Senate Bill No. 640
(By Senator Helmick, Ross, Bailey, Chafin and Caldwell)
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[Introduced February 18, 2002; referred to the Committee
on Natural Resources.]
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A BILL to amend article fifteen, chapter twenty-two of the code of
West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated section
twenty-two, relating to beneficial use of sludge; and
requiring promulgation of emergency and legislative rules.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That article fifteen, chapter twenty-two of the code of West
Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be
amended by adding thereto a new section, designated section
twenty-two, to read as follows:
ARTICLE 15. SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT.
§
22-15-22. Sludge management.
(a) Any sludge or other material determined by the secretary
to have beneficial properties similar to sewage sludge may be
beneficially used in accordance with the applicable requirements governing sewage sludge, and any other requirements determined to
be necessary by the secretary to protect human health and the
environment. Persons seeking to beneficially use sludge must meet
the requirements of this article and the rules promulgated
thereunder.
(b) In order to enhance the resource recovery and recycling
goals of this act and to encourage the beneficial use of sludge or
other materials, the secretary shall propose for promulgation in
accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code, emergency and legislative rules to
effectuate the purposes of this section. The secretary shall at a
minimum include the following in the proposed rules:
(1) A mechanism to determine beneficial use characteristics;
(2) A method to determine pollutant content of the material
proposed for beneficial use;
(3) A method to determine that the beneficial properties of
the material are derived from the raw material rather than
additives;
(4) Buffer zones or other criteria necessary to adequately
protect ground and surface water;
(5) Necessary restrictions of pollutant levels in the
material;
(6) Analytical methods, loading rates and storage requirements
for the material;
(7) Permit requirements; and
(8) Appropriate fees.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to authorize the Department
of Environmental Protection to regulate the use of sludge and other
materials in the same manner as it regulates sewage sludge.
This section
is new; therefore, strike-throughs and
underscoring have been omitted.