Or. Admin. Code § 603-074-0010 - Definitions

Unless the context or OAR chapter 340, division 051 or 052 require otherwise, as used in these rules:

(1) "Animal unit" means a unit of measure used to compare animals of different species, equal to 1,000 pounds of live weight.

(2) "Annual fee" means that fee required each year of operation for each CAFO with a national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit or a water pollution control facilities (WPCF) permit.

(3) "Compliance" means meeting the requirements of ORS Chapter 468 or 468B and any rule, order, or permit adopted thereunder and relating to the control and prevention of water pollution from a CAFO. A person not subject to regulations of a CAFO are subject to Agricultural Water Quality Management regulations of ORS chapter 568, OAR chapter 603 divisions 90 and 95.

(4) "Confined animal feeding operation or CAFO" means:

(a) An operation that engages in the feeding or holding of animals:

(A) In buildings, pens, or lots not sustaining vegetative growth in the normal growing season, for 12 hours or more per day for more than 120 days in a 12-month period, and has animal numbers as referred to in OAR 603-074-0011; or

(B) With a waste water control facility and generates 100 gallons per day or more of liquid manure, process wastewater, or contaminated production area drainage; or

(C) That discharge any wastes into waters of the state.

(b) An animal feeding operation that is subject to regulation as a concentrated animal feeding operation pursuant to 40 CFR § 122.23.

(5) "Department" means the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) or the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

(6) "Director" means the director of the Oregon Department of Agriculture or the director of the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

(7) "Discharge" means the placement of wastes into "waters of the state," on land, or otherwise into the environment in a manner that affects or may tend to affect the quality of the "waters of the state" or the "waters of the U.S.". Where the discharge or disposal is to "Waters of the U.S." the term when used without qualification means the "discharge of a pollutant." "Discharge of a pollutant" is defined at 40 CFR § 122.2.

(8) "Expanding CAFO" means a CAFO that is expanding operational size into a new tier as described in OAR 603-074-0011.

(9) "Expanding large CAFO" means a large CAFO in the largest tier described in OAR 603-074-0011 that is expanding the capacity of the large CAFO to manage animal wastes, consistent with the conditions of a permit issued under ORS 468B.050, to more than 20 percent of the capacity of the large CAFO.

(10) "Flagrant" means conduct where the person had actual knowledge of the law and knowingly committed the violation.

(11) "Formal enforcement action" means any order that is issued to a person in connection with a violation and requires the person to cease the violation, refrain from further violations, pay a civil penalty, or take other actions with respect to the violation. Formal enforcement actions include, but are not limited to, notices of noncompliance, civil penalty assessment, compliance schedules and stipulated or consent orders.

(12) "General Permit" means a permit issued for minor sources or activities that involve substantially similar operations and have the potential to discharge similar types of wastes.

(13) "General permitted CAFO" means:

(a) A small tier CAFO that is registered to a general NPDES or WPCF Permit and has the number of animals as described in the table in OAR 603-074-0011 under a small operation or has fewer animal numbers but meets the definition of a CAFO under OAR 603-074-0010(4);

(b) A medium tier CAFO that is registered to a general NPDES or WPCF Permit and has the number of animals as described in the table in OAR 603-074-0011 for a medium operation;

(c) A large Tier I CAFO that is registered to a general NPDES or WPCF Permit and has the number of animals described in the table in OAR 603-074-0011 for a large Tier I operation; or is a large livestock auction yard or large seasonal feedlot that is registered to a general NPDES or WPCF Permit; or

(d) A large Tier II CAFO that is registered to a general NPDES or WPCF Permit and has the numbers of animals described in the table in OAR 603-074-0011 for a large Tier II operation.

(14) "Ground water management area or GWMA" means an area in which contaminants in the ground water have exceeded the levels established under ORS 468B.165, and that the affected area has been declared under ORS 468B.180.

(15) "Individual Permit" means an NPDES Permit or a WPCF Permit issued to a CAFO specific to its operation.

(16) "Individual Permitted CAFO" means:

(a) A Tier I CAFO that is registered to an individual NPDES or WPCF Permit and has the number of animals described in the table in OAR 603-074-0011 for a Tier I individual CAFO; or

(b) A Tier II CAFO that is registered to an individual NPDES or WPCF Permit and that has the number of animals described in the table in OAR 603-074-0011 for a Tier II individual CAFO.

(17) "Intentional" means conduct by a person with a conscious objective to cause the result of the conduct.

(18) "Livestock auction yard" means a place of business to which the public may consign livestock for sale by auction open to public bidding or sold on a commission basis.

(19) "Manure" means livestock excreta and soiled bedding, compost, or other materials commingled with livestock excreta.

(20) "Negligence" or "negligent" means failure to take reasonable care to avoid a foreseeable risk of committing a violation.

(21) "New CAFO" means a CAFO that is seeking a permit under ORS 468B.050 to operate on a parcel of land on which no CAFO has previously operated. A CAFO is considered to have previously operated when it has been issued a WPCF or NPDES Permit.

(22) "New large CAFO" means a large CAFO that is seeking a permit under ORS 468B.050 to operate on a parcel of land on which no CAFO has previously operated. A CAFO is considered to have previously operated when it has been issued a WCPF or NPDES Permit.

(23) "NPDES Permit" means a waste discharge permit issued in accordance with the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System authorized by the Federal Clean Water Act, and OAR chapter 340, division 045.

(24) "Parcel of land" means the tax lot, as identified by county records, on which the production area of a CAFO is located.

(25) "Person" means any individual, the United States and agencies thereof, any state, public or private corporation, political subdivision, governmental agency, municipality, co-partnership, association, firm, trust, estate or any other legal entity whatever.

(26) "Past occurrence of violations" means any violation for which a notice of noncompliance or assessment of civil penalty was issued within the preceding ten years. It does not include a violation if the notice is the subject of a pending appeal or if the notice has been withdrawn or successfully appealed.

(27) "Pollution" or "water pollution" means such alteration of the physical, chemical or biological properties of any waters of the state, including change in temperature, taste, color, turbidity, silt or odor of the waters, or such discharge of any liquid, gaseous, solid, radioactive or other substance into any waters of the state, which will or tends to, either by itself or in connection with any other substance, create a public nuisance or which will or tends to render such waters harmful, detrimental or injurious to public health, safety or welfare, or to domestic, commercial, industrial, agricultural, recreational or other legitimate beneficial uses or to livestock, wildlife, fish or other aquatic life or the habitat thereof.

(28) "Previous notice of the same or similar violation" means a notice of noncompliance or assessment of civil penalties for the same or a similar type of violation that was issued within the preceding ten years. It includes a notice for the same or a similar type of violation that is the subject of a pending appeal. It does not include a notice that has been withdrawn or successfully appealed.

(29) "Process wastewater" or "process wastes" means water directly or indirectly used or liquids created in the operation of the CAFO including but not limited to: spillage or overflow from animal or poultry watering systems; washing, cleaning or flushing pens, barns, manure pits, or other facilities; direct contact swimming, washing, or spray cooling of animals; and dust control. Process wastewater or process wastes also includes any water that comes into contact with any raw materials, products, or byproducts including manure, litter, feed, milk, eggs, or bedding.

(30) "Production area" means that part of a CAFO that includes the animal confinement area, the manure storage area, the raw materials storage area, and the waste containment areas. The animal confinement area includes but is not limited to open lots, housed lots, feedlots, confinement houses, stall barns, free stall barns, milk rooms, milking centers, cow yards, barnyards, medication pens, walkers, animal walkways, and stables. The manure storage area includes but is not limited to lagoons, runoff ponds, storage sheds, stockpiles, under house or pit storages, liquid impoundments, static piles, and composting piles. The raw materials storage area includes but is not limited to feed silos, silage bunkers, and bedding materials. The waste containment areas include but are not limited to settling basins, and areas within berms and diversions that separate uncontaminated storm water. Also included in the production area is any egg washing or egg processing facility, and any area used in the storage, handling, treatment, or disposal of animal mortalities.

(31) "Reckless" means conduct by a person who is aware of and consciously disregards a substantial and unjustifiable risk that the result will occur or that the circumstances exist. The risk must be of such a nature and degree that disregard thereof constitutes a gross deviation from the standard of care a reasonable person would observe in that situation.

(32) "Repeat violation" means the recurrence of the same type of violation for which a notice of noncompliance or assessment of civil penalty was issued within the preceding ten years. It does not include a violation if the previous notice is the subject of a pending appeal or if the notice has been withdrawn or successfully appealed.

(33) "Seasonal Feedlot" means a CAFO which confines animals for six months or less duration in a feedlot.

(34) "Violation" means the failure to comply with any requirement of ORS Chapter 468 or 468B, or any rule, order or permit adopted or issued thereunder and relating to the control and prevention of pollution of the waters of the state at a CAFO. Each day a violation continues after the time established for compliance shall be considered a separate violation unless the Department finds that a different period of time is more appropriate to describe a specific violation event.

(35) "Wastewater disposal system," "wastewater treatment works," or "waste water control facility" means a "disposal system" or "treatment works" as defined in ORS 468B.005 that may cause pollution of surface water or groundwater and is used for collecting, conveying, treating, stabilizing or storing liquid manure, process wastewater, or contaminated production area drainage (e.g., silage leachate, contaminated storm water runoff, etc.) at confined animal feeding operations.

(36) "Wastes" means sewage, industrial wastes, agricultural wastes, and all other liquid, gaseous, solid, radioactive or other substances which will or may cause pollution or tend to cause pollution of any waters of the state.

(37) "Water" or "the waters of the state" include lakes, bays, ponds, impounding reservoirs, springs, wells, rivers, streams, creeks, estuaries, marshes, inlets, canals, the Pacific Ocean within the territorial limits of the State of Oregon and all other bodies of surface or underground waters, natural or artificial, inland or coastal, fresh or salt, public or private (except those private waters which do not combine or effect a junction with natural surface or underground waters), which are wholly or partially within or bordering the state or within its jurisdiction.

(38) "WPCF Permit" means a Water Pollution Control Facilities Permit that has been issued under OAR chapter 340, divisions 45 or 71.

Notes

Or. Admin. Code § 603-074-0010

AD 12-1990, f. & cert. ef. 6-4-90; AD 8-1994, f. & cert. ef. 7-26-94; DOA 15-2001(Temp), f. & cert. ef. 7-2-01 thru 12-28-01; Reverted to AD 8-1994, f. & cert. ef. 7-26-94; DOA 28-2001, f. & cert. ef. 12-31-01; DOA 30-2003, f. 9-11-03, cert. ef. 10-1-03; DOA 27-2019, amend filed 12/23/2019, effective 12/23/2019; DOA 19-2024, amend filed 09/25/2024, effective 9/25/2024

Publications: Publications referenced are available from the agency.

Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 561.190, ORS 561.191 & 468B.205

Statutes/Other Implemented: 468B.205, ORS 468B.035, 468B.050 & 468B.215