Hazardous & General Waste Tips for Ethanol Plants
This guidance document is advisory in nature but is binding on an agency until amended by such agency. A guidance document does not include internal procedural documents that only affect the internal operations of the agency and does not impose additional requirements or penalties on regulated parties or include confidential information or rules and regulations made in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act. If you believe that this guidance document imposes additional requirements or penalties on regulated parties, you may request a review of the document.

Form #: 01-077 Guidance Documents Revised: 11/30/22

Title 128 - Nebraska Hazardous Waste Regulations is Nebraska’s hazardous waste regulation document.

Title 128 may be obtained on the internet. It is found at http://dee.ne.gov by clicking on “Laws and Regulations,” then “Rules & Regulations.”
All waste generators are required to determine if their waste streams are a hazardous waste. See Title 128, Chapter 4. The NDEE has developed an Environmental Guidance Document titled Waste Determinations & Hazardous Waste Testing. You can view this document at the above web site by clicking on “Publications & Forms”; the document is under “RCRA Program,” Guidance Documents.

The following are examples of waste streams that should be considered as potential hazardous waste that will require a waste determination.
  • Still bottom sludges
  • Sludges from floor drains, sand pits, oil/water separators, etc.
  • Wastewater treatment sludges
  • Fluorescent light tubes and Compact Fluorescent Lamps
  • High Intensity Discharge lamps
  • Parts washer solvent, sludges, or filters
  • Empty aerosol cans
  • Paint wastes to include spent paint solvents
  • Rags and wipers not managed under a rag laundering contract
  • Batteries
  • Computer monitors
  • Cleaning products
  • Strong acids or bases (For example; acid hydrolysis processes)
  • Spent oils not managed as used oil as provided for under Title 128, Chapter 7
  • Fusel oil and related distillation compounds that do not meet the comparable/syngas fuel exclusion (Title 128, Chapter 3, Section 018) or are not byproducts exhibiting a hazardous waste characteristic being reclaimed (Title 128, Chapter 2, Section 003.03C)
  • Spent solvents or wastewater from azeotropic distillation processes
  • Secondary materials from ethanol production
  • Tube and vessel cleaning wastes (boilers and reaction vessels)


UPSET CONSIDERATIONS
  • Plan ahead for large waste generation events. Mistakes can happen. What will you do if an unusually large amount of stillage needs to be disposed? Plan for storage capacity to contain overage amounts of thin stillage. If you store wet distillers grain on a wet cake pad before transport, ensure the pad has suitable containment capacity for overage amounts too. Attempt to arrange for contingency composting of excess distillers grains. It is very unlikely the department will approve land application of the large amounts of distillers grains as a disposal option.

HELPFUL WEB SITES:

CONTACTS:
  • NDEE Hazardous Waste Compliance Assistance (402) 471-8308
  • NDEE Waste Management Section (402) 471-4210
Email questions to: NDEE.moreinfo@Nebraska.gov


Produced by: Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy, P.O. Box 98922, Lincoln, NE 68509-8922; phone (402) 471-2186. To view this, and other information related to our agency, visit our web site at http://dee.ne.gov.