Section 243.142. Responsibility for large CAFO manure and process wastewater.

 

(1)   General. Except as provided in sub. (2) , the owner or operator shall be responsible for the storage, management and land application of all manure and process wastewater generated by the operation in accordance with terms and conditions contained in the WPDES permit and the approved nutrient management plan.

(2)   Exemptions. Upon written department approval as required under sub. (3) , once the manure or process wastewater is distributed offsite, the permittee is not responsible for the land application, use or disposal of manure or process wastewater if the manure or process wastewater is distributed in compliance with the conditions of the department approval and in accordance with any of the following:

(a) De minimus quantity of solid manure distributed. A de minimus amount of solid manure is sold or given away to another person. Under this paragraph, a de minimus amount of solid manure means the total quantity of manure distributed to the other person is no more than 175 cubic feet within a 30-day period and no more than 525 cubic feet within a 12-month period.

(b) Distributed as a commercial product.

1. The manure is sold or given away to another person and that person manipulates the manure, and distributes it as a commercial fertilizer pursuant to a fertilizer license issued by DATCP or distributes it as a soil or plant additive pursuant to a soil and plant additive license issued by DATCP.

2. The permittee manipulates the manure and distributes it as a commercial fertilizer pursuant to a fertilizer license issued by DATCP or distributes it as a soil or plant additive pursuant to a soil and plant additive license issued by DATCP. The permittee is responsible for the manipulated manure until it is distributed off-site to another person.

(c) Alternative uses of distributed manure. For solid manure, the manure is sold or given away to another person for landscaping, greenhouse use, use as an animal bedding product or for other beneficial purposes that do not include application to croplands.

(d) Manure or process wastewater is distributed to another permittee. The manure or process wastewater is sold or given away to another operation permitted under a WPDES permit that has a department approved management plan that addresses the manure or process wastewater, and the manure or process wastewater will be land applied under the other permit.

(e) Composted manure. The manure is sold or given away to another person who composts the manure and the department has determined that the composting process and land application or use of the distributed manure will be more appropriately regulated under ch. NR 518 .

(3)   Department approval. If a permittee wants to transfer responsibility to another person for the land application, disposal or use of manure or process wastewater that will be distributed in accordance with one of the methods in sub. (2) (b) to (e) , the permittee shall obtain written department approval for the distribution. If written approval is not obtained, the permittee remains responsible for the land application, disposal and use of the distributed manure or process wastewater in accordance with the terms of the permit and this chapter. To obtain department approval for the purposes of transferring responsibility, the permittee shall comply with all of the following conditions:

(a) Neither the permittee, its agent or a contract hauler working on behalf of the permittee may land apply the distributed manure.

(b) The permittee shall demonstrate to the department that the distributed manure will be beneficially used.

(c) If the manure is distributed in accordance with sub. (2) (b) or (c) , and if the person receiving the manure intends to store the manure, the permittee shall demonstrate to the department that the distributed manure will be delivered to proper storage. For purposes of this paragraph, proper storage means one of the following:

1. The distributed manure will be stored in a facility that complies with NRCS Standard 313, December 2005.

2. The distributed manure will be stored in a manner that will not cause exceedances of groundwater and surface water quality standards and will not impair wetland functional values.

(4)   Revocation of approval. The department may revoke its approval of the responsibility transfer if the department determines that the conditions of approval are not being met by the permittee or recipients of the manure.

(5)   Recordkeeping and reporting.

(a) The permittee shall estimate the amount of manure and process wastewater distributed under sub. (2) in its nutrient management plan and record the actual amount distributed at the time of distribution. The permittee shall create and maintain records that identify the name and address of the recipient of the distributed manure or process wastewater, the quantity distributed, and the dates of distribution. The permittee shall keep these records for at least 5 years and shall make them available to the department upon request. The permittee shall report the amount of manure distributed under sub. (2) to the department in the annual report.

(b) Prior to distribution, the permittee shall notify the recipient, in writing, of the nutrient content of the distributed manure and process wastewater based on the most recent representative sampling information that has been conducted in accordance with the permittee's WPDES permit. At a minimum, the permittee shall provide information to the recipient regarding the nitrogen and phosphorus content of the manure.

History: CR 05-075 : cr. Register April 2007 No. 616 , eff. 7-1-07.

Note

If manure or process wastewater is stored or sent out of the state of Wisconsin, it is not regulated under ch. NR 243 or the WPDES permit once it is out of the state. Microsoft Windows NT 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 If the permittee manipulates the manure and distributes the manure under a DATCP license, the permittee responsible for the manure and the manipulated manure is subject to the WPDES permit requirements until it is distributed off-site (off of any part of the CAFO) to another person. Transfer of responsibility can only occur if the conditions in sub. (3) are met. Microsoft Windows NT 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 Proper storage may include manure stored in bags provided that the manure is dry enough to avoid leachate generation. Microsoft Windows NT 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1 A permittee does not need to obtain approval from the department to transfer responsibility for de minimus amounts of manure under sub. (2) (a). Microsoft Windows NT 6.1.7601 Service Pack 1