R 323.2233 Land treatment of wastewater; requirements.

Rule 2233. (1) For the purposes of this rule, the land treatment of wastewater shall be categorized into 1 of 3 of the following general processes: (a) Slow rate. (b) Overland flow. (c) Rapid infiltration. (2) If land application is considered part of the overall treatment to meet the standards of R 323.2222, then a discharger shall incorporate the use of slow rate or overland flow processes in the design. (3) A land treatment system shall comply with the general requirements for land treatment systems as described in subrule (4) of this rule as well as the specific requirements applicable to the type of land treatment system provided in R 323.2234 to R 323.2236. If a land treatment system includes a combination of 1 or more of the processes, then the overall system shall comply with the general requirements in subrule (4) of this rule and its individual component processes shall comply with the applicable requirements provided in R 323.2234 to R 323.2236. A discharger shall provide detailed design data, as described in this rule, to the department upon request. (4) A land treatment system shall meet all of the following requirements: (a) The system shall be designed, constructed, and operated as follows: (i) The system shall be designed and constructed to prevent surface runoff from either entering or exiting the system. (ii) The system shall be designed and constructed to provide even distribution of wastewater during application. A header ditch, where used, shall be designed and constructed to allow for complete drainage after each wastewater loading or shall be lined to prevent seepage. (iii) If vegetative cover is utilized and is considered part of the overall treatment system, then the design and construction of the system shall allow for the mechanical harvesting of vegetative cover. (iv) The system shall be designed, constructed, and operated to allow an appropriate loading cycle. An appropriate loading cycle allows time between loadings for all of the following: (A) Soil organisms to biologically decompose organic constituents in the wastewater. (B) Organic solids on the soil surface to decompose. (C) The soil to become aerated. (D) Vegetative cover to utilize available nutrients provided through the application of the wastewater. (E) Soil conditions to become unsaturated and aerobic. (F) Harvesting operations to occur at appropriate times. (v) The design hydraulic loading or application rate, whether daily, monthly, or annual, shall not be more than 7% of the permeability of the most restrictive soil layer within the solum over the area of the discharge as determined by the saturated hydraulic conductivity method or 12% of the permeability as determined by the basin infiltration method. The design annual hydraulic loading rate shall not be more than 3% of the permeability of the solum when determined by either the cylinder infiltration method or air entry permeameter test method. The methods referenced in this paragraph for determining soil permeability are adopted by reference in these rules and are contained in the publication entitled "Methods of Soil Analysis, Part 1, Physical and Mineralogical Properties," Second Edition, American Society of Agronomy, 1986. The publication may be purchased from the American Society of Agronomy, 677 South Segoe Road, Madison, Wisconsin 53711-1086, or the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Waste Management Division, P.O. Box 30241, Lansing, Michigan 48909, at a cost at the time of adoption of these rules of $65.00, plus shipping and handling. A discharger, if utilizing published information, shall determine the methodology used to measure the reported hydraulic conductivity. If published information is utilized and if it is given as a range of expected values, then a discharger shall use the minimum value given the most restrictive soil layer within the solum when calculating the hydraulic loading or application rate. (vi) The system shall be designed, constructed, and operated so as to prevent the development of sodic conditions within the solum of the discharge area. Sodic conditions are considered to exist in the solum when the exchangeable sodium percentage, which is the percentage of the cation exchange capacity of a soil occupied by sodium, is more than 15%. The exchangeable sodium percentage shall be calculated by dividing the quantity of exchangeable sodium in the solum, in milliequivalents per 100 grams of soil, by the cation exchange capacity, also in milliequivalents per 100 grams of soil, multiplied by 100. (b) If phosphorus adsorption within the solum or unsaturated soil column is part of the overall treatment process, then the system shall be designed as follows: (i) The available phosphorus adsorptive capacity of the solum or unsaturated soil column from within the discharge area shall be sufficient to provide the necessary treatment to ensure that the applicable limit established in the permit is not exceeded for the duration of the permit. (ii) The loading cycle shall be designed so as to provide the necessary contact time within the solum or unsaturated soil column required for phosphorus to be removed from the applied wastewater through adsorption processes. (iii) The available phosphorus adsorptive capacity of the discharge area shall be determined through either of the following methods: (A) By subtracting phosphorus levels of the unsaturated soil column, determined through on-site Bray-P1 analysis, from published phosphorus adsorption capacity data for the solum found within the discharge area. The method and procedure for the Bray-P1 analysis referenced in this subparagraph are contained in the publication entitled "Methods of Soil Analysis, Part 3 - Chemical Methods," American Society of Agronomy, 1996. The publication is adopted by reference in these rules and may be purchased from the American Society of Agronomy, 677 South Segoe Road, Madison, Wisconsin 53711-1086, or the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Waste Management Division, P.O. Box 30241, Lansing, Michigan 48909, at a cost at the time of adoption of these rules of $65.00, plus shipping and handling. (B) By subtracting phosphorus levels of the unsaturated soil column, as determined through on-site Bray-P1 analysis, from the phosphorus adsorption maximum as determined through Langmuir isotherm analysis of on site soils, after adjustments for the concentration of phosphorus in the effluent and fraction of utilization within the solum are made. The method and procedure for determining phosphorus adsorption maximum through Langmuir isotherm analysis referenced in this subparagraph are contained in the publication entitled "Phosphate Sorption Isotherms for Evaluating Phosphorus Requirements of Soils," Soil Science Society of America Journal, Volume 34, American Society of Agronomy, 1970. The publication is adopted by reference in these rules and may be purchased from the American Society of Agronomy, 677 South Segoe Road, Madison, Wisconsin 53711- 1086, or the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Waste Management Division, P.O. Box 30241, Lansing, Michigan 48909, at a cost at the time of adoption of these rules of $65.00, plus shipping and handling. (iv) Unless otherwise specified in a permit issued under R 323.2216 or R 323.2218, each individual discharge area shall be annually sampled in accordance with the publication entitled "Michigan State University Extension Bulletin E- 498" or other method approved by the department, and the samples shall be analyzed for cation exchange capacity, available Bray-P1 phosphorus, pH, and sodium. Bulletin E-498 is available from Michigan State University Bulletin Office, 10-B Agriculture Hall, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, at a cost of 25 cents per copy at the time of adoption of these rules. A single copy is free to Michigan residents. A copy of bulletin E-498 may also be obtained from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Waste Management Division, P.O. Box 30241, Lansing, Michigan 48909, at a cost at the time of adoption of these rules of 25 cents, plus shipping and handling. (c) All of the following operation and maintenance requirements shall be met: (i) Portions of the wastewater distribution system shall be capable of being taken out of service for maintenance and other operational activities and to provide rest to portions of the irrigation area without disrupting applications to other areas of the system. (ii) All areas within a system shall be accessible for maintenance equipment. (iii) For slow rate and overland flow treatment systems, the pH of the plow layer within the discharge area shall be maintained between 6.0 and 7.5 standard units. (iv) The discharge to a land treatment system shall be limited so that the discharge volume combined with the precipitation from a 10-year frequency, 24- hour duration rainfall event does not overflow the designed discharge area. (d) For the purposes of the issuance of a permit under R 323.2218, in determining discharge limitations, the department shall consider all of the following: (i) Past operating performance. (ii) The ability of the solum or the unsaturated soil column to treat the pollutants of concern in the discharge. (iii) Hydrogeologic characteristics of the site. (iv) Other pertinent information.