Waste Oil Regulations

• The EPA limits the amount of oil for off-site transport to 55 gallons, such as in one of these drums.Oil Drums image by Yali Shi from Fotolia.com
  
  In the United States, waste oil regulations are set forth in guidelines designed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These guidelines are then interpreted by most states who have gone on to establish their own sets of guidelines that both comply with EPA standards and serve the needs of localities within those states.
  
  

Definition of Waste Oil

• The EPA distinguishes among "used" oil and "waste" oil to set forth procedures for the proper handling of both types. Used oil is any petroleum-based product that gone through a refining process for commercial use and has accumulated dust, metal scrapings and chemical contaminants during its use as a lubricant in machinery, but can be re-refined to elongate its lifespan. Waste oil is a product that is known to contain more than the limiting threshold of any of the following hazardous wastes: arsenic, cadmium, chromium, lead, PCB, or a total halogen concentration of more than 4000 parts per million (ppm). Each of these chemical adulterations is classified as hazardous waste and therefore any used oil product containing high concentrations of these chemicals is also waste. Used oil products with a flash point of greater than 100 degrees Fahrenheit are also waste.
  
  

EPA Regulations

• The EPA standards for waste oil describe how used and/or waste oil is to be stored, disposed of on-site and shipped off-site. Under these, used oil may be stored in tanks and above ground containers that are in good condition and managed according to spill and clean-up guidelines for hazardous waste. If the storage exceeds 27.5 gallons per month, containers must be clearly labeled as "used oil" along with the first date of storage. Used oil may be burned on-site in oil-fired space heaters so longer as the heaters are rated at 0.5 million btu per hour, the heater is properly ventilated and the owner of the heater burns only that used oil which he generates himself. The maximum allowable limit for off-site transport is 55 gallons.
  
  

State Regulations

• State regulations for the handling of used oil comply with EPA standards, but may be more stringent. The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality does not allow oil to be burned by do-it-yourselfers on-site, but instead mandates that all used oil be transported to an oil collection facility. This is also the case in Massachusetts and a few other states. States including Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky and Mississippi simply adopt the EPA guidelines with no further regulation. Interested do-it-yourselfers are best advised to reference their own state guidelines for handling of waste oil.