La. Admin. Code tit. 33 § IX-7313

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024

Section IX-7313 - Standard Conditions Applicable to All Sewage Sludge and Biosolids Use or Disposal Permits

A. General Conditions

1. Incorporation of Provisions. In accordance with the provisions of this Chapter all sewage sludge and biosolids use or disposal permits shall incorporate either expressly or by reference all conditions and requirements applicable to the preparation and use or disposal of sewage sludge set forth in the Louisiana Environmental Quality Act, as amended, as well as all applicable regulations.

2. Duty to Comply. The permittee must comply with all conditions of an issued final permit. Any permit noncompliance constitutes a violation of the Louisiana Environmental Quality Act and is grounds for enforcement action; for permit termination, revocation and reissuance, or modification; or for denial of a permit renewal application.

3. Enforcement Actions

a. The department may take enforcement action as prescribed by state law or regulation against any person who:

i. fails to submit a permit application as required by law;

ii. knowingly makes any false statement, representation, or certification in any application, record, report, or other document filed with the department pursuant to the Act or these regulations. Violations of this provision may subject the violator to the penalties provided for in the Act for perjury or false statements;

iii. fails to correct deficiencies in the permit application, or upon becoming aware that any relevant facts or information were omitted in a permit application or in any report to the department, fails to promptly submit such facts or information;

iv. fails to take any necessary action to complete the permit issuance, such as payment of fees or publication of required notices; or

v. fails to comply with any condition of the permit.

b. In cases where an application for a sewage sludge and biosolids use or disposal permit is withdrawn by the applicant, a written notification shall be provided to the Office of Environmental Services stating that no sewage sludge use or disposal practice or other activity that would require a permit from the Office of Environmental Services is currently taking place. Provided that the application was not made in response to previous enforcement action, the applicant is then exempt from enforcement action for causes listed under this Paragraph.

4. Toxic Pollutants

a. If any sewage sludge use or disposal standard or prohibition is promulgated under this Chapter or Section 405 of the Clean Water Act for a pathogen or pollutant, or concerning vector attraction reduction, management practices, etc., and that standard or prohibition is more stringent than any applicable requirement in an existing permit, the administrative authority shall institute proceedings under these regulations to modify or revoke and reissue the permit to conform to the sewage sludge use or disposal standard or prohibition.

b. The permittee shall comply with sewage sludge use or disposal standards or prohibitions established under this Chapter within the time frame provided in the regulations that establish these standards or prohibitions, even if the permit has not been modified to incorporate the requirement.

5. Duty to Reapply for an Individual Permit. If the permittee wishes to continue an activity regulated by an existing permit after the expiration date of that permit, the permittee must apply for and obtain a new permit. The new application shall be submitted at least 180 days before the expiration date of the existing permit, unless permission for a later date has been granted by the administrative authority. (The administrative authority shall not grant permission for applications to be submitted later than the expiration date of the existing permit.) A permit that was issued in accordance with these regulations and that has expired shall be administratively continued until such time as a decision on an application to continue an activity under the permit has been issued by the administrative authority, if the application was received by the department at least 180 days prior to the permit expiration.

6. Permit Action. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:IX.2903, 2905, 2907, 3105, and 6509 as causes for modification, revocation and reissuance, and termination of a permit shall apply to permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

7. Property Rights. The issuance of a permit does not convey any property rights of any sort, or any exclusive privilege.

8. Duty to Provide Information. The permittee shall furnish to the administrative authority, within a reasonable time, any information that the administrative authority requests to determine whether cause exists for modifying, revoking and reissuing, or terminating the permit, or to determine compliance with the permit. The permittee shall also furnish to the administrative authority, upon request, copies of records required to be kept by the permit.

9. State Laws. Nothing in the permit shall be construed to preclude the institution of any legal action, or to relieve the permittee from any responsibilities, liabilities, or penalties established pursuant to any applicable state law or regulation.

10. Severability. If any provision of these regulations, or the application thereof, is held to be invalid, the remaining provisions of these regulations shall not be affected, so long as they can be given effect without the invalid provision. To this end, the provisions of these regulations are declared to be severable.

11. Draft Permits. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:IX.3107 for draft permits shall also pertain to permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

12. Fact Sheet. A fact sheet shall be prepared for each draft permit issued in accordance with these regulations. The contents of the fact sheet shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

a. the name of the applicant;

b. the name of the facility;

c. the address of the facility;

d. the physical location of all facilities that are utilized to prepare sewage sludge or biosolids;

e. the physical location of all land application sites;

f. general and management practices;

g. soil and site restrictions;

h. monitoring, sampling and analysis, and reporting requirements; and

i. all other information that is pertinent to the facility and to the permitting process.

13. Public Notice of Permit Actions and Public Comment Period. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:IX.3113 and 6521 for public notices and the public comment period shall apply to all permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

14. Public Comments and Requests for Public Hearings. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:I.1505 and IX.3115 for public comments and requests for public hearings shall apply to all permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

15. Public Hearings. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:IX.3117 for public hearings shall apply to all permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

16. Obligations to Raise Issues and Provide Information during the Public Comment Period. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:IX.3119 for the obligations to raise issues and provide information during the public comment period shall apply to all permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

17. Reopening of the Public Comment Period. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:IX.3121 for reopening of the public comment period shall apply to all permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

18. Issuance of a Final Permit Decision. After the close of the public comment period under Paragraph A.13 of this Section for a draft permit, the administrative authority shall issue a final permit decision. The administrative authority shall notify the applicant and each person who has submitted written comments or requested notice of the final permit decision. This notice shall include reference to the procedures for appealing a decision on a sewage sludge and biosolids use or disposal permit. For the purposes of this Section a final permit decision means a final decision to issue, deny, modify, revoke and reissue, or terminate a permit.

19. Response to Comments. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:IX.3125 for responding to comments shall apply to all permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

B. Proper Operation and Maintenance

1. Need to Halt or Reduce Not a Defense. It shall not be a defense for a permittee in an enforcement action that it would have been necessary to halt or reduce the permitted activity in order to maintain compliance with the conditions of the permit.

2. Duty to Mitigate. The permittee shall take all reasonable steps to minimize or prevent any sewage sludge use or disposal practice in violation of the permit that has a reasonable likelihood of adversely affecting human health or the environment. The permittee shall also take all reasonable steps to minimize or correct any adverse impact on the environment resulting from noncompliance with the permit, including putting into effect such accelerated or additional monitoring as is necessary to determine the nature and impact of the noncomplying practice.

3. Proper Operation and Maintenance

a. The permittee shall at all times properly operate and maintain all facilities and systems of treatment and control (and related appurtenances) that are installed or used by the permittee to achieve compliance with the conditions of the permit. Proper operation and maintenance also includes employing adequate laboratory controls and appropriate quality assurance procedures. This provision requires the operation of back-up or auxiliary facilities or similar systems that are installed by a permittee only when the operation is necessary to achieve compliance with the conditions of the permit.

b. The permittee shall provide an adequate operating staff that is duly qualified to carry out operation and maintenance and other functions necessary to ensure compliance with the conditions of the permit.

C. Monitoring and Records

1. Inspection and Entry. The conditions set forth in LAC 33:IX.2701.I for inspection and entry shall apply to all permits issued in accordance with these regulations.

2. Additional Monitoring by the Permittee. If the permittee monitors any pollutant more frequently than required by the permit using test procedures approved under LAC 33:IX.7301.I or, unless otherwise specified in 40 CFR Part 503, as specified in the permit, the results of this monitoring shall be included in the calculation and reporting of the data submitted on the sludge reporting form specified by the administrative authority.

3. Laboratory Accreditation

a. LAC 33:I.Chapters 45-59 provide requirements for an accreditation program specifically applicable to commercial laboratories, wherever located, that provide chemical analyses, analytical results, or other test data to the department, by contract or by agreement, and the data is:

i. submitted on behalf of any facility, as defined in R.S. 30:2004;

ii. required as part of any permit application;

iii. required by order of the department;

iv. required to be included on any monitoring report submitted to the department;

v. required to be submitted by a contractor; or

vi. otherwise required by department regulations.

b. The department laboratory accreditation program is designed to ensure the accuracy, precision, and reliability of the data generated, as well as the use of department-approved methodologies in generation of that data. Laboratory data generated by commercial environmental laboratories that are not accredited under these regulations will not be accepted by the department. Retesting and re-analyses by an accredited commercial laboratory will be required. Where retesting is not possible, the data generated will be considered invalid and in violation of the sewage sludge and biosolids use or disposal permit.

c. The regulations and guidelines on the environmental laboratory accreditation program and a list of laboratories that have applied for accreditation are available on the departments website. Questions concerning the program may be directed to the Office of Environmental Assessment.

D. Reporting Requirements

1. Facility Changes. The permittee shall give notice to the Office of Environmental Services as soon as possible of any planned physical alterations or additions to the permitted facility.

2. Anticipated Noncompliance. The permittee shall give advance notice to the Office of Environmental Services of any planned changes in the permitted facility or activity that may result in noncompliance with permit requirements.

3. Transfers. A permit is not transferable to any person except after notice to the Office of Environmental Services. The administrative authority may require modification or revocation and reissuance of the permit to change the name of the permittee and incorporate such other requirements as may be necessary under the Louisiana Environmental Quality Act. Except as provided in LAC 33:IX.2901.A, a permit may be transferred by the permittee to a new owner or operator only if the permit has been modified or revoked and reissued, or a minor modification made to identify the new permittee and incorporate such other requirements as may be necessary under the Louisiana Environmental Quality Act.

4. Compliance Schedules. Reports of compliance or noncompliance with, or any progress reports on, interim and final requirements contained in any compliance schedule of a permit shall be submitted no later than 14 days following each schedule date.

5. Other Noncompliance. The permittee shall report all instances of noncompliance not reported under Paragraph D.4 of this Section at the time monitoring reports are submitted.

6. Other Information. Where the permittee becomes aware that it failed to submit any relevant facts in a permit application, or submitted incorrect information in a permit application or in any report to the administrative authority, it shall promptly submit the omitted facts or correct information.

7. Signatory Requirements. All applications, reports, or information submitted to the administrative authority shall be signed and certified.

a. All permit applications shall be signed as follows:

i. for a corporation-by a responsible corporate officer. For the purposes of this Section, a responsible corporate officer means:

(a). a president, secretary, treasurer, or vice-president of the corporation in charge of a principal business function, or any other person who performs similar policy or decision-making functions for the corporation. These responsible corporate officers are presumed to have the authority to sign permit applications unless the corporation has notified the administrative authority to the contrary; or

(b). the manager of one or more manufacturing, production, or operating facilities, provided that the manager is authorized to make management decisions that govern the operation of the regulated facility, including having the explicit or implicit duty of making major capital investment recommendations and initiating and directing other comprehensive measures to ensure long term compliance with environmental laws and regulations; the manager has the authority to ensure that the necessary systems are established or actions are taken to gather complete and accurate information for permit application requirements; and the authority to sign documents has been assigned or delegated to the manager in accordance with corporate procedures. Corporate procedures governing authority to sign permit applications may provide for assignment or delegation to applicable corporate positions rather than to specific individuals;

ii. for a partnership or sole proprietorship-by a general partner or the proprietor, respectively; or

iii. for a municipality or a state, federal, or other public agency-by either a principal executive officer or ranking elected official. For purposes of this Paragraph, a principal executive officer of a federal agency includes:

(a). the chief executive officer of the agency; or

(b). a senior executive officer having responsibility for the overall operations of a principal geographic unit of the agency (e.g., a regional administrator of EPA).

b. All reports required by permits, and submission of other information requested by the administrative authority, shall be signed by a person described in Subparagraph D.7.a of this Section, or by a duly authorized representative of that person. For the purposes of this Subparagraph, a person is a duly authorized representative only if:

i. his or her authorization has been made in writing by a person described in Subparagraph D.7.a of this Section;

ii. the authorization specifies either an individual or a position now having responsibility for the overall operation of the regulated facility or activity, such as the position of plant manager, operator of a well or a well field, superintendent, or a position of equivalent responsibility, or an individual or position having overall responsibility for environmental matters for the company. A duly authorized representative may thus be either a named individual or an individual occupying a named position; and

iii. the written authorization is submitted to the administrative authority.

c. Changes to Authorization. If an authorization under Subparagraph D.7.b of this Section is no longer accurate because a different individual or position now has responsibility for the overall operation of the facility, a new authorization satisfying the requirements of Subparagraph D.7.b of this Section must be submitted to the administrative authority prior to, or together with, any reports, information, or applications to be signed by an authorized representative.

d. Certification. Any person signing a document under the provisions of Subparagraph D.7.a or b of this Section shall make the following certification.

"I certify under penalty of law that this document and all attachments were prepared under my direction or supervision in accordance with a system designed to assure that qualified personnel properly gather and evaluate the information submitted. Based on my inquiry of the person or persons who manage the system or those persons directly responsible for gathering the information, the information is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, true, accurate, and complete. I am aware that there are significant penalties for submitting false information, including the possibility of fine and imprisonment for knowing violations."

8. Availability of Reports. All recorded information concerning permits and permit applications under this Chapter (completed permit application forms, fact sheets, draft permits, or any public document) not classified as confidential information under R.S. 30:2030(A) and 2074(D) and designated as such in accordance with LAC 33:IX.2323.A and C and LAC 33:IX.6503 shall be made available to the public for inspection and copying during normal working hours in accordance with the Public Records Act, R.S. 44:1 et seq. Claims of confidentiality for the following will be denied:

a. the name and address of any permit applicant or permittee;

b. permit applications, permits, and effluent data; and

c. information required by the sewage sludge and biosolids use or disposal permit application forms provided by the administrative authority. This includes information submitted on the forms themselves and any attachments used to supply information required by the forms.

La. Admin. Code tit. 33, § IX-7313

Promulgated by the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of the Secretary, Legal Affairs Division, LR 33:2406 (November 2007), amended LR 35:941 (May 2009), amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Division, LR 38:2760 (November 2012), Amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Affairs and Criminal Investigations Division, LR 432143 (11/1/2017).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2074(B)(1)(c) and (B)(3)(e).