Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 33 - ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY › Part VI - Inactive and Abandoned Hazardous Waste and Hazardous Substances Site Remediation › Chapter 1 - General Provisions and Definitions › Section VI-117 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
A. For all purposes
				of these rules and regulations, the terms used in this Chapter shall have the
				meanings given below unless specified otherwise or unless the context or use
				clearly indicates otherwise.
Abandoned Hazardous Waste Site
- a site that
				  has been declared abandoned in accordance with
				  R.S.
				  30:2225 and LAC 33:VI.Chapter 3.
Act
- the Louisiana Environmental Quality
				  Act,
				  R.S.
				  30:2001 et seq.
Administrative Authority
-the Secretary of
				  the Department of Environmental Quality or his designee or the appropriate
				  assistant secretary or his designee.
Agent in Charge
- the person who represents
				  a site at the time of sampling. This can be a representative of the following:
				  the owner or operator, a PRP or group of PRPs, a bankruptcy trustee, the
				  executor of an estate, an attorney representing any of these parties, or any
				  other person with similar responsibilities.
Applicable Requirements
- those cleanup
				  standards, standards of control, and other substantive requirements, criteria,
				  or limitations promulgated under federal environmental laws, state
				  environmental laws, or facility siting laws that specifically address a
				  hazardous substance, pollutant, contaminant, remedial action, location, or
				  other circumstance found at a site.
Background Concentration
- the natural
				  ambient concentration of a hazardous substance, including both naturally
				  occurring concentrations and concentrations from human-made sources other than
				  the site being evaluated.
CERCLA
- the Comprehensive Environmental
				  Response Compensation and Liability Act,  42 U.S.C. Section 9601  et seq.
Closure Plan
- a plan that identifies the
				  steps necessary to perform the final closure of a facility . For the purposes
				  of these regulations, a closure plan may be a remedial action work plan or
				  removal work plan as described in LAC 33:VI.Chapter 5.
Confirmed Site
- a site where the disposal
				  or discharge of a hazardous substance has been confirmed by the department.
Contaminant
- any hazardous substance that
				  does not occur naturally or occurs at greater than natural background
				  levels.
Cooperative Agreement
- a legally
				  enforceable contract between the department and a potentially responsible party.
Corrective Action Study or CAS
- a process
				  performed interdependently with the remedial investigation (RI) process whereby
				  data generated from the RI are used to develop alternative remedial actions.
				  These alternative remedial actions are then evaluated in terms of criteria
				  established by these regulations to select an appropriate remedial action.
Department
- Department of Environmental
				  Quality.
Direct Hours
- time expended by employees of
				  the department with regard to a specific site.
Discharge
- the placing, releasing,
				  spilling, percolating, draining, pumping, leaking, seeping, emitting, or other
				  escaping of hazardous substances into the air, surface waters, subsurface or
				  groundwater, soil, or sediments as the result of a prior act or omission, or
				  the placing of hazardous substance s into natural or manmade pits, drums,
				  barrels, or similar containers under such conditions and circumstances that
				  leaking, seeping, draining, or escaping of hazardous substances can be
				  reasonably anticipated.
Disposal
- the discharge, deposit,
				  injection, dumping, spilling, leaking, or placing of any hazardous substances
				  into or on any land or water such that hazardous substances could enter the
				  environment, be emitted into the air, or be discharged into any water.
Environmentally Sensitive Area
- an area
				  needing an increased level of environmental protection, such as areas near
				  schools and within wellhead protection areas; or an area having a terrestrial
				  or aquatic resource, fragile natural setting, or other highly-valued
				  environmental or cultural features such as wetlands, endangered or threatened
				  species habitat or breeding areas, national or state parks, wildlife refuges or
				  management areas, areas near scenic or wild rivers or streams, or national or
				  state forests.
EPA
- the United States Environmental
				  Protection Agency.
Facility
- any building, structure,
				  installation, equipment, pipe or pipeline (including any pipe into a sewer or
				  publicly-owned treatment works), well, pit, pond, lagoon, impoundment, ditch,
				  landfill, storage container, motor vehicle, rolling stock, or aircraft; or any
				  site or area where a hazardous substance has been deposited or could reasonably
				  have been deposited, stored, disposed of, placed, or otherwise come to be
				  located, not including any consumer product in consumer use.
Financially Responsible
- able, through the
				  use of insurance, bonds, or other assets, to take action as necessary or as
				  ordered by the secretary in accordance with these regulations.
Groundwater
- water in the saturated zone
				  beneath the land surface.
Hazardous Substance
- any gaseous, liquid,
				  or solid material that, because of its quantity, concentration, or physical,
				  chemical, or biological composition when released into the environment, poses a
				  substantial present or potential hazard to human health, the environment, or
				  property, regardless of whether it is intended for use, reuse, or is to be
				  discarded. This term includes all hazardous waste, hazardous constituents, hazardous materials, and pollutants . The term
hazardous
				  substance
does not include petroleum, including crude oil or any
				  fraction thereof, that is not otherwise specifically listed or designated as a
				  hazardous substance under this Section, and does not include natural gas,
				  natural gas liquids, liquefied natural gas, or synthetic gas usable for fuel
				  (or mixtures of natural gas and such synthetic gas). The term does include
				  petroleum products that contain hazardous waste, hazardous substance s, or
				  hazardous wasteconstituents, except where the nature of such hazardous waste, substances, or constituents and the concentrations in which they are found in
				  the petroleum products indicate that the contaminant is an indigenous component
				  of the petroleum product. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term
hazardous substance
does not include compressed air,
				  firecrackers, carbon paper, coal briquettes, dry ice, fish meal, flares,
				  electric wheel chairs, motor vehicles, and tear gas devices. The following
				  substances have been designated as hazardous by regulation:
a. hazardous waste as defined by
				  R.S.
				  30:2173 and the hazardous waste regulations,
				  LAC 33:V.Subpart 1;
b. pollutants listed in LAC 33:I.3931;
c. toxic air pollutants listed in LAC 33:III.5112; and
d. hazardous materials listed in LAC 33:V.Subpart 2.
Hazardous Substance Site
- any place where
				  hazardous substance s have come to be located, including without limitation,
				  any building, structure, installation, equipment, pipe or pipeline, well, pit,
				  pond, lagoon, impoundment, ditch, landfill, storage container, motor vehicle,
				  rolling stock, aircraft, or any other place or area where a hazardous substance
				  has been deposited, stored, disposed of or placed, or otherwise come to be
				  located. A hazardous substance site can extend beyond a facility 's
				  boundary.
Hazardous Waste
- those wastes identified
				  and designated as such by the department, consistent with applicable federal
				  laws and regulations, and any waste or combination of wastes that, because of
				  its quantity, concentration, physical, or chemical characteristics, can cause
				  or significantly contribute to an increase in mortality or an increase in
				  serious irreversible or incapacitating reversible illness, or pose a
				  substantial present or potential hazard to human health or the environment when
				  improperly treated, stored, transported, disposed of, or otherwise managed. The
				  definition of
hazardous waste
does not include radioactive
				  products and byproducts regulated by the United States Nuclear Regulatory
				  Commission or any successor thereto.
Hazardous Waste Constituent
- any fraction
				  or residue of a hazardous waste.
Hazardous Waste Site
- any place where
				  hazardous wastes have come to be located, including without limitation, any
				  building, structure, installation, equipment, pipe or pipeline, well, pit,
				  pond, lagoon, impoundment, ditch, landfill, storage container, motor vehicle,
				  rolling stock, aircraft, or any other place or area where hazardous waste has
				  been deposited, stored, disposed of or placed, or otherwise come to be located.
				  A hazardous waste site may extend beyond a facility 's boundary.
Inactive or Uncontrolled Site
- a site or a
				  portion of a site that is no longer in operation.
Institutional Control
- a measure undertaken
				  to limit or prohibit certain activities that could interfere with the integrity
				  of a remedial action or result in exposure to hazardous substances at a site.
Leachate
- liquid, including any suspended
				  components in the liquid, that has percolated through or drained from a
				  hazardous substance or soil contaminated with a hazardous substance.
Minimum Remediation Standards
- the levels
				  of hazardous substances in media that are considered by the department to be
				  acceptable according to risk-based standards established by the Risk
				  Evaluation/Corrective Action Program (RECAP) in accordance with LAC
				  33:I.Chapter 13.
No Further Action
or
NFA
-
				  a determination that further evaluation or remedial actions by the department
				  are not warranted at a particular site.
Nonparticipating Party
- a person who
				  refuses to comply with any demand by the department in accordance with LAC
				  33:VI,
				  R.S.
				  30:2275, or with any administrative order, a
				  person who fails to respond to any such demand or order, or a person against
				  whom a suit has been filed by the department.
Operation and Maintenance
or
O and
				  M
- activities conducted at a site after a remedial action is completed
				  to ensure that the action is effective and operating properly.
Operator
- a person that is in control of or
				  responsible for the operation of a site, facility, or pollution source.
Oversight
- all activities performed by the
				  department to ensure that the activities of PRPs in conducting site
				  investigations or remedial actions relative to a site are performed in
				  compliance with Louisiana statutes, applicable state and federal regulations,
				  work plans approved by the department, and accepted practices and procedures.
				  Oversight activities by the department include, but are not limited to, site
				  inspections; the review and approval of work plans, submittals, and reports;
				  confirmatory sampling and analysis; the evaluation and interpretation of data,
				  plans, and reports as submitted by PRPs; and public participation
				  activities.
Oversight Costs
- costs incurred by the
				  department associated with oversight.
Owner
- a person that owns a site, facility, or pollution source.
Participating Party
- a person who
				  undertakes a remedial action, as approved by the department, after receiving a
				  demand from the secretary.
Person
- any individual, municipality,
				  public or private corporation, partnership, firm, the United States government
				  and any agent or subdivision thereof, or any other juridical person, which
				  shall include, but not be limited to, trusts, joint stock companies,
				  associations, the state of Louisiana, political subdivisions of the state of
				  Louisiana, commissions, and interstate bodies.
Pollutant
- those elements or compounds
				  defined or identified as hazardous, toxic, noxious, or as hazardous, or
				  radioactive wastes under the Act and regulations, or by the secretary or
				  commission, consistent with applicable laws and regulations.
Pollution Source
- the immediate site or
				  location of a discharge or potential discharge, including such surrounding
				  property necessary to secure or quarantine the area from access by the general
				  public.
Post-Remedial Management
- activities
				  conducted at a site following the completion of a final remedy when remedial
				  goals have not been met and, in the judgment of the department, cannot
				  feasibly be met.
Potential Site
- a site at which a discharge
				  or disposal of a hazardous substance is suspected by the department.
Potentially Responsible Party
or
PRP
- any person who is potentially liable for a remedial
				  action or remedial costs under state or federal law, including but not limited
				  to, site owners and operators, and the generators, transporters, and disposers
				  of hazardous substances
.
Preliminary RECAP Standards
- the level of
				  hazardous substances proposed to remain in the media after the successful
				  completion of a final remedy in accordance with RECAP.
RCRA
- Resource Conservation and Recovery
				  Act,  42 U.S.C. §
											6901  et seq.
Relevant and Appropriate Requirements
-
				  those cleanup standards, standards of control, and other substantive
				  requirements, criteria, or limitations promulgated under federal environmental
				  or state environmental or facility siting laws that, while not applicable to a
				  hazardous substance, pollutant, contaminant, remedial action, location, or
				  other circumstance at a site, address problems or situations sufficiently
				  similar to those encountered at the site that their use is well suited to the
				  particular site.
Remedial Action
- the removal, confinement,
				  or storage of any hazardous substance, including constructing barriers,
				  securing the site, encapsulating in clay or other impermeable material, or
				  otherwise containing or isolating the hazardous substance ; cleaning up
				  contamination; recycling or reusing of hazardous substances ; diverting,
				  destroying, or segregating reactive or other wastes; dredging or excavating a
				  site ; repairing or replacing leaking containers; collecting leachate and
				  runoff; on-site treatment or incinerating of a substance; providing alternative
				  water supplies; monitoring, testing, or analyzing; employing legal,
				  engineering, chemical, biological, architectural, or other professional
				  consultants or personnel; investigating, initiating, or prosecuting of
				  administrative proceedings or lawsuits to final judgment; transporting and
				  disposing of waste from a site ; and any other action the department decrees
				  necessary to restore the site or remove the hazardous substance . The
				  definition of
remedial action
shall include all types of
				  action referred to as response actions in CERCLA and the National Oil and
				  Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan [
Federal
				  Register
55(46): 8666, March 8, 1990], and includes any action
				  referred to as a remedy in these regulations.
Remedial Cost
- all reasonable costs
				  associated with site discovery, investigation, and evaluation; administrative
				  costs of the department relative to a site ; costs associated with public
				  participation; oversight costs and costs including, but not limited to,
				  removing, confining, or storing any hazardous substance ; constructing
				  barriers, securing the site, and encapsulating in clay or other impermeable
				  material; cleaning up of contamination; recycling or reusing of a hazardous
				  substance ; diverting, destroying, or segregating reactive or other wastes;
				  dredging or excavating a site ; repairing or replacing leaking containers;
				  collecting leachate and runoff; on-site treatment or incinerating of a
				  substance; providing alternative water supplies; monitoring, testing, or
				  analyzing; employing legal, engineering, chemical, biological, architectural,
				  or other professional consultants or personnel; investigating, initiating, or
				  prosecuting lawsuits to final judgment; transporting and disposing of waste
				  from the site ; or any other action the secretary determines necessary to
				  restore the site or remove the hazardous substance.
Remedial Design
or
RD
-
				  plans, including construction plans and specifications, necessary for
				  implementation of the final remedy.
Remedial Goals
- the concentration of a
				  hazardous substance remaining in media at a site that is protective of human
				  health and the environment, that has been approved and accepted by the
				  department.
Remedial Investigation
or
RI
or
Site Investigation
- an in-depth study
				  designed to gather the data necessary to determine the nature and extent of
				  contamination at a contaminated site and establish criteria for cleaning up the
				  site.
Remedial Investigation Work Plan
- a plan
				  defining the process to be followed by one or more PRPs or the department to
				  conduct an RI.
Remedy
or
Final
				  Remedy
-remedial actions that result in achieving remedial goals at a
				  site . Remedies are distinguished from other types of actions considered
				  remedial under the Act and these regulations, including without limitation,
				  investigation, monitoring, and enforcement activities.
Removal Action
- a remedial action performed
				  by the department, or by one or more PRPs as directed by the department, wherein hazardous substance s, contaminated soils, and/or other contaminated
				  media are taken from the site to a permitted facility for treatment, storage,
				  or disposal.
Risk
- the probability that a hazardous
				  substance, when released into the environment, will adversely affect exposed
				  humans, other living organisms, or the environment.
Secretary
- the Secretary of the Department
				  of Environmental Quality.
Site
- a hazardous substance site or a
				  hazardous waste site.
SPOC
-the Office of Environmental
				  Compliance, Emergency and Radiological Services Division, Single Point of
				  Contact (SPOC).
Treatability Study
- the process of
				  conducting bench scale and/or pilot scale studies to gather data to adequately
				  evaluate the suitability of remedial technology on specific site wastes and
				  conditions.
Treatment
- any method, technique, or
				  process designed to change the physical, chemical, or biological character or
				  composition of any hazardous substance so as to neutralize such substance or
				  render it nonhazardous, safer for transport, amenable for recovery or storage,
				  or reduced in volume. The term includes any activity or processing designed to
				  change the physical form or chemical composition of a hazardous substance to
				  render it nonhazardous or significantly less hazardous.
Wetlands
- those areas that are inundated or
				  saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to
				  support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of
				  vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands
				  generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, and similar areas.
AUTHORITY NOTE:
				  Promulgated in accordance with
				  R.S.
				  30:2001 et
				  seq.