Solid Waste

Solid Waste

January 01, 1999 | By Keith Martin in Washington, DC

“SOLID WASTE” may be redefined for tax purposes. The definition is important because power plants that use solid waste for fuel qualify for tax-exempt financing and special depreciation allowances. “Solid waste” is defined currently as “useless, unused, unwanted, or discarded solid material which has no market or other value at the place where it is located.” The recycling industry is concerned that corrugated cardboard that recyclers purchase for different prices, depending on whether the cardboard is picked up at a loading dock or a collection system, may not qualify as waste. It wants the IRS to permit material to qualify as waste if its only value derives from demand for the material from recyclers or, alternatively, if it can be shown through general studies of the local waste stream that the material would otherwise end up in a landfill or incinerator. Treasury officials have not decided yet whether to put the issue on the 1999 business plan.