Our hazardous materials and waste management programs focus on reducing hazards in the workplace, minimizing waste disposal costs, and reducing long-term liabilities. Through the years, we have implemented management programs at many complex facilities for hazardous materials and waste.

Community Right to Know & Emergency Planning

Facilities that store more than an extremely low threshold of solid, liquid, or gaseous hazardous material (greater than or equal to 500 pounds, 55 gallons, or 200 cubic feet) are required to comply with one or more regulations that are related to public and public agency notification of hazardous materials stored, used, or otherwise present at the facility. WCE can work with facilities that exceed these thresholds and assist in achieving regulatory compliance.

California Hazardous Material Business Plan

Federal EPCRA (Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know

Act)

Federal Form R Reporting (Toxic Release Inventory)

California Proposition 65 Compliance

 

Risk Management Programs & Emergency Response Planning

WCE can prepare required documents and technical studies for toxic and flammable regulated materials pertaining to your facility. These materials are often subject to public agency notifications and facility release prevention planning. Our risk management program and planning services include process hazard analysis (HazOp), offsite consequence analysis (air dispersion modeling and risk prioritization), seismic analysis, and development of administrative tools to implement the prevention program.

WCE has prepared plans for several common toxic materials including anhydrous ammonia used in refrigeration systems (500 lb threshold in California) and chlorine gas used for drinking water treatment (100 lb California threshold).

Federal EPA Risk Management Program (RMP)

OSHA Process Safety Management (PSM)

California Accidental Release Prevention (CalARP)

 

Hazardous Materials Storage and Use Fire Code Analysis for Facility Design & Operations

During the design of a new facility or process and/or in response to issues identified by fire department inspections, WCE can prepare a detailed analysis of fire code requirements for building construction and storage/use of hazardous materials. WCE has developed customer database tools to aid complex facilities in the determination of exempt amounts for control areas.

Above Ground Tank Systems

Spray Applications

Control Area Design

 

Hazardous Waste Facility Permitting, Operating and Closure

Treatment, storage, or disposal facilities (TSDFs) are required to submit a variety of materials to regulators including: applications, reports, secondary containment reviews, and closure planning. Waste facility permitting is tiered with the most onerous tier being the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Part B permit and lesser tiers provided for in state Permit by Rule (PBR) and Conditionally Authorized (CA) activities.

 

Hazardous Waste Generator Support

The generation of hazardous waste requires a facility to obtain an EPA ID number and manage waste according to federal and state regulations. WCE can assist with the following facets of hazardous waste generation compliance:

Waste Characterization

Management Programs

Pollution Prevention

Biennial Reporting

Waste Minimization

 

DOT Shipping Requirements

The Department of Transportation (DOT) controls shipping of hazardous materials including shipping papers, marking, labeling, placarding, emergency response, packaging, loading/unloading, and segregation/separation of incompatible materials. WCE can perform custom analyses for each of these requirements to lessen the burden, work and the risk involved in transporting materials.

 

OSHA Safety

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has promulgated regulations to ensure worker safety for a few specific industries (e.g. long shoring, construction) and also for general industry. WCE has a Certified Industrial Hygienist (CIH) on staff and most employees are 40-Hour Hazardous Waste Operations (HAZWOPER) certified. A few examples of WCE services in this area include:

Confined Space Entry Planning

Process Hazard Assessment

MSDS Development (Material Safety Data Sheet)

Fire Prevention Plans