Regulation

Hazardous waste is regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Subtitle C. Businesses and other facilities in Virginia are required to comply with hazardous waste regulations prescribed in the Virginia Hazardous Waste Management Regulations, which closely follow federal standards established under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

Facilities that store, treat, and dispose of hazardous wastes require a permit.  For more information regarding hazardous waste permits, renewals, and permit modifications, please see 'Hazardous Waste Management Facility Permit.'

New Hazardous Waste Regulations Adopted by Virginia

DEQ seeks to make hazardous waste generators in Virginia aware of a new rule recently adopted into the Virginia Hazardous Waste Management Regulations (VHWMR) that will affect what requirements generators must comply with in the future. The hazardous waste Generator Improvements Rule (GIR) became effective federally on May 30, 2017, and will become effective in Virginia on April 8, 2018. Virginia adopted EPA’s rule as it was written.

If you are a Hazardous Waste Generator and would like more information regarding the changes and how the Generator Improvements Rule will impact your business, please visit the Generator Improvements Rule page.

Generator Improvements Rule (GIR) Training Follow-up

Thank you to all who participated in DEQ's GIR Webinar or GIR training sessions that were held throughout the state. The amazing turnout consisted of more than 500 participants signed up for the webinar, and more than 500 people attended the in-person training sessions. DEQ was glad to share information about the new requirements, and to answer questions from the regulated community.

DEQ's hazardous waste website pages have been updated to incorporate the GIR requirements including additional guidance pages and documents. DEQ is continuing to update existing guidance and manuals to incorporate the GIR and will make these available as upon completion.

Please feel free to contact DEQ if you have any follow-up questions on the GIR training, any general questions about hazardous waste management in Virginia, or any suggestions for future training topics in which you might be interested.