Current through Register Vol. 41, No. 3, September 23, 2024
A. Practices
for establishing baseline must be in place prior to the generation of any
credits by a nutrient credit-generating project except in the case of land use
conversion as described in subsection E of this section. The practices for
establishing baselines, as provided in this section, shall be implemented and
properly maintained for each type of operation within the management area.
Baselines are applicable statewide for nutrient credit-generating projects
including those located in either the Chesapeake Bay Watershed or the Southern
Rivers watersheds. Baseline practices are, at a minimum, in accordance with the
requirements of the WIP or an approved TMDL, whichever is more
stringent.
B. Cropland, hayland,
and pastures. Baselines for cropland, hayland, or pastures within the
management area shall be established in accordance with subdivision 1, 2, or 3
of this subsection.
1. The owner holds a valid
Certificate of Resource Management Plan Implementation for the management area
that has been issued pursuant to the Resource Management Plans regulation
(4VAC50-70).
2. If the owner does
not hold a valid Certificate of Resource Management Plan Implementation for the
management area, the owner shall implement the following practices for
establishing baseline:
a. Soil conservation.
Soil conservation practices for the management area shall be implemented and
maintained to achieve a maximum soil loss rate not to exceed "T" and to address
gross erosion when it is present as gullies or other severely eroding
conditions.
b. Nutrient management.
Implementation and maintenance of the nutrient management practices required by
the nutrient management plan written by a certified nutrient management planner
pursuant to the Nutrient Management Training and Certification Regulations
(4VAC50-85).
c. Riparian buffer. A
woodland or grass riparian buffer shall be installed and maintained around all
water bodies with perennial flow within the management area and shall be
installed and maintained along all water bodies with perennial flow bordering
the management area. The riparian buffer shall be a minimum width of 35 feet as
measured from the top of the channel bank to the edge of the cropland, hayland,
or pasture and in accordance with DCR Specifications for NO. FR-3 or DCR
Specifications for NO. WQ-1 contained in the VACS BMP Manual.
d. Cover crop. For croplands, cover crops
shall be planted to meet the standard planting date and other specifications in
accordance with DCR Specifications for NO. SL-8B contained in the VACS BMP
Manual. This requirement applies to all croplands where summer annual crops are
grown and the summer annual crop receives greater than a total of 50 pounds per
acre of nitrogen application from any nutrient source; however, if the cropland
is planted to winter cereal crops for harvest in the spring, then cover crops
do not need to be planted on these croplands during that production
year.
e. Livestock water body
exclusion. For pastures or when livestock are present within the management
area, livestock exclusion fencing shall be placed around perennial streams,
rivers, lakes, ponds, or other water bodies having perennial flow. This
exclusionary fencing shall be constructed in accordance with DCR Specification
NO. WP-2W contained in the VACS BMP Manual in order to restrict livestock
access to the water body. Livestock shall be provided with an alternative
watering source. The livestock exclusion fencing shall be placed at least 35
feet from the top of the channel bank and this exclusion zone shall contain the
riparian buffer required by subdivision 2 c of this subsection. Access points
for livestock watering or crossing over a water body shall be a hardened
surface constructed to DCR Specifications for NO. WP-2W contained in the VACS
BMP Manual and shall be fenced to limit livestock access to the water body at
the crossing point. Ponds that have been specifically built for the purpose of
livestock watering and that do not have perennial flow through an overflow pipe
or spillway are not required to meet the provisions of this subdivision 2
e.
3. The department may
approve a load-based baseline determination equivalent to full implementation
of the practices identified in subdivision 2 of this subsection.
C. Agricultural animal feeding
operations. Baselines for agricultural animal feeding operations within the
management area shall be established in accordance with either subdivision 1 or
2 of this subsection:
1. The animal feeding
operation is in compliance with a valid VPDES or VPA permit in compliance with
the board's regulations.
2. For
animal feeding operations excluded from or not required to hold a VPDES or VPA
permit under the board's regulations, the practices for establishing baseline
shall be implemented and properly maintained as required in this subdivision 2.
a. Implementation and maintenance of the
nutrient management practices required by the nutrient management plan written
by a certified nutrient management planner pursuant to the Nutrient Management
Training and Certification Regulations (4VAC50-85).
b. For animal feeding operations, except
confined poultry operations, a storage facility designed and operated to
prevent point source discharges of pollutants to state waters except in the
case of a storm event greater than a 25-year/24-hour storm and to provide
adequate waste storage capacity to accommodate periods when the ground is
frozen or saturated, periods when land application of nutrients should not
occur due to limited or nonexistent crop nutrient uptake, and periods when
physical limitations prohibit the land application of waste shall be
implemented and maintained.
c. For
confined poultry operations, storage of poultry waste according to the nutrient
management plan and in a manner that prevents contact with surface water and
groundwater. Poultry waste that is stockpiled outside of the growing house for
more than 14 days shall be kept in a facility or at a location that provides
adequate storage. Adequate storage management practices shall meet the
following minimum requirements:
(1) The
poultry waste shall be covered to protect it from precipitation and
wind.
(2) Stormwater shall not run
onto or under the area where the poultry waste is stored.
(3) The ground surface of the poultry waste
storage area shall have a minimum of two feet separation distance to the
seasonal high water table. If poultry waste is stored in an area where the
seasonal high groundwater table lies within two feet of the ground surface, the
storage area shall be underlain by a low-permeability, hard-surfaced barrier
such as concrete or asphalt.
(4)
For poultry waste that is not stored inside or under a roofed structure, the
storage area must be at least 100 feet from any surface water, intermittent
drainage, wells, sinkholes, rock outcrops, and springs.
D. Urban practices.
Achievement of baseline for new development, redevelopment, or retrofits to
existing development shall be required prior to generation of credits. These
baselines are:
1. For new development and
redevelopment, baseline shall be achieved through compliance with the
post-construction water quality design criteria requirements of the Virginia
Erosion and Stormwater Management Regulation under
9VAC25-875-580. Additionally, for
development in a locality with a local stormwater management design criteria
more stringent than
9VAC25-875-580, baselines shall be
achieved through compliance with the local stormwater management
ordinance.
2. For retrofits within
the Chesapeake Bay Watershed, baseline shall be at a level necessary to achieve
the nutrient reduction assigned in the urban sector of the WIP or the approved
local TMDL, whichever is more stringent.
3. For retrofits within the Southern Rivers
watersheds and within a watershed with an approved TMDL with total phosphorus
or total nitrogen allocations, baselines shall be at a level necessary to
achieve reductions of the approved TMDL. For all other retrofits within the
Southern Rivers watersheds, baseline shall be achieved through compliance with
the post-construction water quality design criteria requirements for
development on prior developed lands pursuant to
9VAC25-875-580 A 2.
4. No credits may be certified for a nutrient
credit-generating project owned by an MS4 permittee and located within the
permittee's MS4 service area until the level of nutrient reduction required by
the WIP or approved TMDL, whichever is more stringent, is achieved for the
entire MS4 service area. MS4 permittees generating credits for exchange shall
have an accounting system demonstrating that the exchanged credits are not used
to satisfy the MS4 permit requirements.
E. Land use conversions. Baselines for land
use conversion shall be established using the preconversion land use. The
preconversion land use shall be based on the land use as of (i) July 1, 2005,
for a nutrient credit-generating project located within the Chesapeake Bay
Watershed; (ii) the date of the approved TMDL for a nutrient credit-generating
project located within a TMDL watershed but not within the Chesapeake Bay
Watershed; or (iii) July, 1, 2009, for a nutrient credit-generating project not
within an approved TMDL watershed or the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.
F. Stream or wetland restoration. Baseline
for stream restoration shall be established using the pre-restoration condition
of the stream. Baseline for wetland restoration shall be established on a
case-by-case basis, depending on the current land use of the proposed wetland
restoration area.
G. Other nutrient
credit-generating projects. The department shall establish baselines for other
nutrient credit-generating projects not otherwise regulated by subsections B
through F of this section. The practices necessary for establishing baseline at
these other nutrient credit-generating projects shall be in accordance with the
requirements of the WIP or the approved TMDL and shall utilize the best
available scientific and technical information regarding the
practices.
Statutory Authority: §
62.1-44.19:20 of the Code of
Virginia
