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GUIDES

Guides

Full guides are in progress — here's what's planned first.

What Is EPA ECHO?

The federal database behind every compliance record on this site — what it tracks and how current it is.

How to Check a Waste Company’s Compliance

A step-by-step way to read a hauler’s EPA record before you sign a contract.

EPA Registry ID vs. RCRA Handler ID

Two different ID numbers show up on compliance records — what each one actually identifies.

What Is RCRAInfo?

The hazardous-waste tracking system inside EPA ECHO, explained.

Generator vs. Transporter vs. TSDF

The three RCRA handler roles, and why a facility can hold more than one.

LQG vs. SQG vs. VSQG

How EPA sizes a hazardous-waste generator, and why it matters.

What Does "Significant Non-Complier" Mean?

EPA’s flag for the most serious, ongoing compliance problems — what triggers it.

What Does an "Open Violation" Mean?

Why an unresolved violation on a record isn’t the same as an active legal case.

How Current Is EPA ECHO Data?

How often the source data refreshes, and what the snapshot date on a facility page actually means.

Find a Hazardous-Waste Disposal Company

What to check — permits, handler role, location — before requesting quotes.

Verify a Waste Hauler Before You Sign

What US Waste Index can actually verify — RCRA status, FMCSA registration — and what to check with the state.

Hazardous-Waste Disposal Cost Drivers

Waste classification, quantity, distance, and treatment method — the real factors, not a fabricated price.

Commercial Waste Contract Checklist

Five checks — permit status, covered waste streams, terms, insurance, compliance history — before you sign.

What Is a Used-Oil Handler?

How used oil is regulated separately from other hazardous waste, and the handler roles involved.

What Is Universal Waste?

Batteries, lamps, pesticides, mercury equipment — a lighter-touch RCRA category, explained.