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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 03151988 - T.4 T. 4 THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF CONTRA COSTA COUN'T'Y, CALIFORNIA Adopted this Order on March 15, 1988 by the following vote: AYES: Supervisors Powers, Fanden, McPeak, and Torlakson NOES: None ABSENT: Supervisor Schroder ABSTAIN: None SUBJECT: Hearing on the proposed amendment to the County' s Liquid Waste Disposal Ordinance The Board on February 23, 1988 fixed this time for hearing the proposed ordinance amending the County' s Liquid Waste Disposal Ordinance. Lillian Fujii of the County Counsel' s office reviewed the amendments and advised that the concerns of industry and the public interest groups had been addressed in the amended ordinance now before the Board. Scott Anderson, representing Dow Chemical, spoke in favor of the amendments to the ordinance, noting that the new ordinance addressed Dow' s concerns to its satisfaction, however, it had one minor concern with Item 7 relating to variance processing. He asked that that item be amended so that, upon request, the County Health Officer would provide an accounting of the expenditure of the processing fee. Board members discussed the provisions of the ordinance. Supervisor Fanden suggested that it might be well to have Dan Bergman of the Health Services Department bring to the Board a report and update on what exactly has been happening with reduction in generation of toxics, and that industry be invited to be present for that presentation and to review the accomplishments within the County to date. Supervisor Fanden so moved. The motion was seconded by Supervisor Powers who asked that it also include what is happening with the small generator, and the motion as amended was unanimously carried. Supervisor Torlakson suggested that be done in a workshop situation, and the Board members agreed. The Board thereupon adopted Ordinance 88-26 as amended. x �creby cerMy that this Is a true and correct copy of �n action taken and entered on fIte m?:;utaa of the k3oa.d of Sup". lsorson/the daiq z1hown. ,ATTESTED: � _ / PHIL.BATCHELOR, Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and County administrator cc: County Counsel IV Health Services Department County Administrator T4 ORDINANCE NO. 88-26 ( Land disposal of liquid hazardous waste) The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors ordains as follows: SECTION I . SUMMARY. This ordinance repeals Ordinance No. 87-84 and reenacts those provisions of ordinance No. 87-84 which provide, subject to specified exceptions, for the termination of the use of any land disposal method to dispose of liquid hazardous waste or hazardous waste containing free liquids effective July 1, 1988 . This ordinance also allows for a variance to be granted from its provisions , which may be granted only upon specified findings after notice and public hearing except in an emergency. SECTION II . REPEAL ORD. 87-84. Ordinance No. 87-84 is repealed and its provisions on land disposal of liquid hazardous waste .and hazardous waste containing free liquids reenacted as set forth in this ordinance . SECTION III . FINDINGS . (a ) State permitted hazardous waste land disposal facilities , once considered secure, are increasingly found to have problems containing the waste deposited therein, making it impossible to guarantee long-term security. Hazardous wastes have been shown to migrate from land disposal facilities and contaminate the environment through leakage and runoff in landfills, seepage, runoff, and air emissions from ponds, percolation from improper land applications , leaks in the equipment used for injection wells, and leaks from buried drums and tanks . (b) Cleaning up contaminated sites and eliminating the threat to public health and the environment is very costly. (c) It is therefore in the public interest to end unsafe hazardous waste disposal practices , especially those involving disposal of liquid hazardous waste to land. (d) It is the intent of the Board, for the protection of the public health and safety and the environment, to supplement State legislation in guiding hazardous waste management towards more secure methods . SECTION IV. DEFINITIONS. (a ) For the purposes of this ordinance, the following definitions apply. ( 1) "County Health Officer" means the Director of the County Department of Health Services or his designee. (2 ) "Free liquids" mean liquids which readily separate from the solid portion of a hazardous waste under ambient temperature and pressure. ( 3 ) "Disposal" or "dispose" means to abandon, deposit, inter or otherwise discard waste. (4 ) "Land disposal" means any placement of hazardous waste in or onto land at a hazardous waste facility, including, but not limited to, disposal using a landfill, a waste pile, commingling with municipal garbage, a surface impoundment, pit, pond, lagoon, sump, a land treatment facility, land spreading, injection wells, or any other land application technique. (1-25-88) Ordinance 88-26 ( 5 ) "Person" means an individual , trust, firm, joint stock company, business concern, corporation, including, but not limited to, a government corporation, partnership, and association. "Person" also includes any city, county, district, and the state or any department or agency thereof, and the federal government or any department or agency thereof to the extent permitted by law. (b) Every other term used in this ordinance shall have the meaning ascribed to it in Health and Safety Code § 25179 . 3, if it is defined in that section . If a term is not defined in Health and Safety Code § 25179 . 3 , but is defined elsewhere in Health and Safety Code Chapter 6 . 5 (commencing with § 25100 ) , then said term shall have the meaning ascribed to it in such provision in Chapter 6. 5 . SECTION V. LAND DISPOSAL OF LIQUID HAZARDOUS WASTES . (a ) Disposal Prohibited . Effective July 1 , 1988, no person shall use any land disposal method to dispose of liquid hazardous waste or hazardous waste containing free liquids . SECTION VI . VARIANCE. A variance from the application of Section V maybegranted pursuant to the provisions of this section. (a ) Request. Any person may apply for a variance from the provisions of Section V by submitting a written application to the County Health Officer . The application shall , at a minimum, include or be accompanied by the following : ( 1 ) A detailed description of the activities to be conducted under the variance, including information on quantities and identities of liquid hazardous wastes to be involved, and circumstances under which activities under the variance are proposed, (2 ) The length of time for which the variance is requested. ( 3 ) The specific basis for the variance. (See subsection (d) ( 4 ) of this Section. ) (4 ) Evidence that the findings required to grant the variance can be made. (See subsection (d) of this Section. ) ( 5 ) Evidence that the variance will not created a public nuisance . ( 6 ) Envelopes addressed to all residential units within 300 feet of the facility. ( 7 ) A variance processing fee deposit of $3, 500 . 00 . The actual fee shall not exceed the actual and reasonable cost of processing the variance, or $3, 500. 00, whichever is less . Upon request , an accounting of the actual costs will be provided to the applicant. (b) Notice of Public Hearing. Upon receipt of a completed application, the County Health officer shall schedule a public hearing. At least ten days notice of the time, place and subject matter of the hearing shall be mailed to all residents residing within 300 feet of the facility, to any party requesting notice, the Environmental Protection Agency, the State Department of Health Services, the Regional Water Quality Control Board and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District. Notice of the time, place and subject matter of the hearing shall also be published once in a newspaper of general circulation in the vicinity of the facility, not more than 20 days and not less than 7 days before the hearing. -2- ORDINANCE NO. 88-26 r• (c ) Conduct of public hearing. The County Health officer shall hear testimony on the application, and shall allow interested members of the public a reasonable opportunity to testify on matters relevant to the application. All oral testimony shall be under oath , which may be given by the County Health Officer . (d) Grounds for variance; findings . The County Health Officer may grant a variance for a specified period of time upon making all of the following findings : ( 1 ) Conduct under the variance shall not result in a public nuisance . (2 ) Conduct under the variance shall not result in the violation of any federal or State statute, law, regulation or other requirement . ( 3 ) The applicant has taken reasonable steps to avoid the necessity for a variance. ( 4 ) Conduct under the variance is reasonable. For purposes of this subparagraph ( 4 ) , reasonable conduct includes , but is not limited to, the following situations : A. The conduct is allowed under a closure plan duly submitted to the State Department of Health Services and a regional water quality control board if the regional board also has jurisdiction over the closure plan ; B. The conduct is allowed under a clean up and abatement order or cease and desist order issued by a regional water quality control board; C. Except as otherwise allowed under subparagraphs A or B, the conduct involves only transfers between surface impoundments at a facility for the purpose of enhancing operation in order to remove liquids at the facility by January 1, 1989 . (e ) Decision and Order. The decision of the County Health Officer shall be based upon the record, which shall consist of the oral testimony given at the public hearing, and all written testimony submitted in connection with the application. The written decision to grant or deny the variance shall state whether the findings required by §VI (d) can be made, and if so, shall summarize the factual basis for the findings . Upon making a decision to grant a variance, the County Health Officer shall make an order prescribing the terms of the variance , including, but not limited to, its time limit ( including a final compliance date ) and the facility and activity covered, and may include reasonable conditions to ensure that conduct under the variance does not result in a public nuisance. (f ) Emergency Variance. Notwithstanding subdivision (a ) through (e) , the County Health Officer may grant an application for an emergency variance without notice or public hearing if all of the following apply: ( 1) A variance is needed before a public hearing can be scheduled; ( 2 ) Good cause exists for granting the variance, including breakdown or the occurrence of other events which could not have reasonably been foreseen; ( 3 ) Conduct under the emergency variance will not violate any other state or federal law; and -3- ORDINANCE NO. 88-26 ( 1-25-88) k4 ) Conduct under the emergency variance will not result in a public nuisance or is necessary to prevent a public nuisance. An emergency variance may be granted only for so long as the findings in this subdivision can be made, or 30 days , whichever is less . The County Health Officer' s written decision granting the emergency variance shall state the precise terms and duration of the emergency variance. SECTION VII. SURFACE IMPOUNDMENT. Section V does not apply to a person discharging a hazardous waste into a surface impoundment which is double lined, equipped with a leachate collection system and groundwater monitoring is conducted in accordance with Health and Safety Code § 25208. 5 (a ) and (b) . SECTION VIII . ENFORCEMENT. (a ) Criminal. Every act or condition prohibited by this ordinance is a violation of this ordinance and punishable as a misdemeanor pursuant to Government Code § 25132 . Acts or conditions in violation of this ordinance which continue, exist, or occur on more than one day constitute separate violations and offenses on each such day. (b) Civil . In addition to the penalties provided by this ordinance, this ordinance may be enforced by any civil action, including injunctive action, directly against the act or condition, or for damages therefor . Any condition existing in violation of this ordinance is a public nuisance and may be abated summarily or otherwise by the County. SECTION IX. SEVERABILITY. If any provision or clause of this ordinance or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held to be unconstitutional or to be otherwise invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity shall not affect other ordinance provisions or clauses or applications thereof which can be implemented without the invalid provision or clause or application, and to this end the provisions and clauses of this ordinance are declared to be severable . SECTION X. EFFECTIVE DATE. This ordinance becomes effective thirtydaysafter the passage, and within fifteen days of passage shall be published once with the names of the supervisors voting for and against it in the Contra Costa Times, a newspaper published in this County. PASSED ON March 15, 1988 1988 by the following vote: AYES: Supervisors Powers, Fanden, McPeak and Torlakson NOES: None ABSENT: Supervisor Schroder ABSTAIN: None ATTEST: PHIL BATCHELOR, Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and County Administrator By: De urty Board Chair [SEAL] LTF:df ( 1-25-88 ) -4-