The legislature finds that hazardous waste must be managed in a manner that protects the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of the State and protects and conserves the State’s natural resources and environment. Accordingly, the hazardous waste management program of this State shall be a preventive as well as a regulatory program that gives priority to:

(1) The provision of technical assistance to generators to ensure the safe and proper handling of hazardous waste;

Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-1

  • county: includes the city and county of Honolulu. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 1-22
  • Disposal: means the discharge, deposit, injection, dumping, spilling, leaking, or placing of any hazardous or solid waste into or on any land or water so that hazardous or solid waste or any constituent thereof may enter the environment, be emitted into the air, or discharged into any waters, including ground waters. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-2
  • Hazardous waste: means a solid waste, or combination of solid wastes, which because of its quantity, concentration, or physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics may:

    (1) Cause or significantly contribute to an increase in mortality or an increase in a serious irreversible or incapacitating reversible illness; or

    (2) Pose a substantial existing or potential hazard to human health or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported, disposed of, or otherwise managed. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-2

  • Hazardous waste management: means the systematic control over the generation, collection, source separation, storage, transportation, processing, treatment, recovery, and disposal of hazardous waste. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-2
  • Treatment: means any method, technique, or process, including neutralization, designed to change the physical, chemical, or biological character or composition of any hazardous waste so as to neutralize the waste or render it nonhazardous, less hazardous, safer for transport, amenable for recovery, amenable for storage, or reduced in volume. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 342J-2
(2) The establishment of a public education program to promote awareness of what constitutes hazardous waste and the dangers of improper disposal of hazardous waste;
(3) The promotion of hazardous waste minimization, reduction, recycling, exchange, and treatment as the preferred methods of managing hazardous waste, with disposal to be used only as a last resort when all other hazardous waste management methods are ineffective or unavailable; and
(4) The coordination of hazardous waste management efforts among the counties of this State, taking into consideration the unique differences and needs of each county.

  Previous
Next  
 Part I Contents