on the Elizabeth Islands, on Martha's Vineyard, or on Nantucket.
Pre-sort
means to separate from
				  solid waste and to keep separate from solid waste. Pre-sorting does not require
				  the separation of components that are integral to that material
				  (
e.g.
insulation or electronic components in white
				  goods).
Private Water Supply
means a well
				  used as a source of drinking water supplying a non-public water system with any
				  volume of groundwater from any source.
Processing
means the use of any
				  method, technique or process to alter the physical characteristics of a
				  material or solid waste through any means, including, without limitation,
				  separating, baling, shredding, crushing or reworking. Storage alone does not
				  constitute processing.
Proposed Drinking Water Source Area
means the preliminary Zone II or the preliminary IWPA for a proposed water
				  supply well that has received a site exam approval by the Department and is
				  actively pursuing source approval under the Drinking Water Regulations at
				  310 CMR
				  22.21(1):
Source
				  Approval
.
Public Water Supply
means a source
				  of drinking water supplying a public water system as defined in
				  310 CMR
				  22.00:
Drinking Water
.
Recyclable or Recyclable Material
means a material that has the potential to be recycled and which is pre-sorted.
				  Recyclable material includes biodegradable paper, but does not include:
(a) organic materials that will be composted or converted;
				  or
(b) construction and demolition waste unless it has been
				  separated and kept separate into at least the following categories: asphalt,
				  brick and concrete; ceiling tiles; wood; metals; plaster and wallboard; roofing
				  materials; and carpet.
Recycle or Recycled
means to recover
				  materials or by-products which will be:
(a) reused;
(b) used as an ingredient or a feedstock in an industrial or
				  manufacturing process to make a marketable product; or
(c) used in a particular function or application as an
				  effective substitute for a commercial product or commodity.
Recycle
does not mean to recover
				  energy from the combustion of a material or to create a fuel.
Recycle
does not include composting or
				  conversion.
Recycling Drop-off Center
means a
				  location where pre-sorted post-consumer recyclables are deposited by the
				  generators of the recyclables for collection and transfer to a facility or
				  operation for processing or directly to a market.
Regional Disposal Facility
means a
				  solid waste facility that is a member of a regional disposal district
				  established in accordance with M.G.L. c. 40, § 44K, or a solid waste
				  facility that receives substantial quantities of solid waste on a regular basis
				  from two or more municipalities.
Residence or Residential
means a
				  single, multi-family, or group home, residential unit or apartment complex. For
				  purposes of
				  310 CMR 16.00, a group home
				  means an establishment, usually resembling a private home, for providing a
				  small group of persons with special needs, such as handicapped or elderly
				  persons or children, with lodging and supervised care.
Residual
means all waste remaining
				  after treatment or processing. Residual remaining after treatment or processing
				  is not pre-sorted material. Air and water discharges managed in accordance with
				  applicable regulations are not residuals.
Responsible Official
means one of
				  the following:
(a) for a corporation: a president, secretary, treasurer, or
				  a vice-president of the corporation in charge of a principal business function
				  who has been duly authorized to bind the corporation pursuant to a corporate
				  vote, or a representative of the corporation who has been duly authorized to
				  bind the corporation pursuant to a corporate vote provided the representative
				  is responsible for the overall operation of the facility or operation;
(b) for a limited liability company, person authorized
				  pursuant to M.G.L. c. 156C, § 24 and the limited liability company's
				  operating agreement to bind the company and all the members;
(c) for a trust: a trustee or any other natural person
				  authorized:
1. to enter into contracts regarding the trust
				  property;
2. to bind the trust; or
3. to encumber or dispose of the trust property.
(d) for a partnership: a general partner who has been duly
				  authorized to bind the partnership;
(e) for a sole proprietorship; the sole proprietor; or
(f) for a municipality, state, federal, or other public
				  agency including any legislatively created authority, board, commission,
				  district,
etc
.: a principal executive officer or a ranking
				  elected official who is empowered to enter into contracts on behalf of the
				  municipality or public agency.
Restricted Area
means an area
				  specified in
				  310 CMR 16.40(3) and
				  (4) from which a solid waste management
				  facility is excluded.
Review Period
means the 60 day
				  period during which the Department shall review the Site Assignment Application
				  and issue the Department report.
Riverfront Area
means that area
				  defined by
				  310 CMR
				  10.00:
Wetlands Protection
.
Site Assignment
means a
				  determination by a board of health or by the Department as specified in M.G.L.
				  c. 111, § 150A which:
(a) designates an area of land for one or more solid waste
				  uses subject to conditions with respect to the extent, character and nature of
				  the facility that may be imposed by the assigning agency after a public hearing
				  in accordance with M.G.L. c. 111, § 150A; or
(b) establishes that an area of land was utilized as a site
				  for the disposal onto land of solid waste or as a site for a refuse disposal
				  incinerator prior to July 25, 1955 as provided in St. 1955, c. 310, § 2.
				  The area of land site assigned under 310 CMR 16.02:
Site Assignment
shall be limited to the lateral limits of the waste deposition area
				  ("the footprint"), or the area occupied by the incinerator, as they existed on
				  July 25, 1955, except as otherwise approved by the Department in approved
				  plans. Said assignment shall apply only to uninterrupted solid waste disposal
				  activities within the footprint or plan-approved area and shall have no legal
				  force or effect at any time after the cessation of disposal activities except
				  as otherwise provided at
				  310 CMR
				  16.21.
Sludge
means the accumulated solids
				  and/or semisolids deposited or removed by the processing and/or treatment of
				  gasses, water or other fluids.
Sole Source Aquifer
means an aquifer
				  so designated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or by the Department
				  under the authority of a state program as may be established, that supplies 50%
				  or more of the drinking water for the aquifer service area, and the volume of
				  water which could be supplied by alternative sources is insufficient to replace
				  the petitioned aquifer should it become contaminated.
Solid Waste or Waste
means useless,
				  unwanted or discarded solid, liquid or contained gaseous material resulting
				  from industrial, commercial, mining, agricultural, municipal or household
				  activities that is disposed or is stored, treated, processed or transferred
				  pending such disposal, but does not include:
(a) hazardous wastes as defined and regulated pursuant to 310
				  CMR 30.000:
Hazardous Waste
;
(b) sludge or septage which is land applied in compliance
				  with
				  310 CMR 32.00:
Land
				  Application of Sludge and Septage
;
(c) waste-water treatment facility residuals and sludge ash
				  from either publicly or privately owned waste-water treatment facilities that
				  treat only sewage and which is treated and/or disposed at a site regulated
				  pursuant to M.G.L. c. 83, §§ 6 and 7 and/or M.G.L. c. 21,
				  §§ 26 through 53 and the regulations promulgated thereunder, unless
				  the waste-water treatment residuals and/or sludge ash are co-disposed with
				  solid waste;
(d) septage and sewage as defined and regulated pursuant to
				  314 CMR 5.00:
Ground
				  Water Discharge Permit Program
, and regulated pursuant to either
				  M.G.L. c. 21, §§ 26 through 53 or 310 CMR 15.00:
The State
				  Environmental Code, Title 5: Standard Requirements for the Siting,
				  Construction, Inspection, Upgrade and Expansion of On-site Sewage Treatment and
				  Disposal Systems and for the Transport and Disposal of Septage
,
				  provided that
				  310 CMR 16.00 does apply to
				  solid waste management facilities which co-dispose septage and sewage with
				  solid waste;
(e) ash produced from the combustion of coal when reused as
				  prescribed pursuant to M.G.L. c. 111, § 150A;
(f) solid or dissolved materials in irrigation return
				  flows;
(g) source, special nuclear or by-product material as defined
				  by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954;
(h) materials and by-products generated from and reused
				  within an original manufacturing process;
(i) materials which are recycled, composted, or converted in
				  compliance with
				  310 CMR
				  16.03,
				  16.04
				  or
				  16.05;
				  and
(j) organic material when handled at a Publicly Owned
				  Treatment Works as defined in
				  314 CMR 12.00:
Operation and Maintenance and Pretreatment Standards for Wastewater
				  Treatment Works and Indirect Dischargers
and as approved by the
				  Department pursuant to
				  314 CMR 12.00:
Operation and Maintenance and Pretreatment Standards for Wastewater
				  Treatment Works and Indirect Dischargers
.
Solid Waste Management Facility
means Facility.
Source Separated
means separated
				  from solid waste at the point of generation and kept separate from solid waste.
				  Source separated does not require the separation of components that are
				  integral to that material (
e.g
. insulation or electronic
				  components in white goods).
Storage
means temporary containment
				  of a material or solid waste in a manner which does not constitute
				  disposal.
Storage Facility
means a handling
				  facility where solid waste is stored.
Suitable
means a determination by
				  the Department that a proposed site meets the Site Suitability Criteria as set
				  forth in
				  310 CMR 16.00.
Transfer Station
means a handling
				  facility where solid waste is brought, stored and transferred from one vehicle
				  or container to another vehicle or container for transport off-site to a solid
				  waste handling or disposal facility.
Treatment
means the use of any
				  method, technique or process to change the chemical, biological character or
				  composition of material or waste; to neutralize such material or waste; to
				  render such material or waste safer to transport, store or dispose; or make
				  such material or waste amenable to recovery, storage or volume reduction.
				  Storage alone does not constitute treatment.
Upgradient
means:
(a) in reference to surface water, the direction
				  perpendicular to lines of equal elevation over a distance in which elevation
				  continuously increases, measured from the point or area in question; or
(b) in reference to groundwater, the direction perpendicular
				  to lines of equipotential over a distance in which total head continuously
				  increases, measured from the point or area in question.
Vegetative Material
means plant
				  material.
Watershed
means that area defined by
				  310 CMR 22.02:
Definitions
.
Yard Waste
means deciduous and
				  coniferous seasonal deposition (
e.g.
, leaves), grass
				  clippings, weeds, hedge clippings, garden materials and brush.
Zone A
means that area defined by
				  310 CMR 22.02:
Definitions
.
Zone B
means that area defined by
				  310 CMR 22.02:
Definitions
.
Zone C
means that area defined by
				  310 CMR 22.02:
Definitions
.
Zone of Contribution
means the
				  recharge area that provides water to a well
Zone I
means that area defined by
				  310 CMR 22.02:
Definitions
.
Zone II
means that area defined by
				  310 CMR 22.02:
Definitions
.