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The California Laboratory Regulatory Reform Task Force has been studying the problem of RCRA compliance in labs for several years. Their report, written in 1995. The executive summary is available below and the rest of the report is available by following the links. M.C. Hull of San Diego State University is one of co-chairs of the committee and a good contact for more information about its activities.

I. Executive Summary

The cutting-edge research and development conducted in California's educational, commercial and governmental laboratories has been, and will continue to be, a major determinant of the overall well-being and economic prosperity of both the state and the nation. However, these laboratories are finding it increasingly difficult to focus on their research mission because of unnecessarily burdensome hazardous waste regulations that provide no additional benefit for the protection of public safety or the environment.

There is no question that the hazardous waste generated from laboratories must be regulated. The problem is that the laws and regulations governing hazardous wastes were written primarily for large-scale manufacturing processes, not for the very different types of activities conducted by laboratories, which generate only about 1/100 of 1% of the nation's hazardous waste. Regulatory agencies, therefore, have had to decide how to apply these laws and regulations in the laboratory setting, often with little understanding of how a laboratory operates. The result has been a confusing array of regulatory interpretations at the federal, state and local levels. In California, laboratories have been particularly concerned with the regulatory interpretations put forward over the last year by the state's Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC).

In response to this concern, the Director of DTSC convened the Laboratory Regulatory Reform Task Force in November 1994 to consider the issue of hazardous waste regulations as they apply to laboratories. The Task Force was asked to develop two types of recommendations: 1) those that could be implemented under the current system, and 2) those that would reflect a "completely new approach to regulating laboratories." Because of time constraints, the Task Force -- which included representatives from a wide cross section of California institutions and organizations --focused primarily on developing the first set of recommendations. Task Force members agreed that fundamental new approaches to regulating laboratories should be explored further, it believes the recommendations in this report, when implemented, will address the issues of critical concern to the laboratory communities in the state.

This consensus task force report examines thirteen issues where DTSC's current regulatory interpretations either impose unnecessary burdens on laboratories, or require clarification, and recommends ways to address each issue. The two central recommendations, and most critical issues for laboratory facilities, involve the question of who at a laboratory facility can make the regulatory waste determination, and when a material should become regulated as a hazardous waste.

Under the current DTSC interpretation, this determination must be made by each individual researcher within a laboratory as soon as that person has no further use for the material, even if the material is unused and could be used by others at the facility. The main concern with the DTSC interpretation is that it is not appropriate in a laboratory environment. In a large-scale manufacturing setting, the process is predictable and only a few types of waste are produced. Also, the amount of waste is large and relatively constant.

The Task Force believes that a better approach is to allow researchers to concentrate on research and provide a laboratory facility with the flexibility to vest the regulatory decision-making authority in technically qualified personnel designated specifically for that purpose. Adoption of this approach will provide the necessary flexibility and simplification for contiguous generator sites with multiple laboratories, without any diminution of public safety or environmental protection, and is the single most important recommendation of the Task Force.

If this approach is adopted by DTSC, the Task Force believes that most of the other issues of concern identified in this report can more easily be addressed. The other eleven recommendations in this report address the issues of:

• bench top treatment of hazardous waste
• reuse of empty containers
• disposal of laboratory wastewater
• reporting on releases of hazardous materials and wastes
• mixed waste
• the definition of "onsite facility"
• closed containers
• training and record keeping
• the use of accredited laboratories for analysis
• distribution of regulatory interpretations, and
• certain medical wastes considered as hazardous waste.

The Task Force believes that the recommendations put forth in this report, when adopted, will help ensure that California retains its scientific and technological preeminence without any diminution in the protection of public safety or the environment. In some cases the recommendations would actually provide greater protection.

The Task Force appreciates the opportunity that has been provided to review these important issues and stands ready to work with the Department in implementing these recommendations.