Section 0400-40-06-.07 - ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONSIn addition to the general conditions identified in Rule 0400-40-06-.05, the following special conditions apply to permits authorizing the operation of wastewater systems for animal feeding operations:
(1) The permittee shall develop, submit, obtain the Commissioner's approval for, and keep on-site a current site-specific nutrient management plan consistent with the requirements of subparagraphs (10)(a) and (b) of Rule 0400-40-05-.14.(2) When the AFO owner or operator makes changes to the AFO's nutrient management plan previously submitted to the Commissioner:(a) The AFO owner or operator shall provide the Commissioner with the most current version of the AFO's nutrient management plan and identify changes from the previous version.(b) The Commissioner shall review the revised nutrient management plan to ensure that it meets the requirements of this paragraph and any applicable standards and shall determine whether the changes to the nutrient management plan include revisions to the terms of the nutrient management plan as set forth in subparagraph (10)(b) of Rule 0 40040-05-.14. The Commissioner shall advise the AFO owner or operator whether the changes meet the requirements of subparagraphs (10)(a) and (b) of Rule 0400-40-05.14 and applicable standards. Upon such notification, the AFO owner or operator shall either make further revisions to the nutrient management plan or implement the revised nutrient management plan.(c) Operational changes that require nutrient management plan revision, resubmittal, and Commissioner approval include: 1. The addition of confinement buildings, settling basins, lagoons, holding ponds, holding pits, or other agricultural waste containment/treatment structures or handling systems;2. The addition of new land application areas for AFOs, or the removal of existing land application areas for AFOs;3. A substantial increase in the amount of manure produced by the operation such that the current nutrient management plan does not adequately account for the increase;4. Utilization of alternative crops that were not mentioned in the previous nutrient management plan; and5. Increases in field-specific annual land application rates for a linear plan, or increases in the total amount of nitrogen and phosphorus for each crop for a narrative plan.(3) Permitted facilities placed into operation after April 13, 2006, must be designed, constructed, operated, and maintained in accordance with final design plans and specifications that meet or exceed standards in the USDA-NRCS Agricultural Waste Management Field Handbook (April 1992), the USDA-NRCS National Engineering Handbook (May 2014), or other defensible methodology approved by the Commissioner. At a minimum, such plans shall include the following: (a) Any new or additional confinement buildings, waste/wastewater handling systems, waste/wastewater transport structures, waste/wastewater treatment structures, settling basins, lagoons, holding ponds, sumps, pits, and other agricultural waste containment/treatment structures constructed after April 13, 2006, shall be located in accordance with USDA-NRCS Conservation Practice Standard 313 (August 2018).(b) Information to be used in the design of the open manure storage structure including, but not limited to, minimum storage for rainy seasons, minimum capacity for chronic rainfall events, the prohibition of land application to frozen, saturated, or snow-covered ground, the dewatering schedules set in the AFO's Nutrient Management Plan, additional storage capacity for any manure intended to be transferred to another recipient at a later time, and any other factors that would affect the sizing of the open manure storage structure.(c) The design of the open manure storage structure as determined by the most current version of USDA-NRCS's Animal Waste Management (AWM) software (Version 2.4). AFOs may use equivalent design software or procedures as approved in writing by the Commissioner.(d) All inputs used in the open manure storage structure design, including actual climate data for the previous 30 years consisting of historical average monthly precipitation and evaporation values, the number and types of animals, anticipated animal sizes or weights, any added water and bedding, any other process wastewater, and the size and condition of outside areas exposed to rainfall and contributing runoff to the open manure storage structure.(e) The planned minimum period of storage in months including, but not limited to, the factors for designing an open manure storage structure listed in subparagraph (b) of this paragraph. Alternatively, the AFO owner or operator may determine the minimum period of storage by specifying times the storage pond will be emptied consistent with the AFO's Nutrient Management Plan.(f) A subsurface investigation for earthen holding pond, pit, sump, treatment lagoon, or other earthen storage/containment structure suitability and liner requirements shall be a component of the system design. The subsurface investigation will include a detailed soils investigation with special attention to the water table depth and seepage potential. The investigation shall evaluate soils to a depth of two feet below the planned bottom grade of the storage structure. Deeper investigations may be required in karst regions. A soils/geologic investigation shall be performed by a soil scientist as described in Rule 0400-48-01-.18 and a qualified geologist. A qualified geologist is a Registered Professional Geologist licensed by the State of Tennessee or an individual who meets the requirements for the title of Certified Professional Geologist as defined by the American Institute of Professional Geologists. Unless relevant information is available to the contrary, compliance with this subparagraph during design and construction of the facility will normally demonstrate that the hydrologic connection does not exceed a maximum allowable hydraulic conductivity of 0.0028 ft/day (1 x 10-6 cm/sec).Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0400-40-06-.07
New rules filed February 14, 2022; effective 5/15/2022.Authority: T.C.A. §§ 4-5-201, et seq., and 69-3-101, et seq.