2000 Annual Report: Permitting and Operations

Permitting and Operations Topics

Introduction Regulatory Framework Enforcement Agencies Permitting Operations and Enforcement Closure and Postclosure for Landfills Closed, Illegal and Abandoned Waste Disposal Sites New Initiatives Research and Development

Operations and Enforcement

LEAs perform monthly facility inspections (less frequent inspections for some operations); prepare inspection reports; and issue any resultant corrective actions, cease-and-desist orders, and/or penalties. On request of a local jurisdiction, IWMB staff may be contracted to act as the enforcement agency. IWMB staff serving as the enforcement agency performs all duties of the LEA for solid waste regulatory oversight. Currently, the IWMB serves as the enforcement agency in the counties of Stanislaus and Santa Cruz; and the cities of Berkeley, Paso Robles, and Stockton. The IWMB may also assume enforcement agency duties if it finds that an LEA is not fulfilling one or more of its responsibilities.

IWMB personnel review LEAs’ inspection reports, may recommend enforcement actions, review LEAs’ orders, inspect all active landfills every 18 months, and inspect other facilities as needed to evaluate LEA performance.

• IWMB staff conducted 90 facility inspections in conjunction with LEA inspections, 81 of which were for landfills.
• IWMB staff, acting as the enforcement agency, conducted 301 facility and operation inspections.
• The IWMB adopted new regulations to be added to Title 14, Division 7, California Code of Regulations, which detail enforcement and compliance procedures.

Inventory of Solid Waste Facilities Not in Compliance
The IWMB is statutorily mandated to maintain and publish an inventory of facilities that violate State minimum standards. After violations for one or more standards are noted during two consecutive months, the IWMB sends a letter of intent to the facility operator. The letter indicates that if the violations are not corrected within 90 days, the facility will be included on the inventory. The inventory is currently published twice a year on the IWMB’s Web site following a public hearing. A facility is removed from the inventory when the violation(s) has been corrected.

In 1998 the IWMB initiated a focused effort to address long-term violations. Increased assistance to the LEAs and operators helps reduce the number of chronic violation situations. However, gas control systems take many months or years to develop, fund, and implement, thus slowing progress toward full compliance with requirements.

There are currently 17 facilities (reduced from a high of 48) on the inventory. Ten of the facilities are currently on the inventory because of noncompliance with the landfill gas control requirements. Four are included because of cover, litter, or record violations. These facilities will be eligible for IWMB assistance to address these violations through the new Facility Compliance Loan Program.

The IWMB's program on monitoring and control of the subsurface migration of landfill gas has made continued progress in 2000. Based on the Inventory of Solid Waste Facilities Which Violate State Minimum Standards (Inventory), there has been a significant reduction in facilities violating State minimum standards for subsurface migration of landfill gas. Landfill gas violations listed in the inventory have decreased from a high of 21 facilities in 1997 to 10 facilities in October 2000. One additional facility listed on the inventory achieved compliance in December 2000. IWMB staff continues to provide training and technical assistance to LEAs, other agencies, and public and private stakeholders in the monitoring and control of landfill gas.

Of the approximately 275 solid waste landfills, of which 180 are active, about half currently have landfill gas collection and control systems. Landfill-gas-to-energy (LFGTE) systems can be an integral part of landfill gas collection and control systems. Approximately 60 landfills have in-place LFGTE systems, generating over 200 MW of alternative energy or enough to supply the energy needs of 200,000 homes. There is significant potential to expand LFGTE in California and given the State's energy crisis, the IWMB has expanded efforts starting in November 2000 with the California Energy Commission, Air Resources Board, and the State Water Resources Control Board on an LFGTE Task Force to facilitate and promote increased utilization of LFGTE.