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Amend the Committee Report further, as and if amended, page 3624-4, by inserting immediately after line 21 the following:

/Section 48-57-45. In order to assert the privilege established in Section 48-57-30, the facility coordinating the environmental audit shall, within ten days of commencing the audit, notify the department that an audit is being conducted, and shall include in that notification the beginning date of the audit and the scheduled completion date./

Amend the Committee Report further, as and if amended, Section 48-57-100(C), page 3624-6, immediately after line 13, by adding:

/(6) the violation occurred within one year of a similar prior violation at the same facility and immunity from civil and administrative penalties was granted by the department for the prior violation./

Amend the Committee Report further, as and if amended, Section 48-57-100, page 3624-6, immediately after line 37, by adding:

/(F) Final waiver of penalties and fines is not granted until full compliance has been certified by the department as occurring in a reasonable time. If full compliance is not certified by the department, the department shall retain discretion to assess penalties based on the department's Uniform Enforcement Policy./

Amend title to conform.

Senator MOORE explained the amendment.

Senator MOORE moved that the amendment be adopted.

The amendment was adopted.

Senator RICHTER spoke on the amendment.

At 1:05 P.M., the PRESIDENT assumed the Chair.

Senator RICHTER continued speaking on the amendment.

Senator LEVENTIS proposed the following Amendment No. P-10 (3624R014.PPL), which was later withdrawn:

Amend the committee amendment, as and if amended, page 3624-7, by striking lines 1 through 4 and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

Section 48-57-510. As used in this article:

(1) `Agricultural facility' means a lot, building, or structure which is used for the commercial production of swine in an animal feeding operation.

(2) `Animal' means a domesticated animal belonging to the porcine species.

(3) `Animal feeding operation' means an agricultural facility where animals are confined and fed or maintained for a total of forty-five days or more in a twelve-month period and crops, vegetative, forage growth, or post-harvest residues are not sustained in the normal growing season over any portion of the lot or facility. Structures used for the storage of animal waste from animals in the operation also are part of the animal feeding operation. Two or more animal feeding operations under common ownership or management are considered to be a single animal feeding operation if they are adjacent or utilize a common system for animal waste storage.

(4) `Animal waste' means animal excreta or other commonly associated organic animal wastes including, but not limited to, bedding, litter, feed losses, or water mixed with the waste.

(5) `Annual pollutant loading rate' means the maximum amount of a pollutant that can be applied to a unit area of a waste utilization area during a three hundred sixty-five-day period.

(6) `Cumulative pollutant loading rate' means the maximum amount of a pollutant that can be applied to an area of land.

(7) `Department' means the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.

(8) `Ephemeral stream' means a stream that flows only in direct response to rainfall or snowmelt in which discrete periods of flow persist no more than twenty-nine consecutive days per event.

(9) `Intermittent stream' means a stream that generally has a defined natural water course which does not flow year-round but flows beyond periods of rainfall or snowmelt.

(11) `Vector' means a carrier that is capable of transmitting a pathogen from one organism to another including, but not limited to, flies and other insects, rodents, birds, and vermin.

(12) `Waste storage pond' means a structure used for impounding or storing manure, wastewater, and contaminated runoff as a component of an agricultural waste management system. Waste is stored for a specified period of time, one year or less, and then the pond is emptied.

(13) `Waste Utilization area' means land on which animal waste is spread as a fertilizer.

(14) `Watershed' means a drainage area contributing to a river, lake, or stream.

(15) `Waters of the State' means lakes, bays, sounds, ponds, impounding reservoirs, springs, artesian wells, rivers, perennial and navigable streams, creeks, estuaries, marshes, inlets, canals, the Atlantic Ocean within the territorial limits of the State, and all other bodies of water, natural or artificial, public or private, inland or coastal, fresh or salt, which are wholly or partially within or bordering the State or within its jurisdiction. This definition does not include ephemeral or intermittent streams. This definition includes wetlands as defined in this section.

(16) `Wetlands' means lands that have a predominance of hydric soil, are inundated or saturated by water or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support a prevalence of hydrophytic vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions, and, under normal circumstances, do support a prevalence of hydrophytic vegetation. Normal circumstances refer to the soil and hydrologic conditions that are normally present without regard to whether the vegetation has been removed. Wetlands must be identified through the confirmation of the three wetlands criteria: hydric soil, hydrology, and hydrophytic vegetation. All three criteria must be met for an area to be identified as wetlands.

Section 48-57-520. (A) All siting requirements for animal feeding operations must be measured from property lines.

(B) After June 30, 1996, these setback limits for new or expanded animal feeding operations which utilize a lagoon or a waste storage pond, or both, apply:

(1) For an animal feeding operation with a capacity of 160,000 to 480,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time, the minimum separation distance required between a lagoon and a waste

(2) For an animal feeding operation with a capacity of 480,001 to 960,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time, the minimum separation distance required between a lagoon and a waste storage pond and real property owned by another person is 1,250 feet. The minimum separation distance required between an agricultural facility and real property owned by another person is 625 feet.

(3) For an animal feeding operation with a capacity of 960,001 to 1,440,000 pounds of normal production live weight at any one time, the minimum separation distance required between a lagoon and a waste storage pond and real property owned by another person is 1,500 feet. The minimum separation distance required between an agricultural facility and real property owned by another person is 750 feet.

(4) For animal feeding operations with a capacity of more than 1,440,001 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time, the minimum separation distance required between a lagoon and a waste storage pond and real property owned by another person is 1,750 feet. The minimum separation distance between an agricultural facility and real property owned by another person is 875 feet.

(5) The minimum separation distance between a lagoon and a waste storage pond and a public or private drinking water well is 500 feet.

(6) The minimum separation distance required between a lagoon and a waste storage pond and waters of the State is 1,320 feet (1/4 mile). If the waters of the State are designated Outstanding Resource Waters, Critical Habitat Waters of federally endangered species, or Shellfish Harvesting Waters, the minimum separation distance required between a lagoon and a waste storage pond and waters of the State is 2,640 feet (1/2 mile). A minimum 100-foot vegetative buffer of plants and trees is required. However, if an owner or operator of an animal feeding operation has a Natural Resource Conservation Service employee or a state-certified engineer create a waste management plan design to control the discharge from a failed lagoon so that it will not enter waters of the State and certify that the plan has been implemented as specified, then the minimum separation distance between a lagoon and a waste storage pond and waters of the State is 500 feet.

(7) The minimum separation distance between a lagoon and a waste storage pond constructed of concrete to standards outlined in department regulations and waters of the State is 500 feet. If the waters are designated Outstanding Resource Waters, Critical Habitat Waters of

(8) If an animal feeding operation established as of July 1, 1996, wishes to expand and cannot feasibly do so under the requirements set forth in this section as determined by the department, the operation may be allowed to expand one time to 160,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight above its permitted number as of July 1, 1996, even if the operation cannot meet the requirements of this section.

(9) If a lagoon or waste storage pond, or both, breaches or fails in any way, the owner or operator of the animal feeding operation immediately must notify the department and the appropriate local government officials.

(C) The minimum separation distance in feet required between a ditch or swale which drains directly into waters of the State and all animal feeding operations is 100 feet.

(D) No new animal feeding operation or expansion of an established animal feeding operation may be located in the 100-year floodplain unless protected from flooding as provided for in regulations of the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the National Flood Insurance Program on Floodplain Management. Such construction or expansion must be certified by the department.

(E) Streams or rivers used as surface intake for potable water supply may not be used as a receiving stream outflow from animal feeding operations, and there may not be any direct water linkage or flood facility drainage linkage between the animal feeding operation and a stream or river utilized as a supply of drinking water unless waste is treated to state water quality standards.

(F) The setback limits are minimum siting requirements. The department shall promulgate regulations specifying factors that the department shall evaluate in determining whether additional separation distances are required under certain circumstances. These factors include, at a minimum:

(1) proximity to 100-year flood plain;

(2) soil type;

(3) location in watershed;

(4) nutrient sensitivity of receiving waters;

(5) proximity to a State Designated Focus Area; Outstanding Resource Water; Heritage Corridor; Historic Preservation District; state

(6) proximity to other point and nonpoint sources; and

(7) slope of the land.

Section 48-57-530. A separation distance requirement as provided in Section 48-57-520(B)(1)-(4) does not apply to an animal feeding operation which is constructed or expanded, if the titleholder of adjoining land to the animal feeding operation executes a written waiver with the title holder of the land where the animal feeding operation is established or proposed to be located, under terms and conditions that the parties negotiate. The written waiver becomes effective only upon the recording of the waiver in the office of the Register of Mesne Conveyances of the county in which the benefitted land is located. The filed waiver precludes enforcement by the State of Section 48-57-520 (B)(1) - (4) as it relates to the animal feeding operation and to real property owned by another person.

Section 48-57-540. (A) The department shall promulgate regulations relating to land application rates for animal waste for animal feeding operations of a capacity for more than 160,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time. These rates must be based on the waste's impact on the environment, animals, and people living in the environment. In developing annual pollutant loading rates and cumulative pollutant loading rates, the department shall consider:

(1) soil type;

(2) type of vegetation growing in land-applied area;

(3) proximity to 100-year flood plain;

(4) location in watershed;

(5) nutrient sensitivity of receiving land and waters;

(6) soil and sediment tests of receiving land and waters;

(7) nutrient, heavy metal, and pollutant content of the waste being applied;

(8) proximity to a State Designated Focus Area; Outstanding Resource Water; Heritage Corridor; Historic Preservation District; state or national park or forest; state or federal research area; and privately owned wildlife refuge, park, or trust property;

(9) proximity to other point and nonpoint sources;

(10) slope of land;

(11) distance to water table or ground water aquifer;

(12) timing of waste application to coincide with vegetative cover growth cycle;

(13) timing of harvest of vegetative cover;

(14) hydraulic loading limitations; and

(16) type of vegetative cover and its nutrient uptake ability;

(17) method of land application.

(B) The department shall require calibration of spray irrigation equipment.

(C) Waste must not be applied to or discharged onto land surface when the vertical separation between the waste and the water table is less than 1 1/2 feet.

(D) The department shall ensure that owners or operators adhere to land application rates.

Section 48-57-550. The following application rates shall only apply to animal feeding operations with a capacity of more than 160,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time.

(A) The minimum separation distance in feet required between a waste utilization area and real property owned by another person on which a residence is located is 200 feet from property lines that are within 1,000 feet of the residence. The 200-foot setback is waived with the consent of the owner of the residence; however, the owner may not agree to less than 100 feet from the residence.

(B) The minimum separation distance in feet required between a waste utilization area and waters of the State, ditches, and swales that drain directly into waters of the State is 100 feet.

(C) The minimum separation distance in feet required between a waste utilization area and a public and private drinking water well is 200 feet.

Section 48-57-560. (A) The department shall promulgate regulations governing maximum lagoon size and minimum lagoon size, based on the permitted number of animal units to be maintained at the animal feeding operation. However, no single lagoon may exceed four acres.

(B) Lagoons and waste storage ponds for animal feeding operations with a capacity for more than 160,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time must be lined with a combination of natural and synthetic material which results in a permeability rating equal to or more protective than that required for human waste lagoons.

(C) The owner or operator of an animal feeding operation shall obtain certification from a licensed engineer or an appropriate Natural Resource Conservation Service employee that the operation's lagoon and waste storage pond were designed, constructed, and installed in accordance with regulatory specifications.

(D) Before the construction of a lagoon and a waste storage pond, the owner or operator shall remove all under-drains that exist from previous agricultural operations.

(F) The department shall conduct a study of alternative technologies for the treatment of animal waste from animal feeding operations and promulgate regulations governing the use of these alternative treatment technologies. Every five years the department shall review changing technologies relating to the treatment of animal waste and promulgate appropriate regulations as needed. The department shall determine which animal feeding operations are required to use aerobic lagoons or other treatment technology.

(G) The department shall consider the cumulative impacts including, but not limited to, impacts from evaporation, storm water, and other potential and actual point and nonpoint sources of pollution runoff, levels of nutrients or other elements in the soils and nearby waterways, ground water or aquifer contamination, pathogens or other elements, and the pollution assimilative capacity of the receiving water body before permitting new or expanded animal feeding operations. The department may require alternative waste treatment in watersheds which are nutrient-sensitive.

(H) Disposal of animal carcasses or body parts into waste lagoons is prohibited.

Section 48-57-570. (A) No person may cause, allow, or permit emission into the ambient air of any substance or combination of substances in quantities that an undesirable level of odor is determined to result unless preventive measures of the type set out below are taken to abate or control the emission to the satisfaction of the department. When an odor problem comes to the attention of the department through field surveillance or specific complaints, the department shall determine if the odor is at an undesirable level by considering the character and degree of injury or interference to:

(1) the health or welfare of the people;

(2) plant, animal, or marine life;

(3) property;

(4) enjoyment of life or use of affected property.
(B) The department may require these abatement or control practices:

(1) removal or disposal of odorous materials;

(3) prescribed standards in the maintenance of premises to reduce odorous emissions;

(4) best available control technology to reduce odorous emissions.

(C) After determining an undesirable level of odor exists, the department shall require remediation of the undesirable level of odor.

(D) Nothing in this section prohibits an individual or group of persons from bringing a complaint against an animal feeding operation.

Section 48-57-580. (A) The department, in consultation with the State Veterinarian, shall promulgate regulations relating to the control of vectors.

(B) All animal feeding operations shall utilize Best Management Practices as appropriate for the control of vectors and department regulations in order to maximize vector control.

Section 48-57-590. (A) The department shall act on all permits to prevent, so far as reasonably possible considering relevant standards under state and federal laws, an increase in pollution of the waters and air of the State from any new or enlarged sources.

(B) The department also shall act on all permits so as to prevent degradation of water quality due to the cumulative and secondary effects of permit decisions. Cumulative and secondary effects are impacts attributable to the collective effects of a number of animal feeding operations in a defined area and include the effects of additional projects similar to the requested permit in areas available for development in the vicinity. All permit decisions shall ensure that the waste treatment and utilization alternative with the least adverse impact on the environment be utilized. Cumulative and secondary effects shall include, but are not limited to, runoff from land application of animal waste and an animal feeding operation, evaporation and atmospheric deposition of elements, ground water or aquifer contamination, buildup of elements in the soil, and other potential and actual point and nonpoint sources of pollution in the vicinity.

(C) All owners or operators are subject to all enforcement procedures and remedies applicable under the Pollution Control Act unless specifically prescribed in this article. The department shall:

(1) grant a permit with conditions attached as the department believes necessary to achieve the purposes of this article;

(2) require that an applicant of an animal feeding operation with more than 160,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time satisfy to the department that the applicant or any parent,

As used in this subsection, the words `affiliate', `parent', and `subsidiary' have the same meaning as in 17 Code of Federal Regulations 240.12b-2 (1 April 1995 Edition).

Section 48-57-600. The department shall establish the amount of an application and annual operation fee in accordance with the Environmental Protection Fund Act, Section 48-2-10 of the 1976 Code, to cover, at a minimum, an annual inspection of all animal feeding operations in the State with a capacity for more than 160,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time. The annual inspection must include, but is not limited to, an on-site visit, review of the implementation of a waste management plan, review of results of monitoring analysis, annual pollutant loading rates, cumulative pollutant loading rates, and review of all records required by this article.

Section 48-57-610. (A) All animal feeding operations established after the effective date of this article which require the use of a lagoon and a waste storage pond and which have a capacity for more than 160,000 pounds of normal production animal live weight at any one time are required to install at least one up-gradient and two down-gradient monitoring wells at a depth which the department considers appropriate around the lagoon in order to monitor seepage of waste from the lagoon.

(B) Each monitoring well installed must be analyzed at least once annually. However, the department may conduct routine and random visits to the animal feeding operation to sample the monitoring wells.

(C) Records must be kept by the owner or operator of the animal feeding operation according to regulations promulgated by the department.

(D) If leakage is discovered beyond an acceptable level as determined by the department, the lagoon must be repaired at the owner or operator's expense.

Section 48-57-620. (A) No waste may be released from the premises of an animal feeding operation to waters of the State unless the owner or operator is properly permitted by the department and waste is treated to state water quality standards.

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