For approval, a state plan must include provisions for the operational standards in this section (as well as the provisions in §§60.36f and 60.37f), or the operational standards in §63.1958 of this chapter (as well as the provisions in §§63.1960 of this chapter and 63.1961 of this chapter), or both as alternative means of compliance, for an MSW landfill with a gas collection and control system used to comply with the provisions of §60.33f(b) and (c). Once the owner or operator begins to comply with the provisions of §63.1958 of this chapter, the owner or operator must continue to operate the collection and control device according to those provisions and cannot return to the provisions of this section. Each owner or operator of an MSW landfill with a gas collection and control system used to comply with the provisions of §60.33f(b) and (c) must:

(a) Operate the collection system such that gas is collected from each area, cell, or group of cells in the MSW landfill in which solid waste has been in place for:

(1) Five (5) years or more if active; or

(2) Two (2) years or more if closed or at final grade.

(b) Operate the collection system with negative pressure at each wellhead except under the following conditions:

(1) A fire or increased well temperature. The owner or operator must record instances when positive pressure occurs in efforts to avoid a fire. These records must be submitted with the annual reports as provided in §60.38f(h)(1).

(2) Use of a geomembrane or synthetic cover. The owner or operator must develop acceptable pressure limits in the design plan.

(3) A decommissioned well. A well may experience a static positive pressure after shut down to accommodate for declining flows. All design changes must be approved by the Administrator as specified in §60.38f(d).

(c) Operate each interior wellhead in the collection system with a landfill gas temperature less than 55 degrees Celsius (131 degrees Fahrenheit). The owner or operator may establish a higher operating temperature value at a particular well. A higher operating value demonstration must be submitted to the Administrator for approval and must include supporting data demonstrating that the elevated parameter neither causes fires nor significantly inhibits anaerobic decomposition by killing methanogens. The demonstration must satisfy both criteria in order to be approved (i.e., neither causing fires nor killing methanogens is acceptable).

(d) Operate the collection system so that the methane concentration is less than 500 parts per million above background at the surface of the landfill. To determine if this level is exceeded, the owner or operator must conduct surface testing using an organic vapor analyzer, flame ionization detector, or other portable monitor meeting the specifications provided in §60.36(d). The owner or operator must conduct surface testing around the perimeter of the collection area and along a pattern that traverses the landfill at no more than 30-meter intervals and where visual observations indicate elevated concentrations of landfill gas, such as distressed vegetation and cracks or seeps in the cover and all cover penetrations. Thus, the owner or operator must monitor any openings that are within an area of the landfill where waste has been placed and a gas collection system is required. The owner or operator may establish an alternative traversing pattern that ensures equivalent coverage. A surface monitoring design plan must be developed that includes a topographical map with the monitoring route and the rationale for any site-specific deviations from the 30-meter intervals. Areas with steep slopes or other dangerous areas may be excluded from the surface testing.

(e) Operate the system such that all collected gases are vented to a control system designed and operated in compliance with §60.33f(c). In the event the collection or control system is not operating, the gas mover system must be shut down and all valves in the collection and control system contributing to venting of the gas to the atmosphere must be closed within 1 hour of the collection or control system not operating.

(f) Operate the control system at all times when the collected gas is routed to the system.

(g) If monitoring demonstrates that the operational requirements in paragraph (b), (c), or (d) of this section are not met, corrective action must be taken as specified in §60.36f(a)(3) and (5) or (c). If corrective actions are taken as specified in §60.36f, the monitored exceedance is not a violation of the operational requirements in this section.

[81 FR 59313, Aug. 29, 2016, as amended at 85 FR 17259, Mar. 26, 2020]