(a) In order to protect the public health, safety and welfare, prevent the spread of disease and creation of nuisances, conserve our natural resources, enhance the beauty and quality of our environment and provide a coordinated statewide solid waste disposal program, it is declared to be the public policy of the state of Tennessee to regulate solid waste disposal to:

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 68-211-102

  • Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
  • Baled waste: means all waste that has been mechanically compacted to achieve high density per unit volume and strapped to retain its form as a bale. See Tennessee Code 68-211-103
  • Department: means the department of environment and conservation. See Tennessee Code 68-211-103
  • Solid waste: means garbage, trash, refuse, abandoned material, spent material, byproducts, scrap, ash, sludge, and all discarded material including solid, liquid, semisolid, or contained gaseous material resulting from industrial, commercial, and agricultural operations, and from community activities. See Tennessee Code 68-211-103
  • Solid waste disposal: means the process of permanently or indefinitely placing, confining, compacting, or covering solid waste. See Tennessee Code 68-211-103
  • Solid waste processing: means any process that modifies the characteristics or properties of solid waste, including, but not limited to, treatment, incineration, composting, separation, grinding, shredding, and volume reduction. See Tennessee Code 68-211-103
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(1) Provide for safe and sanitary processing and disposal of solid wastes;
(2) Develop long-range plans for adequate solid waste disposal systems to meet future demands;
(3) Provide a coordinated statewide program of control of solid waste processing and disposal in cooperation with federal, state, and local agencies responsible for the prevention, control, or abatement of air, water, and land pollution; and
(4) Encourage efficient and economical solid waste disposal systems.
(b) The general assembly declares that it is the policy of this state to ensure that no hazardous waste, as regulated under chapter 212 of this title, is disposed of in a solid waste disposal facility. Therefore, subject to the appropriation of funds in the general appropriations act for such purposes, the department shall develop an inspection program for all permitted facilities, including landfills and processing facilities, that provides for frequent, thorough and regular inspections. Further, subject to the appropriation of funds in the general appropriations act for such purposes, the department shall inspect waste streams, baled waste and special waste generators and transporters to prevent the introduction of hazardous waste into solid waste disposal facilities.
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