Brought to you by MaryBeth McLaughlin & MJ Stearns, Realtors with Room Real Estate
Psst, have you heard?
Local transfer stations can no longer accept “Treated Wood Waste”. A solution may not be available until March 2021.
Effective Jan. 1, 2021, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) is no longer allowing the landfill disposal of treated wood waste (TWW). This means that transfer stations can no longer accept TWW for disposal, households and businesses are now required to dispose of this material as hazardous waste. All hazardous treated wood waste (not exempted by HSC 25143.1.5 as utility generated) managed in California will have to be stored and manifested as hazardous waste and transported to Class I hazardous waste landfills for disposal. And according to the Santa Cruz County Health Services Department the nearest Class I hazardous waste site is in Fresno! Transfer station personnel will perform load checks and have been instructed by the state to reject any treated wood waste. Treated wood waste comes from old wood that has been treated with chemical preservatives. These chemicals help protect the wood from insect attack and fungal decay while it’s being used. Fence posts, sill plates, landscape timbers, pilings, guardrails and decking are examples of chemically treated wood. TWW contains hazardous chemicals that pose a risk to human health and the environment if they leach out of regular solid waste landfills. Arsenic, chromium, copper, creosote and pentachlorophenol are among the chemicals used to preserve wood and are known to be toxic or carcinogenic. DTSC expects efforts in the upcoming legislative session to reinstate the AMS, or other requirements to govern the management of TWW. To facilitate the management of TWW in the interim, DTSC intends to offer interested parties a variance to allow the variance recipient’s TWW to be managed according to variance conditions that are similar to the existing AMS. The variances are intended to be short term in nature, providing time to develop a longer-term strategy to safely manage TWW. DTSC is currently developing systems and processes that will process variance requests. Presently, their plan is to invite interested parties to apply for variances beginning in mid-February 2021, and to begin issuing variances on March 1, 2021. DTSC will soon post responses to many of the questions it has received relating to the management of TWW. If you have additional specific questions relating to TWW management, please send them to tww_help@dtsc.ca.gov or contact our Regulatory Assistance Officers at 800-728-6942 (800 72-TOXIC) or at RAO@dtsc.ca.gov. Helpful Resources: Visit https://dtsc.ca.gov/toxics-in-products/treated-wood-waste/ for more information. The nearest Class I facility is located near Fresno 559-600-4259