Deferral of Phase IV Standards for PCB's as a Constituent Subject to Treatment in Soil

Résumé

EPA is temporarily deferring a portion of the rule applying Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR) under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) to constituents subject to treatment (CST) in soils contaminated with certain characteristic hazardous wastes. EPA promulgated this rule on May 26, 1998. Specifically, EPA is temporarily deferring the requirement that polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) be considered a CST when they are present in soils that exhibit the Toxicity Characteristic for metals. EPA is taking this action because the regulation appears to be discouraging generators from cleaning up contaminated soils, which is contrary to what EPA intended when we promulgated alternative treatment standards for contaminated soils. In addition, EPA needs more time to restudy the issue of appropriate treatment standards for metal-contaminated soils which also contain PCBs as CST. The Agency still requires generators to treat these soils to meet LDR standards for all hazardous constituents except PCBs. Generators also are required to treat PCBs if the total concentration of halogenated organic compounds in the soil equals or exceeds 1000 parts per million.