Waste Management 2015 Annual Report Download - page 76

flared. Efforts to curtail the emission of GHGs and to ameliorate the effect of climate change may
require our landfills to deploy more stringent emission controls, with associated capital or operating
costs; however, we do not believe that such regulations will have a material adverse impact on our
business as a whole. See Item 1A. Risk Factors —The adoption of climate change legislation or
regulations restricting emissions of “greenhouse gases” could increase our costs to operate.
The EPA clarified in its November 19, 2014 policy memorandum that states may rely on waste-derived
biogenic feedstocks in their future proposed compliance plans required by the final Clean Power Plan
rules and the proposed federal plan, both published in October 2015, which may create new or
expanded opportunities for renewable energy projects. According to the EPA, the federal plan would
fill any gaps pending implementation of State or Tribal plans to achieve required emissions reductions,
but would no longer apply when a State or Tribal plan is approved.
We are taking steps to anticipate the future needs of our customers which include investing in and
developing ever-more-advanced recycling and reuse technologies. Potential climate change and GHG
regulatory initiatives have influenced our business strategy to provide low-carbon services to our
customers, and we increasingly view our ability to offer lower carbon services as a key component of
our business growth. If the U.S. were to impose a carbon tax or other form of GHG regulation
increasing demand for low-carbon service offerings in the future, the services we are developing will
be increasingly valuable.
• In 2011, the EPA published the Non-Hazardous Secondary Materials (“NHSM”) Rule, which provides
the standards and procedures for identifying whether NHSM are solid waste under RCRA when used as
fuels or ingredients in combustion units. The EPA also published new source performance standards
and emission guidelines for commercial and industrial solid waste incineration units (“CISWI”) and
Maximum Achievable Control Technology Standards for commercial and industrial boilers (“Boiler
MACT”). The EPA published clarifications and amendments to the three rules in 2013, that are
generally favorable to our industry. While there is ongoing litigation concerning the CISWI and Boiler
MACT rules, the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has upheld the NHSM Rule and amendments
that support some of our projects in which we are seeking to convert biomass or other secondary
materials into products, fuels or energy. It is not possible to quantify the financial impact of all these
rulemakings at the present time given pending litigation and administrative determinations. However,
we believe the rules and administrative determinations will not have a material adverse impact on our
business as a whole and are more likely to facilitate our efforts to reuse or recover energy value from
secondary material streams.
• In December 2014, the EPA issued a final rule regulating the disposal and beneficial use of coal
combustion residuals (“CCR”). The regulations encourage beneficial use of CCR in encapsulated uses
(e.g., used in cement or wallboard), and use according to established industry standards (e.g.,
application of sludge for agricultural enrichment). The EPA also deemed disposal and beneficial use of
CCR at permitted municipal solid waste landfills exempt from the new regulations because the RCRA
Subtitle D standards applicable at municipal solid waste landfills provide at least equivalent protection.
The new standards are consistent with our approach to handling CCR at our sites currently, and we
believe the new standards will provide a potential growth opportunity for the Company. States may
impose standards more stringent than the federal program, and we will be monitoring state
implementation to determine impact.
State, Provincial and Local Regulations
There are also various state or provincial and local regulations that affect our operations. Each state and
province in which we operate has its own laws and regulations governing solid waste disposal, water and air
pollution, and, in most cases, releases and cleanup of hazardous substances and liabilities for such matters. States
and provinces have also adopted regulations governing the design, operation, maintenance and closure of
landfills and transfer stations. Some counties, municipalities and other local governments have adopted similar
laws and regulations. Our facilities and operations are likely to be subject to these types of requirements.
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