The Hurricane turned “Superstorm,” known as Sandy, left behind massive
quantities of downed trees, upturned sidewalks and an abundance of damaged
municipal and utility infrastructure that will take months or even years to
clean and repair. In addition, millions
of residents especially those living in coastal areas are returning to their
homes to be greeted with damaged property which will very quickly and
inefficiently make its way to the nearest dumpster, parking lot or sidewalk.
In light of the massive cleanup ahead, NJDEP Commissioner Bob Martin issued
Administrative Order (AO) #AO2012-11 (October 27, 2012) temporarily revising
certain solid waste regulations, under the following authorizations: Governor
Christie’s Executive Order #104 (October 27, 2012), the Solid Waste Management
Act (N.J.S.A. 13:1E-1 et seq.) and the Solid Waste Utility Control Act
(N.J.S.A. 48:13A-1 et seq.).
Partial Suspension of Solid
Waste Regulations
Temporary Debris Management
Areas
Emergency temporary
staging of non-putrescible solid waste and separated household hazardous waste
will be allowed in non-environmentally sensitive areas when necessary to
maintain public health or safety. Notification
to the NJDEP is required to avoid enforcement. Exemptions to the 90-day
storage of hazardous waste are available from regional compliance &
enforcement offices. Sites must be
approved by NJDEP before they become operational; however, NJDEP is still
accepting applications for all non-registered before enforcement is
implemented. In addition, all solid
waste staging areas must be permitted/approved by NJDEP in order to be eligible
for FEMA reimbursement. Please note
that FEMA and OSHA have already begun investigating the status of staging
areas. A copy of the TDMA application is available at tinyurl.com/EJIF-DebrisStaging.
Waste Flow Suspension
On November 4, 2012, the State of New Jersey issued a waste
flow suspension notice for Hudson, Union, Essex and Monmouth Counties. This suspends the mandate that any solid
(non-hazardous) waste generated in each of the counties be sent to their
designated disposal facility due ongoing power outages resulting from the
Superstorm. Waste flow is now reinstated for all Counties with the exception of
Monmouth, which is anticipated to be suspended until December 3, 2012. Please see this web page for updates: www.nj.gov/dep/special/hurricane-sandy/docs/waste-flow-suspension-union-essex-hud-mon-11-4-12.pdf
Transporter Requirements
From now until close of business November 29, 2012 or the state of
emergency is concluded, or the AO is rescinded (whichever occurs first), any clearly
marked government vehicle (State, county, municipal, or National Guard) and
certain institutional vehicles (e.g. hospitals, nursing homes, health care
faculties) can temporarily haul solid waste, regardless of current or prior
registration. Temporary registration
forms are available for privately-owned, leased and unmarked vehicles at: tinyurl.com/EJIF-TempTranspReg.
Source Separation Still
Mandatory
Solid waste
facilities, including recycling facilities, are not authorized to accept
materials that are not included in their permits. Therefore, facilities permitted to accept
Type 10 (municipal solid waste) cannot accept Type 13 (bulky waste) and vice
versa. For example, mattresses, sheet rock,
furniture, rugs and cabinets are considered Type 13 wastes and cannot be taken
to facilities permitted for Type 10. Municipalities
and contractors should make efforts to inspect dumpsters and source separate
these wastes or risk being refused at their destinations and fined by NJDEP. In addition, the NJDEP has not relaxed the
prohibition of disposing of household hazardous wastes as municipal solid
waste. Oil and gasoline should be taken
to an acceptable drop-off site for recycling.
Materials such as rechargeable batteries, pesticides, waste lamps
(fluorescent bulbs), mercury containing devices, oil-based paints and finishes,
and consumer electronics (televisions, computers, monitors) are classified as
universal wastes by NJDEP and must be managed properly until they can be
collected for recycling or processing. Likewise,
refrigerants must be properly evacuated from damaged refrigerators, air
conditioners and dehumidifiers, before they can be considered solid waste.
In order for a solid waste or recycling facility to increase capacity
or accept additional waste types, a request for emergency waiver must be
requested from NJDEP. Guidance on this
process is available at: www.nj.gov/dep/special/hurricane-sandy/docs/waste-guidance20121029.pdf.
Please note that above exceptions to the Solid Waste and Recycling
rules have been summarized and do not address all situations and do not
authorize prohibited operations that are not explicitly allowed. Please
review official documents for additional details.
Additional
Resources
- NJDEP - Environmental
Hotline: 1-877-WARNDEP
For additional information, a list of NJDEP and
Regional Contacts, a document of the ongoing status of collection and disposal
facilities, and a flood and garbage debris fact sheet to distribute to
residents, visit
www.nj.gov/dep/special/hurricane-sandy
