South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control

We promote and protect the health of the public and the environment.

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Solid Waste

Database l Annual Report l Demonstration of Need l Solid Waste Spreadsheets l Financial Assurance
Training l Compliance and Enforcement l Consolidated Solid Waste Landfill Regulation

The S.C. Solid Waste Management Annual Report

This annual report includes a comprehensive overview of the amount and/or composition of waste that is recycled, disposed of and incinerated. 

Demonstration of Need

Demonstration of Need (DON) refers to the criteria established for the geographical placement and allowable annual disposal rate of new and expanding solid waste management facilities. The original DON regulation was promulgated in June 2000 and on June 26, 2009, a revision to Regulation 61-107.17 SWM: "Demonstration of Need" became effective.

The DON regulation addresses commercial Class 2 landfills, andl Class 3 landfills, commercial solid waste incinerators that incinerate waste other than wood waste or yard trimmings  (also known as Class 3 incinerators) and commercial solid waste processing facilities that process waste destined for disposal at Class 3 solid waste landfills. The regulation defines a facility as being “non-commercial” if it manages only the solid waste generated in the course of normal operations on property under the same ownership or control as the facility itself (i.e., “on site”). Non-commercial facilities are not required to demonstrate need. The DON regulation stipulates that where there are at least two commercial solid waste management facilities of the same type within a planning area, no new facility is allowed.

Planning area is defined as a 75 mile radius for all Class 3 landfills, Class 3 solid waste processing facilities, and Class 3 incinerators, and a 20 mile radius for all Class 2 landfills.

For more information about DON maps, please contact Justin Koon at (803) 896-4067

Solid Waste Annual Report Spreadsheets

• Class 1 Landfill Report
• Class 2 Landfill Report
• Class 3 Landfill Report
• Composting - Wood chipping Facility Annual Report
• Solid Waste Processing Facility Annual Report
• Solid Waste Transfer Stations Annual Report
• Solid Waste Incineration - Pyrolysis Annual Report

Solid Waste Forms

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Solid Waste Financial Assurance

The S.C. Solid Waste Policy and Management Act of 1991 requires that all permitted landfills, processing facilities, transfer stations, incinerators, composting facilities, and tire processors have a financial assurance mechanism in place to ensure that funds are available for clean-up of the facility at the time of closure and to cover any post-closure care that may be required. Financial assurance is also required for any corrective action at landfills where groundwater contamination has been detected. Financial assurance ensures proper long term financial planning by owner/operators so that sites will be closed properly and maintained and monitored in a manner that protects human health and the environment. The amount of financial assurance required is based on the current Department-approved closure and/or post-closure cost estimate. Owners/operators can select from a list of approved financial mechanisms that best suit their individual needs.

Types of financial assurance mechanisms accepted by the Department include Certificates of Deposit, Irrevocable Letters of Credit, Insurance, Surety Bonds Guaranteeing Payment or Performance, Trust Funds, Corporate Financial Tests, Local Government Financial Tests, and Local Government Guarantees. The required wording of the mechanisms is in Solid Waste Forms. For additional information, contact Pete Stevens at (803) 896-4149.

Professional Training for Operators of Solid Waste Landfills
and Municipal Solid Waste Transfer Stations

The Division of Mining & Solid Waste Management offers professional training programs for operators of Class 2 Landfills, Class 3 Landfills and Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Transfer Stations. These training programs ensure that all solid waste facility operators are professionally trained and re-certified on a regular basis in order to stay up-to-date of changes in solid waste technology as well as changes in South Carolina’s environmental laws and regulations.

This training will help improve the design and operational practices at landfills and transfer stations and shall increase the operators’ awareness of the impact on human health, safety, and the environment. Supervision of the operation of a Class 3 Landfill shall be the responsibility of a qualified individual that has completed operator training courses and is certified pursuant to Regulation 61-107.14 Solid Waste Management: Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Operator’s Certification. This regulation defines “operator” as: any person, including the owner, who is principally engaged in, or is in charge of, the actual operation, supervision, and maintenance of a MSW landfill and includes the person in charge of a shift or period during any part of the day. Operators are classified by two categories: 1) “manager” means the person(s) with the responsibility for the overall management of the facility; and 2) “supervisor” means the person(s) with the supervisory responsibility for a specific facility site or shift.

Participants who complete one of the Class 3 Landfill training programs and pass the written examination will be certified for three years and may maintain certification by earning a specific number of continuing education units approved by DHEC over the three-year period(s). Additionally even though training for operators of Class 2 landfills and transfer stations is not currently required by regulation, DHEC strongly recommends that all operators take advantage of these voluntary training opportunities. Each training course is offered annually. Typically, Class 2 Landfill and Transfer Station courses are held in the summer, Class 3 Landfill Managers in the fall, and Class 3 Landfill Supervisors in the spring. For additional information, contact Pete Stevens at (803) 896-4149.

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Consolidated Solid Waste Landfill Regulation

Regulation 61-107.19 Solid Waste Management: Solid Waste Landfills and Structural Fill became effective on May 23, 2008.

The new regulation addresses all solid waste landfills and structural fill activity in the State and repeals four existing regulations (R. 61-107.11, R. 61-107.13, R. 61-107.16, and R. 61-107.258) governing these landfills. The new regulation improves solid waste management in four key ways:

1. Directs disposal based on characteristics of waste instead of source of generation;
2. Provides better protection of the environment and public health;
3. Facilitates public notification and input for permits; and
4. Requires registration of all structural fill activities.

Landfill Classifications Changes

Structural Fills

Under the regulation, structural fill activities that use a limited, inert waste stream consisting of hardened concrete (may include rebar), clean hardened asphalt, bricks or masonry blocks, and/or land-clearing debris must be registered by the Department.

For more information on structural fill requirements, see Structural Fills. View Regulation 61-107.19.

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Class 1 Landfill

Regulation 61-107.19 Part III contains the requirements for Class 1 Landfills.  This section of the regulation addresses the general permit, general provision that are specific to Claas 1 landfills, notice of intent procedures, and record keeping and reporting requirements.

Class 2 Landfill

Regulation 61-107.19 Part IV establishes criteria for Class 2 Landfills. These landfills may accept solid wastes for disposal that are listed in Appendix I of the regulation; solid wastes that are not on the Appendix I list but have similar properties and are approved by the Department for the facility; and/or solid wastes that test, through waste characterization, at less than ten (10) times the maximum contamination limit (MCL) per Regulation 61-58, State Drinking Water Regulation and approved by the Department for disposal at the facility.

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Class 3 Landfill

Regulation 61-107.19, Part V contains criteria for landfills that accept municipal solid waste, industrial solid waste, sewage sludge, nonhazardous municipal solid waste incinerator ash and other nonhazardous waste. Hereinafter, these landfills will be referred to as Class 3 landfills. Class 3 landfills shall adhere to their approved Special Waste Analysis and Implementation Plan (SWAIP), per S.C. Code Section 44-96-390.

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Structural Fills

Regulation 61-107.19, Part II contains the legal requirements for structural fills. This section of the regulation addresses the general provisions that are specific to these activities and provides permit-by-rule registration, location, design, operational and closure requirements.

Structural Fills as Defined in the Regulation

“Structural fill” means land filling for future beneficial use utilizing land-clearing debris, hardened concrete, hardened/cured asphalt, bricks, blocks, and other materials specified by the department by regulation, compacted and landfilled in a manner acceptable to the department, consistent with applicable engineering, and construction standards and carried out as a part of normal activities associated with construction, demolition, and land-clearing operations; however, the materials utilized must not have been contaminated by hazardous constituents, petroleum products, or painted with lead-based paint. Structural fill may not provide a sound structural base for building purposes.

“Beneficial fill” means filling to surrounding grade, low areas or depressions in the surface of the earth to include permitted mining sites for an aesthetic benefit.

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This Web page was last updated on April 16, 2013.