Waste Management

Land Protection & Revitalization

Message from the Division Director

Happy New Year, and welcome to 2012! It has been a busy year in the Division of Land Protection and Revitalization. Some highlights from 2011 include:

Implementation of Amendment 7 of the Solid Waste Regulations;
changing the name of the Waste Division to better promote our core mission of proactive protection of land and groundwater resources while addressing pollution at old contaminated sites;
a series of training events and webinars on a variety of topics ranging from the new solid waste regulations to financial assurance;
a series of stakeholder meetings wherein DEQ solicited ideas on everything from the crushing of florescent tubes, to an earthquake shorten meeting on vapor intrusion at sites in our Voluntary Remediation Program;
enhancing communication through such means as this update and our new list serve subscription service;
two special consultant workshops on permitting and groundwater, which serve to springboard future changes on how we administer the solid waste permitting and groundwater programs;
implementation of the Uniform Environmental Covenants Act.

This past year, we were saddened with the loss of one of our team members, Mr. Jerry Grimes, who worked in several of our division’s programs throughout his nearly 20 years of service with the Commonwealth. His smile and enthusiasm touched us all and he will be greatly missed.

As we begin the New Year, I would like to welcome Mr. Justin Williams to our division. Justin will be managing our Office of Waste Permitting and Compliance. He previously served as the program’s enforcement manager and the Department’s adjudication officer. His understanding of the solid and hazardous waste regulatory programs and progressive problem solving will serve us well as we continue to make improvements begun during 2011.

Many tough issues face the Commonwealth during these difficult economic times, and we are continuously working to be more efficient and streamline our processes (doing more with less). This includes sharing resources across regions and within our central office in order to get work completed. When appropriate to do so, we actively engage and challenge US EPA in open dialogue on such issues as the regulation of coal ash and other issues related to future unfunded mandates; while recognizing the potential reduction in federal grants used to administer the hazardous waste and petroleum tank programs. We will continue to provide many opportunities for stakeholder input and welcome ongoing communication.

Please continue to check back on Land Protection and Revitalization homepage. New information is regularly posted to the Whats New section below.

Cheers,

Jeff Steers, Division Director

Solid wastes and hazardous wastes in Virginia are regulated by DEQ, the Virginia Waste Management Board and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. They administer programs created by the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (commonly called Superfund) and the Virginia Waste Management Act.

Note: The Waste Management web site has been redesigned. Please note the top right tab menu buttons to access forms, regulations, reports, guidance and public notices.