Various Contacts for Information Relating to Waste Reduction and Waste Generation in the Los Angeles Area
Contacts
| Department of Health Services |
|---|
| Main Number | (213) 620-2380 |
| Alternate Technology | (916) 324-1807 |
| Hazardous Waste Haulers | (916) 324-2428 |
| Agencies with Waste Reduction Programs |
|---|
| County of Los Angeles - Health | (213) 744-3223 |
| County of Los Angeles - Public Works | (818) 458-3561 |
| City of Santa Monica | (213) 458-8228 |
| California Waste Exchange | (916) 324-1867 |
| Small Quantity Hazardous Waste Generator Information
and Technical Assistance Clearinghouse | (800) 458-5886 |
| South Coast Air Quality Management District | (818) 571-5196 |
| Small Business Assistance Loans |
|---|
| U.S. Small Business Administration | (213) 894-6852 |
| State Department of Health Services | (916) 324-1807 |
| Hazardous Waste Reduction Loan Program | (213) 382-4300 or
(213) 739-2999 |
Hazardous Waste Reduction Facts
Printed Circuit Board Industry
City of Santa Monica
Department of General Services
(213) 458-8228
It's a proven fact you will save money by reducing the amount of hazardous waste your business produces. Cost savings result from:
- Reduced waste disposal expense and liability
- More efficient use of process materials
And, the less hazardous waste your business generates, the less complex regulatory compliance becomes.
Public Health
When you reduce hazardous waste, you help protect the public's health and the environment.
There are five typical waste categories identified in the manufacturing of printed circuit boards. They are:
- Industrial waste treatment sludges
- Spent process baths
- Acids used for equipment cleaning
- Copper sulfate crystals
- Halogenated solvents
- Train employees on proper hazardous materials management and waste reduction.
- Keep your shop clean and orderly to eliminate spills and leaks.
- Operate new chemical process tanks at a lower than normal concentration to reduce film build-up and drag-out. Then, over time, gradually add reagents to prolong the life of the baths until full strength is achieved.
- Increase the operating temperatures to lower the viscosity and reduce film build-up and drag-out.
- Apply wetting agents to reduce the surface tension of the solutions and lower the viscosity and reduce film build-up and dragout.
- Maintain the best rack orientation to achieve maximum drag-out.
- Withdraw racks at a slower rate.
- Install drain board between process and rinse tanks.
- Recapture processed chemicals from drag-out tank.
- Install devices and implement procedures to conserve water such as installing turbulence devices and increasing the contact between the water and the board.
- Install multi-stage rinses with a countercurrent system. Apply flow restriction devices such as pH-controlled and pressure-controlled shut-offs.
- Apply techniques to recover etchant through filtration and regeneration.
- Use methods to extend the life of the photoresist stripper.
- Change from chelating to non-chelating agents.
Use techniques to recover metals from the wastewater or use techniques to regenerate process baths such as evaporation, reverse osmosis, ion exchange, electrolysis and/or high surface electrorefining.
- Use water treatment methods to eliminate the natural contaminants of water.
- Select chemicals which generate less sludge (ask your supplier for recommendations).
- Segregate waste streams to avoid the unnecessary generation of sludge.
- Dewater sludges.
- Treat waste stream to recover metals.
Under state and federal regulations, waste containing either toxic metals or corrosive components must be treated to reduce the toxic components discharged into the local POTW or disposed of at a state-approved disposal facility. Increasing restrictions on these forms of waste management has
made it imperative to think of ways to eliminate and to reduce the waste currently being generated. The responsibility and the liability in the cradle-to-grave theory of waste management lies on the generator of that, waste. Therefore, California's regulations requires transportation documents, recordkeeping procedures, employee training, hazard awareness disclosures, contingency planning, and proper storage.
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Last Updated: November 22, 1995