User:Lmissik/Sandbox

Initial Bibliography

1. EPA Waste Topics - Laws and Regulations This page discusses RCRA in general and has a link to the Act itself, as well as many other potentially useful links. There is more on RCRA here as well.
2. EPA - RCRA Online - Information Sources
3. EPA Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response
4. SC DHEC Brief History of Environmental Law This has a short blurb on RCRA itself and its history, which might be useful for language for the lead.
5. RCRA/Hazardous Waste Resource Locator
6. Definitions of solid waste and other basics
7. Introduction to waste management
8. EPA Reduce, reuse, recycling resources
9. Yale working papers on solid waste policy
10. EPA Environmental Economic Reports
11. Solid waste disposal law Title 42
12. Information about grants available in the solid waste area
13. World Bank Urban Solid Waste Management
14. IPCC National Guidelines
15. Strategic Plan for the Implementation of the Basel Convention
16. EPA's Electronic Waste Recycling Standards
17. Permits for Hazardous Waste also this
18. Intro to the RCRA
19. EPA on Municipal Solid Waste
20. EPA on best available technology

About RCRA page in Wiki

Wiki topic on Solid Waste Disposal Act is also directed to RCRA page.

Weakness: The Act is one of the important steps towards the solid waste and toxics regulation in United States, amending the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965. The Act regulates the management of non-hazardous, hazardous, and medical wastes in the country. Similar to the previous two articles, this article is also not well developed and does not cover the important details.

Google search returns this wiki page as the first result while searching for “Resource Recovery Act.” This adds up importance to the development of a well-written article for readers interested in solid waste regulation in United States. Google search also returns this wiki page as the forth link for keyword “RCRA.” There are no proper citations or verifiable sources. One of the three citations redirects to a wiki page that does not even exist. Wikipedia requests editors to improve the article by adding reliable references. This request was made in November 2007 and there has been no significant contribution to the article since then. The external links cited are also debatable with links to whistleblower websites and other not so relevant pages. All these led to complete omission of primary sources and knowledge bases.

Should we edit this page and/or start our new page on "Solid Waste Policy in the United States" fresh?

Article Structure/Concepts

The lead

Brief history of U.S. solid waste policy

RCRA Summary

• History
• Goals
• What it covers
• How it works (mechanisms)
• Federal and state levels

Other legislation

Criticism (either of RCRA or policy in general) - both positive and negative

Related issues

Brief Summary Version of Article

Solid waste policy is aimed to develop and implement proper mechanisms to effectively manage solid waste. The policy inputs come from stakeholders including citizens, businesses, community based organizations, non governmental organizations, government agencies, universities, and other research organizations. These inputs form the basis of policy framework that influence solid waste management decisions. (http://www.michigan.gov/documents/deq/DEQ-WHM-STSW-MI_SW_POLICY_198170_7.pdf). In United States, EPA regulates household, industrial, manufacturing and commercial solid and hazardous wastes under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). (http://www.epa.gov/lawsregs/topics/waste.html). Effective solid waste management is a cooperative effort involving federal, state, regional, and local entities (http://www.tceq.texas.gov/assistance/waste/msw.html). Thus RCRA’s Solid Waste program section D encourages the environmental department of each state to develop comprehensive plans to manage nonhazardous industrial and municipal solid waste. (http://www.epa.gov/lawsregs/topics/waste.html#nonhazwaste)

Solid waste management challenges and issues considered while framing solid waste policy include proper waste generation, segregation, collection, transportation, and disposal methods, landfill management, hazardous and other toxic material management, treatment, incineration, recycling and other technology standards, monitoring, evaluation, and continuous improvement methods. In addition to these, policy has to address the short term and long-term economic, environmental, and social costs and benefits, funding methods, and roles of various stakeholders (1) (2) (3).

In 1965 Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA) - the first US federal solid waste management law - formed the framework for states to better control the waste disposal. SWDA set minimum safety requirements for local landfills. Waste management in the United States was fundamentally changed in 1976 when Congress passed the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). RCRA banned open dumping and provided a comprehensive national program to encourage source reduction, recycling, and safe disposal of municipal wastes. (http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/inforesources/pubs/k02027.pdf) RCRA was amended and strengthened in 1984 with the passing of the Federal Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA). These amendments to RCRA required the phasing out land disposal of hazardous waste. Since HSWA RCRA has been amended on two occasions: Federal Facility Compliance Act of 1992 (strengthened enforcement of RCRA at Federal facilities) and Land Disposal Program Flexibility Act of 1996 (provided regulatory flexibility for land disposal of certain wastes). (http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/laws-regs/rcrahistory.htm)

The primary solid waste law in the United States is the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) (2). Under the RCRA, the EPA manages solid waste, hazardous waste, and underground storage tanks while encouraging a reduction in the amount of waste generated. To do this, the EPA establishes minimum criteria for waste disposal. States can then implement their own programs as long as their programs have requirements that are at least as stringent as those at the federal level (3). The EPA creates certain standards for waste disposal that must be met. It also banned open dumping of waste (2). In order to meet these standards, parties can use the technology available to them. The national goals set by the EPA allow states and affected parties some flexibility in deciding how to meet these criteria, provided they adhere to certain standards and acquire the necessary permits. The EPA also issues permits to ensure the safe transport and disposal of hazardous waste, which are issues by authorized states or by EPA regional offices (4). As of 2008, the EPA has authorized forty-eight states to implement the Act, meaning that their regulations at the state level meet the requirements set at the federal level (3).

References -- this will properly formatted later 1) http://www.michigan.gov/documents/deq/DEQ-WHM-STSW-MI_SW_POLICY_198170_7.pdf 2) http://www.epa.gov/wastes/laws-regs/rcrahistory.htm 3) http://www.epa.gov/wastes/inforesources/pubs/orientat/rom1.pdf 4) http://www.epa.gov/wastes/hazard/tsd/permitting.htm 5) Timeline (include figure from) http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/inforesources/pubs/k02027.pdf)