Design standards

• A containment building must be completely enclosed with walls, a floor, and a roof and constructed of humanmade materials possessing sufficient structural strength to withstand movement of wastes, personnel, and heavy equipment within the unit.

264.1101(a) and 265.1101(a) detail the design standards to which the containment building itself must conform:

• The containment building must be completely enclosed with walls, a floor, and a roof.
• The floor, walls, and roof must be constructed of humanmade materials possessing sufficient structural strength to withstand movement of wastes, personnel, and heavy equipment within the unit.
• Doors and windows need not meet these standards, but the building must be strategically designed with interior walls and partitions to ensure that wastes do not come into contact with them.
• Dust control devices, such as air-lock doors or negative air pressure systems (which pull air into the containment building), must be used as necessary to prevent fugitive dust from escaping through these building exits.
• All surfaces in the containment building that come into contact with waste during treatment or storage must be chemically compatible with that waste.
• Incompatible wastes that could cause unit failure cannot be placed in containment buildings.

System of barriers

The remaining containment building design standards establish a system of barriers between hazardous wastes in the unit and the surrounding environment. The floor of the containment building is considered the unit’s primary barrier, since it is the first measure used to prevent wastes from being released into the ground beneath the building. Construction materials vary with the type of wastes to be managed in the containment building, but concrete floors are typical. If liquids are not managed in the containment building, no further design criteria applicable.