Carbon Capture and Sequestration

Conditional Exclusion from RCRA Hazardous Waste Classification for Geologic Sequestration of CO2

Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), EPA is charged with regulating the generation, transportation, treatment, storage and disposal of hazardous waste. Section 3001(a) of RCRA directs EPA to “promulgate criteria for identifying the characteristics of hazardous waste, and for listing hazardous waste which should be subject to” regulation under the Act, “taking into account toxicity, persistency, and degradability in nature, potential for accumulation in tissue, and other related factors such as flammability, corrosiveness, and other hazardous characteristics” (42 U.S.C. § 6921(a)).

EPA has interpreted this as authorizing it to issue “conditional exemptions” from its hazardous waste regulations where it determines that “a waste might pose a hazard only under limited management scenarios, and other regulatory programs already address such scenarios.”

Obama Administration (2009–2016)

On January 3, 2014, EPA issued a final rule revising the regulations for hazardous waste management under RCRA to exclude carbon dioxide streams from the definition of hazardous waste, where such streams are captured from emission sources and injected into Class VI wells for carbon sequestration. 79 Fed. Reg. 350 (Jan. 3, 2014).