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JrAC I
Office of Wasftewate* Management
NPDES Regulations Governing Management
Of Concentrated' Horse Feeding Operations
NPDES and how it affects the maintenence and Why are some horse feeding ope?rations
operation of concentrated horse feeding opoera- Considered CAFOs. even though they are |partially
tions. sheltered or temporarily housed?
NPDES stands for EPA's National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System. The NPDES program provicdes a
system for regulating the discharge of pollutants f from
"point" (or discreet) sources into the waters off the
United States by allowing discharges only urnder
certain conditions specified by the permit. The NP'DES
program was established under the Amendments to
the Clean Water Act (CWA) O/1972. Section 502 oaf the
Act defined "concentrated animal feeding operations"
(CAFOs) as point sources subject to regulation uinder
the Act. As a result, NPDES regulations were wrritten
and published in 1976 defining CAFOs andl the
conditions under which they are required to obtai in an
NPDES permit.
VVhat are horse CAFOs and how are they defimed?
Basically, CAFOs are animal feeding operations (MFO)
that meet or exceed numbers of animals (accordimg to
species) established for animal feeding operations. A
facility is considered to be an animal feeding operaation
if it stables, confines, feeds, or maintains animals (for a
total of 45 days or more in any 12-month period,, and
does not sustain crops, vegetation, forage growtrh, or
post-harvested residues in the normal growing seaason
over any portion of the facility. Horse feedding
operations are considered to be CAFOs if they raneet
these two criteria and, in addition, house more (than
500 horses.
Smaller horse feeding operations are also considered
to be CAFOs if they contain more than 150 horses, MND
discharge their wastes into waters of the US. thrcough
man-made ditches, flushing systems, or similar dev/ices,
OR discharge their wastes directly into VS. waters i that
originate outside the facilility and pass over, acrross,
around, or through the facility, or otherwise come: into
contact with the animals confined. Areas of the CXAFO
may include watering systems; washing, cleaningg, or
flushing pens, and manure stacks or pits. Areas wrhere
dust is produced are included because the dust tmay
be composed of particles of manure, litter, or bedcding
and feedstuffs.
*
Two operations with the same owner are considered
one operation if they share a common border or ha» ve a
common waste disposal system (wastes are ccom-
mingled prior to discharge).
A totally enclosed facility with no discharge cof wastes
to U.S. waters is not a CAFO. However, a fpartially-
sheltered facility IS a CAFO if it meets the size t (number
of horses) and discharge criteria of the . NPDES
regulations, or if it has been designated a CMFO on a
case-by-case basis by the permitting authoority. In
partially sheltered operations, the number off animals
maintained at the facility for 45 days or moare is the
combined number of animals in open and ssheltered
areas of the facility. The entire operation is coinsidered
one unit, and all the animals are counted! for the
purposes of CAFO classification.
Livestock marketing oeprations also may be ssubject to
CAFO requirements. Auction houses and! transfer
facilities that meet the regulatory definition off a CAFO
must have NPDES permits if they diischarge
wastewater to US. waters.
For example, a livestock market where 550 hcorses are
maintained for four days per month, or 48 dayps in each
12-month period, is considered a CAFO.
Why the sudden concern for horse CAFCOs?
Concern over CAFOs is not new; degradation of
ground and surface waters from nitrogen, phossphorus,
and pathogens has increased over the years,, and has
renewed interests from the livestock indusstry, the
public, and regulatory agencies as well. EPA'ss NPDES
program provides a means of addressing the j problem
by regulating the discharge of pollutants frojm horse
CAFOs by permit. Page 2 lists some soiurces of
information you can obtain to help you understand and
interpret the NPDES regulations for horse CMFOs.
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Information from the Code of Federal
Regulations and citations in the FEDERAL
REGISTER can help you understand the
NPDES regulations applicable to CAFOs:
Criteria for Determining a Concentrated
Animal Feeding Operation, 40 CFR Section
122, Appendix B (1992);
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations,
40 CFR Section 122.23 (1992);
EPA Effluent Guidelines and Standards for
Feedhts, 40 CFR 412 (Revised through July 1,
1991);
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System and State Program Elements Necessary
for Participation: Concentrated Animal
Feeding Operations, 40 CFR 54182 (Nov. 20,
1975);
State Program Elements Necessary for
Participation in the National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System: Concentrated Animal
Feeding Operations, 41 FR 11458 (Mar. 18,
1976);
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System General Permit Requirements for
Discharges from Concentrated Animal
Feeding Operations (Region 6 Final Notice),
58 FR 7610 (Feb. 8,1993).
In addition to these publications, don't forget to reqtuest
EPA's Guidance Manual on NPDES Regulations* for
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (EPA 833-B4-95-
001; December, 1995), and EPA's other new Factsheeets
on general application of NPDES regulations to CArFOs,
as well as species-specific Factsheets for other antimal
industries.
Where Can I Go For More Information?
Additional information on NPDES regulatioms affect-
ing CAFOs can be obtained by contacting the s Permits
Branch in your nearest EPA Regional Office:
EPA Region I (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, WT)
JFK Federal Building, Boston, MA 022203
(617) 565-4940)
EPA Region II (NJ, NY, PR, VI)
26 Federal Plaza, New York, NY 1027f8
(212) 264-9894
EPA Region III (DC, DE, MD, PA, VAV, WV)
841 Chestnut Building, Philadelphia, P'A 19107
(215) 597-9078
EPA Region IV (AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, 1NC, SC,
TN)
345 Courtland Street, NE, Atlanta, GM 30365
(404) 347-2019
EPA Region V (IL, IN, MI, OH, MN, VWI)
230 West Jackson Blvd., Chicago, IL 606504-3507
(312) 353-2079
EPA Region VI (AR, LA, OK, NM, TXX)
. 1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, TX 75202
(214) 655-7171
EPA Region VH (IA, KS, MO, NE)
726 Minnesota Avenue, Kansas City, KCS 66101
(913) 551-7034
EPA Region VHI (CO, MT, ND, SD, UTT, WY)
99918th Street, Denver, CO 80202-24113
(303) 293-1623
EPA Region IX (AS, AZ, CA, CMI, GU, ] HI, NV)
75 Hawthorne Street, San Francisco, CiA 94105
(415) 744-1877
EPA Region X (AK, ID, OR, WA)
1200 Sixth Avenue, Seattle, WA 981011
(206) 553-1728
FOR MORE INFORMATION. CONTACT:
Permittin:
Nonoint f Source:
Comliance /Enforc
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