§ 19-0306. Municipal solid and regulated medical waste incineration

facilities.

1. Definitions. When used in this section:

a. "Municipal solid waste incineration facility" means a facility that
is owned, operated, or utilized by, or under contract with, a
municipality or political subdivision and which utilizes high
temperature thermal destruction technologies, including combustion for
the recovery of thermal value or for the disposal of municipal solid
waste.

b. "Solid waste" means any materials or substances discarded or
rejected as being spent, useless, worthless, or in excess to the owner
at the time of such discharge or rejection, except sewage and other
highly diluted water carried materials or substances and those in
gaseous form.

c. "Regulated medical waste incineration facility" means an
incinerator which is operated or utilized for the disposal or treatment
of regulated medical waste, as defined in title 15 of article 27 of this
chapter and which may utilize high temperature thermal destruction
technologies, including combustion for the recovery of thermal value.

2. Within thirty days of the effective date of this section and
pursuant to the state administrative procedure act, the commissioner
shall, in consultation with the commissioner of health, propose final
draft operating requirements for emissions of air contaminants from
municipal solid waste incineration facilities. Such operating
requirements shall be effective and shall apply to municipal solid waste
incineration facilities for which a permit to construct has been issued
and final engineering drawings have been accepted by the commissioner
after one hundred twenty days after such operating requirements have
been formally promulgated. Such operating requirements shall govern the
operation and management of such facilities with respect to air
contamination, and shall include but not be limited to provisions for:

a. Maintenance of a minimum incineration temperature and the means and
location at which such temperature shall be measured;

b. Residence or exposure time for incineration;

c. Appropriate levels of control for acid gas, sulfur dioxide, oxides
of nitrogen, and hydrochloric acid with regard to the following:

(i) the level of protection provided the public health and
environment;

(ii) the likely or potential reductions of acid gas emissions from a
separate, nearby source of such emissions as a result of a proposed
facility becoming operational;

(iii) the likely economic impact of such controls due to associated
capital and operating costs, and in relation to alternative solid waste
management options, including landfilling; and

(iv) the appropriateness of reduced or modified levels of such
controls for smaller facilities;

d. Combustion efficiency;

e. Monitoring of emissions for toxic air contaminants, or surrogates
thereof where appropriate, to determine compliance with permit emission
limits twice within the first eighteen months of operation and once each
within the next two eighteen month intervals and subsequently at the
discretion of the commissioner, and following any detection of permit
violations in a manner to be determined by the commissioner;

f. Continuous monitoring for oxygen, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide,
opacity and temperature;

g. Sampling and testing of the combined ash and dust residue at least
annually to determine appropriate disposition or disposal based on
relative toxicity; provided, however, that separate testing of ash and
dust shall be required if they are not mixed prior to disposal.

3. The department shall undertake further investigation of appropriate
cooling methods for achieving the condensation and collection of air
contaminants and of the necessity for, and appropriate means of,
regulating fine particulates. Upon such investigation, the commissioner
shall issue a report on his findings and may promulgate appropriate
regulations.

4. The department shall, in promulgating any new or revised rule or
regulation, accompany such rule making with an environmental impact
statement or a written assessment stating the extent to or means by
which such rule or regulation will prevent, control or prohibit air
pollution.

5. Operating requirements established pursuant to this section for
municipal incineration facilities shall be embodied in rules and
regulations of the department promulgated in accordance with the state
administrative procedure act.

6. On or before the effective date of this subdivision, the
commissioner shall, in consultation with the commissioner of health,
promulgate proposed operating requirements for the emission of air
contaminants from regulated medical waste incineration facilities. Such
operating requirements shall, where appropriate, be consistent with the
provisions of this section provided, however, that the commissioner
shall require such facilities to employ the best available control
technologies. Such operating requirements shall be effective and shall
apply to all regulated medical waste incineration facilities, for which
an operating permit has been issued, ninety days after such operating
requirements have been formally promulgated pursuant to the state
administrative procedure act provided, however, that where regulated
medical waste incineration facilities are owned by health care
facilities licensed pursuant to article twenty-eight of the public
health law and in operation by permit of the department on or before
September first, nineteen hundred eighty-seven, then such standards
shall become effective as to such facilities on January first, nineteen
hundred ninety-two.

7. Each person who operates a facility for the incineration of
regulated medical waste shall report to the commissioner on the volume
and sources of regulated medical waste that it incinerated on-site
during the six months next following the effective date of this
subdivision. Such report shall be the same as or similar to the report
required to be filed with the administrator. The commissioner is
authorized to require reports pursuant to this subdivision at least
annually thereafter.