=======================Electronic Edition========================
RACHEL’S HAZARDOUS WASTE NEWS #241
—July 10, 1991—
News and resources for environmental justice.
——
Environmental Research Foundation
P.O. Box 5036, Annapolis, MD 21403
Fax (410) 263-8944; Internet: erf@igc.apc.org
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CITIZENS SEEK REFORM OF THE NATION’S HAZARDOUS WASTE LAW.
The key federal law controlling hazardous waste is RCRA, the
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. As the name implies,
Congress hoped that the 1976 law would stimulate the conservation
(saving) of resources and their recovery (re-use or recycling)
after use. Unfortunately, from its initial interpretation by EPA
(U.S. Environmental Protection Agency), RCRA was viewed as a
mandate for “cradle to grave” management of wastes rather than
for conservation of resources (which would require an emphasis on
not making waste in the first place). This “cradle to grave” view
of RCRA has allowed the creation of a lot of “graves” containing
toxic wastes, and a lot of hurt, frightened, outraged citizens.
The resulting waste wars pitted the regulatory-industrial complex
against the victims of pollution, which has led to a massive loss
of confidence in government and in industry. Citizens have come
to realize that industry will get away with whatever it can, and
that government is either an active participant in industrial
shenanigans or, at best, is hopelessly mired in its own stew.[1]
RCRA, the law, is coming around for re-authorization this year or
next. The timetable for such things is a little fuzzy. Congress
will take a look, hold some hearings, decide to make some
changes, and then will turn back to other matters like looming
bank failures, cities (such as Bridgeport, CT) that have entered
bankruptcy court and many others that are bankrupt de facto;, S&L
crises created by crooks inside and outside Congress followed by
an S&L bailout now being managed by crooks; George Bush’s murky
involvement in the “October Surprise”-an alleged Reagan-Bush
scheme to ruin Jimmy Carter’s re-election bid by making sure the
Ayatollah didn’t release U.S. hostages until Jan. 20, 1981, just
moments after Mr. Reagan was sworn in as President–a scheme
which, if it were true, would be treason.
The point is that RCRA is only one thin slice of a decaying pie
and Congress really doesn’t care about toxic waste anymore. Waste
was hot in the early ’80s but now Congress sees that this
problem, like so many others, can be safely ignored because we
have emerged from the Reagan years with a one-party political
system. The “loyal opposition” is now so big on loyalty and so
small on opposition that the Bush administration has developed
hardly any domestic policies whatsoever and needs none. There are
simply no effective critics left. For its part, the media is
snoozing, mainly because it is now almost entirely owned by the
polluters.[2]
Under such circumstances, if toxics activists want anything done,
they’ll certainly have to do it themselves. The traditional
capitol hill approach to environmental reform–schmoozing with
the polluters and talking turkey with the turkeys–simply won’t
cut it anymore.
Reforming RCRA does seem worth a serious effort. RCRA dominates
everything about hazardous and solid waste. RCRA frames the
government’s view of waste. This in turn frames industry’s view.
The very concept of “waste” is defined in RCRA. “Hazardous” is
defined. The government’s fundamental approach to the problem is
spelled out. These things can make life much easier or much more
difficult for people in communities.
That is why some 400 grass-roots groups (perhaps more by now)
have joined a coalition called the “War on Waste” to pressure
Congress to reform RCRA. These groups seek major changes in the
law, including:
1) A 10-year moratorium on hazardous waste incinerators,
municipal waste incinerators, hazardous waste landfills and deep
injection wells for waste. In other words, they want to plug the
toilet entirely, and what better place to seek such remedies than
Congress?
They also want to stop “sham recycling,” which is their term for
wastes that are being “recycled” by burning them in industrial
boilers and cement kilns. (More on this below.)
These groups also want Congress to set 75% as the national
recycling goal for solid waste.
They seek other far-reaching reforms in RCRA as well. Worthy
goals, all. The “War on Waste” coalition was put together by
three Washington-based groups each of which has a network of
contacts out in the parts of America where real people
live–Clean Water Action, Greenpeace Action, and the National
Toxics Campaign. To get active with the “War on Waste” network
(or just to get on their mailing list), contact Ken Brown at
Clean Water Action: 1320 18th St., NW -Suite 300, Washington, DC
20036; phone (202) 457-1286. Or Lynn Thorpe at Greenpeace Action,
1436 U St., NW, Washington, DC 20009; (202) 462-1177.
But now let’s think about an entirely different way of attacking
this problem. EPA loves hazardous waste incinerators. But the
American public doesn’t. This has been EPA’s dilemma for almost a
decade–ever since EPA officials (living in Washington, we note)
decided incineration was their “solution” to the hazardous waste
problem. Never mind that incineration didn’t “conserve” or
“recover” any resources. Forget RCRA, the Resource Conservation
and Recovery Act. EPA has promoted incinerators for 10 years
despite what RCRA says EPA is supposed to do. EPA simply
subverted RCRA. (But a ban on incinerators would be hard for EPA
to subvert, so the “War on Waste” coalition is on the right
track.)
EPA’s real solution to the dilemma has been to exempt industrial
boilers and cement kilns from RCRA. That way billions of pounds
of hazardous wastes flow not to controversial hazardous waste
incinerators but to ordinary combustion units making heat for
America’s factories and cement kilns. The public doesn’t realize
it but the vast majority of hazardous waste that is burned is not
burned in RCRA-controlled incinerators but in ordinary
unregulated or minimally-regulated industrial furnaces and cement
kilns. Fifty billion pounds is burned in cement kilns, five
billion pounds in officially-regulated hazardous waste
incinerators. (See RHWN #174, #206.) The
chances are excellent (and getting better all the time) that the factory down the
street from you is burning hazardous waste blended with its fuel
oil. Where do the toxic emissions go? Into the air of course.
This has been going on since 1980 when EPA made it perfectly
legally by exempting industrial boilers and cement kilns from all
“hazardous waste incinerator” rules. (A creative new citizens’
attack on this problem will be described next week.)
–Peter Montague, Ph.D.
===============
[1] A recent article in the NEW YORK TIMES put it well:
“Because of bureaucratic foot-dragging, complex directives from
Congress and in some cases ideological hostility, the federal
Government has failed to carry out major parts of health,
environmental, and housing laws passed with much fanfare in
recent years….
“No one can say exactly how many laws are affected by such
delays, but Federal officials say the problem has become more
widespread in recent years. They cite these examples:
“Two decades after Congress ordered the Environmental Protection
Agency to identify and regulate “hazardous air pollutants,” the
agency has issued emission standards for only seven chemicals….
“The Government has yet to issue final regulations for cleaning
up waste sites under a 1984 law. As a result, thousands of
companies are operating “under a cloud of doubt and uncertainty,”
said Theresa Pugh, director of environmental quality at the
National Association of Manufacturers….
“‘There are a million ways for recalcitrant federal agencies to
vitiate [gut] a law,’ said Representative Ron Wyden, Democrat of
Oregon.” –Robert Pear, “U.S. Laws Delayed By Complex Rules and
Partisanship,” NEW YORK TIMES March 31, 1991, pg. A1.
[2] Ben H. Bagdikian, MEDIA MONOPOLY. Third Edition. Boston:
Beacon Press, 1990.
Descriptor terms: rcra; hazardous materials; legislation;
regulation; cement kilns; pollution prevention; recycling; war on
waste; greenpeace; clean water action; ntc; epa; incineration;
industrial boilers; NEW YORK TIMES; air pollution; national
association of manufacturers; pugh; wyden; or; pear;