Texas Administrative Code › Title 30 - ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY › Part 1 - TEXAS COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY › Chapter 321 - CONTROL OF CERTAIN ACTIVITIES BY RULE › Subchapter B - CONCENTRATED ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONS › Section 321.34 - Permit Applications

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a) Any
				  operator of an animal feeding operation (AFO) who is required to operate under
				  an individual water quality permit by the Texas Water Code, the executive
				  director, or this subchapter shall submit an application in accordance with
				  Chapter 281 of this title (relating to Applications Processing) and Chapter 305
				  of this title (relating to Consolidated Permits). The applicant shall provide
				  such additional information in support of the application as may be necessary
				  for the executive director to carry out an adequate administrative and
				  technical review of the application.
(b) Applicants shall comply with §§
										305.41,
				  305.43,
				  305.44,
				  and
				  305.47
				  of this title (relating to Applicability; Who Applies; Signatories to
				  Applications; and Retention of Application Data) and §
										1.5(d)
				  of this title (relating to Records of the Agency). Except as provided in
				  subsection (c) of this section, §§
										305.61-
				  305.68
				  of this title (relating to Applicability; Amendments; Renewal; Transfer of
				  Permits; Permit Denial, Suspension, and Revocation; Revocation and Suspension
				  upon Request or Consent; and Action and Notice on Petition for Revocation or
				  Suspension) apply to applications for water quality permits. Notice, public
				  comment, and contested case hearings on applications shall be conducted in
				  accordance with commission rules governing applicable individual water quality
				  permit applications.
(1) Any permittee with
				  an issued and effective individual water quality permit shall submit an
				  application for renewal of the permit in accordance with the requirements of
				  Chapter 281 and Chapter 305 of this title, or shall submit a notice of intent
				  (NOI) for a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) general permit in
				  accordance with the requirements of the CAFO general permit.
(2) If an individual water quality permit
				  application is submitted before the expiration date of the existing
				  authorization, the terms and conditions of the existing permit continues in
				  effect until final commission action on the permit application. An
				  authorization under the general permit will be renewed in accordance with the
				  requirements in the general permit and this subchapter.
(3) A CAFO owner or operator who submits an
				  NOI for a CAFO general permit authorization or is authorized under the CAFO
				  general permit shall comply with the public participation process detailed in
				  the CAFO general permit.
(4) The
				  executive director may renew an application for an individual water quality
				  permit for a state-only CAFO without a contested case hearing if the
				  application qualifies for the exception in Texas Water Code, §
											26.028(d)
				  or if the operation is not a major source as defined under Chapter 116 of this
				  title (relating to Control of Air Pollution by Permits for New Construction or
				  Modification). Renewal under this paragraph is allowed only if there has been
				  no related formal enforcement action against the facility during the last 36
				  months of the term of the individual water quality permit in which the
				  commission determined that:
(A) a violation
				  occurred that contributed to pollution of surface or groundwater, or an
				  unauthorized discharge occurred, or a violation of §
												101.4 of this
				  title (relating to Nuisance) occurred, or any violation of an applicable state
				  or federal air quality control requirement occurred;
(B) such discharge or air emission was within
				  the reasonable control of the permittee; and
(C) such discharge or air emission could have
				  been reasonably foreseen by the permittee.
(5) For any application for renewal within an
				  area specified in §
											321.32(19)
				  of this title (relating to Definitions), the executive director will conduct an
				  annual compliance inspection within 12 months of the date the executive
				  director declares the application administratively complete.