Section 19-0306. Municipal solid and regulated medical waste incineration facilities

1. Definitions. When used in this section:
    a. "Municipal solid waste incineration facility" means a facility that
  is  owned,  operated,  or  utilized  by,  or  under  contract  with,   a
  municipality   or   political   subdivision   and  which  utilizes  high
  temperature thermal destruction technologies, including  combustion  for
  the  recovery  of  thermal  value or for the disposal of municipal solid
  waste.
    b. "Solid waste"  means  any  materials  or  substances  discarded  or
  rejected  as  being spent, useless, worthless, or in excess to the owner
  at the time of such discharge or  rejection,  except  sewage  and  other
  highly  diluted  water  carried  materials  or  substances  and those in
  gaseous form.
    c.  "Regulated  medical  waste   incineration   facility"   means   an
  incinerator  which is operated or utilized for the disposal or treatment
  of regulated medical waste, as defined in title 15 of article 27 of this
  chapter and which  may  utilize  high  temperature  thermal  destruction
  technologies, including combustion for the recovery of thermal value.
    2.  Within  thirty  days  of  the  effective  date of this section and
  pursuant to the state administrative  procedure  act,  the  commissioner
  shall,  in  consultation  with the commissioner of health, propose final
  draft operating requirements for  emissions  of  air  contaminants  from
  municipal   solid   waste   incineration   facilities.   Such  operating
  requirements shall be effective and shall apply to municipal solid waste
  incineration facilities for which a permit to construct has been  issued
  and  final  engineering  drawings have been accepted by the commissioner
  after one hundred twenty days after  such  operating  requirements  have
  been  formally promulgated. Such operating requirements shall govern the
  operation  and  management  of  such  facilities  with  respect  to  air
  contamination, and shall include but not be limited to provisions for:
    a. Maintenance of a minimum incineration temperature and the means and
  location at which such temperature shall be measured;
    b. Residence or exposure time for incineration;
    c.  Appropriate levels of control for acid gas, sulfur dioxide, oxides
  of nitrogen, and hydrochloric acid with regard to the following:
    (i)  the  level  of  protection  provided  the   public   health   and
  environment;
    (ii)  the  likely or potential reductions of acid gas emissions from a
  separate, nearby source of such emissions as  a  result  of  a  proposed
  facility becoming operational;
    (iii)  the  likely  economic impact of such controls due to associated
  capital and operating costs, and in relation to alternative solid  waste
  management options, including landfilling; and
    (iv)  the  appropriateness  of  reduced  or  modified  levels  of such
  controls for smaller facilities;
    d. Combustion efficiency;
    e. Monitoring of emissions for toxic air contaminants,  or  surrogates
  thereof  where appropriate, to determine compliance with permit emission
  limits twice within the first eighteen months of operation and once each
  within the next two eighteen month intervals  and  subsequently  at  the
  discretion  of  the  commissioner, and following any detection of permit
  violations in a manner to be determined by the commissioner;
    f. Continuous monitoring for oxygen, carbon monoxide, carbon  dioxide,
  opacity and temperature;
    g.  Sampling and testing of the combined ash and dust residue at least
  annually to determine  appropriate  disposition  or  disposal  based  on

  relative  toxicity;  provided, however, that separate testing of ash and
  dust shall be required if they are not mixed prior to disposal.
    3. The department shall undertake further investigation of appropriate
  cooling  methods  for  achieving  the condensation and collection of air
  contaminants and  of  the  necessity  for,  and  appropriate  means  of,
  regulating  fine particulates. Upon such investigation, the commissioner
  shall issue a report on his  findings  and  may  promulgate  appropriate
  regulations.
    4.  The  department  shall, in promulgating any new or revised rule or
  regulation, accompany such rule  making  with  an  environmental  impact
  statement  or  a  written  assessment  stating the extent to or means by
  which such rule or regulation will  prevent,  control  or  prohibit  air
  pollution.
    5.  Operating  requirements  established  pursuant to this section for
  municipal  incineration  facilities  shall  be  embodied  in  rules  and
  regulations  of  the department promulgated in accordance with the state
  administrative procedure act.
    6.  On  or  before  the  effective  date  of  this  subdivision,   the
  commissioner  shall,  in  consultation  with the commissioner of health,
  promulgate proposed operating  requirements  for  the  emission  of  air
  contaminants  from regulated medical waste incineration facilities. Such
  operating requirements shall, where appropriate, be consistent with  the
  provisions  of  this  section  provided,  however, that the commissioner
  shall require such facilities  to  employ  the  best  available  control
  technologies.  Such  operating requirements shall be effective and shall
  apply to all regulated medical waste incineration facilities, for  which
  an  operating  permit  has been issued, ninety days after such operating
  requirements have  been  formally  promulgated  pursuant  to  the  state
  administrative  procedure  act  provided,  however, that where regulated
  medical  waste  incineration  facilities  are  owned  by   health   care
  facilities  licensed  pursuant  to  article  twenty-eight  of the public
  health law and in operation by permit of the  department  on  or  before
  September  first,  nineteen  hundred  eighty-seven,  then such standards
  shall become effective as to such facilities on January first,  nineteen
  hundred ninety-two.
    7.  Each  person  who  operates  a  facility  for  the incineration of
  regulated medical waste shall report to the commissioner on  the  volume
  and  sources  of  regulated  medical  waste  that it incinerated on-site
  during the  six  months  next  following  the  effective  date  of  this
  subdivision.  Such  report shall be the same as or similar to the report
  required to  be  filed  with  the  administrator.  The  commissioner  is
  authorized  to  require  reports  pursuant  to this subdivision at least
  annually thereafter.