Section 096-409-2 - General Licensing RequirementsExcept for processing facilities licensed under sections 5-7, any person proposing to establish a new solid waste processing facility or alter an existing solid waste processing facility, other than a composting facility, must obtain a license pursuant to Chapter 400, section 4 and sections 2-4 of this chapter.
A.Processing Facility General Siting Standards. At the time the application is filed with the Department, the waste handling area at a proposed processing facility may not be located: (1) Closer than 100 feet to the solid waste boundary of an active, inactive or closed solid waste landfill;(2) Within a 100 year flood plain;(3) Within 100 feet of a protected natural resource;(4) In, on or over a protected natural resource, or on land adjacent to the following areas, without first obtaining a permit pursuant to 38 M.R.S.A. section 480-A et seq.: (a) A coastal wetland, great pond, river, stream or brook, or significant wildlife habitat contained within a freshwater wetland; or(b) Freshwater wetlands consisting of or containing: (i) under normal circumstances, at least 20,000 square feet of aquatic vegetation, emergent marsh vegetation or open water, except for artificial ponds or impoundments; or(ii) peatlands dominated by shrubs, sedges and sphagnum moss;(5) Closer than 300 feet to off-site water supply wells or water supply springs;(6) Closer than 100 feet to public roads and property boundaries;(7) Closer than 10,000 feet to any airport runway used by turbojet aircraft, or within 5,000 feet of any airport runway used by only piston-type aircraft, when putrescible waste is to be handled outdoors in an uncovered or exposed condition; and(8) For tire processing facilities, closer than 1000 feet to residences in existence at the time the application is filed, other than residences owned by the facility owner or operator. For all other processing facilities, closer than 500 feet to residences in existence at the time the application is filed, other than residences owned by the facility owner or operator.(9) For outside tire storage areas, closer than 300 feet to a sand and gravel aquifer.B.Processing Facility General Design Standards(1) The facility process must be designed to achieve the intended purpose of the facility as described in the application. Specifically, the facility must be designed: to successfully reduce the volume or change the chemical or physical characteristics of the solid waste for a specified purpose, or to produce a product meeting all relevant specifications for distribution and use of the product as intended. When the facility's purpose is to produce a residual or secondary material for beneficial use in Maine, that residual or secondary material must meet the applicable standards in Chapter 418 or Chapter 419.(2) Design Capacity: The facility design must include processing systems and storage areas of sufficient capacity to accommodate seasonal throughput of all materials that are delivered to and generated by the facility. Areas proposed for storage of tires, both incoming and processed, at tire processing facilities must be no greater than the applicant demonstrates to the Department are necessary for the viable operation of the processing facility. No single pile of whole tires may exceed 5,000 square feet; no single pile of chipped or processed tires may exceed 10,000 square feet. The height of any pile must not exceed 10 feet.(3) Environmental Monitoring Program Design: A processing facility which has been determined by the Department to pose a potential threat to public health or safety or the environment because of the nature of the wastes handled at the solid waste facility and/or the location, design and operation of the facility, must have a monitoring program designed and implemented in accordance with the applicable requirements of Chapter 405.(4) Leachate Control: The facility design must include provisions to contain, collect and treat any leachate and wash waters generated at the facility.(5) Odor Control: (a) For facilities other than those that process wastewater treatment sludge from publicly owned treatment works and facilities that process septage, the facility design must include provisions for the control of nuisance odor consistent with the provisions of Section 4(F)(1) of this Chapter.(b) For facilities that process wastewater treatment sludge from publicly owned treatment works and facilities that process septage, the facility design must include provisions for the control of nuisance odor consistent with the provisions of Section 4(F)(2) of this Chapter.(6) Clean-up: The facility design must include provisions for the regular wash down or dry clean-up of the facility.(7) The facility design must include suitable barriers or fencing and gates to prevent unauthorized persons access to the site.(8) Fire Breaks: Fire breaks consisting of the following must be included in the design of all tire processing facilities: (a) Each outside storage area for tires, both before and after processing, must be separated by a 50 foot minimum mineral strip; and(b) A 100-foot fire break must be established and maintained around the ground surface perimeter of the tire storage area(s). All slash, brush, debris, and other combustible material must be removed for a distance of 100 feet in all directions outside the perimeter. Other fire control measures may be proposed if the local fire ranger and the jurisdictional fire chief for the municipality in which the facility is located give written approval of the alternative measures. A copy of the written approval must be submitted with the application.C.Recycling and Reuse Standards. An applicant for a new or expanded solid waste processing facility that generates residue requiring disposal must demonstrate that the proposed facility: (1) Will recycle or process into fuel for combustion all waste accepted at the facility to the maximum extent practicable, but in no case at a rate less than 50%. For purposes of this subsection, "recycle" includes, but is not limited to: reuse of waste as shaping, grading or alternative daily cover materials at landfills, aggregate material in construction, and boiler fuel substitutes, when such reuse is consistent with all applicable requirements of the Solid Waste Management Rules, 06-096 CMR 400 to 419; and,(2) Is consistent with the recycling provisions of the state waste management and recycling plan as defined at 38 M.R.S. §1303-C(35). The requirements of this subsection do not apply to solid waste composting facilities, solid waste processing facilities whose primary purpose is volume reduction or other waste processing or treatment prior to disposal of the waste in a landfill or incineration facility, solid waste processing facilities that are licensed in accordance with permit-by-rule provisions of these rules, or solid waste processing facilities that are otherwise exempt from the requirements of this Chapter.
For purposes of this Chapter, recycling or processing into fuel to the "maximum extent practicable" means at a rate that results in recycling or reusing the greatest amount of waste possible and minimizing the amount of waste disposed to the greatest extent possible, without causing unreasonable increases in facility operating costs or unreasonable impacts on other aspects of the facility's operation. Determination of the "maximum extent practicable" includes consideration of the availability and cost of technologies and services, transportation and handling logistics, and overall costs that may be associated with recycling and reuse.
06- 096 C.M.R. ch. 409, § 2