The Dangerous Waste Regulations conditionally exclude some dangerous wastes (WAC 173-303-071). Tthey are not subject to most of the dangerous waste rules, including counting and annual reporting requirements. Usually, the waste must meet a set of specific conditions in order to qualify for the exclusion.
Common exclusions include:
- Treated wood waste.
- Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
- Waste reclaimed and reused in a closed loop system.
Learn more about excluded wastes and how to designate them.
Special wastes are state-only excluded wastes with their own set of management requirements. Special wastes pose a relatively low hazard to the environment. Subject to approval, they may be disposed of in municipal landfills or recycled. Examples of special wastes include:
- Category D toxic wastes (D004-D043 waste codes).
- Solid corrosive waste.
- Low-level persistent waste, such as halogenated organic compounds (HOCs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
Learn more about the conditional exclusion of special wastes (WAC 173-303-073) or read our Focus on: Special Waste Exclusion publication.
The special waste category also includes waste generated from the salvaging, rebuilding, or discarding of transformers, capacitors, or bushings as listed in WAC 173-303-9904.
The domestic sewage exclusion (as described in WAC 173-303-071) allows dangerous waste to be discharged to a publicly owned wastewater treatment works (POTW). Washington’s version of the domestic sewage exclusion is more stringent than the federal exclusion.
To meet the exclusion rules, the waste must:
- NOT exhibit hazardous or dangerous waste characteristics — such as flammability, reactivity, toxicity, or corrosivity—at the point of discharge if it isn’t treatable by the POTW.
- NOT exceed any of the dangerous waste concentration thresholds in WAC 173-303-0902 at the point of discharge if it isn’t treatable by the POTW.
- NOT be a hazardous or dangerous waste pharmaceutical.
- Be treatable by the POTW receiving the waste to a significant degree (rather than just passing through to the sludge or effluent of the POTW).
Read our Focus on: Domestic sewage exclusion publication for more details.
