Acute aquatic toxicity is one of eight subsections of the characteristic of toxicity identified by the California Department of Toxic Substances and Control (DTSC).  If a discarded material displays the characteristic of acute aquatic toxicity – and no other Federal hazardous waste characteristic nor meets the definition of a Federal listed hazardous waste – it must be managed as a non-RCRA hazardous waste in the state of California only.  According to Federal regulations of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency – and that of every other state with an authorized hazardous waste program – it would be a non-hazardous waste.

It is identified as a toxic hazardous waste due to its toxicity specifically to fish. A waste is aquatically toxic if it produces an LC50 less than 500 mg/L when tested using the “Static Acute Bioassay Procedures for Hazardous Waste Samples”.