Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 33 - ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY › Part V - Hazardous Wastes and Hazardous Materials › Subpart 1 - Department of Environmental Quality-Hazardous Waste › Chapter 37 - Financial Requirements › Subchapter A - Closure Requirements › Section V-3707 - Financial Assurance for Closure

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
An owner or operator of each facility must establish
						financial assurance for closure of the facility. Under this Part, the owner or
						operator must choose from the options as specified in Subsections A-F of this
						Section, which choice the administrative authority must find acceptable based
						on the application and the circumstances.
A. Closure Trust Fund
1. An owner or operator may satisfy the
					 requirements of this Part by establishing a closure trust fund that conforms to
					 the requirements of this Subpart, and submitting an originally signed duplicate
					 of the trust agreement to the Office of Environmental Services. An owner or
					 operator of a new facility must submit the originally signed duplicate of the
					 trust agreement to the administrative authority at least 60 days before the
					 date on which hazardous waste is first received for treatment, storage, or
					 disposal. The trustee must be an entity that has the authority to act as a
					 trustee and whose trust operations are regulated and examined by a federal or
					 state agency.
2. The wording of the
					 trust agreement must be identical to the wording specified in LAC
					 33:V.3719.A.1, and the trust agreement must be accompanied by a formal
					 certification of acknowledgment (for example, see LAC 33:V.3719.A.2). Schedule
					 A of the trust agreement must be updated within 60 days after a change in the
					 amount of the current closure cost estimate covered by the agreement.
3. Payments into the trust fund must be made
					 annually by the owner or operator over the term of the initial permit, or over
					 the remaining operating life of the facility as estimated in the closure plan,
					 whichever period is shorter; this period is hereafter referred to as the
					 "pay-in period." The payments into the closure trust fund must be made as
					 follows.
a. For a new facility, the first
					 payment must be made before the initial receipt of hazardous waste for
					 treatment, storage, or disposal. A receipt from the trustee for this payment
					 must be submitted by the owner or operator to the administrative authority
					 before this initial receipt of hazardous waste. The first payment must be at
					 least equal to the current closure cost estimate, except as provided in LAC
					 33:V.3707.G divided by the number of years in the pay-in period. Subsequent
					 payments must be made no later than 30 days after each anniversary date of the
					 first payment. The amount of each subsequent payment must be determined by this
					 formula.
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CE = current closure cost estimate;
CV = current value of the trust fund; and
Y = number of years remaining in the pay-in
						period.
b. If an owner or
					 operator has previously established a trust fund as specified in LAC
					 33:V.4403.A and the value of that trust fund is less than the current closure
					 cost estimate when a permit under these regulations is awarded for the
					 facility, then the amount of the current closure cost estimate still to be paid
					 into the trust fund must be paid in over the pay-in period as defined in LAC
					 33:V.3707.A.3. Payments must continue to be made no later than 30 days after
					 each anniversary date of the first payment made. The amount of each payment
					 must be determined by this formula.
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where:
CE = current closure cost estimate;
CV = current value of the trust fund; and
Y = number of years remaining in the pay-in
						period.
4. The
					 owner or operator may accelerate payments into the trust fund or he may deposit
					 the full amount of the current closure cost estimate at the time the fund is
					 established. However, he must maintain the value of the fund at no less than
					 the value that the fund would have if annual payments were made as specified in
					 LAC 33:V.3707.A.3.
5. If the owner
					 or operator establishes a closure trust fund after having used one or more
					 alternate mechanisms specified in this Section or in LAC 33:V.4403, his first
					 payment must be in at least the amount that the fund would contain if the trust
					 fund were established initially and annual payments made according to
					 specifications of this Section and LAC 33:V.4403.A, as applicable.
6. After the pay-in period is completed,
					 whenever the current closure cost estimate changes, the owner or operator must
					 compare the new estimate with the trustee's most recent annual valuation of the
					 trust fund. If the value of the fund is less than the amount of the new
					 estimate, the owner or operator, within 60 days after the change in the cost
					 estimate, must either deposit an amount into the fund so that its value after
					 this deposit at least equals the amount of the current closure cost estimate,
					 or obtain other financial assurance as specified in this Section to cover the
					 difference.
7. If the value of the
					 trust fund is greater than the total amount of the current closure cost
					 estimate, the owner or operator may submit a written request to the Office of
					 Environmental Services for release of the amount in excess of the current
					 closure cost estimate.
8. If an
					 owner or operator substitutes other financial assurance as specified in this
					 Part for all or part of the trust fund, he may submit a written request to the
					 Office of Environmental Services for release of the amount in excess of the
					 current closure cost estimate covered by the trust fund.
9. Within 60 days after receiving a request
					 from the owner or operator for release of funds as specified in LAC
					 33:V.3707.A.7 and A.8, the administrative authority will instruct the trustee
					 to release to the owner or operator such funds as the administrative authority
					 specifies in writing.
10. After
					 beginning partial or final closure, an owner or operator, or any other person
					 authorized to conduct partial or final closure may request reimbursements for
					 partial or final closure expenditures by submitting itemized bills to the
					 administrative authority. The owner or operator may request reimbursement for
					 partial closure only if sufficient funds are remaining in the trust fund to
					 cover the maximum costs of closing the facility over its operating life. Within
					 60 days after receiving bills for partial or final closure activities, the
					 administrative authority will instruct the trustee to make reimbursements in
					 those amounts as the administrative authority specifies in writing, if the
					 administrative authority determines that the partial or final closure
					 expenditures are in accordance with the approved closure plan, or otherwise
					 justified. If the administrative authority has reason to believe that the
					 maximum cost of closure over the remaining life of the facility will be
					 significantly greater than the value of the trust fund, he may withhold
					 reimbursements of such amounts as he deems prudent until he determines, in
					 accordance with this Section, that the owner or operator is no longer required
					 to maintain financial assurance for final closure of the facility. If the
					 administrative authority does not instruct the trustee to make such
					 reimbursements, he will provide the owner or operator with a detailed written
					 statement of reasons.
11. The
					 administrative authority will agree to termination of the trust when:
a. an owner or operator substitutes alternate
					 financial assurance as specified in this Part; or
b. the administrative authority releases the
					 owner or operator from the requirements of this Part in accordance with LAC
					 33:V.3707.I.