Pursuant to USEPA regulations in affect prior to May 30, 2017, at 40 CFR 262.34(a)(4) a large quantity generator of Hazardous Waste (LQG) must, among other things, comply with the training requirements of §265.16.  §265.16 is meant for permitted hazardous waste treatment storage and disposal facilities (TSDFs), but the direct reference to it from §262.34(a)(4) makes it applicable to an LQG as well.

As of May 30, 2017 and the Generator Improvements Rule, the training requirement for facility personnel of an LQG are now found at 40 CFR 262.17(a)(7).

Therefore, an LQG must train and document the training per the requirements of this section for each of its Facility Personnel.  Training documentation must include:

1. Job title and name.
2. A written job description.
3. A written description of the type and amount of training provided; both introductory and annual refresher.
4. Certification that the training has been given to, and completed by, facility personnel.

Of the above, it’s the written job description that I will seek to clarify here.  I’ve been asked, “What does US EPA want for a job description?”  In reference to the job description, §265.16(d)(2) – now 40 CFR 262.17(a)(7)(iv)(B) – reads:

This description may be consistent in its degree of specificity with descriptions of other similar positions in the same company location or bargaining unit, but must include the requisite skill, education, or other qualification, and duties of facility personnel assigned to each position;

The Agency initially provides you with some freedom in determining what you will use to meet this requirement, “…may be consistent in its degree of specificity with descriptions of other similar positions in the same company location or bargaining unit…”  In other words, you don’t have to invent a Job Description from scratch, but instead can use a description similar to one already in use.

However, the next moment USEPA turns around and requires that your Job Description, “…must include the requisite skill, education, or other qualifications….” of your trained Facility Personnel, meaning:  the skill, education, or qualifications that are required for them to do their job.  Your Job Description must also include the, “…duties of facility personnel assigned to each position;”

And this from the preamble to the regulations when published in the Federal Register on May 19, 1980 (45 FR 33066):

…the only interest in the job descriptions of a facility personnel is to enable the Agency to determine if each person is receiving a level of training that is commensurate with the person’s duties and responsibilities.

In other words the role of the job description in the RCRA training record is to demonstrate to an Agency inspector that the training received is applicable to what the employee needs to know in order to do their job in compliance with the regulations.

Is USEPA going to bite your head off if your training documentation doesn’t exactly meet the above description?  I don’t think so.  I think the most important thing is to get the training done.  And then, ensure the training record includes some form of a Job Description that reflects the employees responsibility for handling hazardous waste.  I provide attendees of all of my training with a form to document its proper completion.  Contact me to discuss the training required for Facility Personnel and for HazMat Employees.