Resource Conservation and Recovery Act
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), enacted in 1976, is a Federal law of the United States contained in 42 U.S.C. ยงยง6901-6992k. It is usually pronounced as "rick-rah" or "Wreck-rah." The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that RCRA's goals are:
- to protect the public from harm caused by waste disposal
- to encourage reuse, reduction, and recycling
- to clean up spilled or improperly stored wastes.
EPA waste management regulations are codified at 40 C.F.R. pts. 239-282. Regulations regarding management of hazardous waste begins at 40 C.F.R. pt. 260. As noted below, most states have enacted laws and promulgated regulations that are at least as stringent as the federal regulations.
The EPA replaced its toll-free hotline c. 2005 with the RCRA Online Database -- http://www.epa.gov/rcraonline. For more information see EPA's RCRA Orientation Manual (1996).
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[edit] Related acts
An amendment of the earlier Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965, RCRA was enacted to create a management system to regulate waste from "cradle-to-grave." In 1984 the Hazardous and Solid Wastes Amendments Act was added to the Act and in 1986 the law was expanded further to regulate underground storage tanks and other leaking waste storage facilities. However, unlike the "Superfund" (CERCLA), RCRA only regulates active and not historical sites.
[edit] Whistleblower protection
RCRA contains a whistleblower protection. Employees in the US who believe they were fired or suffered another adverse action related to enforcement of this law have 30 days to file a written complaint with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
[edit] TSDFs
TSDF is an acronym for Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities.
[edit] See also
- Clean Water Act
- Public employees for environmental responsibility (PEER)
- Solid Waste Disposal Act
- Superfund
- Whistleblower
[edit] External links
- TSDF permitting
- Collected Papers of William Sanjour, a retired EPA employee and whistleblower
- Information on the Act
- Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER)
- Government Accountability Project
- National Whistleblower Center
- Workplace Fairness FAQ for environmental whistleblowers
- Tate & Renner article on whistleblowers under US federal law
- Whistleblower Employee Protection Website
- U.S. Department of Labor Whistleblower Program & information
Categories: 1976 in law | United States federal environmental legislation | US waste legislation | Pollution in the United States | First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution | Freedom of expression | United States federal labor legislation | Public administration | Discrimination | Business ethics | Whistleblowers
