NPDES Permits

 

Karl Shaffer

 Waste Management Specialist

NCSU Cooperative Extension Service

 Soil Science Department

Box 7619, Raleigh, NC  27695-7619

 

What is an NPDES permit? NPDES stands for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, a program that was started with the federal Clean Water Act of 1972. Animal operations of certain sizes are listed under this act as requiring an NPDES permit, which is a federal permit intended to eliminate or substantially minimize the negative environmental effects of any given operation on surface waters.

The reality however was that very few NPDES permits were ever issued for animal operations (in fact, none in North Carolina). In North Carolina, a non-discharge approach was taken for confined animal feeding operations. That meant that these operations were required to use land-based waste treatment alternatives, which essentially eliminated stream discharges and thereby met the intent of the Clean Water Act.

Recently, however, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) started requiring these permits for the operations originally listed in the 1972 Clean Water Act. The operations requiring permits are based on animal units, such that an operation with 1,000 animal units by EPA definition must obtain an NPDES permit. The following define animal units based on animal type:

·        2500 swine - greater than 55 pounds

·        1000 cattle

·        700 mature dairy cows

·        30,000 poultry with a liquid waste system

Since North Carolina already had an active permit program for animal operations as a result of Senate Bill 1217 (1996), it was logical for the state of North Carolina to also administer the NPDES permit program, much the way it does for facilities that do discharge wastewater into surface waters. The North Carolina Division of Water Quality (DWQ), a division under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), is delegated responsibility for administering the NPDES permit program for EPA.

The NPDES permits for animal operations were written and put out to public notice during 2001-2002. They were finalized and approved in July, 2002. The remainder of this paper will highlight the major changes that will affect animal producers in North Carolina that fall under this permit requirement. Since pork producers in North Carolina have been under a general permit for several years, many of the conditions required by EPA have already been covered and will not be new to North Carolina producers.

All operations above the 1,000 animal unit threshold as listed above will be required to obtain an NPDES permit. In addition, any operation with documented water quality violations may be required by the Director of the DWQ, on a case-by-case basis, to obtain a permit. An operation with a discharge to waters of the state will be required to get the NPDES permit.

The process will occur as follows:

·        The permits will be issued as a general permit

·        This is a boilerplate permit-everyone will have the same conditions and standards

·        Each facility will have a certificate of coverage-similar to the existing general animal waste permits authorized by SB 1217

·        DWQ will notify each operation of the time to file a permit application

·        The facility will have a given amount of time to return the application

·        The facility will then have a given amount of time to make any modifications required of the permit

The Certified Animal Waste Management Plan, which has most of the design information and the specifics to each operation, is automatically part of the NPDES permit. This is not a new issue to North Carolina producers, as the current general permits have the same requirement. The NPDES permit does have a number of additional requirements for system operation and monitoring that will be new for North Carolina  producers. The permit has the following headings of topics covered:

·        Performance standards

·        Operation and maintenance requirements

·        Monitoring and Reporting Requirements

·        General Conditions

·        Penalties

·        Standard Permit Conditions

·        Definitions

·        Inspections and Entry

Many conditions are the same as those in the existing general permits and certified animal waste management plans. One example is this statement- “Waste shall not reach surface waters by runoff, drift, manmade conveyance, direct application, direct discharge, or through ditches not otherwise classified as state waters.” An unintentional discharge resulting from the  25-year, 24-hour storm will NOT be a violation of the new permit. Waste running into a ditch is prohibited unless:

·        ditch discharge is protected by BMP’s

·        BMP’s meet NRCS standards and are DWQ approved

·        BMP is designed to prevent discharge to surface waters

·        waste is immediately removed and situation reported

There are also a number of new requirements. These will be listed partially here. You are strongly encouraged to read the entire permit, which can be found at the DWQ website: http://h2o.enr.state.nc.us/admin/pubinfo/pubinfo.html#News

Phosphorus- when P standards are issued for animal operations-the permittee must evaluate their facility to determine their ability to comply with the standard. The permittee will have 6 months to evaluate its phosphorus status. Phosphorus status will be based on the new NRCS nutrient management standard, which uses the Phosphorus Loss Assessment Tool (PLAT) to determine if individual fields are contributing Phosphorus to surface waters.

Operations - The waste application system must be operated by the Operator in Charge or a person under their supervision, and the application must be inspected at least every 2 hours. This inspection must be recorded (the IRR-2 form will change to accommodate this).

Rainfall sensors and flow measurement- Within 120 days of permit issuance, the permittee must install an automatic rainfall shutoff device on the wastewater irrigation system. However, the permittee can avoid this requirement by making a commitment to DWQ that the OIC or backup OIC is present at all times during waste application. In addition, if a facility has violations for over-application of wastewater or incomplete or incorrect records, they may be required to install flowmeters with totalizers to keep track of wastewater application.

Soil testing and crop management - if either the soil test Copper or Zinc index exceeds 3,000, land application shall stop on those fields. Crops from all fields in the certified waste plan must be removed and properly utilized. Harvestable crops shall not be allowed to become unusable due to prolonged exposure to weather.

Monitoring - all waste application equipment must be tested and calibrated annually, and results documented on forms approved by DWQ. The permittee must completely inspect the waste management system at least monthly and after all storm events greater than 1 inch. If lagoon freeboard violations occur in 2 consecutive years, the permittee will have to install automated lagoon level monitors. Automated rain gauges are required on all facilities over 1,000,000  pounds steady state live weight, but those facilities less than this capacity may use conventional rain gauges. Gauges must be read daily.

Sludge accumulation must be measured annually in lagoons and storage ponds. The sludge survey must include a map of the lagoon with the respective measured sludge depths, and a calculation of the sludge volume in the lagoon or storage pond. If sludge storage exceeds that for which the lagoon is designed, the permittee must submit a sludge cleanout plan to DWQ within 90 days.

In the event of an overflow or discharge of wastewater, the discharge must be sampled and analyzed for these parameters:

·        fecal coliform

·        BOD-5

·        total suspended solids

·        total and dissolved phosphorus

·        TKN, ammonia, and nitrate-N

·        pH and temperature

The discharge must sampled within 30 minutes of knowledge of the discharge, the samples collected according to EPA approved methods, and results submitted to DWQ within 30 days. However, if sampling is unsafe, DWQ must be contacted within 30 minutes instead of performing the sampling.

Records and reporting- records of these items must be maintained for 3 years

·        soil and waste analysis

·        rain gauge readings

·        freeboard levels

·        application of waste

·        past inspection reports

·        cropping information

·        calibration of equipment

·        solids removal

·        animal stocking

·        other nutrient sources applied

An annual certification report must be submitted to DWQ by March 1 of the following year. Any non-compliant activity must be stated, along with actions taken to correct the problem.

General Conditions – The permits are to be issued for 5 years. DWQ may reopen and modify the permit, revoke or reissue it, or terminate it under its authority from the Clean Water Act and state statutes at any time.

Specific questions on the new permits and specific monitoring requirements should be addressed to the regional office of the DWQ. Technical assistance and regulatory agencies will be conducting training and workshops on specific areas of the new permits that are new to producers. Many of the new requirements such as sludge monitoring and equipment calibration have not been routinely performed by producers. Consistent and reliable measurements are important for waste system management and compliance with state and federal rules.

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