Project XL Site-Specific Rulemaking for Implementing Waste Treatment Systems at Two Virginia Landfills

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing a site- specific rule to implement a project under the Project XL program, an EPA initiative which encourages regulated entities to achieve better environmental results at decreased costs at their facilities. Today's proposal would provide regulatory flexibility under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), as amended, at two Virginia landfills: The Maplewood Recycling and Waste Disposal Facility, located in Amelia County, Virginia (Maplewood Landfill); and the King George County Landfill and Recycling Facility, located in King George County, Virginia (King George Landfill). The Maplewood Landfill is owned and operated by USA Waste of Virginia, Inc., and the King George Landfill is owned by King George County and operated by King George Landfills, Inc. USA Waste of Virginia, Inc. and King George Landfills, Inc. are both subsidiaries of Waste Management, Inc., and will be referred to collectively as "Waste Management." Maplewood Landfill and King George Landfill, both of which are municipal solid waste landfills (MSWLFs), will be referred to collectively as the "Virginia Project XL Landfills". On September 29, 2000, EPA, USA Waste of Virginia, Inc., and King George Landfills, Inc., signed the Final Project Agreement (FPA) for this project, which would allow the addition of liquids to the landfills. This addition of liquids is expected to accelerate the biodegradation of landfill waste, decrease the time it takes for the waste to reach stabilization in the landfill, facilitate the management of leachate and other liquid wastes, and promote recovery of landfill gas. The principal objectives of this XL project are to demonstrate that the alternative liners installed at the Virginia Project XL Landfills are as protective as the liner prescribed in EPA MSWLF regulations over which leachate recirculation is allowed under existing RCRA regulations, and to assess the effects of applying differing amounts of liquids to landfills. In order to carry out this project, Waste Management will need relief from certain requirements in EPA regulations which set forth design and operating criteria for MSWLFs, requirements which would otherwise preclude the addition of liquids at these landfills. Today's proposed rule would allow the Virginia Landfills to apply collected, non-containerized non-hazardous bulk liquids (including landfill leachate, as further described as follows) to the landfills. This proposed rule would require compliance with each of the design, monitoring, record keeping, reporting, and operational requirements contained in this proposed rule, as well as MSWLF regulations not affected by this rule. Upon completion of the rulemaking, these requirements and conditions would be enforceable in the same way that current RCRA standards for solid waste landfills are enforceable to ensure that management of non-hazardous solid waste is performed in a manner that is protective of human health and the environment. Today's proposed rulemaking would not affect the provisions or applicability of any other existing or future regulations. The Virginia XL Project Landfills comprise two of several landfills, located in different geographic and climactic regions across the country, that are testing bioreactor technology under Project XL. The bioreactor approach planned for the King George County Landfill involves application of about twice the quantity of liquid that is applied at the Maplewood Landfill. Other XL projects which are testing bioreactor techniques included the Yolo County, California XL Project (final rule published in the Federal Register at 66 FR 42441, August 13, 2001), and the Buncombe County, North Carolina XL Project (final rule published in the Federal Register at 66 FR 44061, August 22, 2001).