West Virginia Code 22-18-7 – Authority and jurisdiction of other state agencies
(a) The Commissioner of the Division of Highways, in consultation with the director, and avoiding inconsistencies with and avoiding duplication to the maximum extent practicable with legislative rules required to be promulgated pursuant to this article by the director or any other rule-making authority, and in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, shall promulgate, as necessary, legislative rules governing the transportation of hazardous wastes by vehicle upon the roads and highways of this state. Such legislative rules shall be consistent with applicable rules issued by the federal Department of Transportation and consistent with this article: Provided, That such legislative rules apply to the interstate transportation of hazardous waste within the boundaries of this state, as well as the intrastate transportation of such waste.
Terms Used In West Virginia Code 22-18-7
- Director: means the director of the Division of Environmental Protection or such other person to whom the director has delegated authority or duties pursuant to sections six or eight, article one of this chapter. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Disposal: means the discharge, deposit, injection, dumping, spilling, leaking or placing of any hazardous waste into or on any land or water so that such hazardous waste or any constituent thereof may enter the environment or be emitted into the air, or discharged into any waters, including groundwaters. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Division: means the Division of Environmental Protection. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Hazardous waste: means a waste or combination of wastes, which because of its quantity, concentration or physical, chemical or infectious characteristics, may: (A) Cause, or significantly contribute to, an increase in mortality or an increase in serious irreversible, or incapacitating reversible, illness. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Manifest: means the form used for identifying the quantity, composition and the origin, routing and destination of hazardous waste during its transportation from the point of generation to the point of disposal, treatment or storage. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Resource Conservation and Recovery Act: means the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976, 90 Stat. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Secretary: means the Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection. See West Virginia Code 22-1-2
- 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
- Storage: means the containment of hazardous waste, either on a temporary basis or for a period of years, in such a manner as not to constitute disposal of such hazardous waste. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Subtitle C: means Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Treatment: means any method, technique or process, including neutralization, designed to change the physical, chemical or biological character or composition of any hazardous waste so as to neutralize such waste or so as to render such waste nonhazardous, safer for transport, amenable to recovery, amenable to storage or reduced in volume. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
- Waste: means any garbage, refuse, sludge from a waste treatment plant, water supply treatment plant or air pollution control facility and other discarded material including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained gaseous material resulting from industrial, commercial, mining and agricultural operations and from community activities, but does not include solid or dissolved material in domestic sewage, or solid or dissolved materials in irrigation return flows or industrial discharges which are point sources subject to permits under Section 402 of the federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended, or source, special nuclear or by-product material as defined by the federal Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended. See West Virginia Code 22-18-3
In lieu of those enforcement and inspection powers conferred upon the Commissioner of the Division of Highways elsewhere by law with respect to the transportation of hazardous waste, the Commissioner of the Division of Highways has the same enforcement and inspection powers as those granted to the director, or authorized representative or agent, or any authorized employee or agent of the division, as the case may be, under sections twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen and eighteen of this article. The limitations of this subsection do not affect in any way the powers of the Division of Highways with respect to weight enforcement.
(b) The Public Service Commission, in consultation with the director, and avoiding inconsistencies with and avoiding duplication to the maximum extent practicable with rules required to be promulgated pursuant to this article by the director or any other rule-making authority, and in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, shall promulgate, as necessary, rules governing the transportation of hazardous wastes by railroad in this state. Such rules shall be consistent with applicable rules and regulations issued by the federal Department of Transportation and consistent with this article: Provided, That such rules apply to the interstate transportation of hazardous waste within the boundaries of this state, as well as the intrastate transportation of such waste.
In lieu of those enforcement and inspection powers conferred upon the Public Service Commission elsewhere by law with respect to the transportation of hazardous waste, the Public Service Commission has the same enforcement and inspection powers as those granted to the director or authorized representative or agent or any authorized employee or agent of the division, as the case may be, under sections twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen and eighteen of this article.
(c) The rules required to be promulgated pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) of this section apply equally to those persons transporting hazardous wastes generated by others and to those transporting hazardous wastes they have generated themselves or combinations thereof. Such rules shall establish such standards, applicable to transporters of hazardous waste identified or listed under this article, as may be necessary to protect public health, safety and the environment. Such standards shall include, but need not be limited to, requirements respecting: (A) Recordkeeping concerning such hazardous waste transported, and its source and destination; (B) transportation of such waste only if properly labeled; (C) compliance with the manifest system referred to in subdivision (3), subsection (a), section six of this article; and (D) transportation of all such hazardous waste only to the hazardous waste treatment, storage or disposal facilities which the shipper designates on the manifest form to be a facility holding a permit issued under: (1) This article or any rule required by this article to be promulgated; (2) Subtitle C; (3) the laws of any other state which has an authorized hazardous waste program pursuant to Section 3006 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; or (4) Title I of the Federal Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act.
(d) The Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources, in consultation with the director, and avoiding inconsistencies with and avoiding duplication to the maximum extent practicable with legislative rules required to be promulgated pursuant to this article by the director or any other rule-making authority, shall promulgate rules pursuant to article five-j, chapter twenty of this code. The Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources shall have the same enforcement and inspection powers as those granted to the director or agent or any authorized employee or agent of the division, as the case may be, under sections twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen and eighteen of this article, and in addition thereto, the Department of Health and Human Resources shall have those inspection and enforcement powers with respect to hazardous waste with infectious characteristics as provided for in article five-j, chapter twenty of this code.
(e) The Environmental Quality Board, in consultation with the director, and in accordance with the provisions of chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, shall, as necessary, promulgate water quality standards governing discharges into the waters of this state of hazardous waste resulting from the treatment, storage or disposal of hazardous waste as may be required by this article. The standards shall be consistent with this article.
(f) All legislative rules promulgated pursuant to this section shall be consistent with rules and regulations promulgated by the federal environmental protection agency pursuant to the resource conservation and recovery act.
(g) The director shall submit written comments to the Legislative Rule-Making Review Committee regarding all legislative rules promulgated pursuant to this article.