(a) The prescribed guidelines are applicable to thermal processing facilities designed to process or which are processing 50 tons or more per day of municipal-type solid wastes. The application of this capacity criterion will be interpreted to mean any facility designed to process or actually processing 50/24 tons or more per hour. However, the guidelines do not apply to hazardous, agricultural, and mining wastes because of the lack of sufficient information upon which to base recommended procedures.

(b) The requirement sections contained herein delineate minimum levels of performance required of any solid waste thermal processing operation. The recommended procedures sections are presented to suggest preferred methods by which the objectives of the requirements can be realized. The recommended procedures are based on the practice of incineration at large facilities (50 tons per day or more) processing municipal solid waste. If techniques other than the recommended procedures are used or wastes other than municipal wastes are processed, it is the obligation of the facility's owner and operator to demonstrate to the responsible agency in advance by means of engineering calculations, pilot plant data, etc., that the techniques employed will satisfy the requirements.

(c) Thermal processing residue must be disposed of in an environmentally acceptable manner. Where a land disposal facility is employed, it must be in accordance with the Environmental Protection Agency's Guidelines for the Land Disposal of Solid Wastes for both residues from the thermal processing operation and those non-hazardous wastes which cannot be thermally processed for reasons of health, safety, or technological limitation.

(d) Pursuant to section 211 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended, these guidelines are mandatory for Federal agencies. In addition, they are recommended to State, interstate, regional, and local government agencies for use in their activities.

(e) The guidelines are intended to apply equally to all solid waste generated by Federal agencies, regardless of whether processed or disposed of on or off Federal property; and solid waste generated by non-Federal entities, but processed or disposed of on Federal property. However, in the case of many Federal facilities such as Post Offices, military recruiting stations, and other offices, local community solid waste processing and disposal facilities are utilized, and processing and disposal is not within the management control of the Federal agency. Thus, implementation of the guidelines can be expected only in those situations where the Federal agency is able to exercise direct management control over the processing and disposal operations. However, every effort must be made by the responsible agency, where offsite facilities are utilized, to attain processing and disposal facilities that are in compliance with the guidelines. Where non-Federal generated solid waste is processed and disposed of on Federal land and/or facilities, those facilities and/or sites must be in compliance with these guidelines. Determination of compliance to meet the requirements of the guidelines rests with the responsible agency, and they have the authority to determine how such compliance may occur.