Long-Term Stewardship

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Regulatory Framework

The ER project at SNL/NM is currently regulated under the Resource and Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA). The hazardous waste management provisions of RCRA as amended in 1976 govern the day-to-day operations of hazardous waste treatment, storage, and disposal (TSD) facilities. Section 3005 of RCRA establishes a permitting system and sets standards for all hazardous waste-producing operations at a TSD facility. Through day-to-day operations, most unrelated to the ER Project, SNL/NM generates, stores, and treats hazardous waste. These operations are permitted by the state of New Mexico, as an authorized state under RCRA.

Congress amended RCRA again in 1984 with the passage of the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA). These amendments provided new authority to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), directing the agency (or authorized state) to require a corrective action program to remediate releases of hazardous waste from any facility seeking a RCRA permit. Potential corrective actions may include source containment to prevent contaminant migration, controls on future land use, and excavation and treatment of the source to permanently eliminate hazards to health and the environment.

The HSWA corrective action program at SNL/NM is regulated under a Compliance Order on Consent (Consent Order), effective April 29, 2004. The Consent Order is an agreement among the Department of Energy, Sandia Corporation, and the New Mexico Environment Department. All aspects of corrective action, including site investigations and remedy selection, are governed by the Consent Order. Two lists of solid waste management units (divided into those requiring corrective action and those for which corrective action is complete) are maintained in the SNL/NM RCRA permit.

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