11 Miss. Code. R. 6-1.1.1 - General Requirements

A. Definitions of Terms

The applicable definitions set forth in 40 CFR 122, 123, 124, 125, 144, 146, 403 and 503 and all amendments and additions thereto are incorporated herein and adopted by reference and shall be considered valid in this regulation, unless a term is otherwise defined herein. In addition, the following definitions are applicable.

(1) "Affected Discharger" is an existing permitted wastewater discharger, or a proposed wastewater discharger, which has either a pending permit application or a permit or is included in a State Revolving Fund ("SRF") Facilities Plan.

(2) "Allowable Loading" or "available assimilative capacity" is that portion of the loading capacity of a water body that is available for allocating to a point source discharger(s) through regulation by the Department. It is the difference between the loading capacity and the total loading of pollutants from other sources, such as background, nonpoint sources, and exempt sources.

(3) "Ambient water quality" means the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of waters of the State.

(4) "Applicant" means a person applying to the Permit Board for an individual State permit, coverage under a State general permit, UIC permit, individual NPDES permit or coverage under an NPDES general permit to discharge wastes or other fluids into the waters of the State, or to operate a treatment works.

(5) "Application" means either:

(a) The uniform NPDES or UIC application form, current at the time application is made,

(b) A Notice of Intent form for coverage under an NPDES general permit, or a State general permit, or

(c) A State permit application form.

(6) "Approved methods" means sampling and laboratory testing methods approved by the Department, as specified in Rule 1.1.2 of these regulations.

(7) "Assimilative capacity" means the capacity of a body of water or soil-plant system to receive wastewater effluent or sludge without violating the provisions of the State of Mississippi Water Quality Criteria for Intrastate, Interstate, and Coastal Waters and these regulations.

(8) "Background" shall mean the condition of waters in the absence of the activity or discharge under consideration based on the best scientific information available to the Department.

(9) "Bypass" is defined in 40 CFR 122.41(m), as amended.

(10) "Bulk storage" means storage of petroleum products, materials and/or liquids with chronic or acute potential for pollution impact on waters of the State at a facility with an above ground storage capacity of more than 1320 gallons or any single container with a capacity greater than 660 gallons.

(11) "Calibrated and/or verified models" are models whose reaction rates and inputs are significantly based on actual measurements using data from surveys on the receiving water body. Verified models are calibrated to one set of field data and confirmed by comparison to at least one additional set of field data taken under different physical circumstances.

(12) "Certificate of Coverage" A document issued by the Permit Board or its designee granting coverage under an existing general permit.

(13) "Code" or "Miss. Code Ann." means the Mississippi Code of 1972.

(14) "Commission" means the Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality.

(15) "Daily discharge" means the "discharge of a pollutant" measured during a calendar day or any 24-hour period that reasonably represents the calendar day for purposes of sampling. For pollutants with limitations expressed in units of mass, the "daily discharge" is calculated as the total mass of the pollutant discharged over the day. For pollutants with limitations expressed in other units of measurement, the "daily average" is calculated as the average measurement of the discharge of the pollutant over the day.

(16) "Daily maximum" means the highest "daily discharge" over a calendar month.

(17) "Department" means the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality.

(18) "Dystrophic waters" means receiving water bodies whose natural background conditions do not meet one or more of the State's water quality criteria.

(19) "Effluent standards and limitations" means all State or Federal effluent standards and limitations on quantities, rates, and concentrations of chemical, physical, biological and other constituents to which a waste or wastewater discharge may be subject under the Federal Act or the State law, including but not limited to, effluent limitations, standards of performance, toxic effluent standards and prohibitions, pretreatment standards and schedules of compliance.

(20) "Effluent channel" means a man-made discernible confined and discrete conveyance which is used for transporting treated wastewater to a receiving stream or other body of water; provided that such channel has characteristics as follows:

(a) is contained entirely on property owned (or controlled by easement) by the discharger (to be demonstrated by the discharger),

(b) does not contain natural waters except when such waters occur in direct response to rainfall events by overland runoff, and

(c) is so constructed or modified to minimize the migration of fish into said channel.

Effluent channels shall be identified by the Commission and designated on a case-by-case basis prior to permit issuance.

(21) "Effluent" unless otherwise provided, means treated wastewater flowing out of the treatment facilities.

(22) "Empirical model" means a mathematical formulation whose various reaction rates and input parameters are determined through empirical formulations based on literature reviews. The simplest empirical model is a dilution model.

(23) "Ephemeral streams" normally are natural watercourses, including natural watercourses that have been modified by channelization or man-made drainage ditches, that, without the influence of point source discharges, flow only in direct response to precipitation or irrigation return water discharge in the immediate vicinity and whose channels are normally above the groundwater table. These streams may contain a transient population of aquatic life during the portion of the year when there is a suitable habitat for fish survival. Normally, aquatic habitat in these streams is not adequate to support a reproductive cycle for fish and other aquatic life. Wetlands are excluded from this classification.

(24) "Estuary" means a semi-enclosed naturally existing coastal body of water which has a free connection with the open sea and within which the chloride concentration at the surface is equal to or greater than 1,500 milligrams per liter.

(25) "Executive Director" means the Executive Director of the Department of Environmental Quality.

(26) "Fact sheet" means a description of a facility or activity, available to the public, prepared by the Commission staff pursuant to the guidelines, which includes, but is not limited to, information on the location of the discharge, rate or frequency of the discharge, components of the discharge, proposed requirements of the Permit Board regarding the discharge, the location and identification of uses of the receiving waters, water quality standards and procedures for formulation of final requirements on the discharge by the Permit Board.

(27) "Feasible alternatives" are those alternatives that are available and capable of being carried out after taking into consideration cost, existing technology, and logistics in light of overall project purposes.

(28) "Federal Act" means the Federal Clean Water Act, or the Safe Drinking Water Act, whichever is applicable; and the applicable regulations promulgated under those statutes.

(29) "Hazardous Substances" are defined in 40 CFR 116.4, as amended.

(30) "Instream" means the resulting condition in the water body after mixing with the wastewater(s) at the appropriate critical flow/mixing condition.

(31) "Interference" The definition of "interference" set forth in 40 CFR 403.3(i) is incorporated herein and adopted by reference.

(32) "Load Allocation (LA)" means the portion of a receiving water's loading capacity attributed to or assigned to nonpoint sources (NPS) or background sources of a pollutant.

(33) "Loading capacity" Loading capacity and Total Maximum Daily Load are equivalent terms.

(34) "Losing flow stream" is a stream which is recharging groundwater.

(35) "Mailing list" means a list of persons requesting notification and information on public hearings, permits, and other matters and forms.

(36) "Major facility" means any NPDES "facility or activity" classified as such by the Regional Administrator (or his/her designee) in conjunction with the Executive Director.

(37) "Man-induced conditions which cannot be controlled or abated" are conditions that have been influenced by human activities, and have the characteristics as follows:

(a) would remain after removal of all point sources,

(b) would remain after imposition of best management practices for non-point sources, and

(c) cannot be restored or abated by physical alteration of the water body; or there is no reasonable relationship between the economic, social and environmental costs and the benefits of restoration or physical alteration.

(38) "Management agency" means an area-wide waste treatment management agency designated by the governor pursuant to Section 208(a) of the Federal Clean Water Act.

(39) "Maximum Monthly Average" means the highest "monthly average" over a monitoring period.

(40) "Maximum Weekly Average" means the highest "weekly average" over a monitoring period.

(41) The "Method Detection Limit (MDL)" is defined as the minimum concentration of a substance that can be measured and reported with 99[CENT] confidence that the analyte concentration is greater than zero and is determined from analysis of a sample in a given matrix containing the analyte.

(42) "Minimum Quantitation Level (MQL)" is the concentration in a sample that is equivalent to the concentration of the lowest calibration standard analyzed by a specific analytical procedure, assuming that all of the method-specified calculations, sample weights, volumes, and processing steps have been followed, and also allowing for matrix interference.

(43) "Mitigation" means the following (in order of preference):

(a) avoiding the impact altogether by not taking a certain action or part of an action;

(b) minimizing impacts by limiting the degree of magnitude of the action and its implementation, by using appropriate technology, or by taking affirmative steps to avoid or reduce impacts;

(c) rectifying the impacts by repairing, rehabilitating, or restoring the affected environment;

(d) reducing or eliminating the impact over time by preservation and maintenance operations during the life of the action; or

(e) compensating for the impact by replacing, enhancing, or providing substitute resources or environments.

Mitigation for individual actions may include a combination of the above measures.

(44) "Monthly average" means the average of "daily discharges" over a calendar month, calculated as the sum of all "daily discharges" measured during a calendar month divided by the number of "daily discharges" measured during the month . The monthly average for fecal coliform bacteria is the geometric mean of "daily discharges" measured during the calendar month. In computing the geometric mean for fecal coliform bacteria, the value one (1) shall be substituted for sample results of zero.

(45) "NPDES form" means any issued permit or any uniform national form prescribed for use by the Commission in the NPDES Program and prescribed in regulations promulgated by the Administrator of EPA, including an NPDES application and a reporting form.

(46) "NPDES permit" means an individual or general permit issued by the Permit Board pursuant to regulations adopted by the Commission and/or Permit Board under Miss. Code Ann. §§ 49-17-17 and 49-17-29 for discharges into State waters.

(47) "Natural background" means the condition of waters in the absence of man-induced alterations based on the best scientific information available to the Department. The establishment of natural background for an altered water body may be based upon a similar unaltered water body or on historical pre-alteration data.

(48) "Non-compliance list" means a list of dischargers, prepared by the Executive Director pursuant to this regulation and the guidelines for transmittal to the Regional Administrator (or his/her designee), who fail or refuse to comply with a condition in an NPDES, Pretreatment or UIC permit issued pursuant to State law.

(49) "Notice of Intent (NOI) form" means a form used to request coverage under an issued NPDES general permit or an issued State general permit.

(50) "NPDES general permit" means an NPDES permit written to cover a specified category of similar discharges within a specified geographical or political boundary as described in 40 CFR 122.28(a).

(51) "Office Head" means the Head of the Office of Pollution Control of the Department of Environmental Quality.

(52) "Permit Board" means the Permit Board of the Department of Environmental Quality established pursuant to Miss. Code Ann. § 49-17-28.

(53) "Pass Through" means a discharge which exits a publicly owned treatment works ("POTW") into waters of the State in quantities or concentrations which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, causes a violation of any requirement of the POTW's NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation) and/or causes a violation of Water Quality Standards.

(54) "Person" means the State or other agency or institution thereof, any municipality, county, political subdivision, public or private corporation, individual, partnership, association, or other entity, and includes any officer or governing or managing body of any municipality, county, political subdivision, public or private corporation, or the United States or any officer or employee thereof.

(55) "Pollution" means such contamination, or other alteration of the physical, chemical, or biological properties, of any waters of the State, including change in temperature, taste, color, turbidity, or odor of the waters, or such discharge of any liquid, gaseous, solid, radioactive, or other substance or leak into any waters of the State, unless in compliance with a valid permit issued by the Permit Board.

(56) "POTW" means a publicly owned treatment works.

(57) "Pretreatment New Source" The definition of "new source" set forth in 40 CFR 403.3(k) is incorporated herein and adopted by reference.

(58) "Primary industrial facility" means any industry category listed in the NRDC settlement agreement (Natural Resources Defense Council et. al. v. Train, 8 E.R.C. 2120 (D.D.C. 1976), modified 12 E.R.C. 1833 (D.D.C. 1979)); also listed in appendix A of 40 CFR 122, which is incorporated herein and adopted by reference.

(59) "Pretreatment system" means any process used to reduce the amount of pollutants in wastewater before discharging the wastewater into a publicly owned treatment works or privately owned treatment works treating non-domestic wastewater.

(60) "Publicly Owned Treatment Works" is a waste treatment facility owned and/or operated by a public body or a privately owned treatment works which accepts discharges which would otherwise be subject to Federal Pretreatment Requirements.

(61) "Quarterly average" means the average of "daily discharges" over a three-month period, calculated as the sum of all "daily discharges" measured during the quarter divided by the number of "daily discharges" measured during the quarter. The quarterly average for fecal coliform bacteria is the geometric mean of "daily discharges" measured during the quarter. In computing the geometric mean for fecal coliform bacteria, the value one (1) shall be substituted for sample results of zero.

(62) "Quarterly maximum" means the highest "daily discharge" measured over a three-month period.

(63) "Reporting form" means the uniform NPDES or UIC reporting form, including subsequent additions, revisions or modifications thereof, promulgated by the Administrator of EPA and prescribed by the Commission for use in administering these regulations, or a State form prescribed by the Commission for use in administering these regulations, for reporting data and information to the Permit Board by a permittee on monitoring and other conditions of permits.

(64) "Sewerage Works" means pipelines or conduits, pumping stations, and force mains, and other structures, devices, appurtenances and facilities used for collecting or conducting wastes to an ultimate point for treatment or disposal.

(65) "State general permit" means a state permit written to cover a specified category of similar facilities within a specified geographical or political boundary.

(66) "State permit" means an individual or general permit issued by the Permit Board pursuant to regulations adopted by the Commission and/or Permit Board under Miss. Code Ann. §§ 49-17-17 and 49-17-29 for the operation of a treatment works from which no discharge occurs, for discharges into State waters where an NPDES or UIC permit may not be applicable, or for discharges to a publicly owned treatment works where a pretreatment system is utilized.

(67) "Submitted" means the document is postmarked on or before the applicable deadline, except as otherwise specified.

(68) "Technology based effluent limitation (TBEL)" means a minimum waste treatment requirement, established by the Department, based on treatment technology. The minimum treatment requirements may be set at levels more stringent than that which is necessary to meet water quality standards of the receiving water body as set out specifically in other sections of these regulations. TBELs shall be federal effluent guidelines if promulgated, otherwise TBELs shall be established in accordance with 40 CFR 125 subpart A, which is incorporated herein and adopted by reference.

(69) "The State law" means the Mississippi Air and Water Pollution Control Law, specifically Miss. Code Ann. §§ 49-17-1 through 49-17-43, and any subsequent amendments thereto.

(70) "Total Maximum Daily Load" or "TMDL" means the calculated maximum permissible pollutant loading to a water body at which water quality standards can be maintained. It is the sum of wasteload allocations (WLAs) and load allocations (LAs) for any given pollutant plus a margin of safety in a watershed.

(71) "Toxic Pollutants" means any pollutant listed as toxic under Section 307(a)(1) or, in the case of "sludge use or disposal practices," any pollutant identified in regulations implementing Section 405(d) of the Clean Water Act.

(72) "Trade secret" means information concerning the whole or any portion or phase of any manufacturing proprietary process or method, not patented, which is secret, used or useful in compounding goods having a commercial value, and the secrecy of which the owner has taken reasonable measures to prevent from becoming available to persons other than those selected by the owner to have access thereto for limited purposes. It shall not be construed for purpose of this regulation to include any information relative to the quantity and character of waste products or their constituents discharged or sought to be discharged into waters of this State, or into any publicly owned treatment works.

(73) "Treatment works" means any plant or other works, used for the purpose of treating, stabilizing, or holding wastes.

(74) "UIC form" means any issued permit or any uniform national form used by the Permit Board developed for use in the UIC Program and prescribed in regulations promulgated by the Administrator of EPA including a UIC application and a reporting form.

(75) "UIC permit" means a permit issued by the Permit Board to a person pursuant to regulations adopted by the Commission and/or Permit Board under Miss. Code Ann. §§ 49-17-17 and 49-17-29 for discharges into underground waters of the State.

(76) "UIC Program" means the Underground Injection Control program established by the Fed eral Safe Drinking Water Act.

(77) "Upset" means an exceptional incident in which there is unintentional and temporary noncompliance with technology based permit effluent limitations because of factors beyond the reasonable control of the permittee. An upset does not include noncompliance to the extent caused by operational error, improperly designed treatment facilities, inadequate treatment facilities, lack of preventive maintenance, or careless or improper operation.

(78) "Vessel" means any contrivance used or capable of being used for navigation upon water, whether or not capable of self propulsion, including foreign and domestic vessels engaged in commerce upon the waters of this State, passenger or other cargo carrying vessels, privately owned recreational watercraft or any other floating craft.

(79) "Waste" means sewage, industrial wastes, oil field wastes, and all other liquid, gaseous, solid, radioactive, or other substances which may pollute or tend to pollute any waters of the State.

(80) "Wasteload allocation (WLA)" means the portion of a receiving water's loading capacity attributed to or assigned to point sources of a pollutant.

(81) "Water Quality Management Plans" for the purpose of these regulations, Water Quality Management Plans are those plans developed pursuant to Section 208 of the Federal Clean Water Act.

(82) "Water Quality Standards" the criteria and requirements set forth in State of Mississippi Water Quality Criteria for Intrastate, Interstate, and Coastal Waters. Water quality standards are standards composed of designated present and future most beneficial uses (classification of waters), the numerical and narrative criteria applied to the specific water uses or classification, and the Mississippi antidegradation policy.

(83) "Water quality based effluent limitation (WQBEL)" means an effluent limitation, which may be more stringent than a technology based effluent limitation, determined as necessary by the Department to ensure that water quality standards in a receiving body of water will not be violated.

(84) "Water quality criteria" are elements of State water quality standards, expressed as constituent concentrations, levels, or narrative statements, representing a quality of water that supports the present and future most beneficial uses.

(85) "Waters of the State" means all waters within the jurisdiction of this State, including all streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, impounding reservoirs, marshes, watercourses, waterways, wells, springs, irrigation systems, drainage systems, and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface and underground, natural or artificial, situated wholly or partly within or bordering upon the State, and such coastal waters as are within the jurisdiction of the State, except lakes, ponds, or other surface waters which are wholly landlocked and privately owned, and which are not regulated under the Federal Clean Water Act ( 33 U.S.C.1251, et seq..).

(86) "Weekly average" means the average of "daily discharges" over a calendar week, calculated as the sum of all "daily discharges" measured during a calendar week divided by the number of "daily discharges" measured during that week. The weekly average for fecal coliform bacteria is the geometric mean of all "daily discharges" measured in a calendar week. In computing the geometric mean for fecal coliform bacteria, one (1) shall be substituted for sample results of zero. For self-monitoring purposes, the value to be reported is the single highest weekly average computed during a calendar month.

(87) "Yearly average" means the average of "daily discharges" over a calendar year, calculated as the sum of all "daily discharges" measured during the calendar year divided by the number of "daily discharges" measured during the calendar year. The yearly average for fecal coliform bacteria is the geometric mean of "daily discharges" during the calendar year. In computing the geometric mean for fecal coliform bacteria, the value one (1) shall be substituted for sample results of zero.

(88) "Yearly maximum" means the highest "daily discharge" measured over a calendar year.

(89) "Zone of mixing" or "Mixing Zone" constitutes an area whereby physical mixing of a wastewater effluent with a receiving water body occurs.

B. Applicability and Required Permits

(1) Proposed discharges and/or proposed discharges into POTWs and/or proposed facilities from which no discharge occurs.

Any person proposing a discharge of wastes to waters of the State or proposing a treatment works from which no discharge of wastes is designed to occur shall file an application in the case of an individual NPDES, UIC, or State permit, at least 180 days prior to the commencement of the activity or, in the case of NOI for coverage under an issued NPDES general permit or coverage under an issued State general permit, in accordance with a schedule established in such permit. For purposes of NPDES permits (with the exception of Storm Water permits), commencement of activity means commencement of discharge. For purposes of Storm Water NPDES individual or general permits, State permits or UIC permits, commencement of activity means commencement of construction.

(2) Existing discharges and/or existing facilities from which no discharge occurs.

(a) Any person discharging into waters of the State or to any publicly owned treatment works or operating a treatment works from which no discharge occurs, shall promptly make application for and obtain from the Permit Board a valid NPDES, UIC, or State permit according to procedures and deadlines set forth in these regulations.

(b)

(1) Any person discharging wastes into surface waters of the State shall apply to the Permit Board for an NPDES permit, or for coverage under an NPDES general permit.

(2) Any person discharging wastes or other fluids into underground waters of the State through the use of an injection well shall apply to the Permit Board for a UIC permit, unless otherwise exempted under Rule 1.1.B.

(3) Any person operating a treatment works from which no discharge of wastes occurs shall apply to the Permit Board for a State permit or for coverage under a State general permit.

(4) Any person discharging wastes into a publicly owned treatment works and which is subject to Federal pretreatment standards ( 40 CFR 403), or which, in the opinion of the Permit Board, would cause interference with the proper operation of the publicly owned treatment works, cause violations of water quality standards by passing through the publicly owned treatment works, or cause contamination of sludge which would limit or prevent the proper disposal of the sludge, shall apply to the Permit Board for a State permit.

(3) Both existing and proposed discharges and/or existing and proposed facilities from which no discharge occurs shall be subject to the permit application and special NPDES Program requirements contained in 40 CFR 122.21 -.37 as of the date the permit is issued, which requirements are incorporated herein and adopted by reference

C. Permits: Preliminary Determinations and Siting Criteria

(1) Preliminary Determinations

(a)

(1) The Permit Board shall strive to minimize the number of permits issued by encouraging the consolidation (regionalization) of separate treatment facilities where technically and economically feasible.

(2) When an existing wastewater disposal system is available, no permit shall be issued for a new wastewater treatment facility, unless the permit applicant can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Permit Board that the wastewater cannot or should not, because of economic or other reasons, be connected to the existing sewage system.

(3) Existing wastewater systems treating municipal or domestic wastes shall cease discharge and connect to a regional, municipal or other available sewage system when such system becomes available. The Permit Board, in its discretion, may exclude non-compatible industrial wastes.

(b) New connections to an existing wastewater collection and treatment system will not be considered unless the existing system is in substantial compliance with permit conditions.

(c) No permit for the construction or operation of a wastewater treatment facility shall be issued unless the applicant can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Permit Board that a qualified operator will be made available to operate and maintain the facility.

(d) All wastewater treatment facilities must be inaccessible to the general public and be identified as a waste treatment facility by signs posted in a reasonable manner.

(e) The Permit Board may deny a permit if it determines that the discharge from the proposed facility will adversely affect use of the receiving waters, by unreasonably degrading the same, or will adversely affect public health, welfare or the environment. In making this determination, the Permit Board shall consider the actual use and environs of the receiving waters as well as the effect, if any, of the proposed discharge of effluent upon the actual water quality of the receiving waters.

(f) No permit application will be processed unless the applicant controls the real property upon which the facility is located. The applicant may demonstrate control through ownership, lease, eminent domain, easement, license, and/or contract.

(g) It is the responsibility of the applicant/permittee to obtain all other approvals, permits, clearances, easements and/or agreements, for the construction and operation of the facility, which may be required.

(h) The Permit Board, at its discretion, may require that all environmental permits, and all permit modifications which require public notice, be prepared for a common public notice and that no permit and/or permit modification will be acted on individually.

(2) Siting Criteria

Unless otherwise provided in these regulations or in a general permit, no permit for a new waste treatment facility, or an expansion to an existing facility, will be issued unless the facility can comply with the following buffer zone requirements. A facility which has previously satisfied buffer zone requirements shall not be required to reestablish compliance with those requirements at the reissuance, modification or transference of the permit or at reconstruction/replacement of the facility, unless the facility proposes expansion.

(a) The treatment works, unless addressed otherwise in this regulation, must be at least 150 feet from property not owned and/or controlled by the applicant except when the property is zoned for commercial or industrial use, or when the property, dwelling, or commercial establishment is used for commercial or industrial use. The Permit Board may exclude from these requirements treatment units for short-term remediation.

(b) Domestic wastewater treatment facilities of 1500 gallons per day (gpd) or less must be installed at least ten (10) feet from adjoining property lines. The Permit Board, at its discretion, may require a buffer zone of greater than 10 feet depending upon the type of treatment and site specific information.

(c) Any facility for the treatment or disposal of animal wastes or the housing of a concentrated and confined animal growing operation (excluding any facility for the housing of broiler pullets, broiler breeders and broilers in a poultry operation that generates dry litter or waste unless such facility has a continuous overflow watering system) must be at least 1000 feet from the nearest non-owned (by the applicant) occupied dwelling or commercial establishment and at least 300 feet from the nearest adjoining property line. Any facility for the housing of broiler pullets, broiler breeders and broilers in a poultry operation that generates dry litter or waste constructed, significantly enlarged or altered after February 24, 1994 (date of adoption of these regulations) must be at least 600 feet from the nearest non-owned (by the applicant) occupied dwelling or commercial establishment and at least 150 feet from the nearest adjoining property line. In the event new treatment facilities are proposed for an existing confined animal operation, the Permit Board will consider requests for exceptions to, or variances from, the buffer zone requirements, and the requirements of Rule 1.1.1.C.2.e., based upon such factors as the relative distances and age of the existing operation.

(d) Land application of animal waste (excluding dry litter waste) must be at least 50 feet from the nearest adjoining property line and at least 300 feet from the nearest non-owned (by the applicant) occupied dwelling. Land application of dry litter waste must be at least 25 feet from the nearest adjoining property line and at least 150 feet from the nearest non-owned (by the applicant) occupied dwelling.

(e) The Permit Board may consider a buffer zone of less than 150 feet for subsurface treated effluent disposal.

(f) In the event the buffer zone requirements specified in Rule 1.1.1.C.2.a and c. above cannot be met; the Permit Board will consider requests for exceptions to, or variances from, such requirements upon sufficient proof that affected property owners within the subject buffer zone have had timely and sufficient notice of the proposed facility. The buffer zone requirement may be waived by written permission issued by the affected property owners. Any comments received as a result of such notice shall be considered prior to action upon any request for exceptions to, or variances from, the buffer zone requirements. At all times a minimum 10 foot buffer zone is required. The Permit Board may consider the following factors in deciding whether or not a variance and/or exception should be granted:

(1) whether a person and/or facility moves within the buffer zone of a treatment facility, previously approved by the Permit Board;

(2) the type of land disposal techniques employed, including, but not limited to, subsurface injection of wastes, and the utilization of spray irrigation; and/or

(3) such other factors as the Permit Board deems appropriate.

(3) Antidegradation

All applicants for new or expanding NPDES permitted discharges to state waters shall comply with MDEQ's Antidegradation Policy and submit an Antidegradation Report as part of the application or reapplication process in compliance with MDEQ's Antidegradation Implementation Methods in Exhibit E.

Notes

11 Miss. Code. R. 6-1.1.1

Miss. Code Ann. §§ 49-2-1, et seq. and 49-17-1, et seq.