California Code of Regulations › Title 14 - Natural Resources › Division 7 - Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery › Chapter 3.2 - In-Vessel Digestion Operations and Facilities Regulatory Requirements › Article 1 - In-Vessel Digestion Operations and Facilities Regulatory Requirements › Section 17896.2 - Definitions

Current through Register 2024 Notice Reg. No. 28, July 12, 2024
(a) For the
				  purposes of this Chapter:
(1) "Agricultural
				  Material" means waste material of plant or animal origin, which results
				  directly from the conduct of agriculture, animal husbandry, horticulture,
				  aquaculture, vermiculture, viticulture and similar activities undertaken for
				  the production of food or fiber for human or animal consumption or use, which
				  is separated at the point of generation, and which contains no other solid
				  waste. With the exception of grape pomace, agricultural material has not been
				  processed except at its point of generation and has not been processed in a way
				  that alters its essential character as a waste resulting from the production of
				  food or fiber for human or animal consumption or use. Material that is defined
				  in this section
				  17852 as "food material" or
				  "vegetative food material" is not agricultural material. Agricultural material
				  includes, but is not limited to, manures, orchard and vineyard prunings, grape
				  pomace, and crop residues.
(2)
				  "Agricultural Site" means activities located on land that is zoned for
				  agricultural uses.
(3) "Biogas" is
				  a gas resulting from the operation of an in-vessel digester at an in-vessel
				  digestion operation or facility that is composed primarily of carbon dioxide,
				  hydrogen, and methane.
(4)
				  "Compost" means the product resulting from the controlled biological
				  decomposition of organic solid wastes that are source separated from the
				  municipal solid waste stream, or which are separated at a centralized
				  facility.
(5) "Contact Water" means
				  water that has come in contact with waste and may include leachate.
(6) "Digestate" means the solid and/or liquid
				  residual material remaining after organic material has been processed in an
				  in-vessel digester.
(7) "Digestion"
				  means, pursuant to PRC 40116.1, the controlled biological decomposition, of
				  organic solid wastes. Digestion includes:
(A)
				  Aerobic digestion - the controlled biological decomposition of organic material
				  in the presence of oxygen.
(B)
				  Anaerobic digestion - the controlled biological decomposition of organic
				  material in the absence of oxygen or in an oxygen-starved environment.
				  Anaerobic digestion produces biogas and a residual digestate.
(C) Other controlled biological decomposition
				  processes.
(8) "Dairy
				  In-vessel Digestion Operation" means, except as otherwise specified in section
				  17896.6(a)(3), a
				  dairy that receives imported solid waste feedstock for purposes of
				  co-digestion, with manure in an in-vessel digester, in accordance with Waste
				  Discharge Requirements issued by a Regional Water Quality Control Board. The
				  Dairy In-vessel Digestion Operation may also co-digest agricultural
				  material.
(9) "Distribution Center
				  In-vessel Digestion Operation" means a site that receives, for the purpose of
				  digestion in an in-vessel digester, unsold products from retail stores to which
				  the products were originally sent. All unsold products shall be collected and
				  processed in covered, leak-proof containers, and remain in the custody of the
				  owner at all times. All unsold products that are putrescible shall be
				  refrigerated at the retail store and shall be maintained at a core temperature
				  of 13 degrees Celsius (55 degrees Fahrenheit) or less during transport to the
				  operation.
(10) "EA" means
				  enforcement agency as defined in PRC section
				  40130.
(11) "Film plastic" means sheet plastic 10
				  mil or less in thickness.
(12)
				  "Food Material" means a waste material of plant or animal origin that results
				  from the preparation or processing of food for animal or human consumption and
				  that is separated from the municipal solid waste stream. Food material
				  includes, but is not limited to, food waste from food facilities as defined in
				  Health and Safety Code section
				  113789 (such as
				  restaurants), food processing establishments
				  as defined in Health and Safety Code section
				  111955,
				  grocery stores, institutional cafeterias (such as prisons, schools and
				  hospitals), and residential food scrap collection. Food material does not
				  include any material that is required to be handled only pursuant to the
				  California Food and Agricultural Code and regulations adopted pursuant thereto.
(A) "Vegetative Food Material" means that
				  fraction of food material, defined above, that is a plant material and is
				  separated from other food material and the municipal solid waste stream.
				  Vegetative food material may be processed or cooked but must otherwise retain
				  its essential natural character and no salts, preservatives, fats or oils, or
				  adulterants shall have been added. Vegetative food material includes, but is
				  not limited to, fruits and vegetables, edible flowers and plants, outdated and
				  spoiled produce, and coffee grounds. Vegetative food material contains no
				  greater than 1.0 of percent physical contaminants by dry weight, and meets the
				  requirements of section
				  17896.61.
(13) "Hazardous Wastes" means any waste which
				  meets the definitions set forth in Title 22, section
				  66261.3, et seq.
(14) "In-vessel Digester" means the sealed
				  container(s) or sealed structure in which the entire digestion process
				  occurs.
(15) "Large Volume
				  In-vessel Digestion Facility" means a facility that receives an average greater
				  than 100 tons of solid waste per operating day or greater than 700 tons (2,800
				  cubic yards) per week of solid waste for digestion in an in-vessel
				  digester.
(16) "Limited Volume
				  In-vessel Digestion Operation" means an operation that receives less than an
				  average of 15 tons (or 60 cubic yards) of solid waste per operating day but
				  shall not exceed 105 tons (or 420 cubic yards) per week of solid waste for
				  digestion in an in-vessel digester. Additionally, the operation shall not
				  exceed solid waste storage capacity limitations of the general design of the
				  operation.
(17) "Litter" means all
				  solid waste which has been improperly discarded or which has migrated by wind
				  or equipment away from the operations area. Litter includes, but is not limited
				  to, convenience food, beverage, and other product packages or containers
				  constructed of steel, aluminum, glass, paper, plastic, and other natural and
				  synthetic materials, thrown or deposited on the lands and waters of the
				  state.
(18) "Manure" is an
				  agricultural material and means accumulated herbivore or avian excrement. This
				  definition shall include feces and urine, and any bedding material, spilled
				  feed, or soil that is mixed with feces or urine.
(19) "Medium Volume In-vessel Digestion
				  Facility" means a facility that receives an average of between 15 tons (or 60
				  cubic yards) and 100 tons of solid waste per operating day but shall not exceed
				  700 tons (or 2,800 cubic yards) per week of solid waste for digestion in an
				  in-vessel digester. Additionally, the facility shall not exceed solid waste
				  storage capacity limitations of the general design of the facility.
(20) "Nuisance" includes anything which:
(A) is injurious to human health or is
				  indecent or offensive to the senses and interferes with the comfortable
				  enjoyment of life or property, and
(B) affects at the same time an entire
				  community, neighborhood or any considerable number of persons. The extent of
				  annoyance or damage inflicted upon an individual may be
				  unequal.
(21) "On-site"
				  means located within the boundary of the operation or facility.
(22) "Operating Day" means the daily hours of
				  operation for a facility or operation as set forth in the application,
				  Enforcement Agency Notification or solid waste facilities permit.
(23) "Operating Record" means an easily
				  accessible collection of records of an operation's or facility's activities and
				  compliance with required state minimum standards under Title 14. The Record may
				  include the In-vessel Digestion Facility Plan or In-vessel Digestion Report for
				  facilities, and shall contain but is not limited to containing: agency
				  approvals, tonnage and load checking records, facility contacts and training
				  history. The record may be reviewed by state and local authorities and shall be
				  available during normal business hours. If records are too voluminous to place
				  in the main operating record or if the integrity of the records could be
				  compromised by on-site storage, such as exposure to weather, they may be
				  maintained at an alternative site, as long as that site is easily accessible to
				  the EA.
(24) "Operations Area"
				  means:
(A) the following areas within the
				  boundary of an operation or facility as described in the permit application or
				  Enforcement Agency Notification:
1. equipment
				  management area, including cleaning, maintenance, and storage areas;
				  and
2. material and/or solid waste
				  management area, including unloading, handling, transfer, processing, and
				  storage areas.
(B) the
				  boundary of the operations area is the same as the permitted boundary of the
				  operation or facility but may or may not be the same as the property boundary
				  on which the operation or facility is located.
(25) "Operator" means the owner, or other
				  person who through a lease, franchise agreement or other arrangement with the
				  owner, that is listed in the permit application or Enforcement Agency
				  Notification and is legally responsible for all of the following:
(A) complying with regulatory requirements
				  set forth in these Articles;
(B)
				  complying with all applicable federal, state and local requirements;
(C) the design, construction, and physical
				  operation of the operations area;
(D) controlling the activities at an
				  operation or facility as listed on the permit application or Enforcement Agency
				  Notification.
(26)
				  "Owner" means the person or persons who own, in whole or in part, an operation
				  or facility and the land on which it is located. If the ownership of the
				  operation or facility is not the same as the ownership of the land on which it
				  is located, the owner of the land shall be identified as the "Land Owner" and
				  the owner of the operation or facility shall be identified as the "Facility
				  Owner."
(27) "Physical
				  Contamination" or "Contaminants" means human-made inert material contained
				  within compostable material, digestate, or compost, including, but not limited
				  to, glass, metal, and plastic.
(28)
				  "Putrescible Wastes" include wastes that are capable of being decomposed by
				  micro-organisms with sufficient rapidity as to cause nuisances because of
				  odors, vectors, gases or other offensive conditions, and include materials such
				  as, but not limited to food wastes, offal and dead animals. The EA shall
				  determine on a case-by-case basis whether or not a site is handling putrescible
				  wastes.
(29) "Rendering" means all
				  recycling, processing, and conversion of animal and fish materials and
				  carcasses and inedible kitchen grease into fats, oils, proteins, and other
				  products that are used in the animal, poultry, and pet food industries and
				  other industries, as defined in Food and Agricultural Code section
				  19213.
(30) "Salvaging" means the controlled
				  separation of solid waste material which do not require further processing, for
				  reuse or recycling prior to in-vessel digestion activities.
(31) "Scavenging" means the uncontrolled
				  and/or unauthorized removal of solid waste materials.
(32) "Sealed Container" means a tank, vessel,
				  or similar apparatus capable of containing liquids and air-borne emissions
				  during the entire digestion process to control odors or other nuisance
				  conditions.
(33) "Sealed Structure"
				  means a fully enclosed building capable of containing liquids and controlling
				  air-borne emissions (e.g., negative air pressure) that could contribute to
				  odors or other nuisance conditions.
(34) "Special Waste" includes but is not
				  limited to:
(A) waste requiring special
				  collection, treatment, handling, storage, or transfer techniques as defined in
				  Title 22, section
				  66260.10.
(B) waste tires and appliances requiring the
				  removal of mercury switches or chlorofluorocarbons.
(35) "Spotter" means an employee who conducts
				  activities that include, but are not limited to, traffic control, hazardous
				  waste recognition and removal for proper handling, storage and transport or
				  disposal, and protection of the public from health and/or safety
				  hazards.
(36) "Store" means to
				  stockpile or accumulate for later use.