Massachusetts: Final Authorization of State Hazardous Waste Management Program Revisions; State-Specific Modification to Federal Hazardous Waste Regulations, Pursuant to ECOS Program Proposal; Extension of Site-Specific Regulations for New England Universities' Laboratories XL Project

Today's action consists of three distinct but related final rulemakings briefly characterized here and further discussed in the supplementary information section of this rule. First, the EPA is granting final authorization to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), for revisions to the State's hazardous waste program which meet the standard EPA regulatory requirements for authorization of State programs. The revisions consist of updated State regulations covering hazardous waste definitions and miscellaneous provisions, provisions for the identification and listing of hazardous wastes, and standards for hazardous waste generators, which correspond to RCRA Consolidated Checklists C1, C2 and C3, respectively. These State regulations have been updated to address most Federal RCRA requirements listed in Checklists C1, C2 and C3 through at least July 1, 1990. Second, the State regulations submitted for authorization also include comprehensive regulations governing hazardous wastes being recycled on-site by generators. These regulations do not meet the standard EPA requirements for State authorization but have been determined by the EPA to meet the RCRA statutory test of protecting human health and the environment. The EPA also has determined that these Massachusetts regulations are at least as environmentally protective overall as the Federal program. Thus the EPA is today making a State-specific modification to the Federal hazardous waste regulations to enable the EPA to authorize these Massachusetts regulations, pursuant to a proposal for flexibility submitted by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MADEP) under the program established by the Joint EPA/State Agreement To Pursue Regulatory Innovation between the EPA and the Environmental Council of States (ECOS program). As part of this same rulemaking, the EPA is also today authorizing these Massachusetts hazardous waste recyclable materials regul