CHAPTER 96 - SOUTH CAROLINA SOLID WASTE POLICY AND MANAGEMENT ACT - South Carolina Statutes

Title 44 - Health

CHAPTER 96.

SOUTH CAROLINA SOLID WASTE POLICY AND MANAGEMENT ACT

ARTICLE 1.

SOLID WASTE POLICY; SPECIFIC WASTES

SECTION 44-96-10. Short title.

This chapter is known and may be cited as the "South Carolina Solid Waste Policy and Management Act of 1991".

SECTION 44-96-20. Findings; purposes.

(A) The General Assembly finds that:

(1) Over three million eight hundred thousand tons of solid waste are generated in South Carolina each year.

(2) On the average, each South Carolinian currently produces approximately four and one-half pounds of solid waste each day.

(3) Unless steps are taken to reduce or recycle the amount of waste produced in this State, over five million tons of solid waste will be generated annually in South Carolina by the year 2000.

(4) Approximately eighty percent of the solid waste generated in South Carolina is landfilled.

(5) There are currently some seventy-nine permitted sanitary landfills in this State.

(6) Most of the permitted landfill capacity will be used within the next ten years. Twenty-three of forty-six counties have ten years or less of landfill space remaining.

(7) Siting of solid waste facilities is becoming increasingly difficult due to the opposition of local residents.

(8) The costs of solid waste management will increase significantly due to decreased landfill capacity and more stringent federal requirements for solid waste management facilities. More stringent federal and state requirements may also force a number of existing solid waste landfills to close.

(9) Insufficient and improper methods of managing solid waste can create hazards to public health, cause pollution of air and water resources, constitute a waste of natural resources, and create public nuisances.

(10) The economic growth and population growth of our State have required increased industrial production which, together with related commercial and agricultural operations to meet our needs, have resulted in increased amounts of discarded materials.

(11) The continuing technological progress and improvements in methods of manufacturing, packaging, and marketing of consumer products have resulted in an increasing amount of material discarded by the purchasers of these products, necessitating a statewide approach to assist local governments in improving solid waste management practices and to promote more efficient methods of solid waste management.

(12) The failure or inability to economically recover material and energy resources from solid waste results in the unnecessary waste and depletion of our natural resources, such that maximum resource recovery from solid waste and maximum recycling and reuse of these resources must be considered goals of the State.

(13) A coordinated statewide solid waste management program is needed to protect public health and safety, protect and preserve the quality of the environment, and conserve and recycle natural resources.

(14) The statewide solid waste management program should be implemented through the preparation of a state solid waste management plan and through the preparation by local governments of solid waste management plans consistent with the state plan and with this chapter.

(B) It is the purpose of this article to:

(1) protect the public health and safety, protect and preserve the environment of this State, and recover resources which have the potential for further usefulness by providing for, in the most environmentally safe, economically feasible and cost-effective manner, the storage, collection, transport, separation, treatment, processing, recycling, and disposal of solid waste;

(2) establish and maintain a cooperative state program for providing planning assistance, technical assistance, and financial assistance to local governments for solid waste management;

(3) require local governments to adequately plan for and provide efficient, environmentally acceptable solid waste management services and programs;

(4) promote the establishment of resource recovery systems that preserve and enhance the quality of air, water, and land resources;

(5) ensure that solid waste is transported, stored, treated, processed, and disposed of in a manner adequate to protect human health, safety, and welfare and the environment;

(6) promote the reduction, recycling, reuse, and treatment of solid waste, and the recycling of materials which would otherwise be disposed of as solid waste;

(7) encourage local governments to utilize all means reasonably available to promote efficient and proper methods of managing solid waste, which may include contracting with private entities to provide management services or operate management facilities on behalf of the local government, when it is cost effective to do so;

(8) promote the education of the general public and the training of solid waste professionals to reduce the generation of solid waste, to ensure proper disposal of solid waste, and to encourage recycling;

(9) encourage the development of waste reduction and recycling programs through planning assistance, technical assistance, grants, and other incentives;

(10) encourage the development of the state's recycling industries by promoting the successful development of markets for recycled items and by promoting the acceleration and advancement of the technology used in manufacturing processes that use recycled items;

(11) establish a leadership role for the State in recycling efforts by requiring the General Assembly, the Governor's Office, the Judiciary, and all state agencies to separate solid waste for recycling and by granting a preference in state procurement policies to products with recycled content;

(12) require counties to develop and implement source separation, resource recovery, or recycling programs, or all of the above, or enhance existing programs so that valuable materials may be returned to productive use, energy and natural resources conserved, and the useful life of solid waste management facilities extended;

(13) require local governments and state agencies to determine the full cost of providing storage, collection, transport, separation, treatment, recycling, and disposal of solid waste in an environmentally safe manner; and

(14) encourage local governments to pursue a regional approach to solid waste management.

SECTION 44-96-30. Applicability.

This chapter does not apply to hazardous waste regulated under the South Carolina Hazardous Waste Management Act, to infectious waste regulated under the South Carolina Infectious Waste Management Act, to radioactive waste regulated under the South Carolina Atomic Energy and Radiation Control Act, to the Southeast Interstate Radioactive Waste Compact, or to refuse as defined and regulated pursuant to the South Carolina Mining Act, including processed mineral waste, which will not have a significant adverse impact on the environment.

SECTION 44-96-40. Definitions.

As used in this chapter:

(1) "Beverage" means beer or malt beverages, mineral water, soda water, and similar carbonated soft drinks in liquid form, and all other liquids intended for human consumption, except for liquids marketed for and intended for consumption for medicinal purposes.

(2) "Beverage container" means the individual, separate, and sealed glass, aluminum or other metal, or plastic bottle, can, jar, or carton containing beverage intended for human consumption.

(3) "Collection" means the act of picking up solid waste materials from homes, businesses, governmental agencies, institutions, or industrial sites.

(4) "Compost" means the humus-like product of the process of composting waste.

(5) "Composting facility" means any facility used to provide aerobic, thermophilic decomposition of the solid organic constituents of solid waste to produce a stable, humus-like material.

(6) "Construction and demolition debris" means discarded solid wastes resulting from construction, remodeling, repair and demolition of structures, road building, and land clearing. The wastes include, but are not limited to, bricks, concrete, and other masonry materials, soil, rock, lumber, road spoils, paving material, and tree and brush stumps, but does not include solid waste from agricultural or silvicultural operations.

(7) "County solid waste management plan" means a solid waste management plan prepared, approved, and submitted by a single county pursuant to Section 44-96-80.

(8) "Degradable", with respect to any material, means that the material, after being discarded, is capable of decomposing to components other than heavy metals or other toxic substances after exposure to bacteria, light, or outdoor elements.

(9) "Department" means the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.

(10) "Discharge" means the accidental or intentional spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, or dumping of solid waste, including leachate, into or on any land or water.

(11) "Disposal" means the discharge, deposition, injection, dumping, spilling or placing of any solid waste into or on any land or water, so that the substance or any constituent thereof may enter the environment or be emitted into the air or discharged into any waters, including groundwater.

(12) "Energy recovery" means the beneficial use, reuse, recycling, or reclamation of solid waste through the use of the waste to recover energy therefrom.

(13) "Facility" means all contiguous land, structures, other appurtenances and improvements on the land used for treating, storing, or disposing of solid waste. A facility may consist of several treatment, storage, or disposal operational units, including, but not limited to, one or more landfills, surface impoundments, or combination thereof.

(14) "For hire motor carrier" means a company operating a fleet of vehicles used exclusively in the transportation of freight for compensation.

(15) "Generation" means the act or process of producing solid waste.

(16) "Groundwater" means water beneath the land surface in the saturated zone.

(17) "Hazardous waste" has the meaning provided in Section 44-56-20 of the South Carolina Hazardous Waste Management Act.

(18) "Incineration" means the use of controlled flame combustion to thermally break down solid, liquid, or gaseous combustible wastes, producing residue that contains little or no combustible materials.

(19) "Industrial waste" means solid waste that results from industrial processes including, but not limited to, factories and treatment plants.

(20) "Infectious waste" has the meaning given in Section 44-93-20 of the South Carolina Infectious Waste Management Act.

(21) "Land-clearing debris" means solid waste which is generated solely from land-clearing activities, but does not include solid waste from agricultural or silvicultural operations.

(22) "Landfill" means a disposal facility or part of a facility where solid waste is placed in or on land, and which is not a land treatment facility, a surface impoundment, or an injection well.

(23) "Lead-acid battery" means any battery that consists of lead and sulfuric acid, is used as a power source, and has a capacity of six volts or more, except that this term shall not include a small sealed lead-acid battery which means a lead-acid battery weighing twenty-five pounds or less, used in non-vehicular, non-SLI (start lighting ignition) applications.

(24) "Lead-acid battery collection facility" means a facility authorized by the Department of Health and Environmental Control to accept lead-acid batteries from the public for temporary storage prior to recycling.

(25) "Local government" means a county, any municipality located wholly or partly within the county, and any other political subdivision located wholly or partly within the county when such political subdivision provides solid waste management services.

(26) "Materials Recovery Facility" means a solid waste management facility that provides for the extraction from solid waste of recoverable materials, materials suitable for use as a fuel or soil amendment, or any combination of such materials.

(27) "Motor oil" and "similar lubricants" mean the fraction of crude oil or synthetic oil that is classified for use in the crankcase, transmission, gearbox, or differential of an internal combustion engine, including automobiles, buses, trucks, lawn mowers and other household power equipment, industrial machinery, and other mechanical devices that derive their power from internal combustion engines. The terms include re-refined oil but do not include heavy greases and specialty industrial or machine oils, such as spindle oils, cutting oils, steam cylinder oils, industrial oils, electrical insulating oils, or solvents which are not sold at retail in this State.

(28) "Municipal solid waste landfill" means any sanitary landfill or landfill unit, publicly or privately owned, that receives household waste. The landfill may also receive other types of solid waste, such as commercial waste, nonhazardous sludge, and industrial solid waste.

(29) "Office" means the Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling established within the Department of Health and Environmental Control pursuant to Section 44-96-110.

(30) "Owner/operator" means the person who owns the land on which a solid waste management facility is located or the person who is responsible for the overall operation of the facility, or both.

(31) "Person" means an individual, corporation, company, association, partnership, unit of local government, state agency, federal agency, or other legal entity.

(32) "Plastic bottle" means a plastic container intended for single use, which has a neck that is smaller than the body of the container, accepts a screw-type, snap cap, or other closure, and has a capacity of sixteen fluid ounces or more, but less than five gallons.

(33) "Plastic container" means any container having a wall thickness of not less than one one-hundredth of an inch used to contain beverages, foods, or nonfood products and composed of synthetic polymeric materials.

(34) "Recovered materials" means those materials which have known use, reuse, or recycling potential; can be feasibly used, reused, or recycled; and have been diverted or removed from the solid waste stream for sale, use, reuse, or recycling, whether or not requiring subsequent separation and processing. At least seventy-five percent by weight of the materials received during the previous calendar year must be used, reused, recycled, or transferred to a different site for use, reuse, or recycling in order to qualify as a recovered material.

(35) "Recovered Materials Processing Facility" means a facility engaged solely in the recycling, storage, processing, and resale or reuse of recovered materials. The term does not include a solid waste processing facility; however, solid waste generated by a recovered material processing facility is subject to all applicable laws and regulations relating to the solid waste. The term does not include facilities which thermally treat solid waste principally for volume reduction or for reduction of contaminants. Records must be kept documenting the amount by weight of materials that are received at the facility and used, reused, or recycled or transferred to another site for use, reuse, or recycling. Records must also be kept which clearly document the location of final disposition of the materials. Records must be made available for inspection by department personnel upon request.

(36) "Recyclable material" means those materials which are capable of being recycled and which would otherwise be processed or disposed of as solid waste.

(37) "Recycling" means any process by which materials which would otherwise become solid waste are collected, separated, or processed and reused or returned to use in the form of raw materials or products (including composting).

(38) "Region" means a group of counties in South Carolina which is planning to or has prepared, approved, and submitted a regional solid waste management plan to the department pursuant to Section 44-96-80.

(39) "Regional solid waste management plan" means a solid waste management plan prepared, approved, and submitted by a group of counties in South Carolina pursuant to Section 44-96-80.

(40) "Resource recovery" means the process of obtaining material or energy resources from solid waste which no longer has any useful life in its present form and preparing the waste for recycling.

(41) "Resource recovery facility" means a combination of structures, machinery, or devices utilized to separate, process, modify, convert, treat, or prepare collected solid waste so that component materials or substances or recoverable resources may be used as a raw material or energy source.

(42) "Reuse" means the return of a commodity into the economic stream for use in the same kind of application as before without change in its identity.

(43) "Rigid plastic container" means any formed or molded container, other than a bottle, intended for single use, composed predominantly of plastic resin, and having a relatively inflexible finite shape or form with a capacity of eight ounces or more, but less than five gallons.

(44) "Sanitary landfill" means a land disposal site employing an engineered method of disposing of solid waste on land in a manner that minimizes environmental hazards and meets the design and operation requirements of this chapter.

(45) "Secondary lead smelter" means a facility which produces metallic lead from various forms of lead scrap, including used lead-acid batteries.

(46) "Solid waste" means any garbage, refuse, or sludge from a waste treatment facility, water supply plant, or air pollution control facility and other discarded material, including solid, liquid, semi-solid, or contained gaseous material resulting from industrial, commercial, mining, and agricultural operations and from community activities. This term does not include solid or dissolved material in domestic sewage, recovered materials, or solid or dissolved materials in irrigation return flows or industrial discharges which are point sources subject to NPDES permits under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended, or the Pollution Control Act of South Carolina, as amended, or source, special nuclear, or by-product material as defined by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended. Also excluded from this definition are application of fertilizer and animal manure during normal agricultural operations or refuse as defined and regulated pursuant to the South Carolina Mining Act, including processed mineral waste, which will not have a significant adverse impact on the environment.

(47) "Solid waste disposal facility" means any solid waste management facility or part of a facility at which solid waste is intentionally placed into or on any land or water and at which waste will remain after closure.

(48) "Solid waste management" means the systematic control of the generation, collection, source separation, storage, transportation, treatment, recovery, and disposal of solid waste.

(49) "Solid waste management facility" means any solid waste disposal area, volume reduction plant, transfer station, or other facility, the purpose of which is the storage, collection, transportation, treatment, utilization, processing, recycling, or disposal, or any combination thereof, of solid waste. The term does not include a recovered materials processing facility or facilities which use or ship recovered materials, except that portion of the facilities which is managing solid waste.

(50) "Solid Waste Management Grant Program" means the grant program established and administered by the Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling pursuant to Section 44-96-130.

(51) "Solid Waste Management Trust Fund" means the trust fund established within the Department of Health and Environmental Control pursuant to Section 44-96-120.

(52) "Source reduction" means the reduction of solid waste before it enters the solid waste stream by methods such as product redesign or reduced packaging.

(53) "Source separation" means the act or process of removing a particular type of recyclable material from other waste at the point of generation or under control of the generator for the purposes of collection, disposition, and recycling.

(54) "Specific wastes" means solid waste which requires separate management provisions, including plastics, used oil, waste tires, lead-acid batteries, yard trash, compost, and white goods.

(55) "State solid waste management plan" means the plan which the Department of Health and Environmental Control is required to submit to the General Assembly and to the Governor pursuant to Section 44-96-60.

(56) "Storage" means the containment of solid waste, either on a temporary basis or for a period of years, in such manner as not to constitute disposal of such solid waste; provided, however, that storage in containers by persons of solid waste resulting from their own activities on their property, leased or rented property, if the solid waste in such containers is collected at least once a week, shall not constitute "storage" for purposes of this chapter. The term does not apply to containers provided by or under the authority of a county for the collection and temporary storage of solid waste prior to disposal.

(57) "Surface water" means lakes, bays, sounds, ponds, impounding reservoirs, springs, rivers, streams, creeks, estuaries, marshes, inlets, canals, the Atlantic Ocean within territorial limits, and all other bodies of surface water, natural or artificial, inland or coastal, fresh or salt, public or private.

(58) "Tire" means the continuous solid or pneumatic rubber covering encircling the wheel of a motor vehicle, trailer, or motorcycle as defined in Section 56-3-20(2), (4), and (13). It does not include an industrial press-on tire, with a metal or solid compound rim, which may be retooled.

(59) "Tire retailing business" means the retail sale of tires in any quantity for any use or purpose by the purchaser other than for resale.

(60) "Transport" means the movement of solid waste from the point of generation to any intermediate point and finally to the point of ultimate processing, treatment, storage, or disposal.

(61) "Transporter" means a person engaged in the off-site transportation of solid waste by air, rail, highway, or water.

(62) "Treatment" means any technique designed to change the physical, chemical, or biological character or composition of any solid waste so as to render it safe for transport, amenable to storage, recovery, or recycling, safe for disposal, or reduced in volume or concentration.

(63) "Used oil" means oil that has been refined from crude oil or synthetic oil and that has been used and, as a result of that use, is contaminated by physical or chemical impurities.

(64) "Used oil collection center" means a facility which, in the course of business, accepts used oil for subsequent disposal or recycling.

(65) "Used oil energy recovery facility" means a facility that burns more than six thousand gallons of used oil annually for energy recovery.

(66) "Used oil recycling facility" means a facility that recycles more than six thousand gallons of used oil annually.

(67) "Waste tire" means a tire that is no longer suitable for its original intended purpose because of wear, damage, or defect.

(68)(a) "Waste tire collection facility" means a permitted facility used for the storage of waste tires or processed tires before recycling, processing, or disposal.

(b) "Waste tire disposal facility" means a permitted facility where processed waste tires are placed on the land in a manner which constitutes disposal.

(c) "Waste tire processing facility" means a permitted facility where equipment is used to cut, shred, burn for volume reduction, or to otherwise alter whole waste tires. The term includes mobile waste tire processing equipment.

(d) "Waste tire recycling facility" means a permitted facility where waste tires are used as a fuel source or returned to use in the form of products or raw materials.

(69) "Waste tire hauler" means a person engaged in the picking up or transporting of waste tires for the purpose of storage, processing, or disposal.

(70) "Waste tire site" means an establishment, site, or place of business, without a collector or processor permit, that is maintained, operated, used, or allowed to be used for the disposal, storing, or depositing of unprocessed used tires, but does not include a truck service facility which meets the following requirements:

(a) all vehicles serviced are owned or leased by the owner or operator of the service facility;

(b) no more than two hundred waste tires are accumulated for a period of not more than thirty days at a time;

(c) the facility does not accept any tires from sources other than its own; and

(d) all waste tires are stored under a covered structure.

(71) "Waste tire treatment site" means a permitted site used to produce or manufacture usable materials, including fuel, from waste tires.

(72) "Waters of the State" means lakes, bays, sounds, ponds, impounding reservoirs, springs, wells, rivers, streams, creeks, estuaries, marshes, inlets, canals, the Atlantic Ocean within the territorial limits, and all other bodies of surface or underground water, natural or artificial, public or private, inland or coastal, fresh or salt, which are wholly or partially within or bordering the State or within its jurisdiction.

(73) "White goods" include refrigerators, ranges, water heaters, freezers, dishwashers, trash compactors, washers, dryers, air conditioners, and commercial large appliances.

(74) "Yard trash" means solid waste consisting solely of vegetative matter resulting from landscaping maintenance.

SECTION 44-96-50. State solid waste management policy and goals.

(A) It is the policy of this State to promote appropriate methods of solid waste management prior to utilizing the options of disposal in landfills, treatment or disposal by incineration or other treatment, storage, or disposal methods, and to assist local government with solid waste management functions. In furtherance of this state policy, it shall be preferable to reduce the production and generation of waste at the source and to promote the reuse and recycling of materials rather than the treatment, storage, or disposal of wastes by landfill disposal, incineration, or other management methods designed to handle waste after it enters the waste stream.

It is the policy of this State that the methods of management of solid waste shall protect public health, safety, and the environment by employing the best available technology which is economically feasible for the control of pollution and the release of hazardous constituents into the environment. Such methods shall be implemented in a manner to maximize the reduction of solid waste through source reduction, reuse, and recycling.

(B) It is the policy of this State to encourage research by private entities, by state agencies, and by state-supported educational institutions into the reduction of solid waste production and generation.

(C) It is the policy of this State to encourage a regional approach to solid waste management.

(D) It is the goal of this State to reduce, on a statewide per capita basis, the amount of municipal solid waste being generated to 3.5 pounds per day not later than June 30, 2005.

(E) It is the goal of this State to recycle, on a statewide basis, at least thirty-five percent, calculated by weight, of the municipal solid waste stream generated in this State no later than June 30, 2005.

(F) It is the goal of this State to continue setting new and revised solid waste recycling and waste reduction goals after June 30, 2005. These goals must be established in a manner so as to attempt to further reduce the flow of solid waste being disposed of in municipal solid waste landfills and solid waste incinerators.

(G) It is the policy of this State that each county or region make every effort to meet, on an individual basis, the state solid waste recycling and reduction goals and that each county or region, and municipalities located therein, which meet this goal be financially rewarded by the State.

(H) For the purposes of Sections 44-96-50 and 44-96-60, "municipal solid waste" includes, but is not limited to, wastes that are durable goods, nondurable goods, containers and packaging, food scraps, yard trimmings, and miscellaneous inorganic wastes from residential, commercial, institutional, and industrial sources including, but not limited to, appliances, automobile tires, old newspapers, clothing, disposable tableware, office and classroom paper, wood pallets, and cafeteria wastes. "Municipal solid waste" does not include solid wastes from other sources including, but not limited to, construction and demolition debris, auto bodies, municipal sludges, combustion ash, and industrial process wastes that also might be disposed of in municipal waste landfills or incinerators.

SECTION 44-96-60. State solid waste management plan; revision of plan and annual report; State Solid Waste Advisory Council.

(A) Not later than eighteen months after this chapter is effective, the department shall submit to the Governor and to the General Assembly a state solid waste management plan. All regulations promulgated by the department in accordance with this chapter are subject to the provisions of Chapter 23 of Title 1, the Administrative Procedures Act. The plan shall, at a minimum, include:

(1) an inventory of the amounts and types of solid waste currently being disposed of at solid waste disposal facilities in this State, both in the municipal solid waste stream and in the industrial solid waste stream;

(2) an estimate of solid waste which will require disposal at solid waste disposal facilities in this State projected for the twenty-year period following this chapter's effective date;

(3) an estimate of the current capacity in this State to manage solid waste, including an identification of each solid waste management facility and a projection of its remaining useful life;

(4) an evaluation of current solid waste management practices, including without limitation waste reduction, recycling, incineration, storage, processing, disposal, and export;

(5) an analysis of the types of solid waste facilities which will be needed to manage the state's solid waste during the projected twenty-year period;

(6) a description of procedures by which the State may facilitate the siting, construction, and operation of new facilities needed to manage the state's solid waste over the projected twenty-year period;

(7) an evaluation of existing local government solid waste management programs, including recommendations, if necessary, on ways to improve such programs;

(8) a description of the means by which the State shall achieve its statewide solid waste recycling and reduction goals; including recommendations on which categories of solid waste materials should be recycled;

(9) procedures and requirements for meeting state goals for waste reduction and recycling, including composting, and objectives for waste-to-energy implementation and sanitary landfilling;

(10) a description of existing state programs and recommendations for new programs or activities that will be needed to assist local governments in meeting their responsibilities under this article, whether by financial, technical, or other forms of aid;

(11) procedures by which local governments and regions may request assistance from the department;

(12) procedures for encouraging and ensuring cooperative efforts in solid waste management by the State, local governments, and private industry, including a description of the means by which the State may encourage local governments to pursue a regional approach to solid waste management;

(13) minimum standards and procedures developed after consulting with local government officials which must be met by a county or region in its solid waste management plan, including the procedures which will be used to provide for input from private industry and from private citizens;

(14) a comprehensive analysis of the amounts and types of hazardous waste currently being disposed of in municipal solid waste landfills and recommendations regarding more appropriate means of managing such waste;

(15) a description of the public education programs to be developed in consultation with local governments, other state agencies, and business and industry organizations to inform the public of solid waste management practices in this State and the need for and the benefits of recycling, reduction, and other methods of managing the solid waste generated in this State;

(16) a description of the program for the certification of operators at solid waste management facilities;

(17) recommendations on whether to require that certain solid waste materials be made degradable and, if so, which categories of materials; and

(18) a fiscal impact statement identifying the costs incurred by the department in preparing the state solid waste management plan and which will be incurred in carrying out all of the department's duties and responsibilities under this chapter, including the number of new employees which may be necessary, and an estimate of the revenues which will be raised by the various fees authorized by this chapter.

(B) After submission of the state solid waste management plan, the department shall submit to the Governor and to the General Assembly by March fifteenth of each year a comprehensive report on solid waste management in this State for the previous year. The annual report shall, at a minimum, include:

(1) any revisions in the state solid waste management plan which the department determines are necessary;

(2) a description and evaluation of the progress made in implementing the state solid waste management plan;

(3) a description and evaluation of the progress made by local governments in implementing their solid waste management plans;

(4) an inventory of the amounts and types of solid waste received, recycled, incinerated, or disposed at solid waste disposal facilities during the previous year and the methods of recycling, incineration, or disposal used including, but not limited to, paper, polystyrene, and beverage containers;

(5) a determination of the success of the State, each county or region, and municipality, if a program is in existence in the municipality, in achieving the solid waste recycling and reduction goals established in Section 44-96-50;

(6) recommendations to the Governor and to the General Assembly for improving the management of solid waste in this State; and

(7) the number of lead-acid batteries recycled.

The department may establish procedures and promulgate regulations necessary to obtain recycling data. These procedures may include, but are not limited to, registration of municipal solid waste recyclers and requiring municipal solid waste recyclers to submit annual reports on the amounts, actual or estimated, and types of materials recycled and the county, when available, in which the materials were generated.

(C) Not later than six months after this chapter is effective, there shall be established a State Solid Waste Advisory Council. The council shall consist of the following sixteen members:

(1) twelve members appointed by the Governor which shall include one member to represent manufacturing interests; one member to represent the retail industry; two members to represent the solid waste disposal industry; one member to represent existing private recycling industry; two members to represent the general public; three members to represent county governments to be recommended by the South Carolina Association of Counties, one shall represent a county with a population of 50,000 or less, one shall represent a county with a population more than 50,000 and up to 100,000, and the final county representative shall represent a county with a population over 100,000; and two members shall represent municipalities to be recommended by the South Carolina Municipal Association. County, regional, and municipal representatives who are elected officials shall serve ex officio;

(2) the consumer advocate or his designee;

(3) one member to represent the Department of Health and Environmental Control;

(4) the Secretary of Commerce or his designee; and

(5) one member to represent the Governor.

The members of the council in (1) above appointed after May 27, 1997, shall serve terms of four years dating from May 27, 1997, except that the member representing manufacturing interests, one member representing the solid waste disposal industry, the member representing existing private recycling industry, one member representing the general public, the member representing a county with a population of over one hundred thousand, and one municipal member must be appointed for a term of two years dating from May 27, 1997, and subsequent appointment of these members must be for a term of four years. No member appointed after May 27, 1997, may serve more than two terms. Members named in (2), (3), (4), and (5) above shall serve co-terminus with their office or at the pleasure of the respective appointing authority. No member appointed before May 27, 1997, shall serve past May 27, 2001. Members shall promulgate regulations concerning meeting attendance. The council shall advise the department on the preparation of the state solid waste management plan, on methods of implementing the state plan on the preparation of the annual reports by the department on solid waste management and provide technical expertise regarding solid waste management grants and planning. The council shall be provided with drafts of the plan and reports and shall be given adequate opportunity to comment. The council also shall be advised on a regular basis by the department regarding the grant applications which have been accepted or denied under the Solid Waste Management Grant Program and on the status of the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund.

SECTION 44-96-80. County or regional solid waste management plans; local government responsibilities; local Solid Waste Advisory Councils.

(A) Not later than fifteen months after the date on which the department submits its state solid waste management plan to the Governor and to the General Assembly, the governing body of each county, if the county intends to submit a single county plan, or the governing bodies of the counties in a region, if two or more counties intend to submit a regional plan, in cooperation with the local governments located in the county or region, shall prepare a solid waste management plan for the area within that county or region. Local governments within the county or region shall participate in the development of the county or regional plan and are required to be a part of the plan. This plan must provide for public participation and include, at a minimum, the following:

(1) an estimate of the amount of solid waste currently disposed of at solid waste disposal facilities within that county or region and a projection of the amount of solid waste which will be disposed of at solid waste disposal facilities during the twenty-year period following this chapter's effective date;

(2) an estimate of the current capacity within that county or region to manage solid waste, including identification of each solid waste management facility and a projection of its useful life;

(3) an analysis of the existing and new solid waste facilities which will be needed to manage the solid waste generated within that county or region during the projected twenty-year period;

(4) an estimate of the cost of implementing the solid waste management plan within that county or region;

(5) an estimate of the revenue which each local government or region needs and intends to make available to fund implementation of the solid waste management plan;

(6) an estimate of the cost of siting, constructing, and bringing into operation any new facilities needed to manage solid waste within that county or region during the projected twenty-year period;

(7) a description and estimate of the sources and amount of revenues which can be made available for the siting, construction, and operation of new solid waste management facilities;

(8) a description of resource recovery, or recycling program, or both, which shall be implemented in each county or region which shall include, at a minimum, the following:

(a) the designation of a recycling coordinator;

(b) an identification of the categories of solid waste materials to be source separated, recovered, recycled, or all of the above;

(c) an identification of the means by which such materials will be collected and marketed;

(d) a description of the incentives or penalties, or both, that will be used to ensure compliance with the recycling program; and

(e) a description of the public education program which will be used to inform the public of the need for and benefits of source separation, recovery, and recycling and of the requirements of the recycling program.

A county or region may be exempted from the requirements of Section 44-96-80(A)(8)if it provides sufficient justification to the department that the implementation of a source separation, resource recovery, recycling program, or all of the above within that county or region is economically infeasible or impracticable or that such program is unnecessary for the county or region to meet the waste recycling and reduction goals established in Section 44-96-50; and

(9) a description of efforts, in addition to the recycling program, which will be undertaken within that county or region to meet the solid waste reduction goal as established on a statewide basis in Section 44-96-50.

(B) Each county or region shall submit its solid waste management plan to the department for review. The department shall have one hundred eighty days from the date on which a plan is submitted to review the plan and provide comments to the submitting entity. At the end of the one hundred eighty-day review period, the county or region shall begin implementation of its solid waste management plan. Such plan must be implemented not later than one year after the end of the one hundred eighty-day review period.

(C) Each solid waste management plan submitted by a county or region shall be designed to achieve within that county or region the same recycling and waste reduction goals established on a statewide basis in Section 44-96-50. Nothing in this chapter, however, prohibits a county or region from setting higher percentage goals for recycling and waste reduction in its solid waste management plan than the goals established in Section 44-96-50. The department may reduce or modify the statewide goals as they apply to a county or region to account for industrial growth or other good cause shown. However, reduction or modification must not result in a failure to meet the recycling and reduction goals on a statewide basis as established in Section 44-96-50.

(D) Each county or region submitting a solid waste management plan containing a source separation, resource recovery, recycling programs, or all of the above to the department shall provide its residents with the opportunity to recycle the categories of solid waste materials designated in the county or regional solid waste management plan. The opportunity to recycle may include one or more of the following:

(1) curbside collection systems;

(2) drop-off centers;

(3) collection centers; or

(4) collection systems for multi-family residences.

(E) Each solid waste management plan submitted pursuant to this section shall be consistent with the state solid waste management plan, with the provisions of this chapter, with all other applicable provisions of state law, and with any regulation promulgated by the department for the protection of public health and safety or for protection of the environment.

(F) Each county or region submitting a solid waste management plan to the department shall thereafter submit an annual progress report to the department by a date to be determined by the department. The annual report shall contain information as may be requested by the department but must contain, at a minimum, the following:

(1) any revisions to the solid waste management plan previously submitted by the county or region;

(2) the amount of waste disposed of at municipal solid waste disposal facilities during the previous year by type of waste;

(3) the percentage reduction each year in solid waste disposed of at municipal solid waste disposal facilities;

(4) the amount, type, and percentage of materials that were recycled, if any, during the previous year;

(5) the percentage of the population participating in various types of source separation, recovery, or recycling activities during the previous year; and

(6) a description of the source separation, recovery, or recycling activities or all of the above activities attempted, if any, their success rates, the reasons for their success or failure, and a description of such activities which are ongoing.

(G) Counties are strongly encouraged to pursue a regional approach to solid waste management. Nothing in this chapter, however, shall be construed to require a county to participate in a regional plan or to prohibit two or more counties within the State which are not contiguous from preparing, approving, and submitting a regional solid waste management plan or one or more counties, including industrial waste generators located therein, from contracting with an in-state solid waste disposal facility located outside of the county or region. Not later than eighteen months after the date of enactment of this chapter, each county shall notify the department in writing whether it intends to submit a single county solid waste management plan or to participate in a regional plan.

(H) Local governments may enter into cooperative agreements with other local governments to provide for the collection, separation, or recycling of solid waste at mutually agreed upon sites. Local governments may expend funds received from any source to establish and maintain such regional facilities and to provide for sharing the costs of establishing and maintaining such facilities in an equitable manner.

(I) Each county or region shall ensure that all their local governments participate in the preparation and implementation of the solid waste management plan, including the source separation, resource recovery, or recycling program, or all of the above.

(J) The governing body of a county has the responsibility and authority to provide for the operation of solid waste management facilities to meet the needs of all incorporated or unincorporated areas of the county. Nothing in this chapter, however, prohibits a local government from continuing to operate or to use an existing management facility, permitted on or before this chapter is effective, in accordance with the provisions of the solid waste management plan submitted by the county or region within which the local government is located. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, a county which does not regulate the operation or closure of a solid waste management facility, or which has not obtained a permit for that solid waste management facility, shall not be held liable for the operation, closure, and postclosure of that solid waste management facility if it is owned and operated by a private entity under a permit issued by the department. However, that inclusion in a county or regional plan shall not constitute regulation by a county or region under this section.

(K) The governing body of a county is authorized to enact such ordinances as may be necessary to carry out its responsibilities under this chapter; provided, however, that the governing body of a county may not enact an ordinance inconsistent with the state solid waste management plan, with any provision of this chapter, with any other applicable provision of state law, or with any regulation promulgated by the department providing for the protection of public health and safety or for protection of the environment.

(L) (Reserved)

(M) Not later than eighteen months after this chapter is effective, each operator of a municipal solid waste disposal facility shall install scales conforming to requirements established by the department to weigh and record all solid waste when it is received. The department shall promulgate regulations exempting existing facilities which can demonstrate financial hardship and establishing a volume equivalent for such facilities to use in estimating the weight of the solid waste which they receive. All solid waste disposal facilities permitted on or after this chapter is effective shall install scales.

(N) Not later than one year after this chapter is effective, there shall be established a local Solid Waste Advisory Council for each county or region intending to submit a solid waste management plan. The local council shall advise the county or region on the preparation of the solid waste management plan and on methods of implementing the plan. The local council shall be provided with all drafts of the plan and shall be given sufficient opportunity to comment on the drafts. Each local council shall consist of not more than fifteen members. The membership of each council shall be as follows:

(1) one-third of the membership of the council shall represent the county or member counties of a region and shall be appointed by the governing body or bodies of the county or counties;

(2) one-third of the membership of the council shall represent the municipalities within the county or region and shall be appointed by the governing body or bodies of the municipalities within the county or region; and

(3) one-third of the membership of the council shall include a representative of the private solid waste management industry and a representative of the private recycling or processing industry, if any, operating within the county or region, and at least two members shall represent the general public and have been active in public participation on environmental issues for the past five or more years. These members shall be appointed by the county and municipal representatives serving on the council. Each local council shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman from among its members. Members shall promulgate regulations concerning meeting attendance. Each council shall, at a minimum, remain in existence until the end of the one hundred eighty-day review period for the plans, but may remain in existence for a longer period of time as determined by its appointing entities. The comments of a local council on the final solid waste management plan shall be forwarded to the department when the final plan is submitted.

(O) Any amendments to a county or regional solid waste management plan must be adopted and implemented in the same manner as provided for in the initial plan.

(P) This chapter does not:

(1) authorize a local government to enter into agreements or to enact ordinances or resolutions determining private rights with respect to recovered materials in solid waste separated for recycling use or reuse at any time prior to pickup by or delivery to a local government or persons under contract with the local government; or

(2) prohibit a generator of recovered materials from selling, conveying, or arranging for the transportation of materials to a recycler for recycling nor prevent a recycling company or nonprofit entity from collecting and transporting recovered materials from a buy-back center, drop box, or a generator of recovered materials.

SECTION 44-96-90. Full cost disclosure.

(A) Not later than one year after this chapter is effective, the department shall promulgate regulations establishing the method for local governments to use in calculating the full cost for solid waste management within the service area of the local government which, at a minimum, shall include the provisions of subsections (C), (D), and (E)of this section. The department shall comply with the requirements of the South Carolina Administrative Procedures Act and notify local government officials of the opportunity to provide input prior to issuing proposed regulations for comment under this article.

(B) Not later than one year after promulgation of the regulations provided in Section 44-96-80(A), and annually thereafter, each local government shall determine its full cost for its solid waste management services within its service area for the previous year. Each local government shall publish annually a notice in a newspaper of general circulation in its service area setting forth the full cost and the cost to residential and nonresidential users, on an average or individual basis of its solid waste management services within its service area for the previous year. In calculating the costs, local governments must include costs charged to them by persons with whom they contract for solid waste management services.

(C) For local governments which provide collection, recycling, transfer station services, or all three services, "full cost" shall, at a minimum, include an itemized accounting of:

(1) the cost of equipment, including, but not limited to, trucks, containers, compactors, parts, labor, maintenance, depreciation, insurance, fuel and oil, and lubricants for equipment maintenance;

(2) the cost of overhead, including, but not limited to, supervision, payroll, land, office and building costs, personnel and administrative costs of running the waste management program, and support costs from other departments, government agencies, and outside consultants or firms;

(3) the cost of employee social security, worker's compensation, pension and health insurance payments; and

(4) disposal cost and laboratory and testing costs.

(D) For local governments which provide disposal services, "full cost" shall, at a minimum, include an itemized accounting of:

(1) the cost of land, disposal site preparation, permits and licenses, scales, buildings, site maintenance and improvements;

(2) the cost of equipment, including operation and maintenance costs such as parts, depreciation, insurance, fuel and oil, and lubricants;

(3) the cost of labor and overhead, including, but not limited to, supervision, payroll, office and building costs, personnel and administrative costs of running the waste management program, and support costs from, and studies provided by, other departments, government agencies, and outside consultants or firms;

(4) the cost of employee social security, worker's compensation, pension and health insurance payments; and

(5) disposal costs, leachate collection and treatment costs, site monitoring costs, including, but not limited to, sampling, laboratory and testing costs, environmental compliance inspections, closure and postclosure expenditures, and escrow, if required.

(E) For purposes of this section, "service area" means the area in which the local government provides, directly or by contract, solid waste management services.

(F) A person operating under an agreement to collect or dispose of solid waste within the service area of a local government or region shall assist and cooperate with the local government or region to make the calculations or to establish a system to provide the information required under this section. However, contracts entered into prior to the effective date of this chapter are exempt from the provisions of this section.

SECTION 44-96-100. Violations of certain regulations; issuance of order for compliance or civil action for injunctive relief; wilful violations; penalty; additional powers and duties of department.

(A) Whenever the department determines that a person is in violation of a regulation promulgated pursuant to this article regarding Sections 44-96-160(X) (Used Oil), 44-96-170(H) (Waste Tires), or 44-96-190(A) (Yard trash, compost), the department may issue an order requiring the person to comply with the regulation or the department may bring civil action for injunctive relief in the appropriate court or the department may request that the Attorney General bring civil or criminal enforcement action under this section. The department also may impose reasonable civil penalties not to exceed ten thousand dollars, for each day of violation, for violations of the regulations promulgated pursuant to this article regarding Sections 44-96-160(X), 44-96-170(H), or 44-96-190(A). After exhaustion of administrative remedies, a person against whom a civil penalty is invoked by the department may appeal the decision of the department or board of the court of common pleas, pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act.

(B) A person who wilfully violates a regulation promulgated pursuant to this article regarding Sections 44-96-160(X), 44-96-170(H), or 44-96-190(A) is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than ten thousand dollars for each day of violation or imprisoned for not more than one year, or both. If the conviction is for a second or subsequent offense, the punishment must be a fine not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars for each day of violation or imprisonment not to exceed two years, or both. The provisions of the subsection do not apply to officials and employees of a local government owning or operating, or both, a municipal solid waste management facility or to officials and employees of a region, comprised of local governments, owning or operating, or both, a regional municipal solid waste management facility.

(C) Each day of noncompliance with an order issued pursuant to this section or noncompliance with a permit, regulation, standard, order, or requirement established under Sections 44-96-160, 44-96-170, or 44-96-190 constitutes a separate offense.

(D) In addition to the other powers and duties set forth in this article, the department shall:

(1) establish such programs and promulgate such regulations as are necessary to implement the state solid waste management plan;

(2) establish such programs and promulgate such regulations as are necessary to implement the provisions of this article;

(3) provide to local governments, upon request, planning and technical assistance in preparing and implementing their solid waste management plans;

(4) provide to state agencies, upon request, planning and technical assistance in carrying out their responsibilities under this article;

(5) cooperate and coordinate with federal agencies in carrying out federal and state solid waste management requirements, including seeking available federal grants and loans for solid waste management plans and activities in this State;

(6) cooperate and coordinate with private organizations and with business and industry in implementing the requirements of this article;

(7) encourage counties to pursue a regional approach to solid waste management within a common geographical area;

(8) contract as needed with private entities or with state-supported educational institutions to carry out the department's responsibilities under this article, and contract with private entities or with state-owned educational institutions to conduct research on solid waste management technologies;

(9) receive appropriated funds and receive and administer grants or other funds or gifts from public or private entities, including the state and the federal government, to carry out the requirements of this article; and

(10) increase public awareness of solid waste management issues through appropriate statewide educational programs on recycling, volume reduction, litter control, proper methods of managing solid waste, and other related issues.

SECTION 44-96-105. Promulgation of regulations.

All regulations promulgated by the department pursuant to this chapter must be in consultation with officials representing local governments which own or operate municipal solid waste disposal facilities, pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act.

SECTION 44-96-110. Establishment of the Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling.

(A) Ninety days after this chapter is effective there shall be established within the department an Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling which shall promote and assist in the development of source separation, recovery, and recycling programs for local governments and for private entities under a contractual agreement with local governments or state-supported institutions. The Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling shall be separate from, and shall not participate in, any of the regulatory functions of the department with regard to solid waste management.

(B) The Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling shall have the following duties and responsibilities:

(1) receive funds for and disburse funds from the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund established in Section 44-96-120;

(2) manage the Solid Waste Management Grant Program established in Section 44-96-130;

(3) promote and assist in the development of solid waste reduction, source separation, recycling, household hazardous materials management programs, and resource recovery programs;

(4) maintain a directory of recycling and resource recovery systems in the State and provide assistance in matching recovered materials with markets;

(5) provide for the education of the general public and the training of solid waste management professionals to encourage recycling and solid waste reduction;

(6) develop descriptive literature to educate local governments on solid waste reduction and recycling issues.

(C) The Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling shall develop guidelines for the establishment and implementation of recycling education grants to school districts and public and private schools to establish waste reduction and recycling education programs. The office shall develop guidelines for the establishment and implementation of recycling education grants to public and private colleges and universities to establish waste reduction and recycling education programs and demonstration projects. The office shall notify the superintendent of each school district and each public and private school and public and private college and university of the existence of the grant programs and provide information on how to apply for the program. Upon request of the school, the office shall provide technical assistance. The office shall determine the number of grant projects that may be feasibly initiated in a single calendar year. The office, in consultation with the Department of Education, also shall develop and make available to public and private schools, upon request, curriculum materials and resource guides for recycling awareness programs for instruction at the elementary, middle, and high school levels.

SECTION 44-96-120. Establishment of the Solid Waste Management Trust Fund; Waste Tire Grant Trust Fund.

(A) There is established a Solid Waste Management Trust Fund to be administered by the Office of Solid Waste Reduction and Recycling to fund:

(1) activities of the department to implement the provisions of this chapter;

(2) research by state-supported educational institutions or by private entities under contract with state-supported educational institutions on solid waste management technologies;

(3) activities of the Recycling Market Development Advisory Council including its staff in the amount of one hundred thousand dollars from the Solid Was