To amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to prohibit the importation of Canadian municipal solid waste without State consent.

February 12, 2003

Ms. STABENOW introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works

To amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to prohibit the importation of Canadian municipal solid waste without State consent.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the `Canadian Waste Import Ban Act of 2003'.

SEC. 2. CANADIAN MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE.

(a) IN GENERAL- Subtitle D of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. 6941 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

`SEC. 4011. CANADIAN MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE.

`(a) DEFINITIONS- In this section:

`(1) AGREEMENT- The term `Agreement' means--

`(A) the Agreement Concerning the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Waste between the United States and Canada, signed at Ottawa on October 28, 1986 (TIAS 11099) and amended on November 25, 1992; and

`(B) any regulations promulgated to implement and enforce that Agreement.

`(2) CANADIAN MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE- The term `Canadian municipal solid waste' means municipal solid waste that is generated in Canada.

`(3) MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE-

`(A) IN GENERAL- The term `municipal solid waste' means--

`(i) material discarded for disposal by--

`(I) households (including single and multifamily residences); and

`(II) public lodgings such as hotels and motels; and

`(ii) material discarded for disposal that was generated by commercial, institutional, and industrial sources, to the extent that the material--

`(I)(aa) is essentially the same as material described in clause (i); or

`(bb) is collected and disposed of with material described in clause (i) as part of a normal municipal solid waste collection service; and

`(II) is not subject to regulation under subtitle C.

`(B) INCLUSIONS- The term `municipal solid waste' includes--

`(i) appliances;

`(ii) clothing;

`(iii) consumer product packaging;

`(iv) cosmetics;

`(v) debris resulting from construction, remodeling, repair, or demolition of a structure;

`(vi) disposable diapers;

`(vii) food containers made of glass or metal;

`(viii) food waste;

`(ix) household hazardous waste;

`(x) office supplies;

`(xi) paper; and

`(xii) yard waste.

`(C) EXCLUSIONS- The term `municipal solid waste' does not include--

`(i) solid waste identified or listed as a hazardous waste under section 3001, except for household hazardous waste;

`(ii) solid waste, including contaminated soil and debris, resulting from--

`(I) a response action taken under section 104 or 106 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (42 U.S.C. 9604, 9606);

`(II) a response action taken under a State law with authorities comparable to the authorities contained in either of those sections; or

`(III) a corrective action taken under this Act;

`(iii) recyclable material--

`(I) that has been separated, at the source of the material, from waste destined for disposal; or

`(II) that has been managed separately from waste destined for disposal, including scrap rubber to be used as a fuel source;

`(iv) a material or product returned from a dispenser or distributor to the manufacturer or an agent of the manufacturer for credit, evaluation, and possible potential reuse;

`(v) solid waste that is--

`(I) generated by an industrial facility; and

`(II) transported for the purpose of treatment, storage, or disposal to a facility (which facility is in compliance with applicable State and local land use and zoning laws and regulations) or facility unit--

`(aa) that is owned or operated by the generator of the waste;

`(bb) that is located on property owned by the generator of the waste or a company with

which the generator is affiliated; or

`(cc) the capacity of which is contractually dedicated exclusively to a specific generator;

`(vi) medical waste that is segregated from or not mixed with solid waste;

`(vii) sewage sludge or residuals from a sewage treatment plant;

`(viii) combustion ash generated by a resource recovery facility or municipal incinerator; or

`(ix) waste from a manufacturing or processing (including pollution control) operation that is not essentially the same as waste normally generated by households.

`(b) BAN ON CANADIAN MUNICIPAL SOLID WASTE-

`(1) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in paragraph (2), until the date on which the Administrator promulgates regulations to implement and enforce the Agreement (including notice and consent provisions of the Agreement), no person may import into any State, and no solid waste management facility may accept, Canadian municipal solid waste for the purpose of disposal or incineration of the Canadian municipal solid waste.

`(2) ELECTION BY GOVERNOR- The Governor of a State may elect to opt out of the ban under paragraph (1), and consent to the importation and acceptance by the State of Canadian municipal solid waste before the date specified in that paragraph, if the Governor submits to the Administrator a notice of that election by the Governor.

`(c) AUTHORITY OF ADMINISTRATOR-

`(1) IN GENERAL- Beginning immediately after the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall--

`(A) perform the functions of the Designated Authority of the United States described in the Agreement with respect to the importation and exportation of municipal solid waste under the Agreement; and

`(B) implement and enforce the Agreement (including notice and consent provisions of the Agreement).

`(2) CONSENT TO IMPORTATION- In considering whether to consent to the importation of Canadian municipal solid waste under article 3(c) of the Agreement, the Administrator shall--

`(A) obtain the consent of each State into which the Canadian municipal solid waste is to be imported; and

`(B) consider the impact of the importation on homeland security, public health, and the environment.'.

(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT- The table of contents of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (42 U.S.C. prec. 6901) is amended by adding after the item relating to section 4010 the following:

`Sec. 4011. Canadian municipal solid waste.'.

END