Regulations last checked for updates: May 01, 2025
Title 40 - Protection of Environment last revised: Nov 01, 2025
§ 421.50 - Applicability: Description of the primary electrolytic copper refining subcategory.
The provisions of this subpart apply to process wastewater discharges resulting from the electrolytic refining of primary copper, including, but not limited to, anode casting performed at refineries which are not located on-site with a smelter, product casting, and by-product recovery.
§ 421.51 - Specialized definitions.
For the purpose of this subpart:
(a) Except as provided below, the general definitions, abbreviations, and methods of analysis set forth in 40 CFR part 401 apply to this subpart.
(b) The term product means electrolytically refined copper.
§ 421.52 - Effluent limitations guidelines representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application of the best practicable control technology currently available.
Except as provided in 40 CFR 125.30 through 125.32, any existing point source subject to this subpart must achieve the following effluent limitations representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application of the best practicable control technology currently available (BPT):
| Effluent characteristic
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Average of Daily values for 30 consecutive days shall not exceed
|
|---|
| (Metric units, kg/kkg of product; English units, pounds per 1,000 lb of product)
|
| Total suspended solids | 0.100 | 0.050
|
| Copper | 0.0017 | 0.0008
|
| Cadmium | 0.00006 | 0.00003
|
| Lead | 0.0006 | 0.0026
|
| Zinc | 0.0012 | 0.0003
|
| pH | (
1) | (
1)
|
§ 421.53 - Effluent limitations guidelines representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application of the best available technology economically achievable.
Except as provided in 40 CFR 125.30 through 125.32, any existing point source subject to this subpart shall achieve the following effluent limitations representing the degree of effluent reduction attainable by the application of the best available technology economically achievable:
(a) Subpart E—Casting Contact Cooling.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of copper cast
|
| Arsenic | .692 | .309
|
| Copper | .638 | .304
|
| Nickel | .274 | .184 |
(b) Subpart E—Anode and Cathode Rinse.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of cathode copper production
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000 |
(c) Subpart E—Spent Electrolyte.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of copper cathode production
|
| Arsenic | .068 | .031
|
| Copper | .063 | .030
|
| Nickel | .027 | .018 |
(d) Subpart E—Casting Wet Air Pollution Control.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of casting production
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000 |
(e) Subpart E—By-Product Recovery.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of product recovered from electrolytic slimes processing
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000 |
§ 421.54 - Standards of performance for new sources.
Any new source subject to this subpart shall achieve the following new source performance standards:
(a) Subpart E—Casting Contact Cooling.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of copper cast
|
| Arsenic | .692 | .309
|
| Copper | .638 | .304
|
| Nickel | .274 | .184
|
| Total suspended solids | 7.470 | 5.976
|
| pH | (
1) | (
1)
|
(b) Subpart E—Anode and Cathode Rinse.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of cathode copper production
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000
|
| Total suspended solids | .000 | .000
|
| pH | (
1) | (
1)
|
(c) Subpart E—Spent Electrolyte.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of copper cathode production
|
| Arsenic | .068 | .031
|
| Copper | .063 | .030
|
| Nickel | .027 | .018
|
| Total suspended solids | .735 | .588
|
| pH | (
1) | (
1)
|
(d) Subpart E—Casting Wet Air Pollution Control.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of casting production
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000
|
| Total suspended solids | .000 | .000
|
| pH | (
1) | (
1)
|
(e) Subpart E—By-Product Recovery.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of product recovered from electrolytic slimes processing
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000
|
| Total suspended solids | .000 | .000
|
| pH | (
1) | (
1)
|
§ 421.55 - [Reserved]
§ 421.56 - Pretreatment standards for new sources.
Except as provided in 40 CFR 403.7, any new source subject to this subpart which introduces pollutants into a publicly owned treatment works must comply with 40 CFR part 403 and achieve the following pretreatment standards for new sources. The mass of wastewater pollutants in primary electrolytic copper refining process wastewater introduced into a POTW shall not exceed the following values:
(a) Subpart E—Casting Contact Cooling.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of copper cast
|
| Arsenic | .692 | .309
|
| Copper | .638 | .304
|
| Nickel | .274 | .184 |
(b) Subpart E—Anode and Cathode Rinse.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of cathode copper production
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000 |
(c) Subpart E—Spent Electrolyte.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of cathode copper production
|
| Arsenic | .068 | .031
|
| Copper | .063 | .030
|
| Nickel | .027 | .018 |
(d) Subpart E—Casting Wet Air Pollution Control.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of casting production
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000 |
(e) Subpart E—By-Product Recovery.
| Pollutant or pollutant property
| Maximum for any 1 day
| Maximum for monthly average
|
|---|
| mg/kg (pounds per million pounds) of product recovered from electrolytic slimes processing
|
| Arsenic | .000 | .000
|
| Copper | .000 | .000
|
| Nickel | .000 | .000 |
§ 421.57 - [Reserved]
authority: Secs. 301, 304 (b), (c), (e), and (g), 306 (b) and (c), 307 (b) and (c), 308 and 501 of the Clean Water Act (the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972, as amended by the Clean Water Act of 1977) and the Water Quality Act of 1987 (the “Act”);
33 U.S.C. 1311,
1314,
c,
e,
and, 1316 (b) and
c, 1317 (b) and
c,
1318; 86 Stat. 816, Pub. L. 92-500; 91 Stat. 1567, Pub. L. 95-217; 101 Stat. 7, Pub. L. 100-4
source: 49 FR 8790, Mar. 8, 1984, unless otherwise noted.
cite as: 40 CFR 421.53