Rocky Mountain Steel Mill solid waste management units

1976 - Congress passed the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) to ensure hazardous waste is treated, stored, and disposed of properly in the United States.
All facilities that currently or plan to treat, store, or dispose of hazardous wastes must obtain a RCRA permit.
When a regulated facility requests to close a unit, a landfill or impoundment for instance, the work is completed under a post-closure permit.
The unit is an area where:

- the facility has managed hazardous waste;
- it wants to leave wastes in place, rather than remove them;
- hazardous waste regulations require the facility to monitor and care for that unit for 30 years
after it is closed.
Post-Closure Permit:

- specifies the conditions a facility must meet after taking a hazardous waste unit out of service
   where the wastes will be left in place.

- these include, but are not limited to:

   * site inspections;
   * ground water monitoring to determine if the unit has released any hazardous waste or their
       related materials to the environment;
   * ensuring the unit is not breached;
   * emergency procedures;
   * training;
   * record keeping.
Early 1990s - Rocky Mountain Steel Mills closed two impoundments that managed hazardous wastes as hazardous waste landfills:

- Station B and Station E are covered under the facility's Post-Closure Permit.
Rocky Mountain Steel Mills' Post-Closure Permit was renewed in September 2005.

Corrective Action Program

1984 - the Corrective Action Program was enacted with passage of the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendment Act.
Corrective Action focuses on the investigation and cleanup of potential and known contaminated areas associated with production and operation processes.
Solid Waste Management Units (SWMUs: pronounced shmooozz) are areas of potential and known contamination.
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment oversees RCRA facilities statewide.
Rocky Mountain Steel Mills has a Corrective Action portion to its permit.
82 Solid Waste Management Units were identified in the Facility Assessment
these are areas where solid or hazardous wastes may have been managed.
The Post-Closure Permit requires Rocky Mountain Steel Mills to investigate the Units to determine whether solid or hazardous wastes or their related materials are present above levels that may cause harm to human health and the environment.
If there has been a release of these constituents, the facility is required to remediate them.

For more information about this proposed permit modification, or the Rocky Mountain Steel Mills environmental cleanup, please visit one of the information repositories:

Robert Hoag Rawlings Library
100 E. Abriendo
Pueblo, CO 81004
719-562-5600

Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division
Records Center - Building B
4300 Cherry Creek Drive South
Denver, CO 80246
Telephone: 303-692-3331
Toll free: 1 (888) 569-1831 ext 3331

If you would like to speak to someone about your questions, please contact:

Caren Johannes, Project Manager
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division
Telephone: 303-692-3347
Toll free: 1 (888) 569-1831 ext 3347

Jeannine Natterman, Public Information Officer
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division
Telephone: 303-692-3303
Toll free: 1 (888) 569-1831 ext 3303

Carl Hund
Manager, Environmental Programs
Rocky Mountain Steel Mills
Telephone: (719) 561-6640

Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division Rocky Mountain Steel Mill

Facts About Rocky Mountain Steel Mills Hazardous Waste Cleanup

Corrective Action Program

Hazardous Materials and Waste Management Division
Rocky Mountain Steel Mill