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Prior to project approval, request that project information specify which requirements under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Idaho Hazardous Waste Management Act, and the Idaho Ground Water Quality Rule apply.
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Understand each project by reviewing its generator status and the chemicals, toxic materials, and hazardous waste associated with its operations. Review projects for the potential to use alternative materials that have less impact on the health and welfare of the community. |
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All businesses in Idaho, including city- and county-owned facilities, are required to determine if they generate hazardous waste and comply with various requirements. Note that household hazardous waste is a household waste and therefore allowed to go to a municipal solid waste landfill. CESQG waste is allowed to go to a municipal or non-municipal landfill (if authorized by the landfill) through an exemption in the hazardous waste regulations. Diversion programs or local ordinances should be developed and implemented for both sources of hazardous waste to keep them out of landfills. Have an operating plan to address CESQGs and household hazardous waste.
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Plan ahead for sites with tanks. |
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Require that project sites be evaluated for underground tanks and contamination prior to remodeling, as there may be potential contamination in subsurface soils. Disturbance of contaminated soils could allow harmful vapors to contaminate indoor air, among other problems. |
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Consider placement of storage tanks with regard to existing individual wells, public water system wells, and distribution lines to drinkable water to prevent contamination in the event of a release of material from the tanks. |
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Assure that drinking water and wastewater pipes are adequately separated and wastewater lines are down-gradient of public water system wells and their features. |
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Plan ahead for ground water protection. |
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Implement ground water quality protection policies within your jurisdiction. The Idaho Ground Water Quality Plan (pdf 3.8 mb, 188 pages) provides guidance on ground water policies and implementation strategies for local government management efforts.
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Consult the Idaho Ground Water Quality Plan (pdf 3.8 mb, 188 pages) and evaluate city or county use and management of pesticides, chemicals, and hazardous waste. |
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Adopt land-use regulations or ordinances to protect ground water (especially for activities located near sensitive ground water areas). (See source water section.) |
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Develop and use best management practices for facilities and persons that store and use materials that have the potential to contaminate soil and ground water. This includes assistance with selecting, designing, installing, and maintaining secondary containment systems. |
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Consider a requirement that projects have pollution liability insurance. |
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Implement a household hazardous waste collection program for used oil, pharmaceuticals, and household hazardous waste. (See household hazardous waste section.) |
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Develop educational and voluntary programs to discourage the release of contaminants to ground water to reduce or eliminate contamination from these sources. |
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Identify groups in the community working on water issues, such as utility companies, water quality agencies, or advocacy organizations, and explore ways to collaborate with them. |
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Implement homeowner and business education programs and community and business stewardship programs. |
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Contact DEQ for training and technical assistance in implementing ground water and drinking water protection. |
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Assess proposed development projects or any abandoned or underutilized properties in your community for the potential to use brownfields funds or assistance. Brownfields are properties for which the expansion, redevelopment, or reuse may be complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substance, pollutant, or contaminant. Abandoned or underutilized properties result in wasted infrastructure, development of green space on the edge of town, and blight in urban and neighborhood areas. Communities may struggle to find new uses for brownfields, whether as a neighborhood park or as a new commercial or retail use, unless and until the environmental issues are resolved. Cleaning up and reinvesting in these properties increases local tax bases; facilitates job growth; utilizes existing infrastructure; takes development pressures off of undeveloped, open land; and both improves and protects the environment.
Local governments can use the Brownfields Program to revitalize properties or buildings in their communities by requesting a brownfields assessment, applying for an assessment or clean-up grant, adding a property to DEQ's Brownfield Inventory, or proposing a brownfield site to DEQ. Local governments do not have to own the property in order to ask DEQ to conduct an assessment. For more information on this program, visit DEQ's Brownfields Web page. |
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Local governments have the authority to implement ordinances that help prevent ground water contamination and restrict hazardous waste management beyond state and federal laws and regulations. Many land uses that pose a potential threat to ground water quality are managed at the local level. Therefore, it is local government that can most efficiently administer and implement some provisions of the Idaho Ground Water Quality Plan (pdf 3.8 mb, 188 pages), particularly when implementation can be incorporated into existing programs. Determine what is best for the health and welfare of your community. |