2023 Oklahoma Statutes › Title 2. Agriculture › §2-20-12. Prevention of hydrologic connection between wastewaters and waters of state.

A. Any hydrologic connection between wastewater and waters of the state outside that authorized by the provisions of the Oklahoma Swine Feeding Operations Act shall constitute a discharge to waters of the state.
B. Except as otherwise provided by Section 20-20 of the Oklahoma Swine Feeding Operations Act, to prevent hydrologic connections between a retention structure and waters of the state, all swine feeding operations in this state primarily using a liquid swine waste management system whether or not such waste facilities are licensed pursuant to the Oklahoma Swine Feeding Operations Act shall:
1. Utilize a natural or geomembrane liner or other liner constructed of synthetic materials in any retention structure containing liquid swine waste; and
2. Provide documentation that there is no hydrologic connection between the waters of the state and the retention structure. This documentation shall be certified by an environmental, agricultural, or other approved professional engineer licensed pursuant to Section 475.12 of Title 59 of the Oklahoma Statutes or a United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service engineer and shall include information on the hydraulic conductivity and thickness of the natural materials underlying and forming the walls of the containment structure up to the maximum operating level.
C. Except as provided by Section 20-20 of the Oklahoma Swine Feeding Operations Act and subsection E of this section, all retention structures of licensed managed feeding operations shall maintain a minimum separation of ten (10) feet between the bottom of the retention structure and the maximum historical groundwater elevation that is measured from the bottom of the retention structure and the highest point of the seasonal groundwater table. Documentation of a ten-foot separation shall be established by submission of a soil log from a soil boring extending a minimum of ten (10) feet below the bottom of all retention structures to ascertain the presence of groundwater or bedrock and a statement from a professional engineer certifying the existence of the ten-foot separation distance.
D. The State Board of Agriculture shall establish standards for retention structures.
E. The Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry may allow a separation of less than ten (10) feet but in no event less than four (4) feet between the bottom of the retention structure and the maximum historical groundwater elevation. In determining the minimum separation to be required, the Department shall consider the following factors:
1. Soil type at the retention structure;
2. Soil tests per American Standards Testing Methods (ASTM) standards on all soils to be used as liner material;
3. Retention structure capacity;
4. Retention structure design;
5. Documentation of lack of hydrologic connection between the waters of the state and the retention structure;
6. Depth of retention structure;
7. Type and characteristics of liner to be used; and
8. Any other relevant information.
F. 1. Licensed managed feeding operations shall install and maintain in good working order a leak detection system or sufficient monitoring wells both upgradient and downgradient around the perimeter of each retention structure prior to using the retention structure for storage of liquid waste pursuant to rules promulgated by the State Board of Agriculture.
2.
a.
Samples of water shall be collected by the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry and submitted for testing at least annually. The analysis of the water samples shall be performed by a qualified environmental laboratory approved by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality or by the relevant certification agency for the state in which the laboratory is located and approved by the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry; and the cost shall be the responsibility of the owner of the licensed managed feeding operation.
b.
The frequency of sampling set forth in subparagraph a of this paragraph may be reduced to once every three (3) years for those monitoring wells which have been sampled for at least three (3) consecutive years and have always been found to be dry. However, if any subsequent sampling event indicates the monitoring well is no longer dry, that monitoring well shall be sampled pursuant to subparagraph a of this paragraph.
3. Documentation, sampling data, and any other records required by this section shall be maintained on site for the life of the facility.
4. Analysis from the sampling taken prior to the operation of the facility may be considered the baseline data and shall be retained on site for the life of the facility. If no sampling or other baseline data is available prior to the operation of the facility, the samples taken during the first year may be considered the baseline data and shall be retained on site for the life of the facility. Baseline data for the facility shall be determined based on the best information available.
5. The Oklahoma Water Resources Board shall promulgate rules providing for plugging of monitoring wells as appropriate.
G. Site-specific conditions shall be considered in the design and construction of liners. Liners for retention structures shall be designed and constructed in accordance with the provisions of this section and generally accepted engineering practices established by rules of the Board or as required by the federal Environmental Protection Agency. Liners for lagoons owned or operated by a swine feeding operation with less than one thousand (1,000) swine animal units may be designed and constructed pursuant to Technical Note 716 of the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service or its current equivalent so long as the facility is designed by the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service.
H. 1. When a liner is installed to prevent hydrologic connection, the licensee or the owner shall maintain the liner to inhibit infiltration of wastewaters. Documentation of liner maintenance shall be maintained at the facility.
2. An environmental, agricultural, or other approved professional engineer licensed pursuant to Section 475.12 of Title 59 of the Oklahoma Statutes shall conduct a site evaluation every five (5) years on the retention structure of every concentrated swine feeding operation with such a structure and annually on every licensed managed feeding operation to ensure liner integrity. If the owner or operator suspects that a retention structure is leaking, the owner or operator shall report suspected leakage to the Department.
3. The Department shall establish a compliance schedule for retrofitting liners of waste retention structures for licensed managed feeding operations constructed prior to August 1, 1998, that are located in nutrient-limited watersheds or nutrient-vulnerable groundwaters as designated by the Oklahoma Water Resources Board and do not have liners meeting the specifications established in this section.
I. All substances entering the retention structures shall be composed entirely of wastewaters from the proper operation and maintenance of a swine feeding operation and the runoff from the swine feeding operation area. The disposal of any materials, other than substances associated with proper operation and maintenance of the facility into the containment structures, including but not limited to human waste, is prohibited.
J. All new retention structures of licensed managed feeding operations shall be designed for odor abatement, groundwater protection, and nutrient conservation.
K. Documentation, sampling data, and any other records required by this section shall be maintained on site for as long as the facility is in operation. Samples collected during the first year of the retention structure may be considered the baseline data and shall be retained on site as long as the facility is in operation. Baseline data for the facility shall be determined based on the best information available.
Added by Laws 1997, c. 331, § 10, eff. Sept. 1, 1997. Amended by Laws 1998, c. 404, § 11, eff. Aug. 1, 1998. Renumbered from § 9-205.4 of this title by Laws 2005, c. 292, § 25, eff. July 1, 2005. Amended by Laws 2006, c. 148, § 1, emerg. eff. May 12, 2006; Laws 2007, c. 31, § 12, eff. Nov. 1, 2007.