SECTION 330.165. Landfill Cover

(a) Daily cover for Type I and Type IAE landfills. Type I and IAE landfills must apply six inches of well-compacted earthen material not previously mixed with garbage, rubbish, or other solid waste at the end of each operating day to control disease vectors, fires, odors, windblown litter or waste, and scavenging, unless the executive director requires a more frequent interval to control disease vectors, fires, odors, windblown litter or waste, and scavenging. Landfills that operate on a 24-hour basis must cover the working face or active disposal area at least once every 24 hours. The executive director may require a chemical analysis of any landfill cover material. Runoff from areas that have intact daily cover is not considered as having come into contact with the working face or leachate.

(b) Daily cover for Type IV and Type IVAE landfills. All Type IV facilities must follow the requirements of this section except the rate of cover must be no less than weekly, unless the executive director approves another schedule. The executive director may require a chemical analysis of any landfill cover material. Runoff from areas that have intact weekly cover is not considered as having come into contact with the working face or leachate.

(c) Intermediate cover. All areas that have received waste but will be inactive for longer than 180 days must provide intermediate or final cover. This intermediate cover must include six inches of suitable earthen material that is capable of sustaining native plant growth and must be seeded or sodded following its application in order to control erosion, or must be a material approved by the executive director that will otherwise control erosion. This intermediate cover must not be less than 12 inches of suitable earthen material. The intermediate cover must be graded to prevent ponding of water. Plant growth or other erosion control features must be maintained. Runoff from areas that have intact intermediate cover is not considered as having come into contact with the working face or leachate.

(d) Alternative daily cover. Alternative daily cover may only be allowed by a temporary authorization under §305.70(m) of this title (relating to Municipal Solid Waste Permit and Registration Modifications) followed by a major amendment or a modification in accordance with §305.70(k)(1) of this title. Use of alternative daily cover is limited to a 24-hour period after which either waste or daily cover as defined in subsection (a) of this section must be placed.

(1) An alternative daily cover operating plan must be included in the request for temporary authorization or in a site development plan that includes the following:

(A) a description and minimum thickness of the alternative material to be used;

(B) its effect on vectors, fires, odors, and windblown litter and waste;

(C) the application and operational methods to be utilized at the site when using this alternative material;

(D) chemical analysis of the material and/or the Material Safety Data Sheet(s) for the alternative material; and

(E) any other pertinent characteristic, feature, or other factors related to the use of this alternative material.

(2) A status report on the alternative daily cover must be submitted on a two-month basis to the executive director during the temporary authorization period describing the effectiveness of the alternative material, any problems that may have occurred, and corrective actions required as a result of such problems. If no unresolved problems have occurred within the temporary authorization period, status reports may no longer be required.

(3) Alternative daily cover must not be allowed when the landfill is closed for a period greater than 24 hours, unless the executive director approves an alternative length of time.

(4) For contaminated soil proposed to be used as alternative daily cover in a municipal solid waste landfill, the constituents of concern shall not exceed the concentrations listed in Table 1, Constituents of Concern and Their Maximum Leachable Concentrations, located in §335.521(a)(1) of this title (relating to Appendices). Additionally, the contaminated soil must not contain:

(A) polychlorinated biphenyl wastes that are subject to the disposal requirements of 40 Code of Federal Regulations Part 761; or

(B) total petroleum hydrocarbons in concentrations greater than 1,500 milligrams per kilogram. The owner or operator may submit a demonstration for executive director approval that material exceeding 1,500 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) total petroleum hydrocarbons can be a suitable alternative daily cover. The demonstration shall include information regarding the risk to human health and the environment and the information required in paragraph (1) of this subsection. If approved, the executive director may impose additional permit requirements regarding the use of this material.

(5) Alternative daily cover must not exceed constituent limitations imposed on waste authorized to be disposed at the facility.

(6) The executive director may require the owner or operator to test runoff from areas that have alternative daily cover for compliance with Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination System storm water discharge limits or manage the runoff as contaminated water.

(e) Temporary waiver. The executive director may grant a temporary waiver from the requirements of subsections (a) - (d) of this section if the owner or operator demonstrates that there are extreme seasonal climatic conditions that make meeting such requirements impractical.

(f) Final cover. Final cover for the landfill must be in accordance with the site closure plan and Subchapter K of this chapter (relating to Closure and Post-Closure).

(g) Erosion of cover. Erosion gullies or washed-out areas deep enough to jeopardize the final or intermediate cover must be repaired within five days of detection by restoring the cover material, grading, compacting, and seeding unless the commission's regional office approves otherwise, based on the extent of the damage requiring more time to repair or the repairs are delayed because of weather conditions. An eroded area is considered to be deep enough to jeopardize the final or intermediate cover if it exceeds four inches in depth as measured from the vertical plane from the erosion feature and the 90-degree intersection of this plane with the horizontal slope face or surface. The date of detection of erosion and date of completion of repairs, including reasons for any delays, must be documented in the cover inspection record required under subsection (h) of this section. The site operating plan must establish a frequency, and identify other occasions, for conducting inspections of the final and intermediate covers to detect the need for repairs. The periodic inspections and restorations are required during the entire operational life and for the post-closure maintenance period.

(h) Cover inspection record. Each landfill must keep a cover application record on site readily available for inspection by commission representatives and authorized agents or employees of local governments having jurisdiction. This record must specify the date cover (no exposed waste) was accomplished, how it was accomplished, and the last area covered. This applies to daily, intermediate, and alternative daily cover. For final cover, this record must specify the area covered, the date cover was applied, and the thickness applied that date. Each entry must be certified by the signature of the on-site supervisor that the work was accomplished as stated in the record. The cover inspection record must document inspections required under subsection (g) of this section, the findings, and corrective action taken when necessary.

Source Note: The provisions of this §330.165 adopted to be effective March 27, 2006, 31 TexReg 2502