A person may apply manure originating from an animal feeding operation on snow covered ground or frozen ground, except to the extent otherwise provided by applicable requirements in this section, this chapter, or the national pollutant discharge elimination system pursuant to the federal Water Pollution Control Act, 33 U.S.C. ch. 26, as amended, and 40 C.F.R. pts. 122 and 412.

1. 1. During the period beginning December 21 and ending April 1, the person may apply liquid manure originating from a manure storage structure, that is part of a confinement feeding operation, on snow covered ground only when there is an emergency. During the period beginning February 1 and ending April 1, the person may apply liquid manure originating from a manure storage structure, that is part of a confinement feeding operation, on frozen ground only when there is an emergency. An emergency occurs only when there is an immediate need to comply with section 459.311, subsection 1, due to unforeseen circumstances affecting the storage of the liquid manure. The unforeseen circumstances must be beyond the control of the owner of the confinement feeding operation, including but not limited to natural disaster, unusual weather conditions, or equipment or structural failure. A person who is authorized to apply liquid manure on snow covered ground or frozen ground when there is an emergency shall comply with all of the following:

   1. a. The person must contact the department by telephone prior to the application.
   2. b. The person must apply the liquid manure on land identified for such application in a manure management plan submitted by the owner of the confinement feeding operation to the department as provided in section 459.312. The owner of the confinement feeding operation must identify the land in the manure management plan prior to the application. The owner must identify the land in the original manure management plan or in the next updated manure management plan required to be submitted to the department following the application.
   3. c. The liquid manure must be applied on a field with a phosphorus index rating of two or less.
   4. d. Any surface water drain tile intake that is on land in the owner’s manure management plan and located down gradient of the application must be temporarily blocked beginning not later than the time that the liquid manure is first applied and ending not earlier than two weeks after the completion of the application.

2. 2. The authorization to apply liquid manure in subsection 1 does not apply to any of the following:

   1. a. An immediate need to comply with section 459.311, subsection 1, caused by the improper design or management of the manure storage structure, including but not limited to a failure to properly account for the volume of the manure to be stored.
   2. b. Liquid manure originating from a manure storage structure constructed or expanded on or after July 1, 2009, if the manure storage structure has a capacity to store manure for less than one hundred eighty days.

3. 3. Subsections 1 and 2 do not apply to any of the following:

   1. a. The application of liquid manure originating from a small animal feeding operation.
   2. b. The application of liquid manure and injection into the soil or incorporation within the soil on the same date.

2009 Acts, ch 155, §3

Referred to in §459.312, 459.312A