§ 22a-220 — (Formerly Sec. 19-524n). Municipal provisions for solid waste disposal. Toxic or hazardous waste disposal. Recycling goal. Municipal representative. Report to commissioner. Program deficiencies.

Connecticut § 22a-220

• Jurisdiction: Connecticut
• Title 22a: Environmental Protection
• Ch. 446d: Solid Waste Management

Text

(a) Each municipal authority shall make provisions for the safe and sanitary disposal of all solid wastes which are generated within its boundaries, including septic tank pumpings, sludge from water pollution abatement facilities and water supply treatment plants, solid residues and sludge from air pollution control facilities and solid wastes from commercial, industrial, agricultural and mining operations, and its share of the solid waste remaining after any recycling facility holding a permit has processed its solid waste, but excluding wastes which are toxic or hazardous. Solid waste generated by any recycling facility holding a permit shall be apportioned to each municipality by weight in direct proportion to the solid waste received from each municipality. No municipality shall be responsible for any hauling costs resulting from the residue from such recycling facility. The recycling facility shall be responsible to pay tipping fees for returned residue at the uniform rate annually established by the solid waste facility for the appropriate category of recycling residue. Such disposal may be in areas within its own boundaries or arrangements may be made for disposing of these wastes in any other municipality. The safe and sanitary disposal of toxic or hazardous wastes shall be the responsibility of the generator and shall be accomplished in a manner approved by the commissioner. In complying with this section, a municipal authority may, by action of its legislative body, provide for the levying of a charge for the disposal, processing or sale of solid wastes brought to a disposal facility or facilities or to a facility or facilities for the processing or sale of recyclable items designated pursuant to section 22a-241b, or pursuant to a municipal ordinance or other enforceable legal instrument, which facilities shall be provided by said municipal authority, by persons other than those in the employ of the municipality while in the course of such employment. (b) Each recycling facility shall maintain records necessary to make the determinations required under subsection (a) of this section. Such records shall include, but not be limited to, the amount of solid waste derived from each municipality and the amount of residue apportioned to each municipality. (c) Any municipality, or its agent, whose solid waste is processed at a recycling facility, or any solid waste facility which accepts residue from a recycling facility may, at any reasonable time, inspect the recycling facility, including any records concerning the amount of solid waste received and residue returned. (d) If any municipality, regional authority or regional solid waste facility fails to receive proper residue allocation, it may institute and maintain a civil action for injunctive relief in any court of competent jurisdiction to require proper residue allocation. The court shall have the power to grant such injunctive relief upon notice and hearing. (e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to abrogate or in any way interfere with any agreement entered into by any municipal authority with another municipality prior to April 9, 1976. (f) (1) On and after January 1, 1991, each municipality shall, consistent with the requirements of section 22a-241b , make provisions for the separation, collection, processing and marketing of items generated within its boundaries as solid waste and designated for recycling by the commissioner pursuant to subsection (a) of section 22a-241b . It shall be the goal to recycle twenty-five per cent of the solid waste generated in each municipality provided it shall be the goal to reduce the weight of such waste by January 1, 2000, by an additional fifteen per cent by source reduction as determined by reference to the state-wide solid waste management plan established in 1991, or by recycling such additional percentage of waste generated, or both. The provisions of this subsection shall not be construed to require municipalities to enforce reduction in the quantity of solid waste. On or before January 1, 1991, each municipality shall: (A) Adopt an ordinance or other enforceable legal instrument setting forth measures to assure the compliance of persons within its boundaries with the requirements of subsection (c) of section 22a-241b and to assure compliance of collectors with the requirements of subsection (a) of section 22a-220c , and (B) provide the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection with the name, address and telephone number of a person to receive information and respond to questions regarding recycling from the department on behalf of the municipality. The municipality shall notify the commissioner within thirty days of its designation of a new representative to undertake such responsibilities. A municipality may by ordinance or other enforceable legal instrument provide for and require the separation and recycling of other items in addition to those designated pursuant to subsection (a) of section 22a-241b . (2) A municipality may, by the adoption of a municipal ordinance or other enforceable legal instrument to which the municipality is a party, identify recyclable solid wastes not described in subdivision (1) of this subsection, including, but not limited to, food scraps, food processing residues, yard waste and other suitable recyclable organic material for diversion to recycling facilities designed for the processing and beneficial use of such wastes. For the purposes of this section and section 22a-220a , “food scraps” or “food processing residues” does not include unused food that is suitable for sale or donation for human or animal consumption. (g) A municipality may contract with a municipal authority, another municipality, a regional entity, the MIRA Dissolution Authority, a nonprofit organization, a private contractor or any combination thereof for assistance in complying with the requirements of this section. (h) On or before September 30, 2010, and annually thereafter, each municipality, or its designated regional agent, shall provide a report to the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection describing the measures taken during the preceding year to meet its obligations under this section. The commissioner shall provide each municipality with a form for such report by July 1, 2010. Such form may be amended from time to time. Such report shall include, but not be limited to, (1) a description of the efforts made by the municipality to promote recycling, (2) a description of its efforts to ensure compliance with separation requirements, (3) an identification of the first destinations that received solid waste, including recyclable material generated in the municipality's borders, and (4) the actual or estimated amount of such disposed solid waste and recyclable material that has been delivered to a first destination that is out of state or a Connecticut end user. If such amounts of recyclable material or solid waste are unknown to the municipality, the municipality shall provide the commissioner with the contact information of the collector who transported such recyclable material or municipal solid waste. For the purposes of this subsection, “collector” has the same meaning as in section 22a-220a . (i) Each municipality shall designate a municipal or regional agent to receive from collectors of solid waste and recyclable items and from operators of resources recovery facilities and solid waste facilities the notices required to be sent to the municipality pursuant to section 22a-220c . (j) On and after January 1, 1991, the commissioner may issue an order, in accordance with the procedures set forth in section 22a-225 , to enforce the requirements of this section and section 22a-241e . If the commissioner determines that a municipality is making insufficient progress in implementing a recycling program he may issue a notice of recycling program deficiency. Thirty days after issuance of said notice the commissioner shall meet with the chief executive officer of the municipality to discuss the deficiency, the municipality's explanations thereof and remedial steps. The municipality at such meeting may cite impediments to the accomplishment of recycling program goals including, but not limited to, the following: The availability of markets; the availability of local processing systems; the availability of regional processing centers; the desirability of alternate utilization techniques; impacts on public health or the environment associated with recycling; or severe economic impact. If the commissioner, after considering such impediments, determines deficiencies still exist which should be remedied, he shall give the municipality further notice and an opportunity to implement remedial steps within ninety days of the receipt of such notice. If after expiration of the ninety-day remedial period, the commissioner determines that the municipal recycling program remains deficient in meeting statutory requirements he may hold a hearing and issue an order. No such order which imposes a duty on the municipality to appropriate funds for the budget of such municipality so as to comply with the order shall be effective earlier than the first fiscal year beginning after five months following the date of issuance of such order. See Sec. 22a-117 re hazardous waste facilities. See Sec. 22a-446a re uniform tipping fee at facilities disposing of septic tank pumpings.

Legislative History

(1971, P.A. 845, S. 14; P.A. 76-34, S. 1–3; P.A. 79-57, S. 1, 2; 79-605, S. 1, 17; P.A. 82-327, S. 7; P.A. 90-220, S. 2, 11; 90-312, S. 9; P.A. 91-92; 91-293, S. 8, 9; P.A 93-423, S. 1; P.A. 96-163, S. 2; P.A. 10-87, S. 2; P.A. 11-80, S. 1; P.A. 14-94, S. 1, 71; P.A. 23-170, S. 3, 8.) History: P.A. 76-34 added provision authorizing municipality to levy charge for waste disposal by persons other than municipal employees in the course of their employment and added Subsec. (b); P.A. 79-57 replaced “area(s)” with “facility(ies)” in Subsec. (a); P.A. 79-605 gave municipality responsibility for disposing of sludge from water pollution abatement facilities, water supply treatment plants and air pollution control facilities, and solid wastes from air pollution control facilities and agricultural and mining operations and clearly placed responsibility for toxic and hazardous wastes on waste generator; P.A. 82-327 removed provision which had required that Sec. 7-162 provisions must be complied with in arrangements to transport solid wastes to another municipality or out of the state; Sec. 19-524n transferred to Sec. 22a-220 in 1983; P.A. 90-220 amended Subsec. (a) to authorize a municipality to charge for solid wastes brought to a facility for the processing or sale of recyclable items or pursuant to ordinance, and added Subsecs. re duties of a municipality re separation, collection, processing and marketing of items, re municipal contracts, re report to commissioner, re designation of agent and re notice of recycling program deficiency order by commissioner, designated as Subsecs. (f) to (j), inclusive, in keeping with provisions enacted in P.A. 90-312; P.A. 90-312 amended Subsec. (a) to require municipalities to dispose of residue from recycling facilities, inserted new Subsecs. (b) re maintenance of records by recycling facility, (c) re inspection of recycling facility and (d) re institution of action for injunctive relieve, and relettered former Subsec. (b) as (e) accordingly; P.A. 91-92 rephrased Subsec. (f) to establish a goal for recycling 25% of the solid waste generated in each municipality; P.A. 91-293 amended Subsec. (h) to change the date by which municipalities must begin submitting reports under that subsection from July 1, 1991, to August 31, 1991, and to require commissioner to provide forms by June 1, 1991, rather than by March 1, 1991; P.A. 93-423 amended Subsec. (f) to add provision re January 1, 2000, recycling goal; P.A. 96-163 amended Subsec. (f) to change the basis for measuring solid waste for purposes of the recycling goal from volume to weight; P.A. 10-87 amended Subsec. (h) by changing report date from August 31, 1991, to September 30, 2010, changing date for commissioner to provide form for report from June 1, 1991, to July 1, 2010, replacing former Subdivs. (3) and (4) with new Subdiv. (3) re identification of first destinations that received solid waste, including recyclable material generated in municipality's borders, and new Subdiv. (4) re reporting of actual or estimated amount of disposed solid waste and recyclable material that has been delivered to first destination that is out of state or a Connecticut end user, adding provision re collector contact information and defining “collector”, effective June 2, 2010; pursuant to P.A. 11-80, “Commissioner of Environmental Protection” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection” in Subsecs. (f) and (h), effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 14-94 amended Subsec. (f) by replacing reference to state solid waste management plan with reference to state-wide solid waste management plan, effective June 6, 2014; pursuant to P.A. 14-94, “Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority” in Subsec. (g), effective June 6, 2014; P.A. 23-170 amended Subsec. (f) to establish Subdiv. (1), make technical changes and add Subdiv. (2) re municipal authority to identify recyclable solid wastes for diversion to recycling facilities, effective June 29, 2023, and pursuant to P.A. 23-170, “Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “MIRA Dissolution Authority” in Subsec. (g), effective July 1, 2023. Annotations to former section 19-524n: Cited. 168 C. 278; 174 C. 146. Annotations to present section: Cited. 192 C. 591. Cited. 17 CA 17; judgment reversed, see 212 C. 570; 19 CA 216.