Subcommittee advances bill to revise state solid-waste law, clarify local verification and public notice

Chairman John Corbett presented House Bill 351 to the Resource Management Subcommittee of Natural Resources, saying the measure would revise the Solid Waste Management Act by removing provisions courts have found unconstitutional and by clarifying local and state roles in permitting and public participation.

"This legislation is intended to revise the solid waste act, to do several things. 1, it removes provisions courts have determined to be unconstitutional or unenforceable," Corbett said, reading from the bill text. He told the panel the bill also resolves inconsistencies in the act and specifies the Environmental Protection Division's (EPD) responsibilities for reviewing local approvals.

The bill deletes the statute's references to "special solid waste" tied to out-of-state waste and broadens and clarifies what must be treated as a "major modification" at solid-waste facilities. Corbett read the bill's definition: major modifications include changes that substantially alter facility design, management practices, the types of waste handled or methods of handling and that are likely to…