Rhode Island Code of Regulations › Title 250 - Department of Environmental Management › Chapter 140 - Waste and Materials Management › Subchapter 05 - Solid Waste › Part 1 - Rules and Regulations for Solid Waste Management Facilities and Organic Waste Management Facilities › Section 250-RICR-140-05-1.5 - Definitions

Current through June 14, 2024
A. As used in this Part:
1. "Active life" means, relative to Solid
				  Waste Landfill Units, the period of operation beginning with the initial
				  receipt of solid waste and ending at completion of closure activities per
				  §2.1.9 of this Subchapter.
2.
				  "Active portion" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill Units, that part of a
				  facility or unit that has received or is receiving wastes and that has not been
				  closed in accordance with §2.1.9 of this Subchapter.
3. "Adulterated wood waste" means wood waste
				  that has been treated, painted, coated, stained, soiled, contaminated, or
				  similarly altered from its clean or virgin state.
4. "Aerated static pile composting" means a
				  method of composting in which oxygen and temperature levels are mechanically
				  controlled by forced aeration using blowers. A series of perforated pipes (or
				  equivalent) air distribution system runs underneath the compost pile and is
				  connected to a blower that either draws or blows air through the pile. Little
				  or no pile turning is performed.
5.
				  "Aeration" (for composting) means bringing about contact of air and composting
				  solid organic matter, by means of turning or ventilating, to allow aerobic
				  microbial metabolism of the organic matter.
6. "Aerobic" means occurring in the presence
				  of oxygen.
7. "Aerobic composting"
				  means decomposition of organic materials by bacteria in the presence of
				  oxygen.
8. "Agricultural
				  by-product" means discarded organic materials produced from the raising of
				  plants and animals as part of agronomic, floricultural, horticultural,
				  silvicultural, vinicultural or viticultural operations including, but not
				  limited to, animal manure, bedding materials, plant stalk, leaves, other
				  vegetative matter and discarded by-product from the on-farm processing of
				  fruits and vegetables.
9.
				  "Agricultural composting" means the composting of agricultural byproducts
				  and/or other specified compostable materials on an "agricultural unit,"
				  resulting in compost products for agricultural and horticultural
				  uses.
10. "Agricultural composting
				  facility" means that part of an agricultural unit upon which agricultural
				  composting takes place. Such facilities must meet the requirements of the
				  Division of Agriculture.
11.
				  "Agricultural unit" means farmland as designated under R.I. Gen. Laws §
											44-27-3 upon which agricultural
				  operations as defined in R.I. Gen. Laws §
											2-23-4 are undertaken by a
				  farmer.
12. "Airport" means a
				  public-use airport open to the public without prior permission and without
				  restrictions within the physical capacities of available facilities, as defined
				  in 40 C.F.R. §
												257.3-8(e)(1)
				  (1979).
13. "Anaerobic" means
				  occurring in the absence of oxygen.
14. "Anaerobic digestion" means decomposition
				  of organic material in the absence of oxygen.
15. "Anaerobic digestion facility" means an
				  Organic Waste Recycling facility licensed by the Department that employs a
				  closed vessel to perform a closed process of accelerated biodegradation of
				  Organic Materials and/or organic solid wastes into biogas and digestate, using
				  microorganisms under controlled conditions in the absence of oxygen.
16. "Apparent opening size" means the number
				  of the U.S. Bureau of Standards sieve, or its opening size in millimeters or
				  inches, having openings closest in size to the diameter of uniform particles
				  which will allow five percent (5%) or less by weight to pass through.
17. "Applicant" means a person seeking a new
				  license or license renewal for a Solid Waste Management Facility or Organics
				  Waste Recycling Facility or a new registration or registration renewal for a
				  Composting Facility. It shall also include persons seeking to construct or add
				  new equipment to an existing Solid Waste Management Facility or Organics Waste
				  Recycling Facility, whether licensed or registered.
18. "Aquifer" means a geologic formation,
				  group of formations, or part of a formation that contains sufficient saturated,
				  permeable material to yield significant quantities of water to wells and
				  springs.
19. "Arrangements" mean
				  the process by which cities and towns plan for, implement and carry out the
				  separation, weighing, collecting, hauling and disposal of municipal solid waste
				  and recyclable materials.
20.
				  "Asbestos" means actinolite, amosite, anthophyllite, chrysotile, crocidolite,
				  and tremolite.
21. "Ash residue"
				  means all the solid residue and any entrained liquids resulting from the
				  combustion of solid waste or solid waste in combination with fossil fuel at a
				  solid waste incinerator, including bottom ash, boiler ash, fly ash, and the
				  solid residue of any air pollution control device used at a solid waste
				  incinerator.
22. "Backyard
				  composting" means the composting on a residential site of certain wastes
				  generated only at that site and where the compost produced is utilized on site
				  and is not distributed or marketed. Wastes which may be composted include leaf
				  and yard waste, certain food wastes including fruits and vegetables, tea
				  leaves, coffee grounds, and eggshells; hair, sawdust, manures from animals that
				  eat only plants, and other wastes acceptable to the Department for backyard
				  composting.
23. "Base flood" means
				  a flood that has a one percent (1%) or greater chance of recurring in any year
				  or a flood of magnitude equaled or exceeded once in one hundred (100) years on
				  the average over a significantly long period, as defined in
				  40 C.F.R. §
												257.3-1(b)(1) (2017)
				  incorporated above at §
											1.3(A) of
				  this Part.
24. "Bedrock" means
				  solid rock, commonly called ledge that forms the earth's crust.
25. "Biodegradable" means capable of being
				  broken down (degraded) by microorganisms into simpler compounds or natural
				  elements.
26. "Biogas" means the
				  gas mixture produced in an anaerobic digestion process which is primarily
				  composed of methane and carbon dioxide and also contains impurities such as
				  hydrogen sulfide.
27. "Bird hazard"
				  means an increase in the likelihood of bird/aircraft collisions that may cause
				  damage to the aircraft or injury to its occupants (40 C.F.R. §
												257.3-8(e)(2)) (2017)
				  incorporated above at §
											1.3(A) of
				  this Part.
28. "Bottom ash" means
				  the ash residue remaining after combustion of solid waste or solid waste in
				  combination with fossil fuel in a solid waste incinerator that is discharged
				  through and from the grates, combustor, or stoker.
29. "Buffer" means any distance,
				  topographical feature, vegetative, or manmade structure that allows for
				  mitigation of impacts of composting or other Solid Waste Management Facility
				  activity on neighboring land uses.
30. "Buffer zone" means an area of land
				  between an Organic Waste Recycling Facility or Solid Waste Management Facility
				  and neighboring facilities or homes which shield these abutters from negative
				  impacts of the Organic Waste Recycling Facility or Solid Waste Management
				  Facility operations.
31. "Bulking
				  agent" means a material added to composting wastes to provide structure to
				  those wastes, to lower total moisture content and to allow air to reach and be
				  held in small pockets within the waste, by preventing settling and compaction
				  of the waste. Most bulking agents are carbonaceous, thereby providing a source
				  of carbon to the composting mix, and are frequently chipped or shredded wastes,
				  such as sawdust, wood chips or yard trimmings.
32. "Bulky waste" means large items of solid
				  waste such as appliances, furniture, auto parts, stumps, etc.
33. "Bypass waste" means any solid waste that
				  is either within the control of the operator of a solid waste incinerator or
				  processing facility or within the control of another person that requires
				  treatment at the facility but cannot be so treated, and includes:
a. "Downtime waste" means any treatable or
				  burnable solid waste accumulated during a scheduled or unscheduled maintenance
				  period of the facility; or
b.
				  "Excess waste" means solid waste which cannot be treated because the facility
				  is operating at the approved design capacity.
c. "Control" means control exercised by
				  contract, local law, or any other means.
34. "Carbon to Nitrogen ratio" or "C:N ratio"
				  means the numerical ratio of the mass of carbon to the mass of nitrogen in an
				  organic material or in a mix of materials and which determines the composting
				  potential of the organic material or the mix of materials.
35. "Cell" means compacted solid wastes that
				  are completely enclosed by natural soil or cover material.
36. "Co-composting" means a composting
				  operation which includes the use of septic waste or sewage sludge as part of
				  its process for composting portions of the solid waste stream.
37. "Coefficient of permeability" and
				  "Hydraulic conductivity" means the rate of laminar flow of water through a unit
				  cross-sectional area of a porous medium under a unit hydraulic gradient at a
				  standard temperature. The units of "coefficient of permeability" and "hydraulic
				  conductivity" shall be expressed in centimeters per second (cm/sec.).
38. "Collection station" means a Solid Waste
				  Management Facility where refuse arrives by automobile or vehicles other than
				  collection vehicles from sites separate from the collection station for
				  transfer to another Solid Waste Management Facility.
39. "Combined ash" means the mixture of
				  bottom ash and fly ash.
40.
				  "Combustion" means the thermal treatment of solid waste in a device which uses
				  elevated temperatures as the primary means to change the chemical, physical, or
				  biological character and composition of the waste. Examples of combustion
				  processes include incineration, pyrolysis, and fluidized bed.
41. "Commercial waste" means solid waste
				  generated by stores, offices, institutions, restaurants, warehouses and
				  activities at industrial facilities.
42. "Compost" means a soil amending material
				  resulting from the aerobic, thermophilic, microbial processing of organic
				  materials.
43. "Compostable" means
				  organic material that can be biologically decomposed under aerobic
				  conditions.
44. "Compost class"
				  means the designation of compost, according to its physical, chemical, and
				  biological characteristics.
45.
				  "Composting" means any aerobic, thermophilic process which allows for the
				  conversion of raw organic materials into a stable soil amendment.
46. "Composting facility" means a facility,
				  excluding any facility which composts only sewage sludge, which employs a
				  composting process to produce compost from the organic fraction of the received
				  solid waste stream.
47. "Composting
				  pad" means the surface area within the Composting Facility upon which organic
				  materials are composted.
48.
				  "Construction certification report" means a report submitted to the Department
				  upon completion of the construction of a Solid Waste Management Facility which
				  includes, at a minimum, the resulting information prepared in accordance with
				  the this Subchapter and the license issued thereto.
49. "Construction and demolition debris
				  facility" means a Solid Waste Management Facility that is either a construction
				  and demolition debris processing facility or a construction and demolition
				  debris separation facility.
50.
				  "Construction and demolition debris processing facility" means a Solid Waste
				  Management Facility that receives and processes construction and demolition
				  debris. These facilities shall demonstrate, through records maintained at the
				  facility and provided to the Department, that seventy-five percent (75%) of all
				  material received by the facility is processed and removed from the site within
				  six (6) weeks of receipt on a continuous basis, and that in no case stores
				  material on site for over three (3) months, provided, however, such facilities
				  do not include compost facilities.
51. "Construction and demolition debris
				  separation facility" means a Solid Waste Management Facility that receives,
				  separates, and/or screens construction and demolition debris into its
				  components for subsequent resale or processing which includes but is not
				  limited to grinding, shredding, crushing, or landfilling at another location
				  separate and apart from the location in which the separation occurs.
52. "Construction and demolition debris" or
				  "C&D" means non-hazardous solid waste resulting from the construction,
				  remodeling, repair, and demolition of utilities and structures; and
				  uncontaminated solid waste resulting from land clearing. Such waste includes,
				  but is not limited to wood (including painted, treated and coated wood and wood
				  products), land clearing debris, wall coverings, plaster, drywall, plumbing
				  fixtures, non-asbestos insulation, roofing shingles and other roofing
				  coverings, glass, plastics that are not sealed in a manner that conceals other
				  wastes, empty buckets ten (10) gallons or less in size and having no more than
				  one inch (1") of residue remaining on the bottom, electrical wiring and
				  components containing no hazardous liquids, and pipe and metals that are
				  incidental to any of the above. Solid waste that is not C&D debris (even if
				  resulting from the construction, remodeling, repair, and demolition of
				  utilities, structures, and roads and land clearing) includes, but is not
				  limited to, asbestos waste, garbage, corrugated container board, electrical
				  fixtures containing hazardous liquids such as fluorescent light ballasts or
				  transformers, fluorescent lights, carpeting, furniture, appliances, tires,
				  drums, containers greater than ten (10) gallons in size, any containers having
				  more than one inch (1") of residue remaining on the bottom, and fuel tanks.
				  Also excluded from the definition of C&D debris is solid waste resulting
				  from any processing technique that renders individual waste components
				  unrecognizable, such as pulverizing or shredding, at a facility that processes
				  C&D debris.
53. "Corporation"
				  means the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation.
54. "Corrugated cardboard" means corrugated
				  containers, substantially clean and dry, empty and free of wood, plastic,
				  polystyrene and other packing materials. Wax coated and/or wood reinforced
				  corrugated is excluded from this definition.
55. "Cover material" means clean soil or
				  earth or other material approved by the Director that is used to cover
				  compacted solid waste in a sanitary landfill.
56. "Critical habitat" means for a threatened
				  or endangered species defined in the Endangered Species Act,
				  16 U.S.C. §
												1532, and also includes State species of
				  concern as identified by the Department.
57. "Curing" means the final stage of
				  composting, after much of the readily metabolized organic material has been
				  decomposed, in which the compost material further stabilizes at a slower rate
				  and at a lower temperature than during the initial active composting
				  phase.
58. "Curing area" means the
				  area of the composting facility where curing of the compost occurs.
59. "Decomposition" means the breakdown of
				  organic matter by microbial activity.
60. "Department" or "DEM", or "RIDEM" means
				  the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.
61. "Destruction" or "Adverse modification"
				  (of a critical habitat of endangered or threatened species) means a direct or
				  indirect alteration of a critical habitat which appreciably diminishes the
				  likelihood of the survival and recovery of threatened or endangered species
				  using that habitat, as defined in
				  40 C.F.R. §
												257.3-2(c)(2) (2017)
				  incorporated above at §
											1.3(A) of
				  this Part.
62. "Digestate" means
				  the solid and liquid substances remaining following anaerobic digestion of
				  organic materials and wastes.
63.
				  "Director" means the Director or the Commissioner of the Rhode Island
				  Department of Environmental Management and his or her designee.
64. "Discharge" means the term "discharge" as
				  defined in the Clean Water Act of 1977,
				  33 U.S.C. §
												1322(a)(9), and for the
				  purposes of these Rules and Regulations, it includes leaching and
				  releases.
65. "Disposal" means the
				  abandonment, discard or final disposition of waste.
66. "Distribute" means to offer for sale,
				  sell, barter, or otherwise supply compost products derived from organic solid
				  waste.
67. "Distributor" means the
				  person or company which distributes or markets composted products derived from
				  organic solid waste.
68. "Diversion
				  rate" means the total amount (reflected as a percentage) of a material,
				  diverted from disposal through waste prevention, recycling, or reuse.
69. "Dredged material" means as defined in
				  the Clean Water Act of 1977, 33 U.S.C. §
												1402.
70. "Enclosed vessel" or "In-vessel
				  composting" means the composting of materials within an enclosed vessel in
				  which adequate mixing, aeration, and moisture control are provided.
71. "Endangered species" or "Threatened
				  species" means as defined in the Endangered Species Act,
				  16 U.S.C. §§
												1532(6) and (20), and also
				  includes State species of concern as identified by the National Heritage
				  Program.
72. "Energy recovery"
				  means treatment by which energy is derived or extracted from solid
				  waste.
73. "Energy recovery
				  incinerator" means an incinerator in which household waste and nonhazardous
				  industrial/commercial waste are combusted for energy production.
74. "Environmental management district" means
				  the area located in the Town of Johnston and the City of Cranston bounded by
				  Plainfield Pike on the South; Peck Hill Road on the west; Central Avenue on the
				  north; and I-295 on the east.
75.
				  "Existing SWLF unit" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill (SWLF) Units, any
				  Solid Waste Landfill that is receiving solid waste as of October 9, 1993. Waste
				  placement in existing units must be consistent with past operating practices or
				  modified practices to ensure good management.
76. "Facility" means a Solid Waste Management
				  Facility as defined in §
											1.5(A)
				  (189) of this Part.
77. "Facilities that process construction and
				  demolition debris" means facilities that receive and process construction and
				  demolition debris.
78. "Farmer"
				  means an individual, partnership or corporation who operates a farm and meets
				  the requirements of R.I. Gen. Laws §
											2-1-22(j).
79. "Final cover" means cover material which
				  will be permanently exposed to the environment.
80. "Finished compost" or "finished product"
				  means compost that meets at least minimum requirements for public health,
				  safety and environmental protection and is suitable for use as defined by
				  compost quality standards or as approved by the Department.
81. "Flood plain" means, "that land area
				  adjacent to a river or stream or other body of flowing water which is, on the
				  average, likely to be covered with flood waters resulting from a one hundred
				  (100) year frequency storm," as defined in R.I. Gen. Laws §
											2-1-20, the R.I. Fresh Water
				  Wetlands Act, and in Part 150-15-1 of this Title, Rules and Regulations
				  Governing the Administration and Enforcement of the Fresh Water Wetlands
				  Act.
82. "Fly ash" means the ash
				  residue from the combustion of solid waste or solid waste in combination with
				  fossil fuel that is entrained in the gas stream of a solid waste combustion
				  facility and removed by the air pollution control equipment.
83. "Food chain crops" mean crops consumed by
				  humans as well as crops grown as feed for animals whose products, in-turn, are
				  consumed by humans.
84. "Foreign
				  matter" means the inorganic and organic constituents that are not readily
				  decomposed and which may be present in finished compost. Examples include, but
				  are not limited to, glass, plastics, metals, rubber, bones and
				  leather.
85. "Friable asbestos
				  material" means any material that contains more than one percent (1%) asbestos
				  by weight and that can be crumbled, pulverized, or reduced to powder, when dry,
				  by hand pressure.
86. "Generator"
				  means any person whose act or process produces a solid waste or whose act first
				  causes solid waste to be subject to regulation under this Subchapter.
87. "Geocomposite" means a manufactured
				  material using geotextiles, geogrids, geomembranes, or combinations of same, in
				  a laminated or composite form.
88.
				  "Geogrid" means a deformed or non-deformed netlike polymeric material used with
				  foundation, soil, rock, earth, or any other geotechnical engineering-related
				  material as an integral part of the man-made structure or system to provide
				  reinforcement to soil slopes.
89.
				  "Geomembrane" means an essentially impermeable membrane used with foundation,
				  soil, rock, earth, or any other geotechnical engineering-related material as an
				  integral part of a man-made structure or system designed to limit the movement
				  of liquid or gas in the system.
90.
				  "Geonet" means a type of geogrid that allows planar flow of liquids and serves
				  as a drainage system.
91.
				  "Geosynthetics" mean the generic classification of all synthetic materials used
				  in geotechnical engineering applications, including geotextiles, geogrids,
				  geomembranes, and geocomposites.
92. "Geotextile" means any permeable textile
				  used with foundation, soil, rock, earth, or any other geotechnical
				  engineering-related material as an integral part of a man-made structure or
				  system designed to act as a filter to prevent the flow of soil fines into
				  drainage systems, to provide planar flow for drainage, or to serve as a cushion
				  to protect geomembranes, or to provide structural support.
93. "Groundwater" means water found
				  underground which completely fills the open spaces between particles of
				  sediment and within rock formations.
94. "Groundwater recharge area" means the
				  land surface from which water is added to the zone of saturation. The recharge
				  area for a particular well or aquifer, for instance, is that land surface from
				  which water moves to the well or aquifer or may move to the well or aquifer
				  under certain hydraulic conditions.
95. "Groundwater reservoir" refers to those
				  stratified drift deposits having a saturated thickness greater than or equal to
				  forty feet (40') and a transmissivity greater than or equal to four thousand
				  feet (4,000') squared per day which have been determined by the Director to be
				  potentially significant sources of water.
96. "Hazardous waste" means any waste as
				  defined in Subchapter 10 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for
				  Hazardous Waste Management.
97.
				  "Health", "RIDOH" or "DOH" means the Rhode Island Department of
				  Health.
98. "Heavy metals" means
				  metallic elements with higher molecular weights and at certain concentrations,
				  some of these elements may present health risks to humans and animals and may
				  be toxic to plants.
99. "Humus"
				  means a complex amorphous aggregate, formed during the microbial decomposition
				  or alteration of plant and animal residues and products synthesized by soil
				  organisms; principal constituents are derivatives of lignins, proteins, and
				  cellulose combined with inorganic soil constituents and for water
				  absorption.
100. "Impermeable" or
				  "Impervious" means not permitting the passage of liquids through its
				  substance.
101. "Impermeable liner"
				  means a layer of natural or man-made material of sufficient thickness, density
				  and composition so as to impede the passage of a fluid to a degree that will
				  satisfy the standards required by the Department. For natural materials, this
				  standard shall be 1 x 10-7 cm/sec. For man-made
				  materials, this standard shall be 1 x 10-12
				  cm/sec.
102. "Incinerator" means an
				  arrangement of chambers and equipment designed for burning solid, semi-solid or
				  gaseous combustible waste to a gas and residue. Incinerators used only for the
				  combustion of solid waste generated on site shall not be covered by this
				  definition.
103. "Initial cover"
				  means cover material that is spread and compacted on the top, side slopes, and
				  the face of compacted solid waste at least at the end of each operating day in
				  accordance with §2.3.4(A) of this Subchapter.
104. "Inocula" or "Inoculum" means
				  preconditional microorganisms or compost added to a raw material to assure that
				  appropriate microorganisms are present so as to sustain decomposition of
				  organic material in a composting process.
105. "Inorganic materials" mean materials in
				  which there are no carbon-to-carbon bonds, such as minerals, and which,
				  therefore, will not undergo biological decomposition.
106. "Intermediate cover" means cover
				  material which must resist erosion for a longer period of time because it is
				  applied in accordance with §2.3.4(B) of this Subchapter on areas where
				  additional cells are not to be constructed for extended periods of
				  time.
107. "Landfill cell" means a
				  discrete volume of a landfill which uses a liner system to provide isolation of
				  solid waste from adjacent cells of solid waste.
108. "Landfill gas recovery facility" means a
				  facility in which gases produced from the decomposition of solid wastes are
				  collected for the purpose of the control of landfill gas migration and/or for
				  the recovery of energy.
109. "Land
				  reclamation" means the restoration of productivity to lands made barren through
				  processes such as erosion, mining, or land clearing.
110. "Large-scale leaf and yard waste
				  composting facility" means a facility that is required to be registered with
				  the Department and is designed and operated to receive and compost only leaf
				  and yard waste. The facility's capacity is greater than six hundred (600) cubic
				  yards or more of leaf and yard waste in the staging, storing, processing and
				  curing stages. Only finished compost is excluded.
111. "Large-scale putrescible waste
				  composting facility" means a facility that is required to be registered with
				  the Department and is designed and operated to receive and compost only
				  putrescible waste. The facility's capacity is greater than six hundred (600)
				  cubic yards or more of waste in the staging, storing, processing and curing
				  stages. Only finished compost is excluded.
112. "Lateral expansion" means, relative to
				  Solid Waste Landfill (SWLF) Units, a horizontal expansion of the waste
				  boundaries of an existing SWLF Unit.
113. "Leachate" means a liquid that has
				  percolated through, or originated in solid waste and is presumed by these Rules
				  and Regulations to contain dissolved or suspended materials from solid
				  waste.
114. "Lead-free" means any
				  soil, compost, sludge, or other designated medium that either contains no lead,
				  or contains lead in amounts less than the maximum acceptable environmental lead
				  levels established in 216-RICR- 50-15-3 (Lead Poisoning Prevention).
115. "Lead-safe" means any soil, compost,
				  sludge, or other designated medium that contains lead in amounts less than the
				  maximum permissible environmental lead levels established in 216-RICR- 50-15-3,
				  Lead Poisoning Prevention; which poses no significant environmental lead
				  exposure hazard despite having a lead concentration above that required for a
				  designation as "Lead free."
116.
				  "Leaf and yard waste" means seasonal deposition of leaves from deciduous and
				  coniferous trees and shrubbery, grass clippings, weeds, herbaceous garden
				  waste, shrub and tree prunings, seaweed, Christmas trees and brush.
117. "Licensing agency" means the Department
				  of Environmental Management.
118.
				  "Lift" means a compacted layer of solid waste plus its overlying cover material
				  in a sanitary landfill.
119. "Liner
				  system" means a continuous layer of natural and man-made materials, beneath or
				  on the sides of a surface impoundment, landfill, or landfill cell, which
				  restricts the downward or lateral escape of solid waste, any constituents of
				  such wastes, or leachate and which complies with these Rules and
				  Regulations.
120. "Manure" means a
				  waste composed of excreta of animals.
121. "Materials recovery facility" or "MRF"
				  or "Intermediate processing facility" or "IPF" means a facility consisting of
				  structures, machinery, or devices utilized to sort, bale, or otherwise process
				  or ready to transport to processors, only Source Segregated Recyclable
				  Materials prior to conveyance to market outlets. Facilities meeting the above
				  requirements are not required to apply for a Solid Waste Management Facility
				  license except for facilities that accept, store, or process waste tires
				  pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 23-63.
122. "Mature compost" means compost that has
				  stabilized and has undergone a reduction of pathogens below the level of human
				  risk. It is characterized as containing readily available forms of plant
				  nutrients, poor in phytotoxic acids and phenols, and low in available carbon
				  compounds.
123. "Medium-scale
				  composting facility" means a composting facility that is required to be
				  registered with the Department and is designed and operated to compost between
				  twenty-five (25) cubic yards and no more than six hundred (600) cubic yards of
				  leaf, yard and/or putrescible waste on the property at any given time. The
				  maximum quantity includes unincorporated feedstock and feedstock that is
				  staged, stored, processed or in the curing stage. Only finished compost is
				  excluded.
124. "Microorganisms"
				  mean living organisms visible only with a microscope.
125. "Mixed solid waste" means heterogeneous
				  and commingled solid waste, which may include readily biodegradable organic
				  wastes, as well as other organic wastes which are not readily biodegradable and
				  may also contain inorganic, non-compostable wastes.
126. "Mixed solid waste composting facility"
				  means a Solid Waste Management Facility that utilizes organic waste recycling
				  by producing compost from the compostable portion of a mixed solid waste input
				  stream.
127. "Monofill" means a
				  landfill or landfill cell into which only one (1) homogeneous type of waste is
				  placed.
128. "Municipal solid
				  waste" means that solid waste generated by the residents of a municipality in
				  the course of their daily living, the disposal of which the governing body of
				  the municipality has undertaken in the discharge of its duties to protect the
				  health of the municipality. Municipal Solid Waste does not include solid waste
				  generated by residents of a municipality in the course of their employment or
				  that is generated by any manufacturing or commercial enterprise.
129. "New SWLF unit" means relative to Solid
				  Waste Landfill Units, any Solid Waste Landfill Unit that has not received waste
				  prior to October 9, 1993.
130.
				  "Non-compostable" means incapable of decomposing naturally or of yielding safe,
				  non-toxic end products, after decomposition.
131. "Non-hazardous liquid and semi-liquid
				  waste" means any discarded material that is liquid or semi-liquid and which is
				  not hazardous waste, as defined in the Hazardous Waste Management Act, R.I.
				  Gen. Laws Chapter 23-19.1, or Rules and Regulations promulgated pursuant to
				  such Act.
132. "Oil spill cleanup
				  debris" means waste resulting from the cleanup of debris caused by spilling,
				  depositing or placing of petroleum distillates, including but not limited to
				  crank case oil, lubricants and hydraulic oil, penetrant oils, tramp oils,
				  quenching oils, kerosene, gasoline, aviation fuels, diesel, and Nos. 2, 4, and
				  6 heating oil, onto the land or into the waters of the State.
133. "On-farm" means on farmland owned by the
				  agricultural composting facility owner.
134. "Open burning" means the combustion of
				  solid waste without:
a. Control of combustion
				  air to maintain adequate temperature for efficient combustion,
b. Containment of the combustion reaction in
				  an enclosed device to provide sufficient residence time and mixing for complete
				  combustion, and
c. Control of the
				  emission of the combustion products.
135. "Operating an organic waste recycling
				  facility" means receiving Organic Waste Materials at any facility, whether
				  knowingly or unknowingly. Any property owner is considered to be operating an
				  Organic Waste Recycling Facility if an amount of Organic Waste Materials
				  greater than twenty-five (25) cubic yards exists on their property. For
				  purposes of disposal, any property owner will be considered to be operating a
				  Solid Waste Management Facility if the amount of solid waste at the property is
				  greater than three (3) cubic yards.
136. "Operating a solid waste management
				  facility" means receiving solid waste at any facility, whether knowingly or
				  unknowingly. For purposes of disposal, such receipt must be in an amount
				  greater than three (3) cubic yards, per R.I. Gen. Laws §
											23-18.9-5; and any property owner
				  is considered to be operating a Solid Waste Management Facility if an amount of
				  solid waste greater than three (3) cubic yards exists on their
				  property.
137. "Operator" means the
				  person, corporation, or entity responsible for daily operations or activities
				  at an Organic Waste Recycling Facility or Solid Waste Management Facility,
				  whether licensed, unlicensed, registered or unregistered.
138. "Organic material" or "Organic waste
				  materials" mean materials that are the organic portion of the solid waste
				  stream, contain carbon-to-carbon bonds and are biodegradable, such as paper,
				  wood, food scraps, food processing residue, leaves, and yard waste.
139. "Organic waste recycling facility" means
				  a compost facility or Anaerobic Digestion Facility.
140. "Owner" means any person, corporation,
				  or entity who owns an Organic Waste Recycling Facility or Solid Waste
				  Management Facility and who may also own the real property upon which the
				  facility is located and/or constructed, whether licensed, unlicensed,
				  registered or unregistered.
141.
				  "Passive windrow composting" means composting of wastes in windrows in which
				  wastes are turned at least twice per year.
142. "Pathogens" mean organisms or
				  microorganisms including viruses, bacteria, fungi, helminth, and protozoa
				  capable of producing an infection or disease in a susceptible host.
143. "Percent moisture" (relative to
				  composting) means weight of water in a material divided by the total weight of
				  the material, multiplied by one hundred (100).
144. "Percolation" means the downward
				  movement of water or liquids through the pores or spaces of material or
				  soil.
145. "Permeability" means the
				  ability of water or liquids to percolate through a material or soil.
146. "Person" means an individual, firm,
				  joint stock company, partnership, association, private or municipal
				  corporation, government or quasi-governmental corporation, State, commission,
				  political subdivision of a State, any interstate body, municipality or the
				  Federal government or any agency or subdivision thereof.
147. "Petroleum contaminated soil" means soil
				  that is contaminated from an aboveground or underground leak or spill of a
				  petroleum product. The soil must be contaminated with only virgin (unused)
				  petroleum products. Included in this group are the following products:
a. Unused distillate and residual oil
				  including, but not limited to, gasoline, aviation fuels, kerosene, diesel, and
				  Nos. 2, 4, and 6 heating oil;
b.
				  Unused crankcase oil, lubricants, hydraulic oils, penetrant oils, tramp oils,
				  quench oils, and other industrial oils.
148. "pH" means the logarithm of the
				  reciprocal of the hydrogen ion concentration (base ten (10)) and shall be a
				  measure of how acidic (pH less than seven (7)) or basic (pH greater than seven
				  (7)) a material is. A pH of seven (7) is considered neutral.
149. "Physical contaminants" means any
				  non-biodegradable material such as plastic, metal, glass, stones or masonry
				  debris.
150. "Phytotoxic" means
				  detrimental, because of toxicity, to plant growth.
151. "Pollutant" means any material or
				  effluent which may alter the chemical, physical, biological, or radiological
				  characteristics and/or integrity of water, including but not limited to,
				  dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage
				  sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive
				  materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, cellar dirt or industrial,
				  municipal, agricultural, or other waste, petroleum or petroleum products,
				  including but not limited to, oil.
152. "Pollution" means the entrance or
				  discharge of any pollutant into any waters of the State including groundwaters,
				  in such quantity, either by itself or in connection with other materials so
				  discharged, as to alter the physical, chemical, biological or radiological
				  characteristics and/or integrity of said waters, including change in
				  temperature, taste, color, turbidity or odor, and, to cause or be likely to
				  cause damage to the public, or to any person having a right to use said waters
				  for human consumption, commercial or domestic uses, for boating, fishing or
				  other purposes, or owning property in, under or bordering upon same.
153. "Practice" means the act of disposal of
				  solid waste, as defined in 40 C.F.R. §
												257.2 (2017),
				  incorporated above at §
											1.3(A) of
				  this Part.
154. "PFRP" means the
				  Process to Further Reduce Pathogens required during the composting
				  process.
155. "Processable
				  material" means those Recyclable Materials that meet criteria of purity and
				  condition as defined by the Corporation and the Department in conjunction with
				  the operator of the MRF.
156.
				  "Project engineer" means the official representative of the permittee who is
				  licensed to practice engineering in the State of Rhode Island, who will direct
				  an engineering design team in development projects throughout the entire cycle
				  from initial permit application through completion. In addition, the project
				  engineer shall be responsible for documenting and certifying that the
				  construction activities related to Solid Waste Management Facilities were
				  performed in accordance with applicable Solid Waste Regulations, engineering
				  standards and approved engineering plans. All certifications must bear his
				  seal, his signature, and the date of certification.
157. "Putrescible waste" means solid waste
				  including, but not limited to, fish waste and other food wastes which contains
				  organic matter capable of being decomposed by microorganisms and that has a
				  tendency to form foul-smelling by-products, during decomposition, and may
				  provide food for vectors or birds.
158. "Quality assurance" means the
				  application of standards and procedures to ensure that a product or facility
				  meets or exceeds desired performance criteria, and documentation to verify the
				  results obtained. "Quality Assurance" includes "quality control" and refers to
				  actions taken to assure conformity of the construction with the Department
				  approved quality assurance plan, engineering plans, reports, and
				  specifications.
159. "Quality
				  control" means those actions which provide a means to measure and regulate the
				  characteristics of an item or service to contractual and regulatory
				  requirements. Quality control includes those actions taken before construction
				  to ensure that the materials chosen and workmanship comply with the Department
				  approved quality control plan, engineering plans, reports and
				  specifications.
160. "Recycling"
				  means the reuse or remanufacture of recovered resources in manufacturing,
				  agriculture, power production or other processes.
161. "Recyclable material" means any material
				  listed as a recyclable material in Subchapter 20 Part 2 of this Chapter, Rules
				  and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Municipal Solid Waste, and
				  Subchapter 20 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and
				  Recycling of Commercial and Non-Municipal Residential Solid Waste, or R.I. Gen.
				  Laws Chapter 23-60, "Batter Deposit and Control", or oil subject to the
				  hard-to-dispose-of tax as stated in R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 37-15.1.
162. "Recyclables" means for purposes of
				  these Rules and Regulations, any residual recyclable material remaining in a
				  solid waste stream after removal (source segregation) of recyclable material by
				  the original generator(s) of the solid waste, in accordance with Subchapter 20
				  Part 2 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of
				  Municipal Solid Waste, and Subchapter 20 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and
				  Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Commercial and NonMunicipal
				  Residential Solid Waste, and/or other recyclable material not defined as such
				  or not regulated by these municipal and commercial recycling Rules and
				  Regulations.
163. "Refining" means
				  (relative to composting) screening and other procedures (if applicable) which
				  may be required to meet product quality standards and meet market
				  requirements.
164. "Refuse" means
				  Solid Waste as defined in §
											1.5(A)(186)
				  of this Part.
165. "Refuse derived
				  fuel" means treated solid waste that is used as a fuel.
166. "Refuse derived fuel processing
				  facility" means the combination of structures, machinery, or devices utilized
				  to reduce or alter the volume of mixed solid waste before delivery to a solid
				  waste incinerator.
167. "Registered
				  compost facility" means a Medium-Scale Composting Facility, a Large-Scale Leaf
				  and Yard Waste Composting Facility or a Large-Scale Putrescible Waste
				  Composting Facility that has received registration acceptance from the
				  Department. The Registered Compost Facility shall operate in accordance with
				  the information submitted on the Composting Operation/Facility registration
				  form on file at the Department and in accordance with Part 8 of this
				  Subchapter, Solid Waste Regulation No. 8, Rhode Island Organic Waste Recycling
				  Facilities.
168. "Release" means
				  any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging,
				  injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing into the environment. For
				  purposes of these Rules and Regulations, release also includes any storage,
				  disposal, or abandonment of any substance or material in a manner which
				  presents a substantial threat of release as herein defined.
169. "Resident" means of a city or town means
				  anyone residing in that municipality for any period of time.
170. "Residue" means any solid that remains
				  after completion of solid waste processing including incineration products such
				  as bottom ash, fly ash and grate siftings.
171. "Resource recovery" means the processing
				  of solid waste in such a way as to produce materials or energy which may be
				  used in manufacturing, agriculture and other processes.
172. "Resource recovery facility" means a
				  processing facility which accepts solid waste for the purpose of resource
				  recovery.
173. "Run-off" means any
				  rainwater, leachate, or other liquid that drains over land from any part of a
				  facility.
174. "Run-on" means any
				  rainwater, leachate, or other liquid that drains over land onto any part of a
				  facility.
175. "Sanitary landfill"
				  means a licensed land disposal site employing an engineered method of disposal
				  of solid waste in a manner that absolutely minimizes environmental hazards,
				  including: spreading the solid waste in thin layers, compacting the solid waste
				  to the smallest practical volume; and applying cover material at the end of
				  each operating day, or at such more frequent intervals as may be necessary. A
				  sanitary landfill also means a Solid Waste Landfill.
176. "Screening of compost" means the process
				  of passing compost through a screen or sieve to remove large particles of
				  organic and inorganic materials, so as to improve the consistency and quality
				  of the end product.
177.
				  "Screenings" means facilities that separate or process construction and
				  demolition debris, means that material that is separated out of the
				  construction and demolition debris waste stream by passage through or retention
				  on a screen.
178. "Seed materials"
				  means, relative to composting, additives or inocula added to the waste to
				  accelerate or activate the composting process.
179. "Segregated solid waste" means solid
				  waste that has been separated into Recyclable Materials and non-recyclable
				  wastes in compliance with these Regulations.
180. "Septic waste" means any solid, liquid,
				  or semi-solid waste removed from septic tanks or cesspools, lagoons, trucks, or
				  other sources.
181. "Sewage sludge"
				  means a semi-liquid substance consisting of settled sewage solids combined with
				  water and dissolved materials in varying amounts.
182. "Shredding" means breaking up waste
				  materials into small pieces, usually in the form of irregularly shaped strips
				  that is generally performed by mechanical methods.
183. "Size reduction" means the breaking up
				  of solid waste or other materials into smaller pieces, through abrasion,
				  thermal dissociation, tearing, screening, tumbling, rolling, crushing,
				  chipping, shredding, grinding, shearing, etc., in order to make the waste
				  material easier to separate and relative to composting processes, to increase
				  the surface area for composting.
184. "Small-scale composting operation" means
				  a composting operation that is designed and operated to compost twenty-five
				  (25) cubic yards or less of leaf, yard and/or putrescible waste on the property
				  at any given time. The maximum quantity includes unincorporated feedstock and
				  feedstock that is staged, stored, processed or in the curing stage. Only
				  finished compost is excluded.
185.
				  "Soil amendment" means a soil additive which stabilizes the soil, improves the
				  resistance to erosion, increases its permeability to air and water, improves
				  its texture and the resistance of the surface to crusting, makes it easier to
				  cultivate, or otherwise improves its quality.
186. "Soil amendment ingredient" means a
				  substitute which improves the physical characteristics of the soil.
187. "Solid waste" means garbage, refuse and
				  other discarded solid, semi-solid liquid and containerized gaseous wastes
				  materials generated by residential, institutional, commercial, industrial and
				  agricultural sources but does not include solids or dissolved material in
				  domestic sewage or sewage sludge, nor does it include hazardous waste, as
				  defined by Subchapter 10 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for
				  Hazardous Waste Management, nor does it include used asphalt, concrete,
				  Portland concrete cement, or tree stumps generated on-site.
188. "Solid waste landfill unit" or "SWLF"
				  means a discrete area of land or an excavation that receives solid waste and
				  that is not a land application unit, surface impoundment, injection well, or a
				  waste pile as defined per 40
				  C.F.R. §
												257.2 (2017), incorporated
				  above at §
											1.3(A) of
				  this Part. A SWLF Unit may receive all types of RCRA Subtitle D wastes, such as
				  commercial solid waste, C & D wastes, certain non-hazardous sludges, and
				  industrial solid waste. Such a landfill may be publicly or privately owned. A
				  SWLF Unit may be a new SWLF Unit, an existing SWLF Unit or a lateral
				  expansion.
189. "Solid waste
				  management facility" means any plant, structure, equipment, real and personal
				  property that receives solid waste, except mobile equipment or incinerators
				  with a capacity of less than one thousand (1,000) pounds per hour.
190. "Source segregated recyclable materials"
				  means useful material which has been separated from the waste stream at the
				  point of generation for the purpose of recovering and recycling these
				  materials.
191. "Source separated
				  solid waste" or "Source segregated solid waste" means solid waste that has been
				  segregated into recyclable and non-recyclable materials at the point of
				  generation and in compliance with Subchapter 20 Part 2 of this Chapter, Rules
				  and Regulations for Reduction and Recycling of Municipal Solid Waste, and
				  Subchapter 20 Part 1 of this Chapter, Rules and Regulations for Reduction and
				  Recycling of Commercial and NonMunicipal Residential Solid Waste.
192. "Stability" (relative to composting)
				  means the degree to which a composted material can be stored or used without
				  giving rise to nuisances (odors or vectors) or can be applied to the soil
				  without causing problems.
193.
				  "Stabilization" means the second (2nd) stage of
				  composting (following decomposition) characterized by slow metabolic processes,
				  lower heat production, and the formation of humus-like material.
194. "Staging area" means the temporary
				  holding area where solid waste is received, mixed, or debagged before moving it
				  to the processing and/or composting area.
195. "State" means the State of Rhode
				  Island.
196. "Street sweepings"
				  means sand that may have been mixed with salt and then applied to public or
				  private streets, roads, highways, and parking areas during winter storm
				  operations, and that is ultimately swept or cleaned from these areas and
				  recovered.
197. "Surface public
				  water supply" means surface water that supplies piped water for human
				  consumption by means of a system having at least fifteen (15) service
				  connections or regularly serving at least twenty-five (25) individuals for at
				  least sixty (60) days of the year.
198. "Surface water" means a body of water
				  whose top surface is exposed to the atmosphere including rivers, ponds, lakes,
				  etc.
199. "Take" means, "to harass,
				  harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect, or to
				  attempt to engage in any such conduct," as defined in the Endangered Species
				  Act, 16 U.S.C. §
												1532.
200. "Thermophylic" means occurring in a high
				  temperature range, usually forty-five degrees (45° C) to seventy-five
				  degrees (75° C) centigrade.
201. "Toe" means the bottom of the working
				  face or side slope of a land disposal site where deposited solid waste is in
				  contact with virgin ground or a previous lift.
202. "Transfer station" means a Solid Waste
				  Management Facility, other than a materials recovery facility or intermediate
				  processing facility that can have a combination of structures, machinery, or
				  devices where solid waste is taken from collection vehicles and ultimately
				  placed in other transportation units for movement to another Solid Waste
				  Management Facility.
203.
				  "Uppermost aquifer" means, relative to Solid Waste Landfill Units, the geologic
				  formation nearest the natural ground surface that is an aquifer, as well as
				  lower aquifers that are hydraulically interconnected with this aquifer within
				  the facility's property boundary.
204. "Vector" means a carrier, usually an
				  insect or rodent that is capable of transmitting a pathogen from one (1)
				  organism to another.
205. "Washout"
				  means the carrying away of solid waste by waters of the base flood, as defined
				  in 40 C.F.R. §
												257.3-1 (2017), incorporated above at §
											1.3(A) of
				  this Part.
206. "Waste" means
				  discarded or abandoned solid, semi-solid or liquid material.
207. "Waste management" means actions taken
				  to effectuate the receipt, storage, transportation, processing for resource
				  recovery, recycling, and/or the ultimate disposal of solid waste.
208. "Waste management unit boundary" means,
				  relative to Solid Waste Landfill Units, a vertical surface located at the
				  hydraulically down gradient limit of the unit. This vertical surface extends
				  down into the uppermost aquifer.
209. "Waste tire storage and recycling
				  facility" means a facility for used vehicle tire recycling or recovery and/or
				  where greater than four hundred (400) used vehicle tires are stored or are
				  intended to be stored.
210. "Water
				  table" means the upper surface of the zone of saturation in an unconfined
				  aquifer.
211. "Wellhead protection
				  area" means the critical portion of a three (3) dimensional zone, designated by
				  the Director, surrounding a public well or well-field through which water will
				  move toward and reach such well or well-field.
212. "Windrow" means an elevated pile of
				  solid waste, formed for the purpose of composting, no larger than any dimension
				  constraints specified in these Rules and Regulations, and which is oriented
				  along the fall line of the compost pad and fits within the perimeter of the
				  compost pad.
213. "Windrow
				  composting" means the composting of organic materials that are arranged in a
				  series of windrows and which are turned periodically to aerate and mix the
				  waste materials to speed up decomposition and reduce or prevent
				  odors.
214. "Working face" means
				  that portion of a land disposal site where solid waste is discharged by
				  collection and/or haulage vehicles and is spread and compacted prior to
				  placement of cover material.
215.
				  "Yard waste" means leaves, grass clippings, weeds, herbaceous garden waste,
				  shrub and tree prunings, and brush.