It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Sections 23-18.9-7, 23-18.9-8, 23-18.9-9 and 23-18.9-10 of the General Laws in Chapter 23-18.9 entitled "REFUSE DISPOSAL" is hereby amended to read as follows:
23-18.9-7. Definitions. -- As used in this chapter, the following terms shall, where the context permits, be construed as follows:
(1) "Cocktailing" means the adding, combining or mixing of hazardous waste asdefined in 23-19.1-4 with construction debris and demolition debris.
(2) "Construction and demolition (C&D) debris" means non-hazardous solid waste resulting from the construction, remodeling, repair, and demolition of utilities and structures; and uncontaminated solid waste resulting from land clearing. Such waste includes, but is not limited to wood (including painted, treated and coated wood and wood products), land clearing debris, wall coverings, plaster, drywall, plumbing fixtures, nonasbestos insulation, roofing shingles and other roof coverings, glass, plastics that are not sealed in a manner that conceals other wastes, empty buckets ten gallons or less in size and having no more than one inch of residue remaining on the bottom, electrical wiring and components containing no hazardous liquids, and pipe and metals that are incidental to any of the above. Solid waste that is not C&D debris (even if resulting from the construction, remodeling, repair, and demolition of utilities, structures and roads and land clearing) includes, but is not limited to asbestos, waste, garbage, corrugated container board, electrical fixtures containing hazardous liquids such as fluorescent light ballasts or transformers, fluorescent lights, carpeting, furniture, appliances, tires, drums, containers greater than ten gallons in size, any containers having more than one inch of residue remaining on the bottom and fuel tanks. Specifically excluded from the definition of construction and demolition debris is solid waste (including what otherwise would be construction and demolition debris) resulting from any processing technique, other than that employed at a department-approved C&D debris processing facility, that renders individual waste components unrecognizable, such as pulverising or shredding.
(3) "Construction and demolition debris processing facility" means a solid waste management facility that receives and processes construction and demolition debris of more than one hundred fifty (150) tons per day, and that can demonstrate, through records maintained at the facility, that seventy-five percent (75%) of the recyclable material received by the facility is processed and removed from the site within six (6) weeks of receipt on a continuous basis, and that in no case stores material on site for over three (3) months; provided, however, such facilities do not include municipal compost facilities.
(4) "Construction and demolition debris separation facility" means a facility that receives, separates and or screens construction and demolition debris into its components for subsequent resale or processing which includes but is not limited to grinding, shredding, crushing, or landfilling at another location separate and apart from the location on which the separation occurs.
(5) "Director" shall be held to mean the director of the department of environmental management or any subordinate or subordinates to whom the director has delegated the powers and duties vested in him or her by this chapter.
(6) "Person" shall include an individual, firm, partnership, association, and private or municipal corporation.
(7) "Recyclable materials" means those materials separated from solid waste for reuse. The director of the department of environmental management through regulations shall specify those materials that are to be included within the definition of recyclables. The materials to be included may change from time to time depending upon new technologies, economic conditions, waste stream characteristics, environmental effects, or other factors.
(8) "Segregated solid waste" means material separated from other solid waste for reuse.
(9) "Solid waste" means garbage, refuse, and other discarded solid materials generated by residential, institutional, commercial, industrial, and agricultural sources, but does not include solids or dissolved material in domestic sewage or sewage sludge, nor does it include hazardous waste as defined in chapter 19.1 of this title , nor does it includeused asphalt, concrete, Portland concrete cement, or tree stumps.
(10) "Solid waste management facility" means any plant, structure, equipment, real and personal property, except mobile equipment or incinerators with a capacity of less than one thousand pounds (1000 lbs.) per hour, operated for the purpose of processing, treating, or disposing of solid waste but not segregated solid waste.
{ADD (11) "Expansion" shall mean any increase in volume, size or scope, either vertically, horizontally or otherwise. ADD}
23-18.9-8. Licenses. -- (a)(1) No person shall operate any solid waste management facility or construction and demolition (C&D) debris processing facility {ADD or expand an existing facility ADD} unless a license therefor is obtained from the director. The director shall have full power to make all rules and regulations establishing standards to be met for the issuance of the licenses.
(2) The director shall promulgate rules and regulations governing the uses and content of materials accepted and generated by a construction and demolition debris processing facility. Any costs associated with testing these materials by the facility or by the department to verify the results of the facility's tests shall be borne by the facility. Each facility shall be required to establish a fund with the department to cover the cost of these tests.
(b) Any person who desires to construct a solid waste management facility or install any equipment in such a facility must first submit to the director for approval plans and specifications and other related data required by the directors.
(c) Processing facilities that accept less than one hundred fifty (150) tons per day of construction and demolition (C&D) debris are exempt from the requirement of obtaining a solid waste management facility license, however, they are not exempt from complying with all other applicable requirements for the construction and operation of a construction and demolition debris processing facility and are subject to the rules and regulation for such facilities promulgated in accordance with section 23-18.9-8.
23-18.9-9. Application, approval and fees for licenses. -- (a)(1) Any person who desires to construct and/or operate a solid waste management facility {ADD or expand an existing facility ADD} shall apply to the director for all licenses and/or permits so to do provided, however, that the application shall state all licenses and/or permits for which application is made. Any person who desires to construct and/or operate a private solid waste disposal facility shall submit to the director simultaneously with the application a certificate of final determination from the municipality in which it is proposed to site the facility that the site conforms with all applicable local land use and control ordinances or on appeal a final judgment of a court that the proposed site for the facility conforms with all applicable land use and control ordinances of that municipality. The applicant shall also submit simultaneously with the application a certificate of approval of the proposed site issued by the state planning council, except for statutorily mandated facilities. The council shall only approve a site after evaluation of alternative sites and assessment of comparative environmental impact at the sites in accordance with law and state planning council rules, and in the absence of such, the council shall promulgate rules for the evaluation and/or assessment, and distribution of location of sites for waste facilities among the regions of this state. The council shall not issue its certificate prior to the publication of public notice and the expiration of the public comment period regarding the proposed site. Any applicant who shall propose to substantially deviate from the use or purpose stated in any application pending on July 1, 1974 shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter. The director shall review and decide all applications.
(2)(i) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 42-35-14 to the contrary, the director shall forthwith review the application and shall give public notice of the intention to issue a draft license or the intention to deny the application.
(ii)The draft license and/or tentative denial, including all supporting documentation, shall be made available for public comment.
(3) Within fifteen (15) days of the date of the public notice to issue the draft license, the director shall hold an informational workshop. The purpose of the informational workshop shall be to discuss the type of facility or activity which is the subject of the draft license; the type and quantity of wastes, which are proposed to be managed, processed and/or disposed; a brief summary for the basis for the draft license; conditions, including references to applicable statutory or regulatory provisions; reasons why any requested variances or alternatives to required standards do or do not appear justified; a description of the procedures for reaching a final decision on the draft license, which shall include the beginning and ending dates for the comment period hereafter, the address where comments will be received, procedures for requesting a hearing and the nature of that hearing, any other procedures by which the public may participate in the final decision; and the name and telephone number of a person to contact for further information.
(4) No earlier than sixty (60) days nor later than seventy-five (75) days following the initial public notice of the issuance of the draft license or tentative denial, a hearing shall be held for public comment. Comments from the applicant and/or any interested persons shall be recorded at the public hearing. Written comments, which shall be considered part of the record, may be submitted for thirty (30) days following the close of the public comment hearing.
(5) Within ninety (90) days of the close of the public comment period, the director shall issue the license or the final denial. Such shall be in writing and shall include a response to each substantive public comment. In the event that the director shall fail to issue such within the ninety (90) day period, then the applicant may petition the superior court to issue its writ of mandamus ordering the director or some suitable person to forthwith issue the license or the denial. Any person refusing to obey said writ of mandamus shall be subject to penalties for contempt of court. The writ of mandamus shall be the exclusive remedy for failure of the director to comply hereunder.
(6) The applicant and/or any person who provided substantive comment at any time during the public comment period may appeal the decision of the director, provided, however, any person who shall demonstrate good cause for failure to so participate and demonstrate that his/her interests shall be substantially impacted if prohibited from appearance in the appeal, may in the discretion of the hearing officer be permitted to participate in the appeal process.
(7) The appeal shall be limited to those issues raised by the parties, provided, however, that upon good cause shown, the director shall allow additional issues to be raised.
(8) All appeals shall be pursuant to the rules and regulations established by the director and the rules and regulations established by the administrative adjudication division, provided, however, that all appeals shall contain precise statements of the issues presented on appeal and the specific part or parts of the decision of the director which are challenged.
(9) All appeals shall be heard before administrative adjudication hearing officers. All hearings shall be evidentiary hearings. All witnesses shall testify under oath and shall be subject to cross-examination.
(10) The hearing officer shall determine and apportion to the applicant the actual costs of the appeal process, exclusive of attorneys' fees. Such shall not be considered administrative penalties.
(b) The director shall publish a schedule of fees to be paid to file an application for a license. Such fees shall be reasonable and shall account for the size and complexity of the proposed project and the other criteria as the director may determine; provided, however, that no application fee shall exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00).
(c) Licenses shall expire three (3) years from the date of issuance unless sooner suspended or revoked. The provisions in this section for issuance of a license shall not apply to the renewal of a license and any facility shall be relicensed if it meets the criteria in effect when the facility was licensed, provided, however, that any renewal application which substantially deviates from the use or purpose of the license shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter and further provided that any such facility shall be relicensed if it meets the criteria in effect when the facility was licensed. The director is authorized to promulgate by regulation procedures for license renewals. The director shall publish a schedule of fees to be paid to renew a license. The fees shall be reasonable and shall account for the size and complexity of the project, and costs incurred to monitor such, and such other criteria as the director may determine; provided, however, that no renewal license fees shall exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000). All licensed solid waste disposal facilities shall be deemed to comply with all local ordinances.
(d) All application fees and license fees shall be directed to the department of environmental management and shall be held in a separate account and appropriated for review of applications, renewals of, and compliance with, licenses.
(e) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or any other provision of law to the contrary, cities and towns which own and operate landfills shall be exempt from any application fees relative to applications it files to expand its existing landfill.
23-18.9-10. Penalties. -- (a) Any person who constructs a solid waste management facility or expand an existing facility {ADD or expands the facility ADD} or construction and demolition (C&D) debris processing facility or installs equipment in the facility without first obtaining approval of the plans and specifications for the facility or any person who operates such a facility without obtaining a license to do so from the director {ADD or who violates any of the provisions of this chapter or any rules, regulations, permits, licenses and orders adopted pursuant to this chapter, in the operation of a licensed facility ADD} shall be punished by a fine of not more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) or by imprisonment for not more than five (5) years or both such fine and imprisonment, and every person shall be guilty of a separate and distinct offense for each day during which the violation shall be repeated or continued.
(b) Any person who disposes of solid waste at other than a licensed solid waste facility shall be punished by a fine of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each day during which such violation shall be repeated or continued and all costs incurred in the removal of said solid waste or by imprisonment for not more than five (5) years, or both.
(c) Any person who cocktails hazardous waste as defined by section 23-19.1-4(4) with construction and demolition debris prior to or contemporaneously with the transfer of such waste to a construction and demolition debris processing facility or a construction and demolition debris facility or who generates solid waste which is not disposed of in accordance with the general laws shall be absolutely liable for the cost of containment, cleanup, restoration and removal of the hazardous wastes and for all damages, losses or injuries, including environmental, which result directly or indirectly from the combination, mixing or addition of the hazardous waste with the construction and demolition debris and shall be deemed guilty of a felony and shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than five (5) years or by a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) or both. In any case of a continuing violation, each day's continuance shall be deemed to be a separate and distinct offense.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
