California Becomes The Second State To Reject U.S. EPA's P-Listed Empty Container Guidance

In 2011, U.S. EPA issued guidance concluding that generators of p-listed pharmaceutical wastes did not need to count the weight of non-RCRA empty containers in determining their generator status. Instead, EPA determined that "it is only the residue in the non-RCRA empty container that is considered a p-listed hazardous waste; the container itself is not a hazardous waste." Containers that Once Held P Listed Pharmaceuticals, November 4, 2011.  This EPA memo was long-awaited by retail pharmacies and other healthcare facilities, as it provided a mechanism to forego counting containers that previously held warfarin-family pharmaceuticals toward generator status.  This was particularly helpful, given that where a facility accumulates more than 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of acute hazardous waste at any one time, the facility is subject to stringent Large Quantity Generator of hazardous waste (LQG) regulations.  While such generators may still be subject to LQG requirements