Header:
TEXAS ADMINISTRATIVE CODE
TITLE 30. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
PART 1. TEXAS COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
CHAPTER 321. CONTROL OF CERTAIN ACTIVITIES BY RULE
SUBCHAPTER B. CONCENTRATED ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONS
Date:
08/31/2009
Document:
30 TAC § 321.36 (2011)
§ 321.36. Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination System General Requirements for Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs)
(a) Applicability. These requirements apply to a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) general permit, individual water quality permit, or other authorization issued by the commission for a large CAFO, medium CAFO, and small CAFO subject to the requirements of the Texas Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.
(b) Permits. A CAFO shall comply with § 305.125 of this title (relating to Standard Permit Conditions) and all applicable permit conditions contained in commission rules. Requirements to provide for and ensure compliance with standards set by the rules of the commission and the laws of Texas shall be determined and included in an individual water quality permit on a case-by-case basis to reflect the best method for attaining such compliance. Each permit shall contain terms and conditions as the commission determines necessary to protect human health and safety, and the environment.
(c) Control facility. A CAFO shall ensure that the control facility is designed, constructed, operated, and maintained to contain all manure, litter, and process wastewater including the runoff and direct precipitation from the design rainfall event as described in § 321.37 of this title (relating to Effluent Limitations for Discharges from Production Areas).
(d) Nutrient management plan (NMP).
(1) On or before July 31, 2007, the operator of a CAFO shall develop and implement an NMP certified in accordance with the Natural Resources Conservation Service Code 590 Practice Standard. The plan shall include site-specific nutrient management practices that ensure appropriate agricultural utilization of nutrients in the manure, litter, or wastewater.
(2) The CAFO operator shall create, maintain for five years, and make available to the executive director, upon request, a copy of the site-specific NMP and documentation of the implementation.
(3) Compliance with the requirements of this section and applicable requirements for the design and operation of a control facility, as described in § 321.38 and § 321.39 of this title (relating to Control Facility Design Requirements Applicable to Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) and Control Facility Operational Requirements Applicable to Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs)) constitute compliance with the provisions of 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) § 122.42(e)(1)(i) - (ix).
(e) Manure, litter, and wastewater management.
(1) At least one representative sample of wastewater, if applicable, and one representative sample of manure/litter shall be collected and analyzed each year for total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and total potassium. The results of these analyses shall be used in determining application rates for manure in conjunction with analysis of wastewater.
(2) If manure, litter, or wastewater is sold or given to other persons for off-site land application or disposal, the CAFO operator shall maintain a log of:
(A) the date of removal from the CAFO;
(B) the name and address of the recipient; and
(C) the amount, in wet tons, dry tons, cubic yards, acre-inches, acre-feet, or gallons of manure, litter, or wastewater.
(3) A single pickup truck load need not be recorded.
(4) The operator shall make the most recent nutrient analysis available to any recipient of manure, litter, or wastewater.
(f) Buffers for land management units (LMUs). A sinkhole shall be protected with a 100-foot buffer from manure, litter, and wastewater application. Alternatively, the CAFO may substitute a 35-foot wide vegetative buffer around a sinkhole where alternative conservation practices or field-specific conditions will provide pollutant reductions equivalent to or better than the reductions that would be achieved by the 100-foot buffer.
(g) Soil sampling and testing.
(1) Initial sampling. Before commencing wastewater irrigation or manure/litter application on land owned, operated, controlled, rented, or leased by the CAFO operator, the operator shall collect and analyze at least one representative soil sample from each of the LMUs according to the following procedures. The CAFO operator is not required to collect soil samples or report on LMUs where manure, litter, or wastewater has not been applied during the preceding year. The CAFO operator must comply with the initial sampling requirement before resuming land application to such LMUs.
(2) Annual sampling. The CAFO operator shall annually collect soil samples for each LMU owned, operated, controlled, rented, or leased by the CAFO operator where manure, litter, or wastewater was applied during the preceding year.
(3) Sampling procedures. The operator shall employ sampling procedures using accepted techniques of soil science for obtaining representative samples and analytical results.
(A) Samples shall be collected using approved procedures described in the agencys publication "Soil Sampling for Nutrient Utilization Plans (RG-408)."
(B) Samples shall be collected by the operator or its designee and analyzed by a soil testing laboratory within the same 45-day time frame each year, except when crop rotations or inclement weather require a change in the sampling time frame.
(C) One composite sample shall be obtained for each soil depth zone per uniform soil type (soils with the same characteristics and texture) within each LMU.
(D) Composite samples shall be comprised of 10 - 15 randomly sampled cores obtained from each of the following soil depth zones:
(i) Zone 1: zero to six inches (for an LMU where the manure is incorporated directly into the soil) or zero to two inches (for an LMU where the manure is not incorporated into the soil). Wastewater is considered to be incorporated. If a zero to two-inch sample is required under this subsection, then an additional sample from the two to six-inch soil depth zone shall be obtained in accordance with the provisions of this section; and
(ii) Zone 2: six to 24 inches.
(4) Laboratory analysis. The CAFO operator shall have a laboratory analysis of the soil samples performed for physical and chemical parameters to include: nitrate as nitrogen in parts per million (ppm), extractable phosphorus (ppm, using Mehlich III with Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP)), potassium (extractable, ppm); sodium (extractable, ppm); magnesium (extractable, ppm); calcium (extractable, ppm); soluble salts (ppm) or electrical conductivity (deciSiemens/meter (dS/m) - determined from extract of 2:1 volume to volume (v/v) water/soil mixture); and soil water pH.
(h) Required inspections. The CAFO operator shall perform the routine inspections described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of this subsection to determine preventive maintenance and repair needs. Inspections shall include visual inspections and equipment testing to determine conditions that could cause breakdowns or failures resulting in discharge of pollutants to water in the state or the creation of a nuisance condition.
(1) CAFO operators shall conduct a daily inspection of all water lines, including drinking water and cooling water lines, located within the drainage area of the retention control structure (RCS).
(2) CAFO operators shall conduct a weekly inspection of all control facilities and equipment used during that week for land application of manure, litter, or wastewater. An inspection must include all storm water diversion devices, runoff diversion structures, and devices channeling contaminated storm water to each RCS. The weekly inspection will note the level of liquid in each RCS as indicated by the pond marker required by subsection (k) of this section.
(i) Recordkeeping.
(1) The CAFO operator shall draft and maintain a report for five years in the pollution prevention plan to document the inspections and to report that appropriate action has been taken in response to deficiencies identified during any inspection required by subsection (h) of this section. A CAFO operator shall correct all the deficiencies within 30 days or shall document the factors preventing immediate correction.
(2) The CAFO operator shall maintain records describing mortality management practices implemented in accordance with subsection (l) of this section.
(3) The CAFO operator shall maintain documentation describing the sources of information, assumptions, and calculations used in determining the appropriate volume capacity and structural features of each RCS, including embankments and liners.
(4) The CAFO operator shall maintain documentation describing a discharge into water in the state including the date, time, volume of overflow, a copy of the notification(s) provided to the regional office, and sample analysis results associated with an RCS discharge.
(5) The CAFO operator shall comply with the land application area recordkeeping requirements identified in 40 CFR § 412.37 and § 412.47. Compliance with § 321.46 of this title (relating to Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) Pollution Prevention Plan, Site Evaluation, Recordkeeping, and Reporting) constitutes compliance with this requirement.
(j) Annual report required. An annual report shall be submitted to the executive directors Office of Compliance and Enforcement, Enforcement Division, by February 15 of each year (for the reporting period of January 1 to December 31 of the previous year) from each CAFO authorized under a CAFO general permit or through an individual water quality permit in accordance with this subchapter. The report shall be submitted on forms prescribed by the executive director and shall include, but is not limited to, the following information:
(1) number and type of animals, whether in open confinement or housed under roof;
(2) estimated total manure, litter, and wastewater generated during the reporting period;
(3) total manure, litter, and wastewater land applied during the reporting period;
(4) total manure, litter, and wastewater transferred to other persons during the reporting period;
(5) total number of acres for land application under the control of the CAFO operator, including both the acres included in the NMP for the CAFO and the total number of acres used during the reporting period for land application;
(6) summary of discharges of manure, litter, or wastewater from the production area that occurred during the reporting period including dates, times, and approximate volume;
(7) a statement indicating that the NMP under which the CAFO is operating was developed and approved by a certified nutrient management specialist;
(8) a copy of the initial soil analysis for each LMU, regardless of whether manure, litter, or wastewater has been applied;
(9) soil monitoring reports of all soil samples collected in accordance with the requirements of this subchapter;
(10) groundwater monitoring reports; and
(11) any other information requested by the executive director.
(k) Pond marker. A permanent pond marker that identifies the level of the design rainfall event shall be installed and maintained in the RCS. In addition, if the operator must maintain a minimum treatment volume in accordance with § 321.43(j)(3)(B) of this title (relating to Air Standard Permit for Animal Feeding Operations (AFOs)), the pond marker must identify this level. The pond marker shall be visible from the top of the levee.
(l) Carcass disposal. Carcasses shall be collected within 24 hours of death and properly disposed of within three days of death in accordance with Texas Water Code, Chapter 26; Texas Health and Safety Code, Chapter 361; and Chapter 335 of this title (relating to Industrial Solid Waste and Municipal Hazardous Waste) unless otherwise provided for by the commission. Animals must not be disposed of in any liquid manure or process wastewater system. Disposal of diseased animals shall also be conducted in a manner that prevents a public health hazard in accordance with Texas Agriculture Code, § 161.004, and 4 TAC § 31.3 and § 58.31(b).
(m) Closure required. A closure plan must be developed by a CAFO operator when an RCS will no longer be used and when the CAFO ceases or plans to cease operation. For closure of a CAFO, a closure plan must be developed and submitted to the executive director when operation of the CAFO or an individual RCS terminates. The closure plan for the RCS must, at a minimum, be developed using standards contained in the NRCS Practice Standard Code 360 (Closures of Waste Impoundments), as amended, and using the guidelines contained in the Texas Cooperative Extension/NRCS publication #B-6122 (Closure of Lagoons and Earthen Manure Storage Structures), as amended. A CAFO shall maintain or renew its existing authorization and maintain compliance with the requirements of this subchapter until the facility has been closed.
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