§ 13-2036 — Applications for permits; contents; department; powers and duties; contested cases; variance; minor modification; how treated

(1) The department shall review applications for permits for facilities and provide for the issuance, modification, suspension, denial, or revocation of permits after public notice. Applications shall be on forms provided by the department which solicit information necessary to make a determination on the application. The department shall issue public notice of its intent to grant or deny an application for a permit within sixty days after receipt of an application containing all required information. If an application is granted and the permit is issued or modified, any aggrieved person may file a petition for a contested case with the department within thirty days after the granting or modification of the permit, but such petition shall not act as a stay of the permit. If an application is denied, the department shall provide written rationale therefor to the applicant. Any change, modification, or other deviation from the terms or conditions of an approved permit must be approved by the director prior to implementation. Minor modifications described in subsection (5) of this section shall not require public notice or hearing.
(2) The department shall condition the issuance of permits on terms necessary to protect the public health and welfare and the environment as well as compliance with all applicable regulations. Any applicant may apply to the department for a variance from rules and regulations. The director may grant such variance if he or she finds that the public health and welfare will not be endangered or that compliance with the rules or regulations from which variance is sought would produce serious hardship without equal or greater benefits to the public. The considerations, procedures, conditions, and limitations set forth in section 81-1513 shall apply to any variance granted pursuant to this section.
(3) The director shall require the owner or operator of a facility to undertake investigation and corrective action in the event of contamination or a threat of contamination caused by the facility. Financial assurance for investigative or corrective action may be required in an amount determined by the director following notice and hearing.
(4) In addition to the information required by this section, the following specific areas shall be addressed in detail in any application filed in conjunction with the issuance, renewal, or reissuance of a permit for a facility:
(a) A closure and postclosure plan detailing the schedule for and the methods by which the operator will meet the conditions for proper closure and postclosure of the facility as defined by the council. The plan shall include, but not be limited to, the proposed frequency and types of actions to be implemented prior to and following closure of an operation, the proposed postclosure actions to be taken to return the area to a condition suitable for other uses, and an estimate of the costs of closure and postclosure and the proposed method of meeting the costs;
(b) A plan for the control and treatment of leachate, including financial considerations proposed in meeting the costs of such control and treatment; and
(c) An emergency response and remedial action plan, including provisions to minimize the possibility of fire, explosion, or any release to air, land, or water of pollutants that could threaten human health and the environment and the identification of possible occurrences that may endanger human health and environment.
(5) If such application is modified after approval by the department, the application shall be resubmitted as a new proposal. The director may approve a minor modification of an application if he or she finds that the public health and welfare will not be endangered. The following minor modifications to an application are subject to departmental approval but do not require public notice or hearing:
(a) Correction of typographical errors;
(b) Change of name, address, or telephone number of persons or agencies identified in the application;
(c) Administrative or informational changes;
(d) Changes in procedures for maintaining operating records;
(e) Changes to provide for more frequent monitoring, reporting, sampling, or maintenance;
(f) Request for a compliance date extension if such date is not more than one hundred twenty days after the date specified in the approved permit;
(g) Adjustments to the cost estimates or the financial assurance instrument for inflation;
(h) Changes in the closure schedule for a unit or in the final closure schedule for the facility or an extension of the closure schedule;
(i) Changes to the days or hours of operation if the hours of operation are within the period from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.;
(j) Changes to the facility contingency plan;
(k) Changes which improve sampling or analysis methods, procedures, or schedules;
(l) Changes in quality control or quality assurance plans which will better ensure that the specifications for construction, closure, sampling, or analysis will be met;
(m) Changes in the facility plan of operation which conform to guidance or rules approved by the Environmental Quality Council or provide more efficient waste handling or more effective waste screening; or
(n) Replacement of an existing monitoring well with a new well if location is not changed.

Legislative History

Source: Laws 1992, LB 1257, § 36; Laws 1994, LB 1207, § 8; Laws 2007, LB263, § 1.