B1. Management Measure for Facility Wastewater and Runoff from Confined Animal Facility Management (Large Units)

1. Storing both the facility wastewater and the runoff from confined animal facilities that is caused by storms up to and including a 25-year, 24-hour frequency storm. Storage structures should:
   • Have an earthen lining or plastic membrane lining, or
   • Be constructed with concrete, or
   • Be a storage tank;
   and

2. Managing stored runoff and accumulated solids from the facility through an appropriate waste utilization system.

1. Applicability

			Head	Animal Units (2) 
Beef Feedlots 		300 	300 
Stables (horses) 	200 	400
Dairies			70 	98
Layers 			15,000 	150 (3)
				495 (4)
Broilers 		15,000 	150 (3)
				495 (4)
Turkeys 		13,750	2,475
Swine 			200 	80

(2) See Animal Unit in Glossary
(3) If facility has a liquid manure system
(4) If facility has continuous overflow watering

Under the Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendments, States are subject to a number of requirements as they develop coastal nonpoint programs in conformity with this measure and will have some flexibility in doing so. The application of management measures by States is described more fully in Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program: Program Development and Approval Guidance, published jointly by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

A confined animal facility is a lot or facility (other than an aquatic animal production facility) where the following conditions are met:

• Animals (other than aquatic animals) have been, are, or will be stabled or confined and fed or maintained for a total of 45 days or more in any 12-month period, and
• Crops, vegetation forage growth, or post-harvest residues are not sustained in the normal growing season over any portion of the lot or facility.

Confined animal facilities, as defined above, include areas used to grow or house the animals, areas used for processing and storage of product, manure and runoff storage areas, and silage storage areas.

Facility wastewater and runoff from confined animal facilities are to be controlled under this management measure (Figure 2-7). Runoff includes any precipitation (rain or snow) that comes into contact with any manure, litter, or bedding. Facility wastewater is water discharged in the operation of an animal facility as a result of any or all of the following: animal or poultry watering; washing, cleaning, or flushing pens, barns, manure pits, or other animal facilities; washing or spray cooling of animals; and dust control.

2. Description

Application of this management measure will greatly reduce the volume of runoff, manure, and facility wastewater reaching a waterbody, thereby improving water quality and the use of the water resource. The measure can be implemented by using practices that divert runoff water from upslope sites and roofs away from the facility, thereby minimizing the amount of water to be stored and managed. Runoff water and facility wastewater should be routed through a settling structure or debris basin to remove solids, and then stored in a pit, pond, or lagoon for application on agricultural land (Figure 2-8). If manure is managed as a liquid, all manure, runoff, and facility wastewater can be stored in the same structure and there is no need for a debris basin.

For new facilities and expansions to existing facilities, consideration should be given to siting the facility:

• Away from surface waters;

• Away from areas with high leaching potential; and

• In areas where adequate land is available to apply animal wastes in accordance with the nutrient management measure.

When applied to agricultural lands, manure, stored runoff water, stored facility wastewater, and accumulated solids from the facility are to be applied in accordance with the nutrient management measure. An appropriate waste utilization system to minimize impacts to surface water and protect ground water may be achieved through implementation of the SCS Waste Utilization practice (633).

It is recognized that implementation of this measure may increase the potential for movement of water and soluble pollutants through the soil profile to the ground water. It is not the intent of this measure to address a surface water problem at the expense of ground water. Facility wastewater and runoff control systems can and should be designed to protect ground water. Ground-water protection will also be provided by minimizing seepage to ground water, if soil conditions require further protection, and by using the nutrient and pesticide management measures to reduce and control the application of nutrients and pesticides.

Seepage to ground water can be minimized by lining the runoff or manure storage structure with an earthen lining or plastic membrane lining, by constructing with concrete, or by constructing a storage tank. This is not difficult to accomplish and should be achieved in the initial design to reduce costs. For some soils and locations, movement of pollutants to the ground water is not a concern, but site evaluations are needed to determine the appropriate action to take to protect the resources at the site.

Operation and Maintenance of This Measure

Holding ponds and treatment lagoons should be operated such that the design storm volume is available for storage of runoff. Facilities filled to or near capacity should be drawn down as soon as all site conditions permit the safe removal and appropriate use of stored materials. Solids should be removed from solids separation basins as soon as possible following storm events to ensure that needed solids storage volume is available for subsequent storms.

Maintenance

Diversions will need periodic reshaping and should be free of trees and brush growth. Gutters and downspouts should be inspected annually and repaired when needed. Established grades for lot surfaces and conveyance channels are to be maintained at all times.

Channels should be free of trees and brush growth. Cleaning of debris basins, holding ponds, and lagoons will be needed to ensure that design volumes are maintained. Clean water should be excluded from the storage structure unless it is needed for further dilution in a liquid system.

3. Management Measure Selection

The size limitations that define a large unit are based on EPA's analysis of the economic achievability of the management measure.

4. Effectiveness Information

• The contaminant(s) to be controlled and their likely pathways in surface, subsurface, and ground-water flows;

• The types of practices (section 5) and how these practices control surface, subsurface, and ground-water contaminant pathways; and

• Site-specific variables such as soil type, topography, precipitation characteristics, type of animal housing and waste storage facilities, method of waste collection, handling and disposal, and seasonal variations. The site-specific conditions must be considered in system design, thus having a large effect on practice effectiveness levels.

When runoff from storms up to and including the 24-hour, 25-year frequency storm is stored, there will be no release of pollutants from a confined animal facility via the surface runoff route. Rare storms of a greater magnitude or sequential storms of combined greater magnitude may produce runoff, however. Table 2-10 reflects the occurrence of such storms by indicating less than 100 percent control for runoff control systems.

5. Confined Animal Facility Management Practices

Combinations of the following practices can be used to satisfy the requirements of this management measure. The U.S. Soil Conservation Service (SCS) practice number and definition are provided for each management practice, where available. Also included in italics are SCS statements describing the effect each practice has on water quality (USDA-SCS, 1988).