Hazardous Waste Deregulation Nixed

EPA has repealed an industry-sought deregulation that allowed certain hazardous wastes to be burned as fuel in industrial boilers, which are less tightly regulated than hazardous-waste incinerators. The deregulation had allowed these materials to be used as boiler fuel if emissions from combusting them were comparable with air pollution produced from burning fuel oil. In its revocation, EPA cited difficulty with ensuring that emissions from burning hazardous waste and fuel oil were comparable. The American Chemistry Council and National Association of Manufacturers, both industry groups, initially sought the deregulation, which took effect in the last hours of the George W. Bush Administration. A number of chemical companies were expected to benefit from it (C&EN, Dec. 3, 2007, page 13), but the deregulation included a number of provisions that some firms complained were too restrictive.