EAB RULING BOLSTERS AUTO INDUSTRY PUSH FOR RCRA WASTE FLEXIBILITY

摘要

A recent ruling from EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB) may boost a key automaker's defense against an agency suit that the industry should be exempt from Resource Conservation & Recovery Act (RCRA) requirements for the reuse of paint-cleaning solvents at auto plants. The EAB found errors in an earlier administrative law judge's (ALJ) ruling that rejected General Motors' (GM) claims that the solvents are not RCRA wastes because they were eventually separated from paint remnants and reused. The EAB ruling is notable because it is the first time that a federal court or administrative body other than an ALJ has addressed the question of whether solvents used to purge automotive paint systems become "spent," and therefore subject to regulation. Industry sources hope that the ruling will encourage EPA to quickly issue its pending Definition of Solid Waste (DSW) rule, which is expected to exempt the solvents from RCRA regulation. At issue in the case is GM's appeal of a 2006 ALJ ruling backing EPA's claim that the solvents became a RCRA-regulated waste at GM facilities. The company says not only are the solvents not waste, but that EPA's position discourages recycling and imposes unnecessary costs.