1. (a) Bulk sewage sludge shall not cause or contribute to the harm of a threatened or endangered species of plant, fish, or wildlife or result in the destruction or adverse modification of the critical habitat of a threatened or endangered species after application to agricultural land, forest, a public contact site, or a reclamation site.
2. (b) Bulk sewage sludge shall not be applied to agricultural land, forest, a public contact site, or a reclamation site that is flooded, frozen, or snow-covered so that the bulk sewage sludge enters a wetland or other waters in the state, except as provided in a permit issued pursuant to Chapter 305 of this title (relating to Consolidated Permits) or §404 of the Clean Water Act ("CWA").

3. (c) Distance to Surface Waters.

   1. (1) Unless the sewage sludge is incorporated into the soil within 48 hours of application and a vegetated cover is established between the application area and all adjacent surface waters, bulk sewage sludge not meeting Class A pathogen requirements and applied to agricultural land, forest, or a reclamation site shall maintain a buffer zone of at least 200 feet from surface waters.
   2. (2) In cases where sludge is both incorporated into the soil within 48 hours of application and a vegetated cover is established between the application area and all adjacent surface waters, bulk sewage sludge not meeting Class A pathogen requirements and applied to agricultural land, forest, or a reclamation site shall maintain a buffer zone of at least 33 feet from surface waters.

4. (d) When bulk sewage sludge not meeting Class A pathogen requirements is applied to agricultural land, forest, or a reclamation site, the following buffer zones shall be established for each application area, unless otherwise specified by the commission:

   1. (1) private water supply well, 150 feet;
   2. (2) public water supply well, intake, public water supply spring or similar source, public water supply treatment plant, or public water supply elevated or ground storage tank, 500 feet;
   3. (3) solution channel, sinkhole, or other conduit to groundwater, 200 feet;
   4. (4) established school, institution, business, or occupied residential structure, 750 feet;
   5. (5) public right of way, 50 feet;
   6. (6) irrigation conveyance canal, 10 feet;
   7. (7) property boundary, 50 feet;
5. (e) Any of the buffers established in subsection (d)(4) and (7) of this section may be reduced or eliminated if an agreement to that effect is signed by the owners of the established school, institution, business, occupied residential structure or adjacent property and this documentation is provided to the executive director prior to issuance of a registration. Reductions or elimination of buffer zones in an existing registration by agreement of the affected landowner will be considered a minor amendment of the registration.
6. (f) Bulk sewage sludge shall be applied to agricultural land, forest, or a public contact site at a whole sludge application rate that is equal to or less than the agronomic rate for the agricultural land, forest, or public contact site on which the bulk sewage sludge is applied. On a case-by-case basis, a whole sludge application rate may exceed the agronomic rate for a time application to a reclamation site.
7. (g) Bulk sewage sludge shall be applied to a reclamation site at a whole application rate that is equal to or less than the agronomic rate for the reclamation site on which the bulk sewage sludge is applied, unless otherwise specified by the commission.

8. (h) Ground Water Protection Measures.

   1. (1) Seasonal high ground water table shall be not less than three feet below the treatment zone for soils with moderate or slower permeability (less than two inches per hour).
   2. (2) Seasonal high ground water table shall be not less than four feet below the treatment zone for soils with moderately rapid or rapid permeability (greater than two inches per hour and less than twenty inches per hour).
   3. (3) Seasonal generally refers to a ground water table which may be perched on a less permeable soil or geologic unit and fluctuates with seasonal climatic variation or which occurs in a soil or geologic unit as a variation in saturation due to seasonal climatic conditions and is identified as such in a published soil survey report or similar document.
   4. (4) Application of sludge to land having soils with greater permeability and with higher ground water tables will be considered on a case-by-case basis, after consideration of soil pH, metal loadings onto the soil, soil buffering capacity, or other protective measures to prevent ground water contamination.

9. (i) Sludge shall be applied by a method and under conditions that prevent runoff of sewage sludge beyond the active application area and protect the quality of the surface water and the soils in the unsaturated zone.

   1. (1) Sludge shall be applied uniformly over the surface of the land.
   2. (2) Sludge shall not be applied to areas where permeable surface soils are less than 2 feet thick. The executive director will consider sites with thinner permeable surface soils, on a case-by-case basis.
   3. (3) Sewage sludge shall not be applied during rainstorms or during periods in which surface soils are water-saturated.
   4. (4) Sludge shall not be applied to areas having topographical slopes in excess of 8.0%. On a case-by-case basis, the executive director will consider sites with steeper slopes when runoff controls are proposed and utilized, incorporation of sewage sludge into the soil occurs, or for certain reclamation projects.
   5. (5) Where runoff of sludge from the active application area is evident, the operator shall cease further sludge application until the condition is corrected.
   6. (6) Sewage sludge shall not be applied under provisions of this section on land within a designated floodway.

10. (j) Either a label shall be affixed to the bag or other container in which sewage sludge is sold or given away for application to the land or an information sheet shall be provided to the person who receives sewage sludge sold or given away in a other container for application to the land. The label or information sheet shall contain the following information:

    1. (1) the name and address of the person who prepared the sewage sludge for sale or give away in a bag or other container for application to the land;
    2. (2) a statement that prohibits the application of the sewage sludge to the land except in accordance with the instructions on the label or information sheet;
    3. (3) the annual whole sludge application rate for the sewage sludge that does not cause the annual metal loading rates in §312.43(b)(4) (Table 4) of this title to be exceeded.

11. (k) Nuisance Controls.

    1. (1) A land application site location shall be selected and the site operated in a manner to prevent public health nuisances.
    2. (2) Sewage sludge debris must be prevented from blowing or running off site boundaries or into surface waters.

    3. (3) If necessary or when significant nuisance conditions occur, the operator shall:

       1. (A) minimize dust migration from the site and access roadways;
       2. (B) minimize objectionable odors through incorporation of sewage sludge into the soil or by taking some other type of corrective action.

12. (l) A registration for the beneficial use of sewage sludge shall specify the soil testing requirements for each application area.

    1. (1) The testing frequency shall be in accordance with a plan proposed by the registrant in the application, which takes into account common agricultural methods of determining cover crop nutrient needs, soil pH, phytotoxicity, and concentrations of metals regulated by this chapter.
    2. (2) No registration shall require soil testing of metals regulated by this chapter, at a frequency greater than once per five years or prior to submittal of a renewal application for a beneficial use site. Soil testing for metals regulated by this chapter shall not be required for portions of the registration site where sewage sludge has not been applied since the last soil metals testing was performed.
    3. (3) Paragraph (2) of this subsection does not apply if the executive director becomes aware of circumstances warranting increased monitoring of metals regulated by this chapter, in order to address sites where metal loading into the soil is a threat to human health or environmental quality.

Source Note:The provisions of this §312.44 adopted to be effective October 13, 1995, 20 TexReg 7840.