Federal Environmental Regulations Flashcards
7 cards from real Environmental Compliance Inspector practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Federal Environmental Regulations flashcards as text
What is the distinction between a 'listed' hazardous waste and a 'characteristic' hazardous waste under RCRA?
Answer: Listed wastes come from specific processes/sources identified by EPA; characteristic wastes exhibit ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, or toxicity
Listed hazardous wastes appear on EPA's F, K, P, or U lists based on specific industries or chemical sources, while characteristic wastes are identified by testing for ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, or toxicity.
Under the Clean Air Act, what is the purpose of a State Implementation Plan (SIP)?
Answer: To document how each state will attain and maintain National Ambient Air Quality Standards
A SIP is a collection of regulations, enforceable commitments, and other elements that each state submits to EPA describing how it will achieve and maintain the NAAQS within its borders.
Which RCRA provision governs the underground injection of hazardous waste and requires facilities to obtain Underground Injection Control (UIC) permits?
Answer: Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) UIC Program
The Safe Drinking Water Act's Underground Injection Control (UIC) program regulates the subsurface emplacement of fluids, including hazardous waste injection wells, to protect underground sources of drinking water.
A facility is generating wastewater containing a listed RCRA hazardous waste that it discharges under an NPDES permit. How does the 'domestic sewage exclusion' affect this situation?
Answer: Hazardous wastes mixed with domestic sewage and discharged to a POTW are excluded from RCRA Subtitle C
Under RCRA, hazardous wastes that are mixed with domestic sewage and sent to a publicly owned treatment works (POTW) are excluded from Subtitle C hazardous waste requirements, though NPDES and pretreatment rules still apply.
Under TSCA Section 6, what authority does EPA have regarding chemical substances that present unreasonable risks?
Answer: EPA can restrict or prohibit the manufacture, processing, use, or disposal of the chemical
TSCA Section 6 authorizes EPA to take regulatory action — including prohibiting or restricting manufacture, processing, distribution, use, or disposal — for chemical substances that present unreasonable risks of injury.
What is 'Land Disposal Restrictions' (LDR) treatment standard requirement under RCRA, and when does it apply?
Answer: Requires hazardous waste to meet specified treatment standards before it can be land disposed
RCRA's Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR) program requires that hazardous wastes meet EPA-specified treatment standards — reducing toxicity or mobility — before they may be placed in land disposal units.
A company discovers that one of its products contains a chemical substance subject to a TSCA Section 5(e) Consent Order. What does this mean for the company?
Answer: EPA has imposed conditions on the manufacture or use of the substance pending development of further information
A TSCA Section 5(e) Consent Order is an agreement between EPA and a manufacturer imposing restrictions or information requirements on a new chemical substance while EPA evaluates its risk.