The project is focusing on developing a process to assist ITEC member tribes in the evaluation of the potential presence of hazardous waste found improperly disposed of within their respective areas, focusing on tribal open dumpsites. Hazardous waste is critical when determining the hazard factor and ultimately ranking the dump for cleanup operations (for example, Tribal Open Dump Cleanup Grant Process). Hazardous waste, although not as prevalent a component as municipal solid waste and special waste, is an issue that should be addressed for tribal open dumps.

The type of process conducted will be Level I-field screening. Selection of the contaminants for screening will be part of the development of the project. Potential contaminants for screening could include chromium, lead, PCB’s in soil, and hydrocarbons in soil among others. The project does not request to conduct analysis above Level I or conduct disposal of hazardous waste found at tribal dumps, due to the high costs of such actions. A quality assurance project plan for the initiative is currently under development.