The Office of Waste Management and Radiological Protection is proposing a revised rule package for the administrative rules associated with Part 111, Hazardous Waste Management, of Act 451 of 1994. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency authorizes Michigan to administer Part 111 in lieu of the federal Hazardous Waste Management Program. The proposed rules contain revisions based on federal mandates as well as recommendations from the DEQ and the public.
Michigan must comply with federal requirements in order to maintain authorization to implement the state’s Hazardous Waste Management Program. Several of the proposed changes bring Part 111 in line with recent revisions to the federal program, including changes to hazardous waste identification, listing, treatment, testing, monitoring, and manifesting requirements. Additionally, the rules package adopts the federal academic lab rule by allowing more flexible standards for academic laboratories. It also aligns the state’s universal waste regulations for electric lamps with the federal universal waste rule.
The state-initiated revisions stem from DEQ recommendations and public comments. One notable change eliminates the generator requirement to submit the initial generator copy of the hazardous waste manifest to the DEQ. In light of this anticipated amendment, affected generators may immediately take advantage of the rule and cease sending the first copy of the manifest.
Other changes include the removal of approximately 20 state-only hazardous waste listings and the removal of duplicative federal listings. This package rescinds rules authorizing the allocation of money from the Hazardous Waste Service Fund and the ability of local health departments to act on behalf of the state Hazardous Waste Program. The changes also update the rules for consistency with state and federal statutory amendments, including removing references to the former site review board.