WA-11-22: WDNR Updates Key Solid-Waste and Landfill Rules

Effective October 1, 2025, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) published Board Order CR 24-063 (WA-11-22), one of the most comprehensive updates to the state’s solid waste rules in decades. The package revises multiple chapters across the NR 500-NR 524 series, touching multiple aspects of the regulation. In this article, we spotlight the changes to NR 500, NR 506, NR 507, NR 514, and NR 520, the sections that bring the most significant new requirements for permitting, daily operations, monitoring, and long-term care of solid waste facilities.

NR 500 – General Solid Waste Management Requirements

WDNR updated NR 500 to streamline permitting and bring the solid waste program in line with current technical practices. Most updates in this section are administrative changes to definitions, with few major updates, including submittal of all plans and report packages shall be submitted electronically, and the WDNR review period for initial applications, approvals, and exemptions extended from 60 to 90 days.

NR 506 – Landfill Operational Criteria

WDNR revised NR 506 to strengthen day-to-day operational standards for municipal and industrial solid waste landfills and to expand post-closure care obligations. The changes cover daily and intermediate cover practices, leachate and gas management, closure and long-term care licensing, and annual reporting requirements. Major updates include:

• NR 506.05 – Municipal solid waste alternate daily cover requirements remain the same, with the exception that any alternate daily cover that inhibits the movement of gas or leachate must be scarified or removed prior to the next placement of solid waste.

• NR 506.055 – The Department may prohibit or limit the use of previously approved alternate daily cover if the material utilized results in nuisance conditions or a negative effect on landfill performance.

• NR 506.07 – New provisions prohibit additional waste placement in areas that have reached final waste grades and received intermediate cover unless WDNR gives written approval. High-volume industrial waste landfills must be able to direct storm water to the leachate collection system to prevent ponding. Gas control requirements are tightened: explosive gas levels may not exceed 25 percent of the lower explosive limit within landfill structures and must not exceed the limit in soils or air outside the fill area. WDNR can now require early gas extraction when persistent odors, leachate seeps caused by gas pressure, or recurring methane emissions above 500 ppm are observed, and it sets specific corrective-action timelines when liquid levels impede gas extraction well performance.

• NR 506.07 (5) – Leachate must be removed as it is produced to maintain no more than one foot of head on the liner. Liquids contacting waste are to be handled as leachate unless WDNR approves otherwise. All leachate collection lines must be cleaned with high-pressure jetting immediately after construction and at least annually; high-volume industrial waste landfills may request a reduced frequency if performance history supports it. Detailed summary reports of each cleaning or video inspection are required, and leachate pumps and flow-recording devices must be tested and maintained for accurate measurement.

• NR 506.081 – New section created to establish long-term care requirements, including maintaining signage and access control, mowing to prevent woody vegetation, repairing erosion or animal intrusion, and maintaining gas control, leachate collection, and monitoring systems. Owners remain responsible for perpetual long-term care and must maintain proof of financial responsibility and provide a professional engineer’s certification of compliance.

• NR 506.09 & NR 506.095 – Municipal solid waste landfill owners or operators must evaluate every three years whether the characteristics of any approved special waste have changed and seek reauthorization if needed. The list of prohibited materials is expanded to include electronic devices identified under s. 287.07 (5), Stats., and waste tires, unless an exemption is granted.

• NR 506.17 & NR 506.19 – Landfill operators must now provide written notifications, by mail or email, before close of business on the required day, with specific timeframes for events such as surface fires, suspected subsurface fires, or leachate seeps and spills. New annual reporting requirements include comprehensive information on windblown debris management, gas extraction system performance, leachate collection and recirculation activities, environmental monitoring results, and surface water and final cover maintenance. The annual compliance certification deadline moves from March 31 to April 30.

NR 507 – Environmental Monitoring for Landfills

WDNR revised NR 507 to strengthen groundwater, leachate, and gas monitoring standards for solid waste disposal facilities and to clarify documentation and reporting obligations. The rule updates field procedures and timelines to ensure more consistent data collection and faster response to potential groundwater impacts.

• NR 507.04 – All groundwater sampling and data collection shall be performed by a professional geologies or qualified technician, unless otherwise approved by the Department in writing. Ground surface seals must be maintained to prevent contamination, and all monitoring devices, including leachate head wells must be sealed, locked, and clearly labeled with a department-issued identification number.

• NR 507.05 & NR 507.06 – Requirements for continuous soil sampling are clarified for both fine-grained and coarse-grained soils. Standard penetration tests must be performed, and if not feasible, the shear strength of fine-grained soils must be measured in the field with a pocket penetrometer or vane shear.

• NR 507.08 – Abandonment of water supply wells must meet the requirements of NR 812.26 and include casing removal or perforation to allow proper sealing.

• NR 507.14 & NR 507.26 – Well locations must be documented using GIS coordinates and specified projection data. All environmental monitoring results must be submitted electronically within 90 days of the end of the sampling period extended from the previous 60 days, and must include limits of detection and quantitation, along with quality-control flags identifying potential issues.

• NR 507.18 & NR 507.19 – Baseline groundwater quality must be established for detection parameters listed in Appendix I Tables 1-3, and owners or operators must implement a detection groundwater monitoring program unless otherwise approved in writing.

• NR 507.21 & NR 507.22 – Owners or operators must sample leachate head wells quarterly and report data semi-annually. If leachate levels exceed one foot, the level must be re-measured within 30 days and a corrective action plan submitted within 90 days. Gas monitoring wells must be sampled quarterly for methane and oxygen, and gas extraction systems must be monitored and reported at least semi-annually.

• NR 507.27 – Owners or operators must calculate and submit preventive action limits (PALs) and alternative concentration limits (ACLs) for parameters without existing groundwater standards, using baseline data representative of unaffected groundwater.

• NR 507.30 – If any groundwater or water supply well sample attains or exceeds a groundwater standard, the owner or operator must notify WDNR in writing within 90 days of the end of the sampling period and provide a preliminary analysis of the cause and significance.

NR 514 – Plan of Operation and Closure Plans for Landfills

WDNR revises NR 514 to streamline the plan of operation process for new and expanded landfills and to clarify construction, operational, and closure requirements. The updates give owners and operators clearer expectations for both initial site development and long-term management of landfill facilities.

• NR 514.04 – WDNR may now issue an initial site construction approval allowing early work such as clearing, grubbing, and storm water feature construction before final plan approval.

• NR 514.05 – Plan sheets must now include underdrain systems and gas extraction systems, including the gas wells with radius of influence and gas header pipes.

• NR 514.06 – The plan of operation report must explain the rationale behind design decisions for key engineering features not explicitly required by regulations, such as underdrain systems, liners, gas extraction and treatment systems, storm water and erosion control measures, and final cover systems. It must also describe initial construction methods and daily operations, including waste handling, traffic routing, weather-related disposal practices, and odor, vector, and dust control. A phasing table is required to outline projected construction events, liner and final cover areas, and open areas by phase.

• NR 514.07 (6m) – For vertical or horizontal expansions, the plan must summarize all active WDNR approvals and conditions, evaluate the existing leachate collection and gas extraction systems, and propose modifications if needed. It must also evaluate existing litter, odor, leachate recirculation, and organic stability plans and include an updated storm water pollution prevention plan.

• NR 514.09 – WDNR clarifies the procedure for expedited plan modifications that are low risk and do not require a rule exemption. The department may object to an incomplete proposal within 30 days. Revisions to closure and long-term care cost estimates are now included among the types of changes that cannot be expedited.

• NR 514.10 – Renewals of testing periods are limited to a maximum of three years each, with no more than six renewals total, and renewal requests must be submitted at least 90 days before plan expiration.

NR 520 – Solid Waste Management Fees and Financial Responsibility Requirements

WDNR updated NR 520 to revise licensing procedures, adjust fee schedules, and strengthen financial assurance standards for solid waste facilities. The changes affect how facilities obtain and maintain operating licenses, pay tonnage fees, and demonstrate proof of financial responsibility.

• NR 520.04 (1) – Tonnage surcharge rate increases to 25.0 cents per ton effective January 1, 2026; 27.0 cents per ton effective January 1, 2031; and 30.0 cents per ton effective January 1, 2036. WDNR will continue to hold an annual public meeting to review the waste management program revenue account and, if the account balance exceeds 25 percent of authorized expenditures for three consecutive fiscal years, must propose rule revisions to adjust the surcharge.

• NR 520.04 (3) – Owners and operators, including any successors in interest, must maintain an active operating license during the closure and long-term care period until all closure activities are complete and the department issues a long-term care license. Authorization and associated fees are specified in Table 3 of the rule text.

• NR 520.04 (4) – Plan review fees for facilities other than landfills and surface impoundments (Table 2) and for landfills and surface impoundments (Table 3) cover the entire review process from submittal through approval or denial. Applicants may withdraw and resubmit plans prior to a completeness determination without paying additional fees, but a resubmittal after a plan is deemed complete or a report is twice declared incomplete requires a new plan review fee. WDNR may waive plan review and license fees for processing facilities such as composting, electronics processing, or incinerators that convert solid waste into usable materials, products, or energy, but not for initial site inspections or construction documentation review. New provisions specify plan modification and supplemental review fees for certain submittals, including modifications to a plan of operation or closure plan, design management zone, groundwater standard exemptions, and initial site construction approval requests.

• NR 520.05 & NR 520.06 – Owners of solid waste land disposal facilities remain responsible for closure, remedial actions, and perpetual long-term care and must provide proof of financial responsibility before obtaining an operating license and annually thereafter. The rule increases the threshold for cash or certificates of deposit that can be held in escrow or trust accounts from $100,000 to $250,000 (or the standard FDIC insurance limit) before U.S. government securities must be used for amounts above that threshold. Escrow accounts and irrevocable trusts must name the department as a party and restrict withdrawals to those authorized in writing by WDNR. Other approved financial mechanisms remain acceptable if they provide comparable assurance.

• NR 520.07 – Long-term care cost estimates must include all anticipated expenses such as inspections, gas removal and treatment, leachate management and treatment, groundwater monitoring, equipment maintenance and replacement, and a 10 percent contingency. Leachate quantity and strength are assumed to remain constant unless WDNR approves an alternative method. The projected rate of inflation used in cost calculations changes from the inflation rate plus 2 percent to inflation plus 1.5 percent.

• Other Administrative Updates – Owners may change the method of financial responsibility proof once per year on the anniversary of the original submittal. Adjusted proof mechanisms must be submitted within 60 days after WDNR approves a new cost estimate. WDNR clarifies its authority to access a facility and use financial assurance funds if an owner fails to perform required closure, long-term care, or remedial actions. Facility owners must notify WDNR within 10 days of the start of any bankruptcy proceedings. All licensed solid waste land disposal facilities must pay applicable tonnage fees until the facility stops receiving waste and closure activities are finalized and must certify the amount of waste received on department-provided forms and remit fees within 30 days of notice. The late processing fee for unpaid tonnage fees increases to $150.

These wide-ranging revisions to Wisconsin’s solid waste regulations update permitting, daily landfill operations, environmental monitoring, and long-term financial assurance requirements. The rule package provides consistent statewide standards for landfill construction and operation, strengthens groundwater and leachate monitoring programs, and modernizes fee structures and long-term care funding. By codifying practices that were previously addressed only through individual approvals, WDNR gives solid waste facility owners and operators clearer guidance and more predictable regulatory expectations.

Additional Resources

To review the full text of Board Order CR 24-063 (WA-11-22) and see all rule changes beyond those highlighted in this article, please visit the Wisconsin DNR website. If you have any questions about the rule changes, please contact the Wisconsin office on 262-200-0200. Our team is available to assist you in understanding how these updates may affect your facility’s operations or compliance planning.