GENERAL LISTING BACKGROUND DOCUMENT FOR THE INORGANIC CHEMICAL LISTING DETERMINATION August, 2000 U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY ARIEL RIOS BUILDING 1200 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, N.W. WASHINGTON, D.C. 20460 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES .............................................................ii LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................ii LIST OF APPENDICES .........................................................ii 1. INTRODUCTION .......................................................1 1.1 BACKGROUND ...................................................1 1.2 EXISTING INORGANIC CHEMICAL LISTINGS ........................2 1.3 OTHER EPA REGULATORY PROGRAMS AFFECTING THE INORGANIC CHEMICAL INDUSTRY ............................................3 2. INDUSTRY DESCRIPTION .........................................5 2.1 INDUSTRY PROFILE ..............................................5 2.2 INDUSTRY SECTORS .............................................5 2.2.1 Antimony Oxide ..............................................8 2.2.2 Barium Carbonate ............................................8 2.2.3 Boric Acid ..................................................8 2.2.4 Cadmium Pigments ............................................8 2.2.5 Inorganic Hydrogen Cyanide ....................................8 2.2.6 Phenyl Mercuric Acetate .......................................8 2.2.7 Dry Process Phosphoric Acid ....................................8 2.2.8 Phosphorous Pentasulfide .......................................8 2.2.9 Phosphorous Trichloride ........................................9 2.2.10 Potassium Dichromate .........................................9 2.2.11 Sodium Chlorate .............................................9 2.2.12 Sodium Dichromate ...........................................9 2.2.13 Sodium Phosphate from Wet Process Phosphoric Acid .................9 2.2.14 Titanium Dioxide .............................................9 3. INFORMATION COLLECTION ...........................................9 3.1 INDUSTRY STUDY ...............................................9 3.1.1 Quality Assurance Project Plan ...................................9 3.1.2 Engineering Site Visits ........................................10 3.1.3 RCRA §3007 Questionnaire ...................................12 3.1.4 Familiarization Sampling and Analysis .............................13 3.1.5 Record Sampling and Analysis ..................................14 Inorganic Listing Determination General Listing Background Document ii August, 2000 LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1 - Current Inorganic Chemical Listings ........................................3 Table 3.1 - Engineering Site Visit Locations and Dates ..................................10 Table 3.2 - Familiarization Samples Collected .........................................13 Table 3.3 - Record Sampling Locations .............................................15 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2.1 - Geographical Distribution of U.S. Inorganic Chemical Industry Facilities .............7 LIST OF APPENDICES Appendix A 1998 RCRA §3007 Survey of the Inorganic Chemical Industry Appendix B List of Inorganic Chemical Manufacturing Facilities Inorganic Listing Determination General Listing Background Document iii August, 2000 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND The 1984 Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA) to RCRA require EPA to make listing determinations for several specified categories of wastes, including “inorganic chemical industry wastes” (see RCRA section 3001(e)(2)). In 1989, the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) filed a lawsuit to enforce the statutory deadlines for listing decisions in RCRA Section 3001(e)(2). (EDF v. Browner; D.D.C. Civ. No. 89-0598). To resolve most of the issues in the case, EDF and EPA entered into a consent decree, which has been amended several times to revise deadlines for EPA action. Paragraph 1.g (as amended) of the consent decree obligates EPA’s Administrator to sign a proposed listing determination for inorganic chemical wastes no later than August 30, 2000, and to sign a final listing determination for inorganic chemical wastes no later than October 31, 2001. As a result of the consent decree, EPA has investigated the inorganic chemical industry to determine whether the wastes generated pose a threat to human health and the environment and to establish a basis for making such a determination. This background document presents some of the information EPA used to make the listing determinations. The listing determination includes wastes generated from the following 14 inorganic production processes as specified in the consent decree: 1. Antimony oxide 2. Barium carbonate 3. Boric acid 4. Cadmium pigments 5. Inorganic hydrogen cyanide 6. Phosphoric acid from the dry process 7. Phosphorous pentasulfide 8. Phosphorous trichloride 9. Potassium dichromate, 10. Sodium chlorate 11. Phenyl mercuric acetate 12. Sodium dichromate 13. Sodium phosphate from wet process 14. Titanium dioxide (except for chloride process waste solids). Each of the 14 individual sectors are significantly different from one another in their production processes, waste generation and waste management practices. The EPA is therefore making separate listing determinations for each of the fourteen inorganic chemical sectors. The basis behind each listing determination will be discussed in the Sector Specific Background Documents. As part of the Agency’s current investigation of wastes from the inorganic chemicals industry, the EPA conducted engineering site visits to 22 chemical manufacturing facilities to gain an understanding of the Inorganic Listing Determination General Listing Background Document 1 August, 2000 present state of the industry. These 22 facilities were chosen based on the representativeness of processing within each sector and facility availability. Familiarization samples were collected at 10 facilities visited to obtain data on the nature of the wastes generated and to identify potential problems that could arise in future record sampling. Concurrently, the Agency developed, distributed and evaluated a census survey of the industry under RCRA section 3007 authorities. Dynamac Corporation was contracted (EPA Contract No. 68-W-98-231) to assist EPA in the characterization and evaluation of the industry wastes. Record samples of the wastes were collected from 13 facilities. 1.2 EXISTING INORGANIC CHEMICAL LISTINGS EPA’s Office of Solid Waste (OSW) made a previous study of the inorganic chemical industry in the 1980s. This study characterized the industry up to 1985. No listing determinations were made as part of the initial effort. The Agency has, however, proposed and promulgated a number of other hazardous waste listings that apply to the inorganic chemical industry. Table 1.1 contains a list of current hazardous waste listings associated with the inorganic chemical industry. Inorganic Listing Determination General Listing Background Document 2 August, 2000 Table 1.1 - Current Inorganic Chemical Listings Hazardous Listing Description Date of FR Waste Number Publication K002 Wastewater treatment sludge from the production of chrome 11/12/1980 yellow and orange pigments K003 Wastewater treatment sludge from the production of 11/12/1980 molybdate orange pigments K004 Wastewater treatment sludge from the production of zinc 11/12/1980 yellow pigments K005 Wastewater treatment sludge from the production of chrome 11/12/1980 green pigments K006 Wastewater treatment sludge from the production of chrome 11/12/1980 oxide green pigments (anhydrous and hydrated) K007 Wastewater treatment sludge from the production of iron 11/12/1980 blue pigments K008 Oven residue from the production of chrome green oxide 11/12/1980 pigments K071 Brine purification muds from the mercury cell process in 01/16/1981 chlorine production, where separately pre-purified brine is not used K073 Chlorinated hydrocarbon waste from the purification step of 07/16/1980 the diaphragm cell process using graphite anodes in chlorine (Interim Final) production K106 Wastewater treatment sludge from the mercury cell process 01/16/1981 in chlorine production Initially the wastes categorized as K053 -K059 and K074 were included in the list of hazardous waste under §261.32 but were removed under the final rule promulgated October 30, 1980 (45 FR 72037). The Agency also regulates wastes that exhibit a hazardous characteristic. Many of the wastes generated by the inorganic chemical manufacturing industry exhibit the Toxicity Characteristic (TC) due to the presence of high TC metal concentrations. The TC metals list is found in 40 CFR 261.24 and includes: arsenic, barium, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, selenium, and silver. 1.3 OTHER EPA REGULATORY PROGRAMS AFFECTING THE INORGANIC CHEMICAL INDUSTRY Inorganic Listing Determination General Listing Background Document 3 August, 2000 Each of EPA’s major program offices has long-standing regulatory controls that apply directly and indirectly to the inorganic chemical industries. Some of the more significant programs with some relevance to this listing determination include the following: • The Agency indirectly regulates emissions through standards such as the national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS). These standards require the States to control emissions of air pollutants through state permit levels. • The Clean Air Act’s National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAPs) for organic hazardous air pollutants from the inorganic chemical manufacturing industry