West Virginia Code 22-15A-22 – Prohibition on the disposal of certain items; plans for the proper handling of said items required
(a) It is unlawful to dispose of lead-acid batteries in a solid waste landfill in West Virginia.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 22-15A-22
- Secretary: means the Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection. See West Virginia Code 22-15A-2
- State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10
- Waste tire: means any continuous solid or pneumatic rubber covering designed to encircle the wheel of a vehicle but which has been discarded, abandoned or is no longer suitable for its original, intended purpose nor suitable for recapping, or other beneficial use because of wear, damage or defect. See West Virginia Code 22-15A-2
- Yard waste: means grass clippings, weeds, leaves, brush, garden waste, shrub or tree prunings and other living or dead plant tissues, except that materials, which due to inadvertent contamination or mixture with other substances which render the waste unsuitable for composting, are not yard waste: Provided, That the same or similar waste generated by commercial agricultural enterprises is excluded. See West Virginia Code 22-15A-2
(b) It is unlawful to dispose of tires in a solid waste landfill in West Virginia except for waste tires collected as part of the departments waste tire remediation projects or other collection efforts in accordance with the provisions of this article or the pollution prevention and open dump program or other state-authorized remediation or clean up programs: Provided, That waste tires may be disposed of in solid waste landfills only when the state agency authorizing the remediation or clean up program has determined there is no reasonable alternative available.
(c) It is unlawful to dispose of yard waste in a solid waste facility in West Virginia: Provided, That the prohibitions do not apply to a facility designed specifically to compost yard waste or otherwise recycle or reuse yard waste: Provided, however, That reasonable and necessary exceptions to the prohibitions may be included as part of the rules promulgated pursuant to subsection (f) of this section.
(d) Effective July 1, 2016, covered electronic devices, as defined in section two of this article, may not be disposed of in a solid waste landfill in West Virginia, if a county or regional solid waste authority determines there is a cost effective recycling alternative for handling covered electronic devices.
(e) The Solid Waste Management Board shall design a comprehensive program to provide for the proper handling of yard waste, lead-acid batteries and tires.
(f) The secretary shall promulgate rules, in accordance with chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, to implement and enforce the program for yard waste, lead-acid batteries and tires.
(g) The secretary's rule shall provide for the disposal of yard waste in a manner consistent with one or any combination of the following:
(1) Disposal in a publicly or privately operated commercial or noncommercial composting facility;
(2) Disposal by composting on the property from which domestic yard waste is generated or on adjoining property or neighborhood property if consent is obtained from the owner of the adjoining or neighborhood property;
(3) Disposal by open burning, where not prohibited; or
(4) Disposal in a publicly or privately operated landfill, only where none of the foregoing options are available. The manner of disposal shall only involve small quantities of domestic yard waste generated only from the property of the participating resident or tenant.