| Sec. 903.08.
(A)(1) The director of agriculture is | 7 |
|
authorized to participate
in the national pollutant discharge | 8 |
|
elimination system in accordance with
the Federal Water Pollution | 9 |
|
Control
Act. Not later than
one hundred eighty days after
March | 10 |
| 15, 2001, the
director shall prepare a state
program in accordance | 11 |
| with 40
C.F.R. 123.21 for point sources that
are subject to
this | 12 |
| section and shall submit the program to the
United
States | 13 |
| environmental protection agency for approval. | 14 |
| (2) On and after the date on which the United States | 15 |
|
environmental
protection agency approves the state program | 16 |
|
submitted under division
(A)(1) of this section, the authority to | 17 |
|
enforce terms and
conditions of NPDES permits previously issued | 18 |
|
under division
(J)
of section 6111.03 or under section 6111.035 of | 19 |
|
the Revised
Code for the discharging, transporting, or handling of | 20 |
|
storm water
from an animal feeding facility or of manure is | 21 |
|
transferred from
the director of environmental protection to the | 22 |
|
director of
agriculture. Thereafter, the director of
environmental | 23 |
| protection
shall have no authority to enforce the
terms and | 24 |
| conditions of
those NPDES permits. After the transfer
of authority | 25 |
| under
division (A)(2) of this section, the NPDES
permits | 26 |
| concerning which authority has been transferred shall be | 27 |
|
considered to
have been issued under
this section. | 28 |
| (B)(1) On and after the date on which the
United States | 29 |
|
environmental protection agency approves the
NPDES program | 30 |
|
submitted by the director of agriculture under this
section, no | 31 |
|
person shall discharge manure from a point
source into waters of | 32 |
|
the state without first obtaining a NPDES permit issued by the | 33 |
director of agriculture under this section. The owner or operator | 34 |
of a concentrated animal feeding operationAny person that is | 35 |
| required by the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to obtain a | 36 |
| permit for the discharge of manure shall apply to the director for | 37 |
| an individual NPDES permit or for coverage under a general
NPDES | 38 |
permit. A concentrated animal feeding operation is deemed to be a | 39 |
point source that discharges manure into the waters of the state | 40 |
unless the director has determined that the concentrated animal | 41 |
feeding operation has no potential to discharge manure into the | 42 |
waters of the state. If an owner or operator of a concentrated | 43 |
animal feeding operation receives notice from the director that | 44 |
the director has determined that the concentrated animal feeding | 45 |
operation has no potential to discharge manure, the owner or | 46 |
operator is not required to apply for an individual NPDES permit | 47 |
or for coverage under a general NPDES permit for that operation. | 48 |
The director's determination shall be made in accordance with | 49 |
rulesThe director is authorized to issue, revoke, modify, or deny | 50 |
| such an individual permit or issue, revoke, or deny coverage under | 51 |
| a general permit in compliance with all requirements of the | 52 |
| Federal Water Pollution Control Act. Violation of
division
(B)(1) | 53 |
| of this section is hereby declared to be a public
nuisance
for | 54 |
| purposes of state enforcement of this section. | 55 |
| (2) Persons that have been issued a permit by the director
of | 56 |
|
environmental protection under division (J) of section 6111.03
of | 57 |
|
the Revised Code for the discharge of manure prior to the
date
on | 58 |
| which the United States environmental protection agency
approves | 59 |
| the NPDES program submitted by the director of
agriculture
under | 60 |
| this section may continue to
operate under that
permit until it | 61 |
| expires or is
modified or revoked. Such a permit
shall be enforced | 62 |
| by the
director of agriculture upon the transfer
of authority to | 63 |
| enforce
the terms and conditions of the permit
under division | 64 |
| (A)(2) of
this section. | 65 |
| (C)(1) On and after the date on which the United
States | 66 |
|
environmental protection agency approves the NPDES
program | 67 |
|
submitted by the director of agriculture under this section, no | 68 |
|
person
shall discharge storm water resulting from an animal | 69 |
|
feeding facility without
first obtaining a
NPDES permit issued by | 70 |
|
the director of
agriculture in accordance with rules when such a | 71 |
|
permit is required by the
Federal Water
Pollution
Control Act. | 72 |
|
Violation of division
(C)(1) of this section is hereby declared to | 73 |
|
be a public nuisance
for purposes of state enforcement of this | 74 |
|
section. | 75 |
| (2) Persons that have been issued a NPDES permit by the | 76 |
|
director of
environmental protection under Chapter 6111. of the | 77 |
|
Revised
Code
for the discharge of storm water from an animal | 78 |
|
feeding
facility prior to the date on which the
United States | 79 |
|
environmental protection agency approves the NPDES program | 80 |
|
submitted by the director of agriculture under this section may | 81 |
|
continue
to operate under that permit until it expires or is | 82 |
|
modified or revoked. Such a permit shall be enforced by the | 83 |
|
director of agriculture upon the transfer of authority to enforce | 84 |
|
the terms and conditions of the permit under division (A)(2) of | 85 |
|
this section. | 86 |
| (D) In accordance with rules, an applicant for a NPDES
permit | 87 |
|
issued under this section shall submit a fee in an amount | 88 |
|
established by rule together with, except as otherwise provided in | 89 |
|
division (F) of this section, an application for the
permit to the | 90 |
|
director of agriculture on a form prescribed by the
director. The | 91 |
|
application
shall include any information required by rule. The | 92 |
|
director or the
director's authorized representative may
help an | 93 |
|
applicant for a NPDES permit during the application
process by | 94 |
|
providing guidance and technical assistance. | 95 |
| A person who is required to obtain a NPDES permit shall | 123 |
|
submit
to
the director a
notice of the person's intent to be | 124 |
|
covered under an existing general
permit or, at the person's | 125 |
|
option, an application for an
individual NPDES permit. Upon | 126 |
|
receipt of a notice of intent for
coverage under an existing | 127 |
|
general permit, the director shall notify the
applicant
in writing | 128 |
|
that the person is covered by the
general permit if the person | 129 |
|
satisfies the
criteria established in rules for eligibility for | 130 |
|
such coverage. If the
person is ineligible for coverage under the | 131 |
|
general permit, the director shall
require the
submission of an | 132 |
|
application for an individual NPDES permit. | 133 |
| (G) The director of agriculture shall establish terms and | 134 |
|
conditions of NPDES permits in accordance with rules. Terms and | 135 |
|
conditions shall be designed to achieve and maintain full | 136 |
|
compliance with
national effluent
limitations, national standards | 137 |
|
of performance for new sources, the most
current water quality | 138 |
|
standards adopted under section 6111.041 of the Revised Code, the | 139 |
|
most
current antidegradation policy adopted under section 6111.12 | 140 |
|
of the Revised Code, and
other requirements of
the Federal Water | 141 |
|
Pollution Control
Act. In establishing the terms and
conditions
of | 142 |
| a NPDES permit, the director, to the extent
consistent with
that | 143 |
| act, shall consider technical
feasibility and economic costs
and | 144 |
| shall allow a reasonable period
of time for coming into
compliance | 145 |
| with the permit. | 146 |
| (L) The director may modify, suspend, or revoke a
NPDES | 171 |
|
permit
issued under this section for cause as established by rule. | 172 |
|
No
NPDES permit issued under this section shall be
modified, | 173 |
|
suspended, or revoked without a written order stating the findings | 174 |
|
that led to the modification, suspension, or revocation. In | 175 |
|
addition, the
permittee has a
right to an administrative hearing | 176 |
|
in accordance with Chapter 119.
of the Revised Code, except that | 177 |
|
section 119.12 of the
Revised Code does not apply. Further, an | 178 |
|
order of the
director modifying,
suspending, or revoking a NPDES | 179 |
|
permit may be appealed to the
environmental review appeals | 180 |
|
commission under sections 3745.04 to
3745.06 of the Revised Code. | 181 |
| Divisions (A)(1) and (2) of this section do not apply if the | 199 |
|
person causing pollution or placing or causing to be placed wastes | 200 |
|
in a
location in which they cause pollution of any waters of the | 201 |
|
state holds a
valid, unexpired permit,
or renewal of a permit, | 202 |
|
governing the causing or
placement as provided in sections 6111.01 | 203 |
|
to 6111.08 of
the Revised Code or if the person's application for | 204 |
|
renewal of such a permit is pending. | 205 |
| (1) Waters used in washing sand, gravel, other aggregates,
or | 238 |
| mineral products when the washing and the
ultimate disposal
of
the | 239 |
| water used in the washing, including any sewage,
industrial
waste, | 240 |
| or other wastes contained in the waters,
are
entirely
confined to | 241 |
| the land under the control of the person
engaged in
the recovery | 242 |
| and processing of the sand, gravel,
other aggregates,
or mineral | 243 |
| products and do not result in the
pollution of waters
of the | 244 |
| state; | 245 |
| (2) Water, gas, or other material injected into a well to | 246 |
|
facilitate, or that is incidental to, the production of
oil,
gas, | 247 |
|
artificial brine, or water derived in association with oil
or gas | 248 |
|
production and disposed of in a well, in compliance with a
permit | 249 |
|
issued under Chapter 1509. of the Revised Code, or sewage, | 250 |
|
industrial waste, or other wastes injected into a well in | 251 |
|
compliance with an injection well operating permit. Division | 252 |
|
(F)(2)
of this section does not
authorize, without a permit, any | 253 |
|
discharge that
is prohibited by, or for which a permit is required | 254 |
|
by,
regulation of the United States environmental protection | 255 |
|
agency. | 256 |
| (3) Application of any materials to land for agricultural | 257 |
|
purposes or runoff of the materials from
that application or | 258 |
|
pollution by animal waste or soil sediment, including attached | 259 |
|
substances, resulting from farming, silvicultural, or earthmoving | 260 |
activities regulated by Chapter 307. or 1515.1511. of the Revised | 261 |
Code;. Division (F)(3) of this section does not authorize, without | 262 |
| a permit, any discharge that is prohibited by, or for which a | 263 |
| permit is required by, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act or | 264 |
| regulations adopted under it. | 265 |
| (5) On and after the date on which the United States | 272 |
|
environmental protection agency approves the NPDES program | 273 |
|
submitted by the director of agriculture under section 903.08 of | 274 |
the Revised Code, storm
water from an animal feeding facility,
as | 275 |
defined in section 903.01 of the Revised Code, or manure, as | 276 |
defined in
that sectionany discharge that is within the scope of | 277 |
| the approved NPDES program submitted by the director of | 278 |
| agriculture; | 279 |
| (7) A household sewage treatment system or a small flow | 286 |
| on-site sewage treatment system, as applicable, as defined in | 287 |
| section 3718.01 of the Revised Code that is installed in | 288 |
| compliance with Chapter 3718. of the Revised Code and rules | 289 |
| adopted under it. Division (F)(7)
of this
section does not | 290 |
|
authorize, without a permit, any discharge that
is prohibited by, | 291 |
| or for which a permit is required by,
regulation
of the United | 292 |
| States environmental protection agency. | 293 |
| (G) The holder of a permit issued under section 402 (a) of | 299 |
|
the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act need not obtain a permit | 300 |
|
for a discharge authorized by the permit until its
expiration | 301 |
date. TheExcept as otherwise provided in this division, the | 302 |
| director of environmental protection shall
administer
and enforce | 303 |
| those permits
within this state and may
modify
their terms and | 304 |
| conditions in
accordance with division
(J) of section 6111.03 of | 305 |
| the Revised
Code. On and after the date on which the United States | 306 |
| environmental protection agency approves the NPDES program | 307 |
| submitted by the director of agriculture under section 903.08 of | 308 |
| the Revised Code, the director of agriculture shall administer and | 309 |
| enforce those permits within this state that are issued for any | 310 |
| discharge that is within the scope of the approved NPDES program | 311 |
| submitted by the director of agriculture. | 312 |