Frequent Questions About the Methodology for Evaluating the Beneficial Use of Industrial Non-Hazardous Secondary Materials and the Beneficial Use Compendium

1. What are industrial non-hazardous secondary materials?
2. What is beneficial use (BU)?
3. How is the beneficial use of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials currently regulated?
4. How does this BU Methodology relate to the unencapsulated framework mentioned in the April 2015 CCR Disposal Rule?
5. How does the BU Methodology address unencapsulated uses?
6. How does the BU Methodology differ from EPA’s previous encapsulated beneficial use methodology?
7. How does this BU Methodology relate to the Agency’s Identification of Non-Hazardous Secondary Materials regulations?
8. How can the BU Methodology and BU Compendium be helpful?
9. What conclusions can be drawn from an evaluation using the BU Methodology?
10. What is EPA’s role in evaluating beneficial uses of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials? Who is responsible for conducting evaluations of other non-hazardous secondary material beneficial uses?
11. Will evaluations of the beneficial use of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials conducted by organizations other than EPA be available to the public?

1. What are industrial non-hazardous secondary materials?

Industrial non-hazardous secondary materials (secondary materials) are any materials that are not the primary products from manufacturing and other industrial sectors. These materials can include scrap and residuals from production processes and products that have been recovered at the end of their useful life.

2. What is beneficial use?

Beneficial use (BU) involves the substitution of an industrial non-hazardous secondary material, either as is or following additional processing, for some or all of the virgin materials in a natural or commercial product in a way that: provides a functional benefit, meets product specifications, and does not pose concerns to human health or the environment. Examples include coal fly ash used as a replacement for portland cement in concrete, flue gas desulfurization gypsum as a substitute for mined gypsum in wallboard, and spent foundry sands used in soil-related applications, such as manufactured soil and road subbase.

3. How is the beneficial use of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials currently regulated?

In general, state environmental agencies manage the beneficial use of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials (secondary materials). Prior to beneficially using secondary materials in any projects, interested individuals or organizations should talk to the relevant state environmental agency to ensure proposed uses are consistent with state requirements. The Beneficial Use State Program Locatoris a useful tool to identify individual state rules and programs related to beneficial use of secondary materials.

For coal combustion residuals (CCR), the Agency’s April 2015 CCR Disposal Final Rule promulgated a definition for beneficial use (40 CFR 257.53). This definition identifies four criteria that distinguish beneficial use from disposal (21349 FR 80). Those parties who propose a beneficial use for CCR should consult both this definition and the relevant state authorities to identify all the requirements that would apply.

4. How does this BU Methodology relate to the unencapsulated framework mentioned in the April 2015 CCR Disposal Rule?

During the development of the framework to address the risks associated with the beneficial use of unencapsulated materials, the Agency determined that the principles outlined in the 2013 Methodology for Evaluating Encapsulated Beneficial Uses of Coal Combustion Residuals are also applicable and relevant to unencapsulated uses. Therefore, EPA combined the discussion of encapsulated and unencapsulated uses into a single document and renamed it the Methodology for Evaluating Beneficial Uses of Industrial Non-Hazardous Secondary Materials to reflect the broader scope.

In addition, EPA has completed the Beneficial Use Compendium: A Collection of Resources and Tools to Support Beneficial Use Evaluations (BU Compendium). The BU Compendium is a companion document to the BU Methodology. It provides a more detailed discussion of the specific considerations that may arise in particular evaluations, as well as a list of tools and other resources (e.g., existing fate and transport models or screening benchmarks) that might be relied upon in these evaluations.

5. How does the BU Methodology address unencapsulated uses?

The BU Methodology and BU Compendium are applicable to both encapsulated and unencapsulated beneficial uses of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials. EPA recognizes that there is a higher potential for certain types of releases and exposures from unencapsulated uses (e.g., windblown dust). Therefore, the Agency designed the BU Methodology to be inclusive to address releases, whether the source is from an encapsulated or unencapsulated beneficial use. EPA focused the discussion in these two documents on the considerations that will have the greatest impact in the design of the evaluation (e.g., the geographic area over which a beneficial use may be placed). Such considerations will determine the amount of data and the types of analyses required to adequately characterize a proposed encapsulated or unencapsulated beneficial use.

6. How does the BU Methodology relate to EPA’s previous encapsulated beneficial use methodology?

The BU Methodology builds on the principles first outlined in the 2013 Methodology for Evaluating Encapsulated Beneficial Uses of Coal Combustion Residuals. The BU Methodology provides further clarification on the analytical steps to ensure relevance for the widest range of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials used in both encapsulated and unencapsulated beneficial uses. The BU Methodology is divided into three phases: planning and scoping, impact analysis, and final characterization. Each beneficial use evaluation conducted using the BU Methodology will progress through these three phases, but there is flexibility in how each is applied.

7. How does this BU Methodology relate to the Agency’s Identification of Non-Hazardous Secondary Materials regulations?

EPA’s non-hazardous secondary material (NHSM) regulations, under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, identify which NHSMs are, or are not, solid wastes when burned in combustion units as ingredients or fuels. These regulations help combustion facilities in the determination of applicable emission standards for combustion units. Use of the Agency’s BU Methodology does not substitute for existing laws and regulations that address the combustion of solid wastes on either a federal or state level.

The BU Methodology presents EPA’s methodology for evaluating the potential for adverse impacts to human health and the environment associated with the beneficial use of a wide range of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials (secondary materials). However, the BU Methodology does not determine when these secondary materials are, or are not, solid wastes when beneficially used. Many states have beneficial use programs, and they should be consulted to determine whether a beneficial use of a secondary material is allowed and when the secondary material ceases to be a solid waste. The NHSM regulations should be consulted for solid waste determinations specific to use as fuels or ingredients in combustion units.

8. How can the BU Methodology and BU Compendium be helpful?

Together, the BU Methodology and BU Compendium are intended to help improve the consistency and quality of beneficial use evaluations. However, neither document is intended to be a detailed, step-by-step guide on how to conduct the evaluation for any particular beneficial use of an industrial non-hazardous secondary material (secondary material). Rather, these documents identify key questions to ask when designing or reviewing evaluations, as well as a list of tools and other resources that might be helpful. State environmental agencies oversee the beneficial use of secondary materials. These two documents can help states and others conduct beneficial use evaluations of secondary materials.

9. What conclusions can be drawn from an evaluation using the BU Methodology?

The Agency’s BU Methodology can be used to determine whether a beneficial use poses concerns to human health or the environment. What constitutes a concern will be defined by the risk management criteria that are built into the specific evaluation. These risk management criteria may incorporate a range of relevant risk-based, political, social, economic, legal, and technological considerations, but all criteria are based around an acceptable level of risk. Individuals and organizations who use the BU Methodology should coordinate with appropriate regulatory bodies to ensure that the risk management criteria incorporated into the evaluation are consistent with all applicable federal, state, and local government requirements.

10. What is EPA’s role in evaluating beneficial uses of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials? Who is responsible for conducting evaluations of other secondary material beneficial uses?

EPA has completed evaluations of coal fly ash used as a replacement for portland cement in concrete, flue gas desulfurization (FGD) gypsum used as a replacement for mined gypsum in wallboard, and silica-based spent foundry sands used in soil-related applications. EPA currently has an evaluation underway assessing the use of FGD gypsum as an agricultural amendment. Once this evaluation is completed, EPA has no further plans to evaluate additional beneficial uses of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials.

EPA is making the BU Methodology available to assist others with the design and review of beneficial use evaluations. Individuals or organizations who use the BU Methodology to conduct beneficial use evaluations should consult with the relevant states to determine whether the planned application of the BU Methodology is consistent with all applicable state requirements. EPA has no role in reviewing or approving the evaluations conducted by others, but can assist with questions about how to apply the BU Methodology in a manner that is consistent with existing Agency regulations and guidance.

11. Will evaluations of the beneficial use of industrial non-hazardous secondary materials conducted by organizations other than EPA be available to the public?

EPA encourages any individuals or organizations that use the BU Methodology to make their assessments publicly available. Thorough and transparent documentation of all the data, assumptions, analyses, and interpretations incorporated into the evaluation will provide greater confidence in the conclusions and better inform the regulators who will ultimately decide whether to allow a proposed beneficial use.