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Satellite accumulation is a term that refers to the accumulation of hazardous waste at another location that is:
- At or near the point of hazardous waste generation; and
- Owned and operated by the generator of the hazardous waste.
Satellite accumulation areas (SAAs) allow you to accumulate up to 55 gallons of hazardous waste, or up to 1 quart of liquid or 2.2 pounds of solid acute hazardous waste, in containers at or near any point of generation where waste initially accumulates.
Scope
The regulations apply to both small and large quantity generators, provided all of the conditions for exemption in 262.15 are met.
Regulatory citations
- 40 CFR 262.15 — Satellite accumulation area regulations for small and large quantity generators
Key definitions
- Satellite accumulation: The accumulation of hazardous waste at another location that is (1) at or near the point of hazardous waste generation; and (2) owned and operated by the generator of the hazardous waste.
Summary of requirements
The following rules apply to SAAs:
- The waste must be in the control of the operator of the process generating the waste.
- You may have more than one waste accumulating in an SAA; however, you may not have more than 55 gallons of waste (or one quart of liquid acute hazardous waste or 2.2 pounds of solid acute hazardous waste) in an SAA. (You could not fill two 30-gallon drums at the same time in one SAA.)
- Containers must be kept closed except when adding or removing waste, or when temporary venting of a container is necessary, or the container must remain open for proper operation or to prevent a dangerous situation such as the buildup of extreme pressure.
- Mark the container “Hazardous Waste” or otherwise identify its contents and indicate the hazards of the waste. You do not need to include the start date.
- There is no time limit on an SAA, but once you reach the 55-gallon limit, you must mark the excess with the start date (the date you began accumulating the excess waste) and either begin complying with the Central Accumulation Area (CAA) regulations for your generator category, move the excess to a CAA, or ship the waste offsite within three days.
- Mark the date the waste reaches the CAA on the container as the accumulation start date. In reality, this gives large quantity generators (LQGs) up to 93 days, and small quantity generators (SQGs) up to 183 days, to ship the waste offsite.
- All SAAs operated by LQGs must meet emergency preparedness regulations.
- The same requirements that apply to incompatible wastes in CAAs apply to SAAs.
The regulations do not limit the number of SAAs you may have onsite, but you may not move waste from one SAA to another SAA. Waste may only move from an SAA to a CAA.
Finally, you must count waste generated in an SAA toward your monthly generator.