The regulations in this subpart apply to owners or operators of facilities that thermally treat hazardous waste in devices other than enclosed devices using controlled flame combustion, except as § 265.1 provides otherwise. Thermal treatment in enclosed devices using controlled flame combustion is subject to the requirements of subpart O if the unit is an incinerator, and subpart H of part 266, if the unit is a boiler or an industrial furnace as defined in § 260.10.

Before adding hazardous waste, the owner or operator must bring his thermal treatment process to steady state (normal) conditions of operation—including steady state operating temperature—using auxiliary fuel or other means, unless the process is a non-continuous (batch) thermal treatment process which requires a complete thermal cycle to treat a discrete quantity of hazardous waste.

In addition to the waste analyses required by § 265.13, the owner or operator must sufficiently analyze any waste which he has not previously treated in his thermal process to enable him to establish steady state (normal) or other appropriate (for a non-continuous process) operating conditions (including waste and auxiliary fuel feed) and to determine the type of pollutants which might be emitted. At a minimum, the analysis must determine:

(a) Heating value of the waste;

(b) Halogen content and sulfur content in the waste; and

(c) Concentrations in the waste of lead and mercury, unless the owner or operator has written, documented data that show that the element is not present.

(a) The owner or operator must conduct, as a minimum, the following monitoring and inspections when thermally treating hazardous waste:

(1) Existing instruments which relate to temperature and emission control (if an emission control device is present) must be monitored at least every 15 minutes. Appropriate corrections to maintain steady state or other appropriate thermal treatment conditions must be made immediately either automatically or by the operator. Instruments which relate to temperature and emission control would normally include those measuring waste feed, auxiliary fuel feed, treatment process temperature, and relevant process flow and level controls.

(2) The stack plume (emissions), where present, must be observed visually at least hourly for normal appearance (color and opacity). The operator must immediately make any indicated operating corrections necessary to return any visible emissions to their normal appearance.

(3) The complete thermal treatment process and associated equipment (pumps, valves, conveyors, pipes, etc.) must be inspected at least daily for leaks, spills, and fugitive emissions, and all emergency shutdown controls and system alarms must be checked to assure proper operation.

(b) [Reserved]

At closure, the owner or operator must remove all hazardous waste and hazardous waste residues (including, but not limited to, ash) from the thermal treatment process or equipment.

Open burning of hazardous waste is prohibited except for the open burning and detonation of waste explosives. Waste explosives include waste which has the potential to detonate and bulk military propellants which cannot safely be disposed of through other modes of treatment. Detonation is an explosion in which chemical transformation passes through the material faster than the speed of sound (0.33 kilometers/second at sea level). Owners or operators choosing to open burn or detonate waste explosives must do so in accordance with the following table and in a manner that does not threaten human health or the environment.

(a) Owners or operators of thermal treatment devices subject to this subpart may burn EPA Hazardous Wastes FO20, FO21, FO22, FO23, FO26, or FO27 if they receive a certification from the Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response that they can meet the performance standards of subpart O of part 264 when they burn these wastes.

(b) The following standards and procedures will be used in determining whether to certify a thermal treatment unit:

(1) The owner or operator will submit an application to the Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response containing the applicable information in §§ 270.19 and 270.62 demonstrating that the thermal treatment unit can meet the performance standard in subpart O of part 264 when they burn these wastes.

(2) The Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response will issue a tentative decision as to whether the thermal treatment unit can meet the performance standards in subpart O of part 264. Notification of this tentative decision will be provided by newspaper advertisement and radio broadcast in the jurisdiction where the thermal treatment device is located. The Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response will accept comment on the tentative decision for 60 days. The Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response also may hold a public hearing upon request or at his discretion.

(3) After the close of the public comment period, the Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response will issue a decision whether or not to certify the thermal treatment unit.