1.1 What are some of the problems encountered in finding a working definition for
hazardous waste?
The term "hazardous waste" is by itself ambiguous. After the U.S. Congress passed the first hazardous
waste law (RCRA) in 1976, which provided a general definition, it took four years before EPA published
the regulations providing a legal definition of hazardous waste. Even once defined, it still had many
exceptions. Defining hazardous waste first requires defining "waste". The definition used seems to imply
solid waste which is not general enough when discussing hazardous waste because it must include solid,
containerized gases, liquid wastes and sludges. Another problem is: what actually makes waste
hazardous? A waste could be hazardous because of its explosive nature, its chemical reactivity, because it
contains a toxic substance, or because of other reasons. In short, a hazardous waste could be any waste
that poses a threat to human health or the environment. [Note: See sec. 1-l; Also see Chap. 2 pp. 44, 49 &
66 and Chap. 14, p. 839]