Livestock and poultry farmers may have until November 15 to notify public agencies if their facilities are likely to be responsible for a daily emission of over 100 lb. of either ammonia or hydrogen sulfide.
This upcoming deadline is a result of an appeals court ruling that requires EPA to enforce an existing reporting rule on CERCLA, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. The decision does not impact a related rule called EPCRA (Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act), which is triggered by similar emissions values but currently applies only to farms designated as large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) under EPA’s National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES).
“Livestock and poultry farmers are urged to be in contact with their commodity group representatives, as this issue is evolving daily,” said Richard Gates, an Extension livestock engineer. “EPA has asked the Court of Appeals to reconsider its ruling but as of today, no further action has been taken. Thus, it is prudent to prepare for the requirement to report, if necessary, under CERCLA. We will be providing further assistance on how to complete the required reports in the coming days.”
EPA has provided guidance at on their website.
To assist farmers, Extension livestock engineers have created a simple table of animal numbers that would be required to trigger a mandatory report of a continuous release of ammonia. They have determined that for most cases, ammonia emissions, rather than hydrogen sulfide emissions, will be the greater value.
Using the animal numbers in the table, a farmer can determine whether further action is taken. For example, a grow-finish swine farm that uses deep pits for manure storage and has less than 2,703 head, or a turkey grower with less than 12,970 tom turkeys raised from 36 to 140 days old, would not need to take any further action.
“We urge farmers to review their operations and select the best fit from the threshold reporting table,” said Neslihan Akdeniz, a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at the University of Illinois. If a farmer determines that their animal numbers exceed the reporting threshold, further action is required.
Gates and Akdeniz caution that there have been conflicting reports from different EPA Regional Centers. Region 5, in which Illinois is located, has stated that the threshold numbers apply to the entire facility. “The November 15 reporting deadline is firm as of today, and producers are urged to be proactive,” said Akdeniz. “Fortunately the reporting requirements are simple, requiring only a phone call and a follow up report within 30 days. If a farm participated in the EPA’s AFO Air Compliance Agreement in 2008, then they are exempt from this new reporting requirement for now.”
University of Illinois Extension will be providing another announcement with specific tools to assist farmers that are required to report.
Source: Richard Gates, 217-244-2791, rsgates@illinois.edu or Neslihan Akdeniz, 217-300-2644, neslihan@illinois.edu
News writer: Deborah Seiler, 217-300-5571, dlseiler@illinois.edu