Waste Permits

Any person owning or operating a new or existing facility that treats, stores, or disposes of a hazardous waste must obtain a hazardous waste permit from the Tennessee Division of Solid Waste Management.

Persons who wish to construct or operate a solid waste disposal facility must obtain a landfill permit from the Tennessee Division of Solid Waste Management.

Persons who wish to dispose of special waste in a permitted landfill or have the special waste processed in a permitted processing facility require a special waste approval from the Division of Solid Waste Management.

The requirements include Generators, Transporters, Transfer Facilities and Treatment-Storage-Disposal (TSD) Facilities. Existing sites must report any change in facility data as the change occurs.

Solid Waste (Landfill) Permits may need to be modified. There are minor modifications and major modifications. Both are described here.

Some compost facilities require permits while others are exempt. DSWM provides determination guidance and an overview of the permitting process.

Every used oil collection center; transporter; transfer facility; marketing, processing, refining and off-specification burner site must file a notification with the state.

Any solid waste processing facility that changes the chemical or physical characteristics of a solid waste must obtain a Permit-by-Rule authorization from the Division of Solid Waste Management.

Facilities that wish to qualify for permit-exempt status as Recovered Materials Processing Facilities must notify the Division per new regulations adopted Dec 2019.  These are facilities that process non-hazardous material for recovery, reuse, and recycling rather than disposal.