HBA-AMW H.B. 2699 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2699
By: Averitt
Natural Resources
3/16/2001
Introduced



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

The North Bosque Watershed has become one of the most polluted and studied
watersheds in the nation. Many of the pollutants in this watershed are from
dairies and their waste application fields.  Historically, manure collected
from dairy operations is applied to waste fields as fertilizer but, over
the years, the amount of manure generated has led to the saturation of many
fields.  When significant rainfall occurs, the accumulated nutrients are
washed into the North Bosque River.  Recently, a voluntary composting
initiative was implemented and approximately 75 percent of the North Bosque
Watershed's collectible manure is being composted.  However, concerns have
been raised regarding how waste will be managed as dairy herd sizes
continue to expand.  House Bill 2699 requires new dairies and dairies that
expand their herd sizes to dispose of their collectible manure and to
responsibly manage their liquid waste and requires TNRCC to perform
necessary soil tests. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that rulemaking
authority is expressly delegated to the Texas Natural Resource Conservation
Commission in SECTION 2 (Section 26.0287, Water Code) and SECTION 3
(Section 26.0425, Water Code) of this bill. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 2699 amends the Water Code to establish provisions relating to
the management and disposal of waste from certain animal feeding operations
in impaired watersheds.  

The bill authorizes the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission
(TNRCC) to authorize by rule or by a general permit the construction or
operation of a new concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) or an
increase in the number of animals confined under an existing individual
authorization or registration.  The bill prohibits the rule or general
permit from applying to an existing or new CAFO if the operation or the
waste application area serving the CAFO is located or proposed to be
located in a feeding operation impaired watershed with a twenty-five-year
daily rainfall event of more than seven inches (impaired watershed).   

The bill authorizes TNRCC to authorize the construction or operation of a
new CAFO or an increase in the number of animals confined under an existing
individual authorization or registration if the operation or the waste
application area serving the operation is located or proposed to be located
in an impaired watershed.  The bill provides that the authorization may be
made only by a new or amended individual permit or a general permit
specific to the watershed and provides that these permits must provide for
the proper management and disposal of liquid waste.  The bill also provides
that the permits must require that 75 percent of all the manure produced by
all the CAFO, or another proportion of collectible manure provided by
commission rule, must be removed from the facility and disposed of or used
outside the watershed or delivered to a composting facility approved by the
executive director of TNRCC.  The bill provides that the rules concerning
manure disposal may provide different proportions of manure to be removed
for different species of confined animals.  The bill specifies that the
aforementioned provisions do not limit TNRCC's authority to prescribe water
control practices for animal feeding operations by rule or  general permit
or to include provisions in an individual or general permit as necessary to
protect water resources in this state. 

H.B. 2699 requires TNRCC to collect one or more representative soil samples
from each waste application field serving an animal feeding operation or
CAFO that is located in an impaired watershed. The bill requires TNRCC to
test each sample for phosphorus and any other constituent as required by
TNRCC rule and to make the test results available to the operator of the
operation.  The bill also authorizes TNRCC and employees and agents of
TNRCC to enter public or private property at any reasonable time for
activities reasonably related to collecting such soil samples and
authorizes TNRCC to enforce this right. The bill requires TNRCC by rule to
implement the provisions regarding soil testing in impaired watersheds and
specifies that the rules must provide for the scheduling and manner of the
required testing. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001.