Revised CAFO rules
By James D. Ritchie
With the feds giving states plenty of flexibility to interpret and enforce new rules for confined animal feeding operations, many producers wonÕt need new permits.
After 2 years of proposals and more than 11,000 comments, the Environmental Protection Agency delivered revised water quality rules for confined animal feeding operations (CAFO).
The new rules are less stringent than many people expected. For example, aside from a few changes, the sizes of operations which automatically require permits remain the same.
| Proposed rules |
Final rules |
| Regulate operations down to either 300 or 500 AU. |
No change in size limits, except for minor revisions. |
| Swine and poultry must insure "zero discharge," which might have required lagoon covers. |
No lagoon covers. New rules leave design standards for existing lagoons unchanged. |
| Dairy and beef operations must install monitoring wells. |
No groundwater monitoring required. |
| Increased monitoring of manure storage, including daily inspection of water lines and weekly records of manure levels. |
Adopted as proposed. |
| Manure application based on nitrogen and phosphorus assessment. Phosphorus limited to annual crop use. |
Phosphorus loss potential must be included in land application of manure. But phosphorus banking allowed. |
| More record-keeping for manure applied to your farm and manure sold or given away. |
Increased records of manure applied to your farm. Some changes in reporting for manure sold or given away. |
| Revised rules would be implemented within 90 days of adoption for existing operations. |
Implementation will be the earlier of your current permit expiration date or Dec. 31, 2006. |
You may recall that the EPA proposed to regulate smaller operations--300 or 500 animal units. We reported on the proposed rules in "Guess What Hit the Fan," in our June/July 2001 issue.
The revised rules change the NPDES (National Pollution Discharge Elimination System) permit requirements for some operations. For example, the standard reduces the number of pigs less than 55 pounds from 15,000 to 10,000.
"With few exceptions, if your operation in Missouri does not now require a permit, you won't need one under the revised CAFO rules," said John Lory, University of Missouri nutrient management specialist. "For the most part, EPA has allowed states a great deal of flexibility in interpreting and implementing the rule changes."
States are given considerable latitude, and standards may vary from state to state. However, state rules can be more comprehensive than national regulations. For instance, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources has regulated large dry-litter poultry operations. EPA did not, but will under the revised rules.
Here are other departures from rule changes proposed earlier:
"The phosphorus rule may be the most costly change for some CAFO operators," said Ray Massey, University of Missouri crops and swine economist. "That rule may require a CAFO operator to control more land or haul manure greater distances."
The cost of implementing a phosphorus rule will not be as great as initially expected, Massey noted. EPA has given states the flexibility to design appropriate phosphorus standards. Using sound science and best management practices should permit profitable production while reducing the chance of phosphorus leaving a field and entering a stream.
The revised rules also indirectly require that all permitted facilities must draft and follow a nutrient management plan. EPA does not require a comprehensive nutrient management plan (CNMP) nor that a certified planner develop or approve a plan, but does recommend that all operations voluntarily obtain a CNMP. For most permitted Missouri operations, the revised rules require the following:
- Annual manure testing and soil tests for phosphorus every 5 years;
- Evaluation of the potential phosphorus loss from every field;
- Appropriate "setback" distances from streams, wells and terrace risers;
- Field-by-field records, including crop yields and manure application rate; daily rainfall; nitrogen and phosphorus applied from all sources; method used to determine manure application rate; dates of manure application and record of equipment inspection.
"Nutrient management plans can be expensive," said Massey. "A plan is good for 5 years and may cost up to $1,000 or more to make."
And that doesn't include the cost of frequent tests of manure and soil.
Remember, any size animal feeding operation may be designated a CAFO if it threatens water quality to the point that a permit is required. But as things stand now, if you currently need and have an NPDES permit, you'll continue to need a permit.
And for Missouri producers, if you do not now need a permit, you probably won't need one under the revised CAFO rules, unless your operation changes.
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