§2183. Notice; permits and licenses; enforcement; violations; penalties; notification

A. No later than ninety days after the effective date of the regulations authorized by this Chapter, every person not otherwise exempt who generates, transports, or desires to transport in the state any hazardous waste or who owns, operates, or desires to own or operate a treatment, storage, transfer, or disposal facility which handles hazardous wastes within the state shall file with the secretary or commission a notification stating the nature and location of the activity conducted or desired to be conducted and, if required by regulations, a request for an application for any necessary licenses, permits, schedules of compliance, or performance guidelines. Transfer facilities which are part of facilities that generate, transport, or dispose of hazardous waste which have already notified or applied for any necessary permits, where the notice or application describes the transfer facility adequately, shall not be required to file an additional notification or permit application to assure compliance with this Section.

B. It shall be unlawful to initiate or continue the generation, transportation, treatment, storage, or disposal of hazardous wastes after the time period provided in Subsection A of this Section except in compliance with the notice requirements thereof.

C. Upon receipt of the notices required in Subsection A of this Section or as soon as practicable thereafter, the secretary shall initiate the procedures as required by this Chapter and the regulations applicable thereto for the issuance or denial of permits and licenses and the establishment of schedules of compliance and performance guidelines for facilities and equipment.

D. All facilities which have interim status shall comply with all applicable operating standards and shall comply with all regulatory requirements regarding the application for standard permits for such facilities. It shall be unlawful for any person who has received a request for submission of an application for a standard permit from the secretary or commission to initiate or continue the treatment, storage, or disposal of hazardous waste under interim status, unless such person submits an application in accordance with applicable regulations within the time required by the secretary or commission for such submission. The interim status of any facility which fails to comply with this Subsection shall be subject to revocation by the secretary or commission. The interim status of any existing facility shall not exceed two years beyond the effective date of this Subsection unless extended by order of the secretary.

E. Upon the issuance of a license or permit or the establishment of a schedule of compliance or performance guidelines, it shall be unlawful to transport, treat, store, or dispose of hazardous wastes except in accordance with the terms and conditions thereof and the regulations applicable thereto.

F. Except as provided in Subsection G of this Section, enforcement of this Chapter and the rules and regulations promulgated hereunder shall be in accordance with R.S. 30:2025.

G.(1) Any person who willfully or knowingly discharges, emits, or disposes of any substance in contravention of any provision of this Chapter or any regulations or of any permit or license terms and conditions adopted in pursuance thereof, or any person who otherwise knowingly violates any provision of this Chapter, shall, upon conviction be subject to a fine of not more than one hundred thousand dollars per day of violation and costs of prosecution, or imprisonment at hard labor for not more than ten years, or both. The time limit for instituting prosecution under this Paragraph for cases involving the willful or knowing disposal of a hazardous waste, as provided in Louisiana Code of Criminal Procedure Art. 572, shall commence upon discovery of the disposal of the hazardous waste. The determination of whether the conduct was willful or knowing shall be determined under the law in existence at the time of the disposal.

(2) Any person who knowingly transports, treats, stores, disposes of, or exports any substance in contravention of any provisions of this Chapter or the regulations or of any permit or license terms and conditions adopted in pursuance thereof, or any person who otherwise knowingly violates any provisions of this Chapter, in such manner that he knows, or should have known, at that time that he thereby places another person in imminent danger of death or serious bodily injury, shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine of not more than two hundred fifty thousand dollars per day of violation and costs of prosecution, or imprisonment at hard labor for not more than fifteen years, or both.

(3) Any person who knowingly omits any material information or knowingly and intentionally makes any false statement, representation, or certification in any application, record, label, manifest, report, plan, or other document filed or required to be maintained under this Chapter, or under any permit, rule, or regulation issued under this Chapter, or who falsifies, tampers with, or knowingly renders inaccurate any monitoring device or method to be maintained under this Chapter, or under any permit, rule, or regulation issued under this Chapter, shall upon conviction be punished by a fine of not more than twenty-five thousand dollars or imprisonment for not more than six months, or both.

H. No person shall tamper with or cause to be tampered with any hazardous waste container or the contents thereof, shall discharge or cause to be discharged the contents of said container between the point of origin and point of destination listed in the manifest, or shall discharge or cause to be discharged the contents of said container at any location other than that for which it is permitted unless ordered to do so by the Department of Environmental Quality or otherwise allowed by this Subtitle and rules or regulations promulgated thereunder. Any person willfully violating this Subsection shall be subject to the civil and criminal penalties provided by this Chapter.

I. Whenever the owner or operator of any active site or other facility obtains information indicating that hazardous waste is leaching, spilling, discharging, or otherwise moving in, into, within, or on any land or water, such person shall notify the department in accordance with regulations to be adopted. This notification requirement shall apply to leaching, spilling, discharging, or moving of hazardous waste occurring hereafter although the hazardous waste was heretofore present at the site or facility.

J. No person shall operate an incinerator at a commercial facility that accepts hazardous waste or hazardous waste products for a fee, or a recycling process at a commercial facility which recycles hazardous waste to produce aggregates and that accepts hazardous waste or hazardous waste products for a fee, in a manner which increases the volume of the hazardous waste or hazardous waste products received.

Acts 1979, No. 449, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1980. Amended by Acts 1980, No. 194, §14; Acts 1981, No. 246, §1; Acts 1982, No. 146, §1; Acts 1982, No. 797, §1, eff. Aug. 4, 1982; Acts 1983, No. 97, §1, eff. Feb. 1, 1984; Acts 1983, No. 459, §2, eff. July 6, 1983; Acts 1984, No. 669, §1; Acts 1985, No. 337, §1; Acts 1985, No. 669, §1; Acts 1988, No. 730, §1; Acts 1990, No. 988, §1; Acts 1999, No. 303, §1, eff. June 14, 1999; Acts 2008, No. 186, §1.