Compilation of Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia › Department 391 - RULES OF GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES › Chapter 391-3 - ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Subject 391-3-6 - WATER QUALITY CONTROL › Rule 391-3-6-.21 - Animal Feeding Operation Permit Requirements

Current through
				Rules and Regulations filed through June 27, 2024
(1)
Purpose.
The purpose of this paragraph
				  391-3-6-.21 is to provide for the
				  uniform procedures and practices to be followed relating to the application for
				  and the issuance or revocation of permits for animal feeding operations with
				  more than 300 Animal Units (AU). This paragraph only includes swine feeding
				  operations with more than 300 AU but equal to or less than 3000 AU. The
				  requirements for swine feeding operations with more than 3000 AU are at
				  paragraph
				  391-3-6-.20. Nothing in this
				  paragraph shall be construed to preclude the modification of any requirement of
				  this paragraph when the Division determines that the requirement is not
				  protective of the environment.
(2)
Definitions.
All terms used in this paragraph shall be interpreted in
				  accordance with the definitions as set forth in the Act unless otherwise
				  defined in this paragraph or in any other paragraph of these Rules:
(a) "Act" means the Georgia Water Quality
				Control Act, as amended.
(b)
				"Animal feeding operation," "operation," or "AFO" means a lot or facility
				(other than an aquatic animal production facility or swine feeding operation
				with more than 3000 AU) where animals have been, are, or will be stabled or
				confined and fed or maintained for a total of at least 45 days in any 12-month
				period, and the confinement areas do not sustain crops, vegetation, forage
				growth, or post-harvest residues in the normal growing season.
(c) "Animal Unit" (AU) is a unit of
				measurement for any AFO calculated by adding the following numbers: the number
				of slaughter and feeder cattle multiplied by 1.0, plus the number of mature
				dairy cattle multiplied by 1.4, plus the number of swine weighing over 25
				kilograms (approximately 55 pounds) multiplied by 0.4, plus the number of sheep
				multiplied by 0.1, plus the number of horses multiplied by 2.0.
(d) "Barn" means a structure where
				confinement feeding (feeding in limited quarters under a roof) occurs.
				Structures where confinement feeding does not occur are not considered "barns"
				for the purposes of this rule.
(e)
				"Certified operator" means any person who has been trained and certified by the
				Georgia Department of Agriculture and has direct general charge of the
				day-to-day field operation of an AFO waste storage and disposal system, and who
				is responsible for the quality of the treated waste.
(f) "Closure plan" means the plan approved by
				the Division for clean up and closure of the AFO and associated waste storage
				and disposal facilities.
(g)
				"Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation," or "CAFO," means an AFO which is
				defined as a Large CAFO or Medium CAFO by
				40 CFR
				122.23(4) and (6), or that
				is designated as a CAFO.
(h)
				"Existing" applies to that which existed prior to September 15, 2003. "Existing
				operation" means an AFO that was in operation prior to September 15,
				2003.
(i) "Freeboard" is the extra
				depth added to a waste storage lagoon or structure as a safety factor between
				the designed full depth and the overflow depth. This is the vertical distance
				below the lowest point of the lagoon or structure berm above which the liquid
				level must never rise except in the case of a storm event exceeding the design
				maximum precipitation event.
(j)
				"Natural Resources Conservation Service" (NRCS) is an agency within the United
				States Department of Agriculture.
(k) "New" applies to that which existed on or
				after September 15, 2003. "New or expanding operation" or "new AFO" means an
				AFO the construction or expansion of which is commenced on or after September
				15, 2003.
(l) "NRCS guidance" means
				the latest editions of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
				Agricultural Waste Management Field Handbook, Part 651, FOTG Section IV
				Georgia, and other applicable publications of the NRCS. A certified specialist
				or trained person may use NRCS guidance to develop or modify an NMP.
(m) "Nutrient Management Plan" (NMP) is a
				plan which identifies actions or priorities that will be followed to meet
				clearly defined nutrient management goals at an agricultural operation.
				Defining nutrient management goals and identifying measures and schedules for
				attaining the goals are critical to reducing threats to water quality and
				public health. The NMP should address activities related to compliance with
				effluent limitations and other permit requirements, including manure handling
				and storage, land application of manure and wastewater, site management, record
				keeping, and management of other utilization options. For an AFO with a liquid
				manure handling system, the NMP must be developed or modified by a "certified
				specialist" as defined by the Division. The Division will specify the
				requirements for certification. For an AFO that handles dry manure, the NMP
				must be developed by a person trained in the subject by an academic or trade
				organization. It should include emergency response planning and a closure plan
				for abandonment of any facility used for the treatment or storage of animal
				waste. The requirements for submittal and approval of the NMP are specified in
				the following paragraphs.
(n)
				"Owner" means any person owning any system for waste treatment and disposal at
				an AFO.
(o) "Permit" means a permit
				applied for and issued in accordance with the terms and conditions for
				paragraphs
				391-3-6-.06, Waste Treatment and
				Permit Requirements (individual NPDES permits), or
				391-3-6-.11, Land Disposal and
				Permit Requirements (non-NPDES individual land application system or "LAS"
				permit), or
				391-3-6-.15, Non-Storm Water General
				Permit Requirements (general NPDES permit), or
				391-3-6-.19, General Permit - Land
				Application System Requirements (non-NPDES general LAS permit), of this
				Chapter.
(p) "Wetted area" or
				"disposal area" is the land area where AFO waste is sprayed, spread,
				incorporated, or injected so that the waste can either condition the soil or
				fertilize crops or vegetation grown in the soil.
(q) "25-year, 24-hour storm event" is the
				maximum 24-hour precipitation event expressed in inches with a probable
				recurrence interval of once in 25 years, as defined by the National Weather
				Service of the United States Department of Commerce in Technical Paper Number
				40, "Rainfall Frequency Atlas of the United States," May 1961, and subsequent
				amendments.
(r) "100-year flood
				plain" is the land inundated from a flood whose peak magnitude would be
				experienced on an average of once every 100 years. The 100-year flood has a 1%
				probability of occurring in one given year.
(s) "300 AU" means three hundred animal
				units. Paragraph
				391-3-6-.21(2)(c)
				notwithstanding, the numbers of animals in any of the following categories are
				equivalent to 300 AU:
1. 200 mature dairy
				cows, whether milked or dry,
2. 300
				veal calves,
3. 750 swine each
				weighing 55 pounds or more.
4. 300
				cattle other than mature dairy cows or veal calves. Cattle includes but is not
				limited to heifers, steers, bulls, and cow/calf pairs,
5. 150 horses,
6. 3,000 sheep or lambs,
7. 16,500 turkeys,
8. 9,000 laying hens or broilers, if the AFO
				uses a liquid manure handling system,
9. 1,500 ducks, if the AFO uses a liquid
				manure handling system.
(t) "1000 AU" means one thousand animal
				units. Paragraph
				391-3-6-.21(2)(c)
				notwithstanding, the numbers of animals in any of the following categories are
				equivalent to 1000 AU:
1. 700 mature dairy
				cows, whether milked or dry,
2.
				1,000 veal calves,
3. 2,500 swine
				each weighing 55 pounds or more,
4.
				10,000 swine each weighing less than 55 pounds (immature swine or nursery
				pigs),
5. 1,000 cattle other than
				mature dairy cows or veal calves. Cattle includes but is not limited to
				heifers, steers, bulls, and cow/calf pairs,
6. 500 horses,
7. 10,000 sheep or lambs,
8. 55,000 turkeys,
9. 30,000 laying hens or broilers, if the AFO
				uses a liquid manure handling system,
10. 125,000 chickens or broilers (other than
				laying hens), if the AFO handles dry manure only,
11. 82,000 laying hens, if the AFO handles
				dry manure only,
12. 30,000 ducks,
				if the AFO handles dry manure only,
13. 5,000 ducks, if the AFO uses a liquid
				manure handling system.
(u) "3000 AU" means three thousand animal
				units. Paragraph
				391-3-6-.21(2)(c)
				notwithstanding, the numbers of swine in any of the following categories are
				equivalent to 3000 AU:
1. 7,500 swine each
				weighing 55 pounds or more,
2.
				30,000 swine each weighing less than 55 pounds (immature swine or nursery
				pigs).