Skip to Content
Questions or Comments: ihwper@tceq.texas.gov

Exemptions from Industrial and Hazardous Waste Permitting

Under certain conditions, you may be exempt from permitting if you generate, process, store, or transport solid waste.

When you have determined what type of solid waste you generate, the next step will be to determine if management of the waste is exempt from permitting.

The following requirements apply even if the activity is exempt:

Contact us if you have any questions.

For Generators, Processors, and Storage Facilities of Hazardous or Industrial Waste

On this page:

For Transporters of Hazardous or Industrial Waste


Very Small Quantity Generators

A permit is not required for the on-site storage of hazardous waste by a very small quantity generator. Very small quantity generators are described in 30 TAC Section §335.53

The TCEQ may grant a one-time 30 day extension to store hazardous waste without a permit beyond the allowed accumulation time. Such extensions are granted on a case-by-case basis if hazardous wastes must remain on-site due to unforeseen, temporary, and uncontrolled circumstances.

See 30 TAC §335.2(e)

Farmers Disposing of Pesticides

A farmer may dispose of waste pesticides without a permit provided that the waste pesticides were from his own use, and provided that each emptied pesticide container is triple-rinsed, and the pesticide residues are disposed of on his or her own farm in a manner consistent with the disposal instructions on the pesticide label.

See 30 TAC §335.41(d)(4)

Back to Group List

On-Site Processes

Less than 90-Day Storage

A permit is not required for the storage or processing of hazardous waste generated on-site if the waste is stored in tanks, in containers, in containment buildings, or on drip pads, provided that storage is for less than 90 days, and that the unit meets the requirements of 30 TAC §335.53

A storage period of 180 days is allowed without a permit for a small quantity generator as defined in 30 TAC §335.2

The TCEQ may grant a one-time 30 day extension to store hazardous waste without a permit beyond the allowed accumulation time. Such extensions are granted on a case-by-case basis if hazardous wastes must remain on-site due to unforeseen, temporary, and uncontrolled circumstances.

See 30 TAC §335.53(f)(1)

Flow-through Tanks

As of March 29, 1994, tanks with flow-through capabilities may qualify for the less than 90-day accumulation time exemption. To qualify for this exemption, the owner or operator must demonstrate that the total operating volume of the tank is replaced every 90 days or less (i.e., retention time is less than or equal to 90 days). The tank must also meet certain restrictions regarding the accumulation of solids in the tank.

See 30 TAC §335.53

Addition of Absorbent Material in a Container

A permit is not required for the addition of absorbent material to waste in a container, or the addition of waste to absorbent material in a container, provided that these actions occur at the time the waste is first placed into the container. The requirements for maintaining proper container condition and for ensuring compatibility of waste with containers must be met.

See 30 TAC §335.41(d)(3)

On-site Disposal of Non-Hazardous Industrial Solid Waste

No permit is required for the on-site storage, processing, or disposal of industrial solid waste which is not hazardous waste, if that waste was generated on-site.

See 30 TAC §335.2(d)(1)and (2)

Certain Recycling Operations

A permit is not required for the recycling process itself, as allowed in 30 TAC §335.24

The state and federal rules pertaining to the industrial waste recycling exemption are complex, and a simple description of how they apply is difficult to make. Only the recycling process itself is exempt; storage and disposal of hazardous wastes are still subject to permitting requirements.

See Can I Recycle Some of My Industrial or Hazardous Wastes? (RG-240)  for more information.

If you have a process that meets these requirements fill out Notification Form for Recycling Hazardous and Industrial Waste  and/or Generator Notification Form for Recycling Hazardous or Industrial Waste  and send them to us at the address on the forms.

Hazardous Secondary Materials (HSM) Exclusion Notifications

The 2015 federal revisions to the Definition of Solid Waste (DSW) rules included exclusions for certain hazardous secondary materials (HSM) recycling and remanufacturing operations.

TCEQ DSW Rule Revision and Flowchart

If you are a generator or intermediate facility notifying the TCEQ of your intent to operate under an HSM exclusion, submit the following:

Submit to:

        Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
        Industrial and Hazardous Waste Permits Section
        MC-130
        PO Box 13087
        Austin, Texas 78711-3087

EPA Guidance and Other Information

See 30 TAC §335.26

Back to Group List

Types of Treatment Units

Elementary Neutralization Units

A permit is not required for an elementary neutralization unit, which is a device that is used for neutralizing wastes that are hazardous only because they are corrosive. The unit must meet the definition of a tank, tank system, container, transport vehicle, or vessel as described in 40 CFR §260.10 30 TAC §335.1 30 TAC §335.2(d)(3)

See 30 TAC §335.41(d)(1)

Wastewater Treatment Units

A permit is not required for a wastewater treatment unit, which is a device that is part of a wastewater treatment facility that has a wastewater discharge permit authorized through the Clean Water Act. A commercial industrial solid waste facility discharging into a Publicly Owned Treatment Works is required to obtain a permit as of 2006. Wastewater treatment units must meet the definition of a tank. This exemption also applies to nonhazardous waste as stated in 30 TAC §335.2(d)(3)

See 30 TAC §335.41(d)(1)

Back to Group List

Certain Waste Management Activities

Emergency Response Cleanup

A permit is not required for treatment or containment activities during the immediate response to: a discharge of a hazardous waste, an imminent and substantial threat of a discharge of hazardous waste, or a discharge of a material that, when discharged, becomes a hazardous waste.

See 30 TAC §335.41(d)(2)

Superfund Sites

A RCRA permit is not needed for Superfund on-site cleanup activities.

See 30 TAC 335, Subchapter K(d)(2)

Treatability Studies

No permit is required for the storage, processing, or disposal of hazardous or nonhazardous waste that is generated or collected for the purpose of conducting treatability studies. Find hazardous wastes requirements, allowable quantities for treatability study samples, and what must be done with the samples for the exemption to remain valid in 40 CFR §261.4(e) and (f)

See 30 TAC §335.2(d)(4) and (g)

Back to Group List

Specific Types of Facilities

Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW)

A waste permit is not required for a POTW. POTWs are systems that are owned by a state or municipality and are used to treat liquid waste—for example, a municipal wastewater treatment plant. This exemption also applies to nonhazardous waste as stated in 30 TAC §335.2(d)(6)

See 30 TAC §335.41(c)

Municipal and Solid Waste Management Facilities Who Also Manage Hazardous Waste from a VSQG

A hazardous waste permit is not required for the owner or operator of a facility permitted, licensed, or registered by a state to manage municipal or industrial solid waste, if the only hazardous waste the facility treats, stores, or disposes of is excluded from regulation under " Special requirements for hazardous waste generated by very small quantity generators." (40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) §261.5

See 30 TAC §335.41(d)(9)

Totally Enclosed Treatment Facilities

A permit is not required for a totally enclosed treatment facility, a facility used for the treatment of hazardous waste generated on-site and directly connected to an industrial production process. These facilities must be constructed and operated in a manner which prevents the release of any hazardous waste or any constituent thereof into the environment during treatment.

See 30 TAC §335.41(b)

Transfer Facilities

A permit is not required for the storage of manifested shipments of hazardous waste in containers meeting packaging requirements, provided storage is for 10 days or less at a transfer facility that is properly registered with the TCEQ (40 CFR §262.30

Note: A transfer facility is not a satellite storage facility. It is only a legitimate transfer facility if it is used for temporary storage for waste which is in transit. This exemption also applies to nonhazardous waste as stated in 30 TAC §335.2(d)(5)

See 30 TAC §335.94

Certain Solid Waste Disposal Facilities

A permit is not required for disposal facilities that handle waste exclusively from very small quantity generators.

See 30 TAC §335.41(d)(9)

Back to Group List

Contact us if you have any questions.