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Comments may be submitted by email to Julie Congdon (congdon.julie@epa.gov).

Written comments may also be mailed to:

Julie Congdon EPA Region 10 1200 6th Avenue, Ste. 155 (12-D12) Seattle, WA 98101-3140

All comments must be emailed or postmarked on or before October 31, 2022.

EPA and Ecology will consider scheduling a public hearing if there is significant public interest in the proposed permit. A public hearing, if held, will be conducted virtually. A virtual public hearing involves community members providing verbal comments and would not include a question and answer session.

To request a public hearing, send an email to Julie Congdon (congdon.julie@epa.gov) on or before October 29, 2022. Your request must state the nature of the comments that will be presented during the hearing.

For questions or more information about the proposed permit, contact EPA Project Manager Jan Palumbo (palumbo.jan@epa.gov), 206-553-6902.

EPA and the Washington State Department of Ecology are requesting public comment on their proposed renewal of Emerald Kalama Chemical’s permit to manage hazardous wastes at its facility in Kalama, WA.

Emerald is an organic chemical manufacturing plant located in Kalama, Washington.

EPA and Ecology have evaluated the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act permit Renewal Application and determined that operation of this facility does not pose an unreasonable risk of injury to human health or the environment. EPA and Ecology are proposing to approve the renewal and modification of this permit to Emerald.

Several updates are being proposed in this draft permit to reflect current conditions at the Emerald facility as well as changes to the regulations governing combustion of liquid hazardous wastes in the U-3 boiler. These include permit conditions regarding:

Provisions regarding the burning or processing of hazardous waste in boilers and industrial furnaces are not included in Ecology’s authorized RCRA program, and thus these provisions are issued under EPA’s authority.

The management of the hazardous waste, prior to its introduction into the U-3 boiler for thermal treatment, is covered under Ecology’s dangerous waste management regulations.

The facility is not authorized to accept hazardous waste from other sources, or store hazardous waste; all of the hazardous waste generated must be treated within the 90-day accumulation period allowed to generators of hazardous waste without a separate approval, or otherwise shipped to a permitted treatment, storage or disposal facility. A permit for storage of these hazardous wastes is therefore not required.

Copies of EPA and Ecology’s proposed permit and other relevant documents are available below.

EPA and Ecology also maintain administrative records supporting the proposed decision. Copies and other information may be requested by contacting Jan Palumbo (palumbo.jan@epa.gov), 206-553-6902.

If you need a reasonable accommodation for a disability, please call Julie Congdon at 206-553-2572 (voice). Please provide one week advance notice for special requests not related to ongoing programs and services.