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Maine Department of Environmental Protection

DEP > Innovation > Toxic and Hazardous Waste Reduction > Advisory Opinions

Toxics Program - Advisory Opinion #11:
Revised 4/24/03

Toxics Use and Hazardous Waste Reduction Law (Toxics Law), as amended by PL 1999, Chapter 348, "An Act to Encourage Continuous Improvement in Pollution Prevention in Maine".

Section 2303, Baseline Years.

Question: What year(s) should be used to establish a baseline for reporting? If a facility adds a reportable chemical or waste after the baseline year(s), how should this be reported?

Response: Facilities shall use the baseline years established in Section 2303(1), (2) and (3) of the Toxics Law (Use = 1990, Release = Average of 1990 & 1991, Hazardous Waste = Average of 1987 & 1989). Alternative baseline years may be used in the following cases:

• When a facility was not in business during the baseline years noted above. In this case, the facility shall use the first full year of business that it exceeded the thresholds specified in Section 2304-A.1 as its baseline year.
• When a facility was not subject to the law during the baseline years noted above. In this case, the facility shall use the first full year of business that it exceeded the thresholds specified in Section 2304-A.1 as its baseline year.
• When both the facility and the Department do not have reliable data for the baseline years noted above. In this case, the facility shall use the first full year for which reliable data is available.
• When the chemical or waste was not regulated until after the baseline years noted above. In this case, the facility shall use the first full year of data after the chemical or waste became regulated.

If a regulated facility begins to use or release a regulated chemical, or generate a hazardous waste after the baseline years noted above, the facility shall use its baseline year amount (in pounds), to represent the quantity of this chemical or waste present during the baseline years noted above. For clarification purposes, the facility may list the first full year it used or released the chemical or shipped the waste, in the descriptive narrative of Section 2.5 of the Biennial Progress Report Form.