Alabama Administrative Code › Title 335 - ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT › LAND DIVISION - SOLID WASTE PROGRAM › Chapter 335-13-14 - COMPOSTING FACILITIES › Section 335-13-14-.05 - Design Criteria

Current through Register Vol. 42, No. 9, June 28, 2024
(1)
				Specifications for site preparation measures including, but not limited to
				clearing and grubbing, stormwater control structures, leachate collection
				systems, access roads, screening, fencing, buildings, and compost pads, must be
				included in the engineering design report developed for the site.
(2) A composting facility shall not be
				located in the 100-year floodplain.
(3) A composting facility shall not cause a
				discharge of pollutants into waters of the State, including wetlands, that is
				in violation of the requirements of the National Pollutant Discharge
				Elimination System (NPDES), Alabama Water Pollution Control Act,
Code of Ala. 1975
, §§
									22-22-1 to
				22-22-14 and/or section 404 of the
				Clean Water Act, as amended.
(4) A
				composting facility shall not cause non-point source pollution of waters of the
				State, including wetlands, that violates any requirements of an area wide and
				State-wide water quality management plan that has been approved under the
				Alabama Water Pollution Control Act.
(5) A composting facility shall not be
				permissible in wetlands, beaches or dunes.
(6) A composting facility shall be located
				outside the boundaries of the coastal area, unless no other reasonable
				alternative is available. If a site within the coastal area is proposed for
				development as a composting facility, it shall be demonstrated to the
				satisfaction of the Department that siting, design, construction, and operation
				will ensure that present levels of coastal plants and animals will be
				maintained.
(7) The applicant shall
				design the facility so that the bottom elevation of the composting facility
				shall be a minimum of five (5) feet above the highest measured groundwater
				level, as determined by a minimum of two measurements taken during each of the
				three consecutive months of February, March and April with no two measurements
				taken within any twelve-day period. If the measurements are taken outside of
				February, March and April, the minimum bottom elevation of the composting
				facility shall be ten (10) feet above the highest measured groundwater level.
				The applicant shall submit to the Department all data known to exist concerning
				groundwater elevations at the proposed site and shall submit to the Department
				a location map showing all monitoring wells or piezometers and drilling logs
				for all monitoring wells or piezometers used to obtain any groundwater
				elevation data that is submitted. Nothing herein shall prevent the Department
				from requiring additional groundwater measurements or from requiring an
				additional buffer as it may deem appropriate with respect to a particular
				site.
(8) A composting pad, as
				defined by rule
				335-13-14-.02, shall be provided
				for the receiving and storage areas, and the processing and curing areas. The
				surface shall be constructed of asphalt, concrete or compacted soil. If a
				compacted soil surface is utilized, the minimum requirement will be 24 inches
				of soil with a permeability of 1×10-7 cm/sec.
				A pad is not required for the storage of finished compost product.
(9) The raw material receiving and storage
				areas shall be covered in a manner to minimize exposure of the material to the
				elements.
(10) A stormwater control
				system shall be constructed to control at least the water volume from a
				24-hour, 25-year storm. Stormwater or other water that comes in contact with
				the solid waste received, being stored, processed or composted, or which mixes
				with leachate shall be considered leachate.
(11) The composting facility shall have a
				leachate collection and removal system designed to collect and remove leachate
				from the waste receiving and storage areas and the processing area.
(12) Buffer zones around the perimeter of the
				composting facility shall be a minimum of 100 feet measured in the horizontal
				plane. No composting, storage practices, stormwater controls or leachate
				collection shall take place in the buffer zone.
Authors:
Phillip D. Davis, S. Scott
					 Story
Statutory Authority:
Code of Ala.
					 1975
, §§
											22-27-9,
					 22-27-12.