Q&A Series: 3 Important e-Manifest Questions Answered

Since the EPA launched e-Manifest on June 30, 2018, generators, transporters, and TSD facilities have raised questions about this new national electronic system for tracking hazardous waste. Compliance experts Krittika Govil and Karl Kumli fielded more than 35 pressing e-Manifest questions during a recent webinar. Here we share some of their answers.

Is the use of e-Manifest mandatory?

For receiving facilities of RCRA or state-regulated waste, yes, the use of e-Manifest is mandatory. Those manifests arriving at end facilities have to be uploaded to the system by some form or another. For hazardous waste generators, no, e-Manifest is not mandatory; the use of the system is optional, but strongly recommended. If generators decide not to use the system, they will need to make independent, unilateral agreements with each of their end-use facilities to ensure the return of paper manifest copies.

How does e-Manifest apply to wastes that are required to be manifested in the generator state, but not the receiving state?

Waste required to be manifested by federal or state law falls under the e-Manifest regulation. The regulation includes waste that is required to be manifested in the generator state only or the receiving state only. It is important to know the state regulations in both the state where you are generating the waste and the state where your facility is receiving that waste at the end of your shipment. Both of those fall under the scope of e-Manifest.

Can a transporter, broker, or receiving facility prepare and sign e-Manifests on behalf of the generator?

If you’re using a fully electronic option, the transporter, broker, or receiving facility can prepare and sign manifests on behalf of generators as long as they have been properly certified as either a preparer or a certifier on those manifests by the site manager for the generator’s site. They need to have the appropriate permissions in place and the correct EPA ID number in RCRAInfo. If you’re still using a paper manifest as most transporters and generators are at this point, the paper manifest still requires a wet signature from the generator.

To read all the questions and answers from the e-Manifest webinar, download the Q&A document. You can also access our additional e-Manifest resources.