In the April 22 Federal Register, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed to remove saccharin and its salts from the lists of hazardous constituents and commercial chemical products which are hazardous wastes when discarded. EPA also proposed to remove saccharin and its salts from the list of hazardous substances regulated under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA).
The Calorie Control Council petitioned EPA to remove saccharin and its salts from the above lists. Evaluations conducted by public health agencies such as the National Toxicological Program and the International Agency for Research on Cancer have demonstrated that saccharin and its salts do not have either cancer-causing or other toxic effects that meet the criteria for listing as hazardous constituents, hazardous wastes, and hazardous substances.
When finalized, the proposed amendments will provide relief to manufacturers of soft drinks, flavoring syrups, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics from RCRA requirements to manage and dispose of unused or “off-spec” saccharin and its salts as hazardous wastes, as well as CERCLA reporting requirements for spills or releases.
I found this interesting because I have not heard much about saccharin in years, as other sugar substitutes like aspartame and sucralose (e.g., Splenda) have replaced it in common use. Do you remember when saccharin gained notoriety as a suspected human carcinogen? Do any food products even contain saccharin as a “low-cal sweetener” anymore?
March 1 is the deadline for large quantity generators of hazardous waste, as well as facilities that treated, stored or disposed of hazardous waste on-site, to submit their biennial hazardous waste reports to the US Environmental Protection Agency. 
If in any month in 2009 your facility generated more than 1,000 kilograms (2,200 pounds, or about four to five 55-gallon barrels) of RCRA hazardous waste, or more than 1 kg of acute hazardous waste, or more than 100 kg of spill cleanup material contaminated with acute hazardous waste, then you are a RCRA Large Quantity Generator (LQG) and must complete and file the 2009 Biennial Hazardous Waste Report.
For more information including forms and State contacts, visit www.epa.gov/epawaste/inforesources/data/biennialreport/index.htm.
For assistance with preparation of the biennial hazardous waste generator’s report, contact T. Cozzie Consulting.
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The Environmental Protection Agency has announced its intent to hold a public hearing to discuss reconsideration of the Definition of Solid Waste (DSW) rule, published in October 2008 and effective December 28, 2008. The DSW rule excluded certain wastes that were recycled from the definition of solid waste, and therefore exempted them from regulation as hazardous wastes.
The hearing is planned for the end of June, with further information to follow in the federal register. Additional information on the DSW rule can be found at www.epa.gov/epawaste/hazard/dsw/rulemaking.htm.
EPA also has announced that it plans to withdraw the Emissions Comparable Fuels rule, which became effective January 20. This rule reclassified certain materials as non-wastes when burned in an industrial boiler, if their emissions were comparable to emissions from the burning of fuel oil. The proposal to withdraw the rule will be published later this year.
More information on the Emissions Comparable Fuels rule can be found at www.epa.gov/epawaste/hazard/tsd/td/combust/compfuels/exclusion.htm.
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