Louisiana
Solid Waste Permitting
The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) requires a solid waste permit for facilities that store, process or dispose of solid waste. LDEQ says solid waste includes everyday trash (residential and commercial waste), construction and demolition debris, yard waste, and non-hazardous industrial wastes. Its Waste Permits Division reviews the applications.
In a Phase I ESA
LDEQ's solid waste permits are the Louisiana form of the state landfill and solid waste disposal site records that ASTM E1527-21 lists as a standard source. The general reading of a landfill listing is on the landfills and solid waste page. Four Louisiana details shape the search.
- Facilities come in types. LDEQ's application groups are Type I and II (industrial, residential or commercial landfills, surface impoundments, landfarms and processing facilities, with Type I-A and II-A for processing) and Type III (construction and demolition debris and woodwaste landfills, composting facilities, and separation and other minor processing facilities). Read the type with the listing.
- A permit has steps before and after it is issued. A new facility must complete pre-application steps under LAC 33:VII.513.B: a capacity evaluation for a proposed landfill at least 90 days before the application, written confirmation from the local governing authority that the facility complies with local zoning and land use restrictions, an emergency response plan filed with the State Fire Marshal, and a public notice. LDEQ requires a permit modification application for changes after November 20, 2011, and a permit update or closure plan when a facility changes ownership, expands or closes.
- Permitted facilities report every year. LDEQ requires each permitted facility to submit a Certification of Compliance by October 1, covering the previous state year, July 1 through June 30. LDEQ also lists solid waste capacity reports for 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023.
- Closure is funded in advance. LDEQ says permitted solid waste facilities must set aside money, called financial assurance, to cover the cost of closing the facility and taking care of it after it closes, and must update it each year. Ask whether the file holds the financial assurance documents.
The pages read do not describe records of landfills that operated before permits were required, or of unpermitted dumping. For those, the pages give no list; ask LDEQ.
Where to look a site up
- LDEQ links a Solid Waste Landfill Report, which it labels a list of permitted Type I, II and III facilities. The page does not say whether it includes closed facilities.
- The same page links a file titled Recognized Asbestos Landfills, a PDF not opened for this handbook.
- The Waste Permits Division's customer service line is 225-219-3070.
Getting the file
LDEQ's routes to a file are its Electronic Document Management System, an online public records request form, and visits to its Public Records Center or a regional office. They are described on the Public Records Requests page.
Sources
Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality pages, read October 8, 2026, no modified date shown: