Bill Text: NJ S3633 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Amends definition of "existing major hazardous waste facility" in "Major Hazardous Waste Facilities Siting Act."
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-01-08 - Received in the Assembly, Referred to Assembly Environment and Solid Waste Committee [S3633 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2016-S3633-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator STEPHEN M. SWEENEY
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
SYNOPSIS
Amends definition of "existing major hazardous waste facility" in "Major Hazardous Waste Facilities Siting Act."
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning major hazardous waste facilities, and amending P.L.1981, c.279.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 3 of P.L.1981, c.279 (C.13:1E-51) is amended to read as follows:
3. As used in this act:
a. "Applicant" means the applicant for a registration statement and engineering design for a major hazardous waste facility;
b. "Application" means the application for a registration statement and engineering design for a major hazardous waste facility;
c. "Commission" means the Hazardous Waste Facilities Siting Commission established by section 4 of this act;
d. "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Environmental Protection;
e. (Deleted by amendment, P.L.2007, c.39);
f. "Criteria" means the criteria for the siting of new major hazardous waste facilities adopted by the department pursuant to section 9 of this act;
g. "Department" means the Department of Environmental Protection;
h. (Deleted by amendment, P.L.1983, c. 392);
i. "Engineering design" means the specifications and parameters approved by the department for the construction and operation of a major hazardous waste facility;
j. "Environmental and health impact statement" means a statement of likely environmental and public health impacts resulting from the construction and operation of a major hazardous waste facility, and includes an inventory of existing environmental conditions at the site, a project description, an assessment of the impact of the project on the environment and on public health, a listing of unavoidable environmental and public health impacts, and steps to be taken to minimize environmental and public health impacts during construction and operation;
k. "Hazardous waste" means any waste or combination of wastes which poses a present or potential threat to human health, living organisms or the environment including, but not limited to, waste material that is toxic, carcinogenic, corrosive, irritating, sensitizing, biologically infectious, explosive or flammable, and any waste so designated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Hazardous waste does not include radioactive waste;
l. "Hazardous waste facility" means any area, plant or other facility for the treatment, storage or disposal of hazardous waste, including loading and transportation facilities or equipment used in connection with the processing of hazardous wastes; "major hazardous waste facility" means any commercial hazardous waste facility which has a total capacity to treat, store or dispose of more than 250,000 gallons of hazardous waste, or the equivalent thereof, as determined by the department, except that any facility which would otherwise be considered a major hazardous waste facility pursuant to this subsection solely as the result of the recycling or rerefining of any hazardous wastes which are or contain gold, silver, osmium, platinum, palladium, iridium, rhodium, ruthenium or copper shall not be considered a major hazardous waste facility for the purposes of this act; "existing major hazardous waste facility" means any major hazardous waste facility which was legally in operation or upon which construction had legally commenced prior to the effective date of [this act] P.L.1981, c.279 (C.13:1E-49 et seq.), even if, since that date, it stopped accepting hazardous waste for a period no longer than 10 years; "new major hazardous waste facility" means any major hazardous waste facility other than an existing major hazardous waste facility; "commercial hazardous waste facility" means any hazardous waste facility which accepts hazardous waste from more than one generator for storage, treatment or disposal at a site other than the site where the hazardous waste was generated;
m. "Hazardous waste industry" means any industry which operates a hazardous waste facility or which proposes to construct or operate a hazardous waste facility;
n. "Owner or operator" means and includes, in addition to the usual meanings thereof, every owner of record of any interest in land whereon a major hazardous waste facility is or has been located, and any person or corporation which owns a majority interest in any other corporation which is the owner or operator of any major hazardous waste facility;
o. "Plan" means the Major Hazardous Waste Facilities Plan adopted by the commission pursuant to section 10 of this act;
p. "Registration statement" or "registration" means the operating license, approved by the department, for a major hazardous waste facility; "registrant" means the person to whom such approval was granted.
(cf: P.L.2007, c.39, s.19)
2. This act shall take
effect immediately, and shall be retroactive to September 10, 1981.
STATEMENT
This bill would amend the definition of "existing major hazardous waste facility" in the "Major Hazardous Waste Facilities Siting Act," P.L.1981, c.279 (C.13:1E-49 et seq.), so that it would include any major hazardous waste facility which was legally in operation or upon which construction had legally commenced prior to that act's effective date (i.e., September 10, 1981) even if, since that date, it stopped accepting hazardous waste for a period no longer than 10 years.
