Abstract |
In the United States, over the last ten years, the improper disposal of solid waste has manifested itself in the passage of a series of Federal and State-level control statutes of unprecendented scope and impact. At the Federal level, the statutes include three major environmental laws and three major amendments. The three major laws are: (1) the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976; (2) the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) of 1976; and (3) the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) of 1980. CERCLA is also known as Superfund. The three amendments are: (1) the Hazardous and Solid Waste Act (HSWA) of 1984; (2) the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) of 1986; and (3) the Medical Waste Tracking Act (MWTA) of 1988 (Lee, 9/89). The objective of the paper is to provide: (1) a summary of the MWTA and the EPA rules for implementing MWTA; (2) MWTA's relationship to both EPA and other Federal regulatory programs; and (3) a brief update of State regulations regarding medical waste disposal. |