ACG C.S.S.B. 1910 75(R)BILL ANALYSIS ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION C.S.S.B. 1910 By: Ratliff (Glaze) 5-22-97 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND Currently, the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission's (TNRCC) regulations on the discharge of waste into waters of the state exempt poultry operations that do not have liquid waste handling systems. Most poultry houses fall within this exemption because they operate with a dry waste handling system. For those unregulated facilities, poultry litter is often stockpiled and disposed of without any effort to protect the waters of the state. Additionally, in the poultry industry, the occurrence of deaths of chickens in large quantities is not unusual. These deaths can occur from disease or climatic conditions. In such instances, there are no state laws which relate to the disposal of these chicken carcasses. Some poultry producers dispose of dead chickens in open, unlined pits, similar to a landfill. This bill will provide regulations relating to the disposal and handling of poultry and poultry litter. PURPOSE C.S.S.B. 1910 provides regulations relating to the disposal and handling of poultry and poultry litter. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY Rulemaking authority is granted to the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission in SECTION 1 [Section 26.303(a), Water Code] of this bill. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Chapter 26, Water Code, by adding Subchapter H, as follows: Sec. 26.301. DEFINITIONS. Defines "poultry," "poultry carcass," "poultry facility," and "poultry litter." Sec. 26.302. REGULATION OF POULTRY FACILITIES. Requires a person who owns or operates a poultry facility to ensure that the facility has adequate means or is adequately equipped for handling and disposal of poultry carcasses, poultry litter, and other poultry waste regardless of whether the person owns the poultry. Sec. 26.303. HANDLING AND DISPOSAL OF POULTRY CARCASSES. Requires TNRCC, by rule, to adopt requirements for the safe and adequate handling, storage and transportation, and disposal of poultry carcasses. Requires the rules to include certain requirements and prohibitions. Requires a person to obtain any permit required by other law to dispose of poultry carcasses as provided by Subsection (a)(1). SECTION 2. Effective date: March 1, 1998, except as provided by Subsection (b) of this section. (b) Effective date for Section 26.303, Water Code: The later of: the date the rule is adopted or March 1, 1999. SECTION 3. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The original bill contains definitions for the following terms that are not contained in the substitute: "confined poultry operation", "provider", "user", and "wastewater." The following sections of the original are not included in the substitute: EXEMPTION: this chapter does not apply to certain confined poultry operations; REGISTRATION WITH COMMISSION: requires certain persons who handle poultry or poultry-by-products to register with TNRCC; COMMISSION RULES: requires TNRCC to adopt rules to implement this subchapter; HANDLING AND DISPOSAL OF POULTRY LITTER: imposes certain regulations on persons who handle poultry litter; LAND APPLICATION OF POULTRY LITTER: requires restrictions on land application of poultry litter; and ENFORCEMENT: permits TNRCC employees and agents to enter premises where poultry are produced, and allows the TNRCC to contract with certain water districts for enforcement matters. The original requires that poultry carcasses stored on the site of a facility for more than 30 hours must be stored in a refrigerated receptacle. The substitute does not have this provision. The substitute prohibits the on-site storage of poultry carcasses for more than 72 hours. The original does not have such a provision. The substitute requires that poultry facilities have "adequate means or be adequately equipped" to handle poultry carcasses, litter, and poultry waste. The original is substantially the same, but does not include language regarding "adequate means" to handle the same situations. The substitute does not require poultry carcasses stored on site to be in a "sealed, varmint proof" receptacle, but rather in a "varmint proof" receptacle. The original requires a "sealed, varmint proof" receptacle. The substitute authorizes on-site burial of carcasses in case of major die-off. The original prohibits on-site disposal except in case of major die off. The substitute requires TNRCC to adopt any rule deemed appropriate for disposal of poultry carcasses. The original does not include this provision. The effective date of the substitute is March 1, 1998, but a rule adopted under the act is the date the rule is adopted or March 1, 1999, whichever is later. The effective date of the original is March 1, 1998, except the provision relating to handling and disposal of poultry carcasses, which is effective March 1, 1999.