Planning to reuse spent foundry sand in West Virginia? This guide covers the rules that apply, the tests that decide how the sand can be managed, and what DEP needs before the sand can be reused or disposed of.
Key terms
Spent foundry sand
Foundries bond silica sand into molds and cores for casting metal. The sand is reused many times in the plant. Spent foundry sand is molding and core sand that can no longer make molds or cores.
Green sand and chemically bonded sand
Green sand is bonded with clay, usually bentonite, plus water and additives such as carbon. Chemically bonded sand uses resin binders. Most cores are chemically bonded. The binder system affects what the spent sand contains.
Beneficial reuse
Beneficial reuse puts a waste material to productive use instead of disposing of it. In West Virginia, the solid waste rule excludes certain recycled materials from the definition of solid waste. Check any reuse with DEP.
TCLP
The Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (EPA Method 1311) measures how much of certain contaminants can leach from a sample. It is one part of deciding whether a waste is hazardous.
What’s in your spent sand?
Spent sand carries what the casting process added: binder residue, metal fines, and burnt core material. The alloy matters most. Sand from iron, steel, and aluminum foundries is the most commonly reused. Sand from leaded brass and bronze foundries is often regulated as hazardous waste.
Keep each stream separate. Baghouse dust, shotblast fines, cupola slag, broken cores, and core room sweepings need their own evaluation. Mixing them into spent sand can change how the whole load is managed. Track the alloys cast, the binder system, and any process changes.
West Virginia’s solid waste rules
West Virginia’s Solid Waste Management Rule is 33CSR1. Its definition of industrial solid waste names waste from nonferrous metals manufacturing and foundries (33CSR1 §2.58).
The definition of solid waste does not include materials recycled in one of these ways (33CSR1 §2.119.g):
- used or reused in an industrial process to make a product;
- used as an effective substitute for a commercial product; or
- returned to the original process as a substitute for raw material feedstock.
Recycling facilities must notify DEP and hold a permit, unless they only accept at no charge, buy, or transfer source-separated recyclable material (33CSR1 §3.16.d). A permitted recycling facility must run its operations inside enclosed structures. It may not receive or store hazardous waste. It may not store material for more than 60 days without DEP’s written approval.
DEP also handles foundry sand sent to landfills. A landfill may accept a waste that needs special handling only under its permit, a minor permit modification, or DEP’s written approval (33CSR1 §4.13.a.1). DEP’s Solid Waste Program reviews analytical data to approve or deny these special waste requests. It names foundry sand as one such waste.
Working with DEP
- Who to contact: DEP’s Division of Water and Waste Management runs the solid waste and hazardous waste programs.
- Recycling facilities: a facility that processes spent sand must notify DEP on DEP’s forms and meet the permit conditions in 33CSR1 §3.16.d, unless the source-separated exemption applies.
- Landfill disposal: the landfill permittee asks DEP for approval. It must describe the process that made the waste, the waste itself, and its composition and contaminants. That usually means chemical analyses or safety data sheets (33CSR1 §4.13.a.3.B).
- Hazardous waste: any person who begins hazardous waste activity in West Virginia must notify DEP.
DEP Division of Water and Waste Management: (304) 926-0495.
Hazardous waste determination
West Virginia adopts the federal hazardous waste rules (40 CFR Parts 260–268, 270, 273, and 279) by reference in 33CSR20, Hazardous Waste Management System. It uses the federal rules in effect on February 10, 2025 (33CSR20 §1.6).
West Virginia narrows two federal options for very small quantity generators. It does not adopt 40 CFR 262.14(a)(5)(iv) and (v), so a very small quantity generator cannot send hazardous waste to a municipal or other nonhazardous solid waste facility (33CSR20 §5.3). Very small quantity generators must also notify DEP in writing of their hazardous waste activities (33CSR20 §4.2.1).
Under 40 CFR 262.11, the foundry must decide whether its spent sand is hazardous:
- Make the determination at the point of generation, before mixing or dilution. Repeat it if the waste may have changed.
- Check whether the waste is excluded from the hazardous waste rules.
- Check whether it matches a listed hazardous waste.
- Check for hazardous characteristics, including toxicity. Use knowledge of the materials and process, testing, or both. Test when knowledge alone is not enough.
Small and large quantity generators must keep records supporting the determination for at least three years after the waste was last sent for treatment, storage, or disposal.
TCLP testing and limits
Tell the lab the alloys cast, the binder system, and which streams the sample includes. Use representative samples. Agree on the sampling plan with the lab, DEP, and the receiving site before collecting.
A waste is hazardous for toxicity if its TCLP extract meets or exceeds any limit in 40 CFR 261.24. The limits for the RCRA metals are:
| Contaminant | EPA waste code | Limit (mg/L) |
|---|---|---|
| Arsenic | D004 | 5.0 |
| Barium | D005 | 100.0 |
| Cadmium | D006 | 1.0 |
| Chromium | D007 | 5.0 |
| Lead | D008 | 5.0 |
| Mercury | D009 | 0.2 |
| Selenium | D010 | 1.0 |
| Silver | D011 | 5.0 |
Passing TCLP addresses toxicity for the substances tested. It does not approve reuse or rule out other reasons a waste may be hazardous. See material testing for sampling basics.
For landfill disposal, the landfill’s special waste request must characterize the waste’s composition, matrix, and contaminants (33CSR1 §4.13.a.3.B). DEP reviews that analytical data.
Finding a reuse destination
EPA’s 2014 risk assessment found three uses protective of health and the environment for silica-based spent sand from iron, steel, and aluminum foundries: manufactured soil, soil-less potting media, and road subbase. EPA and USDA support those uses. The finding does not cover sand from brass or bronze foundries, olivine sand, or sand mixed with other foundry wastes such as baghouse dust or cupola slag. EPA defers to state programs, so the state rules on this page still decide each use.
DEP decides how the solid waste rule applies to each use. Check any destination and proposed use with DEP before scheduling delivery.
When you talk to DEP, describe the proposal in the terms of 33CSR1 §2.119.g. Is the sand an ingredient in a product, a substitute for a commercial product, or a return to the original process? If a recycling facility will process the sand, confirm it has notified DEP and holds its permit. Get the receiving site’s specifications and written acceptance. If reuse is not cleared, arrange disposal that fits the waste determination.
Worker protection
- Silica: foundry sand is mostly crystalline silica. OSHA’s general industry standard, 29 CFR 1910.1053, sets a permissible exposure limit of 50 µg/m³ of respirable crystalline silica as an 8-hour average. Exposure assessment starts at the 25 µg/m³ action level.
- Construction use: crews placing sand as fill or subbase fall under the construction silica standard, 29 CFR 1926.1153.
- Lead: brass and bronze foundries that cast leaded alloys also follow OSHA’s lead standard, 29 CFR 1910.1025.
- Dust: control dust during shakeout, storage, and loading.
Storage and records
Store spent sand on a defined pad or in bins, control dust and runoff, and keep other foundry wastes out. A permitted recycling facility may not store material for more than 60 days without DEP’s written approval. Material stored outside its enclosed structures must be in bundles, bins, or containers, or prepared for transport.
Keep the waste determination, lab reports, DEP approvals, and the receiving site’s acceptance together. Record tonnage shipped, dates, and destinations. Keep determination records for at least three years.
Before pickup
- Identify the alloys cast, sand and binder systems, separate streams, monthly volume, and plant location.
- Make the hazardous waste determination and complete the required tests.
- Choose a destination and get its material specifications.
- Confirm with DEP that the use fits 33CSR1, or that the receiving facility holds the needed permit or approval.
- Get written acceptance and arrange pickup.
Common questions
Is a passing TCLP test enough?
No. It answers a toxicity question for the substances tested. The full waste determination, DEP requirements, and the receiving site’s specifications still apply.
Does EPA’s risk assessment approve our sand?
No. It supports three soil-related uses for silica-based sand from iron, steel, and aluminum foundries. DEP still decides how West Virginia’s rules apply to each use.
Which West Virginia rule covers reuse?
33CSR1 excludes materials recycled as an industrial ingredient, as a substitute for a commercial product, or back into the original process. It also sets permits for recycling facilities.
Can a landfill take our spent sand?
Only if its permit allows the waste, or DEP approves it through a minor permit modification or written approval. DEP reviews analytical data for foundry sand special waste requests.
How long can a recycling facility store spent sand?
No more than 60 days without DEP’s written approval. A permitted recycling facility may not receive or store hazardous waste.
Can a very small quantity generator landfill hazardous spent sand?
Not at a municipal or other nonhazardous solid waste facility. West Virginia does not adopt the federal option that allows it.
Rules and guidance
- West Virginia DEP: Solid Waste Program
- 33CSR1: Solid Waste Management Rule
- 33CSR20: Hazardous Waste Management System
- West Virginia DEP: RCRA Hazardous Waste
- West Virginia DEP: Division of Water and Waste Management contacts
- 40 CFR 262.11: Hazardous waste determination
- 40 CFR 261.24: Toxicity characteristic
- EPA Method 1311: TCLP
- EPA: Beneficial Uses of Spent Foundry Sands
- EPA: Risk Assessment of Spent Foundry Sands in Soil-Related Applications
- 29 CFR 1910.1053: Respirable crystalline silica
- 29 CFR 1926.1153: Respirable crystalline silica in construction