Transcript Water Resource Protection Act

Water Quality Protection
And Improvement
30+ Years of the
Clean Water Act
• Most industries, municipalities, and other dischargers
of pollutants were not being very good stewards
when it came to the nation’s surface waters.
• Congress in the early 1970s recognized this problem
and passed into law the Clean Water Act of 1972.
• One of the key components of this Act that was put in
place to protect and improve the water quality of the
nation’s surface waters was the National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permitting
Program.
Key definitions from the
Clean Water Act
• 40 CFR Section 122.2 – Definitions
• Point Source means any discernible, confined, and
discrete conveyance, including but not limited to, any
pipe, ditch, channel, tunnel, conduit, well, discrete
fissure, container, rolling stock, concentrated animal
feeding operation, landfill leachate collection system,
vessel, or other floating craft from which pollutants
are or may be discharged. This term does not include
return flows from irrigated agriculture or agricultural
storm water runoff.
Key points and definitions
from the Clean Water Act
• CAFOs were clearly defined as “point sources” even
30+ years ago and as a discharger of pollutants.
• 40 CFR Part 122.1 (b) states that “The NPDES
program requires permits for the discharge of
pollutants from any point source into waters of the
United States.
• 40 CFR Part 122 are the federal rules dealing with the
administration of the entire NPDES program including
the permitting of point sources.
Key points and definitions from
the Clean Water Act
•
•
Title 47, Series 10 of the WV Legislative
Rules entitled “National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (NPDES) Program” are
nearly a mirror image of 40 CFR Part 122 of
the Federal Code
47 CSR 10 Section 13.1 (Draft) is a mirror
image of 40 CFR Part 122.23 that deals
exclusively with CAFOs within the NPDES
program.
Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations points and definitions
•
•
40 CFR Part 412 – Effluent Limitation
Guidelines (ELGs) and Standards issued
specifically for the Concentrated Animal
Feeding Operations (CAFO) Point Source
Category. These standards must be included
as a part of a CAFO NPDES Permit and
permitted CAFOs are required to comply with
the applicable standards.
There is no equivalent statutory state
standards currently in place in WV, so these
federal standards apply.
Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations points and definitions
•
•
A CAFO is a specific category of AFO. You
cannot be a CAFO unless you first meet the
statutory definition of an “Animal Feeding
Operation (AFO)”.
AFOs are defined as a lot or facility where:
1.
2.
Animals have been, are or will be stabled or confined
and fed or maintained for a total of 45 days or more in
any 12 month period AND
Crops, vegetation, forage growth, or post-harvest
residues are not sustained in the normal growing
season over any portion of the lot or facility.
Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations points and definitions
•
•
•
The confinement period does not have to be 45 days
in a row and the 12 month period can be any
consecutive 12 month period.
This does not mean that any vegetation at all in a
confinement area (pen or feedlot) would keep an
operation from being defined as an AFO.
Pasture and rangeland grazing operations are not
AFOs because they do not confine or concentrate
animals in an area where manure builds up. But
these operations may have barns, feedlots, pens, or
houses that would meet the definition.
Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations points and definitions
•
You are a Large CAFO if you:
–
–
–
•
Meet the definition of an AFO and
Meet or exceed the large CAFO animal number
thresholds and
Meet at least one of the two “discharge criteria”
from the production areas (not the land
application areas)
These are the CAFOs that probably need to
apply for an NPDES permit to the WVDEP if
they discharge or propose to discharge
pollutants.
Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations points and definitions
•
You are a Medium CAFO if you:
–
–
–
•
Meet the definition of an AFO and
Fall within the medium CAFO animal number
ranges and
Meet at least one of the two “discharge criteria”
from the production areas (not the land
application areas)
These are the CAFOs that probably need to
apply for an NPDES permit to the WVDEP if
they discharge or propose to discharge
pollutants.
Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations points and definitions
•
If it is determined that an AFO is a significant
contributor of pollutants to waters of WV,
that AFO can be DESIGNATED as a CAFO
and subject to obtaining permit coverage,
even if you don’t meet the statutory
definitions of a large or medium CAFO.
Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations points and definitions
• A CAFO proposes to discharge if it is
designed, constructed, operated, or
maintained such that a discharge will
occur.
Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations points and definitions
• The largest component of a WV/NPDES
Permit for CAFOs is the required
Nutrient Management Plan. The CAFO
rules also go into great detail about the
development of the nutrient land
application rates. The NMPs are part of
the draft permits and subject to
examination by the public.
QUESTIONS