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§ 20324. SWRCB--CQA Requirements. (T14: § 17774)

27 CA ADC § 20324Barclays Official California Code of Regulations

Barclays California Code of Regulations

Title 27. Environmental Protection

Division 2. Solid Waste (Refs & Annos)

Subdivision 1. Consolidated Regulations for Treatment, Storage, Processing or Disposal of Solid Waste

Chapter 3. Criteria for All Waste Management Units, Facilities, and Disposal Sites

Subchapter 2. Siting and Design

Article 4. SWRCB--Waste Management Unit Construction Standards

27 CCR § 20324

§ 20324. SWRCB--CQA Requirements. (T14: § 17774)

Currentness

(a) Performance Standard--The construction quality assurance (CQA) program, including all relevant aspects of construction quality control (CQC), shall provide evidence that materials and procedures utilized in the placement of the any containment feature at a waste management unit (Unit) will be tested and monitored to assure the structure is constructed in accordance with the design specifications approved by the RWQCB.

(b) Professional Qualifications.

(1) The design professional who prepares the CQA plan shall be a registered civil engineer or certified engineering geologist; and

(2) The construction quality assurance program shall be supervised by a registered civil engineer or certified engineering geologist who shall be designated the CQA officer.

(1) The project's CQA report shall address the construction requirements, including any vegetation procedures, set forth in the design plan for the containment system. For each specified phase of construction, this report shall include, but not be limited to:

(A) a delineation of the CQA management organization, including the chain of command of the CQA inspectors and contractors;

(B) a detailed description of the level of experience and training for the contractor, the work crew, and CQA inspectors for every major phase of construction in order to ensure that the installation methods and procedures required in the containment system design will be properly implemented.

(C) a description of the CQA testing protocols for preconstruction, construction, and postconstruction which shall include at a minimum:

1. the frequency of inspections by the operator,

2. the sampling and field testing procedures and equipment to be utilized, and the calibration of field testing equipment,

3. the frequency of performance audits determined by the design professional and examined by the CQA officer,

4. the size, method, location and frequency of sampling, sampling procedures for laboratory testing, the soils or geotechnical laboratory to be used, the laboratory procedures to be utilized, the calibration of laboratory equipment and quality assurance and quality control of laboratory procedures,

5. the pass/fail criteria for sampling and testing methods used to achieve containment system design, and

6. a description of the corrective procedures in the event of test failure.

(d) Documentation--Construction quality assurance documentation requirements shall include, at the minimum: reports bearing unique identifying sheet numbers for cross-referencing and document control, the date, project name, location, descriptive remarks, the data sheets, inspection activities, and signature of the designated authorities with concurrence of the CQA officer.

(1) The documentation shall include:

(A) Daily Summary Reports--daily recordkeeping, which shall include preparation of a summary report with supporting inspection data sheets, problem identification and corrective measures reports. Daily summary reports shall provide a chronological framework for identifying and recording all other reports. Inspection data sheets shall contain all observations (i.e., notes, charts, sketches, or photographs), and a record of field and/or laboratory tests. Problem identification and corrective measures reports shall include detailed descriptions of materials and/or workmanship that do not meet a specified design and shall be cross-referenced to specific inspection data sheets where the problem was identified and corrected;

(B) Acceptance Reports--all reports shall be assembled and summarized into Acceptance Reports in order to verify that the materials and construction processes comply with the specified design. This report shall include, at a minimum, inspection summary reports, inspection data sheets, problem identification and corrective measures reports;

(C) Final Documentation--at the completion of the project, the operator shall prepare a Final Documentation which contains all reports submitted concerning the placement of the containment system. This document shall provide evidence that the CQA plan was implemented as proposed and that the construction proceeded in accordance with design criteria, plans, and specifications. The discharger shall submit copies of the Final Documentation report to the RWQCB as prepared by the CQA officer.

(2) Once construction is complete, the document originals shall be stored by the discharger in a manner that will allow for easy access while still protecting them from any damage. All documentation shall be maintained throughout the postclosure maintenance period.

(e) Laboratory Testing Requirements. [Note: the following (ASTM) standards are available from the American Society of Testing and Materials (ASTM), 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2929, phone: 610-832-9585]

(1) Analysis of earthen materials shall be performed prior to their incorporation into any containment system component. Representative samples for each layer within the containment system shall be evaluated. The following minimum laboratory testing procedures shall be performed:

(A) ASTM Designation: D 1557-91 [1/91], “Laboratory Compaction Characteristics of Soil Using Modified Effort (2,700 kN-m/m3)” which is incorporated by reference;

(B) ASTM Designation: D 422-63 (Reapproved) [9/90], “Standard Method for Particle-Size Analysis of Soils,” which is incorporated by reference; and

(C) ASTM Designation: D 2487-93 [11/93], “Standard Classification of Soils for Engineering Purposes,” which is incorporated by reference.

(2) In addition to the tests listed in ¶(e and f), the following minimum laboratory tests shall be performed on low-hydraulic-conductivity layer components constructed from soil:

(A) ASTM Designation: D 4318-93 [11/93], “Standard Test Method for Liquid Limit, Plastic Limit, and Plasticity Index of Soils,” which is incorporated by reference; and

(B) United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Test Method 9100 [Approved 9-86], “Triaxial-Cell Method with Back Pressure,” which is incorporated by reference.

(f) Field Testing Requirements--The following minimum field test procedure shall be performed for each layer in the containment system: ASTM Designation: D 2488-93 [9/93], Standard Practice for Description and Identification of Soils (Visual-Manual Procedure), which is incorporated by reference.

(g) Test Fill Pad Requirements--Before installing the compacted soil barrier layer component of a final cover system, or the compacted soil component of a liner system, the operator shall accurately establish the correlation between the design hydraulic conductivity and the density at which that conductivity is achieved. To accomplish this the operator shall:

(1) provide a representative area for a test on any compacted foundation and low-hydraulic- conductivity layers. The following minimum testing procedures shall be performed:

(A) the test pad foundation and, for final covers, the barrier layers shall be compacted with the designated equipment to determine if the specified density/moisture-content/hydraulic- conductivity relationships determined in the laboratory can be achieved in the field with the compaction equipment to be used and at the specified lift thickness;

(2) perform laboratory tests as specified in subsection (e); and

(3) perform field tests as specified in subsection (f). The discharger shall perform hydraulic conductivity tests in the test area under saturated conditions by using the standard test method ASTM Designation: D 3385-94 [9/94], “Standard Test Method for Infiltration Rate of Soils in Field Using Double-Ring Infiltrometer,” which is incorporated by reference, for vertical hydraulic conductivity measurements. A sufficient number of tests shall be run to verify the results. Other methods that provide an accurate and precise method of measuring field hydraulic conductivity may be utilized as approved by the RWQCB.

(4) Correlations between laboratory tests and test pad results shall be established for each of the various types of fill materials and blends to be used in construction of the actual cover.

(h) Earthen Material Requirements.

(1) The following minimum tests shall include, but not be limited to:

(A) Laboratory tests as specified in ¶(e); and

(B) Field tests as specified in subsections (f and g).

(2) The following minimum testing frequencies shall be performed:

(A) Four (4) field density tests shall be performed for each 1,000 cubic yards of material placed, or at a minimum of four (4) tests per day;

(B) Compaction curve data (ASTM Designation: D 1557-91) graphically represented, and Atterberg limits (ASTM Designation: D 4318-93) shall be performed on the barrier layer material once a week and/or every 5,000 cubic yards of material placed;

1. The frequency of testing may be increased or decreased, based on the pass/failure status of previous tests, as approved by the RWQCB.

2. Field infiltration tests shall be performed for the duration necessary to achieve steady conditions for the design hydraulic conductivity.

3. The following interpretive equation shall be used to determine the design hydraulic conductivity:

The infiltration rate (1) is defined as:

I = Q/(tA)

where	Q = volume of flow;
	t = interval of time corresponding to flow Q; and
	A = area of the ring;

then the hydraulic conductivity (k) can be calculated from Darcy's law as follows:

k = I/i

where:	I = infiltration rate; and
	i = hydraulic gradient.

(i) Geosynthetic Membrane Requirements.

(1) Performance requirements for the geosynthetic membrane include, but are not limited to, the following:

(A) a need to limit infiltration of water, to the greatest extent possible;

(B) a need to control landfill gas emissions;

(C) for final covers, mechanical compatibility with stresses caused by equipment traffic, and the result of differential settlement of the waste over time; and

(D) for final covers, durability throughout the postclosure maintenance period.

(2) Minimum Criteria--The minimum construction quality assurance criteria to ensure that geosynthetic membranes will meet or exceed all design specifications shall include, but not be limited to:

(A) Preconstruction quality control program:

1. inspection of the raw materials (e.g., density, melt flow index, percent carbon Black);

2. manufacturing operations and finished product specifications (e.g., thickness, puncture resistance, multi-axial stress/strain tests),

3. fabrication operations (e.g., factory seaming);

4. observations related to transportation, handling, and storage of the geosynthetic membrane; and

5. inspection of foundation preparation;

(B) Construction activities:

1. the geosynthetic membrane shall have thickness strength sufficient to withstand the stresses to which it shall be subjected, including shear forces, puncture from rocks or, for final covers, penetration from roots.

2. inspection of geosynthetic membrane placement (e.g., trench corners, monitoring systems).

3. seaming of the material; and

4. installation of anchors and seals;

(C) Postconstruction Activity--postconstruction activity includes checking for material and placement imperfections in the installed geosynthetic membrane. Imperfections that jeopardize the integrity of the membrane's function as an impermeable barrier (i.e., pin holes, rips, creases created during placement) shall be repaired to the original manufacturer's specifications and reinspected by the CQA officer; and

(D) Evaluation--evaluation of the personnel and equipment to be used to install and inspect the geosynthetic membrane, and pass/fail criteria and corrective procedures for material and installation procedures shall be specified as required in ¶(c).

Credits

Note: Authority cited: Section 1058, Water Code. Reference: Sections 13172 and 13360, Water Code; and Section 43103, Public Resources Code.