Technical Guidelines for the ESM Of

Technical Guidelines for the ESM of

PCB, PCT and PBB Wastes

Technical Guideline for Environmentally Sound Management of Wastes Consisting of, Containing or Contaminated with

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), Polychlorinated terphenyls (PCT), and Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB)

22 February 2004 Draft

Technical Guidelines for the ESM of

PCB, PCT and PBB Wastes

Table of Contents

1.0Introduction

1.1Scope

1.2Description, production, use and wastes

1.2.1Description

1.2.2Production

1.2.3Use

1.2.4Wastes

2.0Relevant provisions in the Basel and Stockholm Conventions

2.1Basel Convention

2.2Stockholm Convention

3.0Provisions of the Stockholm Convention to be addressed cooperatively with the Basel Convention

3.1Low PCB content

3.2Levels of destruction and irreversible transformation

3.3.Methods that constitute environmentally sound destruction and disposal

3.3.1Destruction or irreversible transformation methods

3.3.2Other disposal methods when PCB content is low

3.3.3Other disposal methods when destruction or irreversible transformation does not represent the environmentally preferable option

4.0Guidance on Environmentally Sound Management (ESM)

4.1.1Basel Convention

4.1.2Stockholm Convention

4.1.3OECD

4.2Legislative and regulatory framework

4.3Waste prevention and minimization

4.4Identification and inventories

4.4.1Identification

4.4.2Inventory

4.5Sampling, analysis and monitoring

4.5.1Sampling

4.5.2Analysis

4.5.3Monitoring

4.6Handling, collection, packaging, transportation and storage

4.6.1Handling

4.6.2Collection

4.6.3Packaging

4.6.4Labelling

4.6.5Transport

4.6.5Storage

4.7Environmentally sound destruction and disposal

4.7.1Pre-treatment

4.7.2Destruction and irreversible transformation methods

4.7.3Other disposal methods when the PCB content is low

4.8Remediation of contaminated sites

4.9Health and safety

4.9.1High-volume, high-concentration or high-risk situations

4.9.2Low-volume, low-concentration sites or low-risk situations

4.10Emergency response

4.11Public participation

Appendix 1:Synonyms and trade names for PCB, PCT and PBB

Appendix 2:References

Appendix 3:Bibliography

Abbreviations and Acronyms

ABSacrylonitrile butadiene styrene

AOPAdvanced oxidation process

BCDBase catalyzed decomposition

COPConference of the Parties

DNAPLSdense non-aqueous phase liquids

ESMEnvironmentally sound management

GCgas chromatography

GPCRGas phase chemical reduction

HASPHealth and Safety Plan

MSmass spectrometry

MSOMolten salt oxidation

PBBPolybrominated biphenyl

PCBPolychlorinated biphenyls

PCDDpolychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins

PCDFPolychlorinated dibenzofurans

PCTPolychlorinated terphenyls

POPPersistent organic pollutant

ppmparts per million

SETSolvated electron technology

SCWOSuper-critical water oxidation

WHOWorld Health Organization

Units of measurement

mg/kg: Milligram(s) per kilogram. A measure of the concentration of an analyte in a given solid medium. Corresponds to parts per million (ppm) by weight.

1February 22, 2004

Technical Guidelines for the ESM of

PCB, PCT and PBB Wastes

1.0Introduction

1.1Scope

1. This document supersedes the Basel Convention’s Technical Guidelines on Wastes Comprising or Containing PCB, PCT and PBB (Y10), February 1997.
2. This Technical Guideline provides guidance for the environmentally sound management (ESM) of wastes in accordance with decisions V/8 and VI/23 of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal, I/4 and II/10 of the Open-ended Working Group of the Basel Convention (OEWG), and INC-6/5 and INC-7/6 of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee for an International Legally Binding Instrument for Persistent Organic Pollutants.
3. Along with PCB, thisTechnical Guideline addressesPCT and PBB, as a class or category of substances owing to similarities in the physio-chemical and toxicological properties of these substances. Topics addressed include waste management, treatment, destruction and disposal practices. Please note that neither PCT nor PBB are subject to the Stockholm Convention.
4. This document should be used in conjunction with the General Technical Guidelines for Environmentally Sound Management of Wastes Consisting of, Containing or Contaminated with Persistent Organic Pollutant. This document provides more detailed information on the nature and occurrence of PCB, PCT and PBB wastes for purposes of identification and their management.

1.2Description, production, use and wastes

1.2.1Description

1.2.1.1PCB

1. Commonly known as chlorobiphenyls, PCBis a group of halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons (arenes) characterized by the biphenyl structure (two phenyl rings (C6H5)2) and at least two chlorine atom substituted for hydrogen. The chlorine atoms can be attached at any of ten available sites. In theory there are 209 congeners, although only about 130 congeners have actually been found in chemical formulations (Holoubek, 2000). Typically 40% to 60% of the 10 possible substitution sites are occupied with chlorine atoms (four to six chlorine atoms) (Environment Canada, 1988). The higher chlorinated PCB congeners are virtually insoluble in water and very resistant to thermal and biological degradation.
2. PCB includes 12 compounds for which the World Health Organization (WHO) has developed toxicity equivalency factors since they exhibit dioxin-like toxicity (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin).

1.2.1.2PCT

1. PCT is also a group of halogenated hydrocarbons. PCT is very similar in chemical structure to PCB, except that they contain three phenyl rings instead of two. PCT can therefore have up to 14 chlorine atoms attached. The number of possible congeners of PCT is very large, however only a few occur in commercial products. PCT have very similar chemical and physical properties to PCB. They are virtually insoluble in water and very resistant to thermal and biological degradation. One difference is that PCT tend to have less volatility (higher boiling point) than PCB.

1.2.1.3PBB

1. PBB are chemically identical to PCB, except that bromine atoms are substituted for hydrogen on the phenyl rings instead of chlorine. As with PCB, there are 209 possible congeners of PBB. However, only a few occur in commercial products (Melber et al, 1994). They are solids or waxy substances at room temperature. They are virtually insoluble in water and very resistant to thermal and biological degradation.

1.2.2Production

1.2.2.1 PCB

1. PCB have excellent dielectric properties, longevity, non-flammability, and resistance to thermal and chemical degradation. For this reason, prior to national bans, they were manufactured for use in electrical equipment, heat exchangers, hydraulic systems, and several other specialized applications.
2. Principal manufacture occurred from 1930 up to the late 1970s in the United States; 1974 in China (China State Environmental Protection Agency, 2002); the early 1980s inEurope, and 1993 in Russia (AMAP, 2000); and from 1954 to 1972 in Japan.
3. PCB were generally manufactured as mixtures of congeners, for example as progressive chlorination of batches of biphenyl until a certain target percentage of chlorine by weight was achieved. The manufactured PCB were rarely used at full strength. For example, they were added in small quantities to ink, plastics, paints and carbon paper or were used in formulations up to 70% PCB in hydraulic fluid, transformer fluid and heating fluids. At room temperature, the majority of them are oily liquids or waxy solids.
4. Prominent trade names of PCB products included those listed below. (See Appendix 1 for a more detailed list of PCB trade names and synonyms and Section 4.4 considerations regarding precautions to take when utilizing trade names in inventory exercises.)

Apirolio (Italy)

Aroclor (US)

Clophen (Germany)

Delor (Czechoslovakia)

Elaol (Germany)

Fenchlor (Italy)

Kanechlor (Japan)

Phenoclor (France)

Pyralene (France)

Pyranol (US)

Pyroclor (US)

Santotherm (Japan)

Sovol (USSR)

Sovtol (USSR)

1. In the Aroclor series a four-digit number follows the word “Aroclor”. The first two digits of the number are either “10” or “12”. The number “12” indicates a “normal” Aroclor while the number “10” indicates a distillation product of an Aroclor. The second two digits of the four digit code indicate the percent chlorine in the mixture by weight. Therefore Aroclor 1254 contains approximately 54% chlorine by weight.
2. Commercial PCB products were sold for their industrial properties rather than for their chemical composition (International Programme on Chemical Safety (IPCS), 1992). They contained a number of impurities, were not guaranteed to have a specific PCB content, and were often mixed with solvents, such as tri- and tetrachlorobenzenes. Those PCB mixed with tri- and tetrachlorobenzenes were called “askarel.” Contaminants in commercial mixtures include polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF) and chlorinated naphthalenes. Studies have found from 0.8 mg/kg to 40 mg/kg of PCDF in commercial mixtures (IPCS, 1992). PCBis also formed unintentionally in some thermal and chemical processes. For example, the combustion of chlorine-containing organic material and some processes for the chemical production of ethylene dichloride may produce PCB.
3. It is estimated that the worldwide cumulative production of PCB was 0.75 – 2 million tonnes.

1.2.2.2 PCT

1. PCT were manufactured in much smaller quantities than PCB and were given the same, or very similar, trade names. They were used for the same sorts of applications as PCB, although most were used in waxes, plastics, hydraulic fluid, paint and lubricants (Jensen & Jørgensen, 1983). In the US Aroclor series terphenyls are indicated by the digits 54 in the first two spaces of the four digit code (IPCS, 1992), e.g.Aroclor 5432, 5442 and 5460.
2. Examples of trade names are:

• Aroclor (US)
• Kanechlor KC-C. (Japan)

1. PCT were produced in the United States, France, Germany, Italy and Japan until the early 1980s when all production is thought to have ceased. The total cumulative worldwide production is estimated to have been 60,000 tonnes between 1955 and 1980 (UNECE, 2002). See Appendix 1 for examples of trade names and discussion in Section 4.4 of trade names in inventory identification.

1.2.2.3 PBB

1. Information on the production of PBB is scarce. It is estimated that at least 11,000 tonnes of PBB were cumulatively produced worldwide but production figures from some countries known to have produced PBB are not available (IPCS, 1994). PBB were manufactured in the United States until 1979, in Germany until the mid-1980s, and in France until at least the mid-1990s. It is reported that PBB were still being marketed in Western Europe in 1998. PBB may still be in production in Asia (Lassen et al., 1999).
2. The first PBB compound produced was hexabromobiphenyl, which was commercially known as “FireMaster®” in the United States. Firemaster® was produced from 1970 to 1974. Analysis has shown that Firemaster® contained up to 80% hexa- and up to 25% heptabromobiphenyl. In France, a commercial mixture of PBB was sold as “Adine 0102.” In Germany, highly brominated PBB were produced and sold as “Bromkal 80-9D.” See Appendix 1 for examples of trade names and discussion in Section 4.4 of trade names in inventory identification.

1.2.3Use

1.2.3.1 PCB

1. PCB were used in a very wide variety of applications in both industrial and consumer products. The WHO categorized the uses as completely closed, nominally closed and open ended (IPCS, 1992). The uses included:
2. completely closed systems:

electrical transformers,

electrical capacitors (including lamp ballasts),

electrical switches, relays and other,

electrical cables, and

electric motors and magnets (very small amounts);

• nominally closed systems:

hydraulic systems, and

heat transfer systems (heaters, heat exchangers); and

• open-ended systems:

plasticizer in PVC, neoprene, and other artificial rubbers;

ingredient in paint and other coatings;

ingredient in ink and carbonless copy paper;

ingredient in adhesives;

pesticide extender;

ingredient in lubricants, sealants and caulking material;

fire retardant in fabrics, carpets, polyurethane foam, etc.; and

lubricants (microscope oils, brake linings, cutting oils, other lubricants).

1. While electrical transformers containing PCB are defined as a “completely closed” application, industrial practices caused these PCB to be transferred to other types of equipment, thus creating additional points of contact with the environment. A common practice was to “top up” or recharge non-PCB (mineral oil) transformers with PCB when no other fluid was available.
2. PCB oils were also added to or disposed with non-PCB fluids such as heating/cooling fluid, hydraulic fluid, brake fluid, engine oil, and off-specification fuels. There are numerous anecdotal reports of employees in electrical utilities using PCB fluids to wash their hands and taking PCB fluids home for use in home heaters, hydraulic systems, and motors (as a lubricant). Since most fluorescent lamp ballasts made before PCB were banned contained PCB, most homes and businesses that installed fluorescent lamps unknowingly acquired PCB.

1.2.3.2PCT

1. PCT were used in almost exactly the same applications as PCB but in much smaller amounts, however little is known about remaining quantities because inventories have not been developed (UNECE, 2002). It is known that very little PCT was used in electrical equipment (Danish Environmental Protection Agency, 2002).

1.2.3.3PBB

1. The principal use of PBB was as a fire retardant. PBB were added to acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) plastic (10% PBB), coatings, lacquers and polyurethane foam (IPCS, 1994; Melber et al, 1994).

1.2.4Wastes

1. PCB, PCT and PBB wastes are found in a number of physical forms including:

• oils consisting of, containing or contaminated with PCB and PCT (dielectric fluids, heat transfer fluids, hydraulic fluids, motor oil);
• equipment containing or contaminated with PCB and PCT (capacitors, circuit breakers, electric cables, electric motors, electromagnets, heat transfer equipment, hydraulic equipment, switches, transformers, vacuum pumps, voltage regulators);
• liquid waste contaminated with PCB, PCT or PBB (paints, solvents, varnishes);
• fire suppression equipment containing or contaminated with PBB;
• end-of-life vehicles containing PCB (only very old cars);
• demolition wastes containing PCB (painted materials, resin-based floorings, sealants, sealed glazing units);
• soils and sediments contaminated with PCB, PCT or PBB;
• rock and aggregates (e.g., excavated bedrock, gravel, rubble) contaminated with PCB, PCT or PBB;
• sludge contaminated with PCB, PCT or PBB;
• solid waste contaminated with PCB, PCT or PBB (paper, metal products, glass, plastic, auto shredder fluff, painted objects, fly ash); and
• water contaminated with PCB, PCT or PBB (pumped groundwater, process water, firefighting water).

1. Note that the categories above mainly apply to PCB, which were produced in much larger quantities than PBB or PCT and have been stored as wastes awaiting destruction. PBB and PCT are rarely found in large bulk situations and therefore do not have the potential to form large amounts of waste.

2.0Relevant provisions in the Basel and Stockholm Conventions

2.1Basel Convention

1. Article 2 (“Definitions”), paragraph 1 defines wastes as“substances or objects which are disposed of or are intended to be disposed of or are required to be disposed of by the provisions of national law”. A stockpile of a material would therefore be considered a waste if it is intended for disposal or disposal is required by national law. Paragraph 8 of the Basel Convention defines environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes or other wastes as “taking all practicable steps to ensure that hazardous wastes or other wastes are managed in a manner which will protect human health and the environment against the adverse effects which may result from such wastes.”
2. Article 4 (“General Obligations”), paragraph 2, subparagraphs (a) through (d) contain key provisions of the Basel Convention pertaining to environmentally sound management, waste minimization, and waste disposal practices that protect or minimize adverse effects on human health and the environment. Paragraph 8 further elaborates that “Each Party shall require that hazardous wastes or other wastes, to be exported, are managed in an environmentally sound manner in the State of import or elsewhere. Technical guidelines for the environmentally sound management of wastes subject to this Convention shall be decided by the Parties at their first meeting.” This technical guidance document is intended to provide a more precise meaning to ESM in the context of PCB, PCT and PBB wastes, including which treatment, destruction and disposal methods are appropriate for these waste streams
3. Article 1 (“Scope of Convention”) outlines the waste types subject to the Basel Convention. Article 1 paragraph 1(a) of the Basel Convention contains a 2-step process for determining if a “waste” is a “hazardous waste” subject to the Convention. First, the waste must belong to any category contained in Annex I (“Categories of Wastes to be Controlled”). Second, the waste must posses at least one of the characteristics listed in Annex III (“List of Hazardous Characteristics”).
4. Annex I lists some of the wastes that may consist of, contain or be contaminated with PCB, PCT and PBB, these include:

Y10Waste substances and articles containing or contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and/or polychlorinated terphenyls (PCT) and/or polybrominated biphenyls (PBB)

Y18Residues arising from industrial waste disposal operations

1. Wastes contained in Annex I are presumed to exhibit an Annex III hazardous characteristic—which include H11: “Toxic (Delayed or Chronic)”; H12 “Ecotoxic”; and H6.1 “Poisonous (Acute)”—unless, through “national tests,” they can be shown to not exhibit the characteristics. National tests may be used until such time as the hazardous characteristics of Annex III are fully defined.
2. List A of Annex VIII describes wastes that are “characterized as hazardous under Article 1, paragraph 1(a)” although “their designation on this Annex does not preclude the use of Annex III to demonstrate that a waste is not hazardous.” The B list of Annex IX lists wastes that will not be wastes covered by Article 1, paragraph 1(a), unless they contain Annex I material to an extent causing them to exhibit an Annex III characteristic. The following wastes are applicable to PCB, PCT and PBB:

A1180Waste electrical and electronic assemblies or scrap (excluding those from electric power generation) containing components that include PCB-capacitors

A3180Wastes, substances and articles containing, consisting of or contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB), polychlorinated terphenyl (PCT), polychlorinated naphthalene (PCN) or polybrominated biphenyl (PBB), or any other polybrominated analogues of these compounds, at a concentration level of 50 mg/kg or more

1. The footnote to A3180 states that 50 mg/kg is considered to be an internationally practical level for all wastes, although some countries have established lower regulatory levels (e.g., 20 mg/kg) for specific wastes.
2. Annex VIII’s List A and Annex IX’s List B also include a number of wastes or waste categories that have the potential to include PCB, PCT or PBB owing to past applications of these substances, such as waste thermal (heat transfer) fluids (A3040); fluff–light fraction from shredding (A3120); waste mineral oils (A3020); wastes from production, formulation and use of resins, latex, plasticizers, glue/adhesives (A3050); waste halogenated or unhalogenated non aqueous distillation residues arising form organic solvent recovery operations (A3160); and, as regards unintentionally generated PCB, spent sorbents. Inorganic wastes are also described that could potentially be contaminated with these substances (including as taken up form the environment), such as wastes arising from agro food industries that include, for example, fish waste (B3060).

2.2Stockholm Convention

1. The general objective of the Stockholm Convention as stated in Article 1 (“Objective”) is to protect human health and the environment from persistent organic pollutants.
2. The Stockholm Convention differentiates between two categories of PCB:

1. intentionally produced PCB whose production and use are to be eliminated in accordance with the provisions of Annex A;
2. unintentionally produced PCB, whose total releases derived from anthropogenic sources are to be minimized and, where feasible, ultimately eliminated.
3. Article 6.1(d) on waste handling and disposal stipulates that each Party shall:

Take appropriate measures so that such wastes, including products and articles upon becoming wastes, are: