(a) The Department of Environmental Quality shall establish standard stormwater control best management practices and standard process water treatment processes or equivalent performance standards for composting operations that are required to be permitted by the Division of Water Resources in the Department and the Division of Waste Management in the Department. These practices, processes, and standards shall be developed for the purpose of protecting water quality by controlling and containing stormwater that is associated with composting operations, by reducing the pollutant levels of process water from composting operations, and by reducing the opportunities for generation of such waters.

(b) Unless otherwise provided in this subsection, the Division of Water Resources shall clarify that stormwater is water that does not contact anything considered a feedstock, intermediate product, or final product of composting operations. Unless otherwise provided in this subsection, the Division of Water Resources shall clarify that wastewater is leachate and water that contacts feedstocks, intermediate products, or final product, of composting operations. The clarifications shall incorporate available scientifically valid information obtained from sampling and analyses of North Carolina composting facilities and from valid representative data from other states. In addition, the Division of Water Resources shall establish threshold quantities of feedstocks, intermediate products, and final products above which water quality permitting will be required. A Type 1 solid waste compost facility shall be subject only to applicable State stormwater requirements and federal stormwater requirements established pursuant to 33 U.S.C. § 1342(p)(3)(B). A Type 1 solid waste compost facility shall not be required to obtain a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for discharge of process wastewater based solely on the discharge of stormwater that has come into contact with feedstock, intermediate product, or final product at the facility. For purposes of this section, “Type 1 solid waste compost facilities” are facilities that may receive yard and garden waste, silvicultural waste, untreated and unpainted wood waste, or any combination thereof.

(c) The Department shall establish revised water quality permitting procedures for the composting industry. The revised permitting procedures shall identify the various circumstances that determine which water quality permit is required for various composting activities. The Department shall determine whether selected low-risk subsets of the composting industry may be suitable for expedited or reduced water quality permitting procedures. The determination shall include consideration of the economic impact of regulatory decisions.

(d) In developing the practices, processes, and standards and the revised water quality permitting procedures required by this section, the Department shall review practices, processes, and standards and permitting procedures adopted by other states and similar federal programs.

(e) The Department shall form a Compost Operation Stakeholder Advisory Group composed of representatives from the North Carolina Chapter of the United States Composting Council, the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners, the North Carolina League of Municipalities, the North Carolina State Agricultural Extension Service, the North Carolina Chapter of the American Water Works Association-Water Environment Federation, the North Carolina Pumper Group, the North Carolina Chapter of the Solid Waste Association of North America, the North Carolina Septic Tank Association, and any individual or group commenting to the Department on issues related to water quality at composting operations. The Compost Operation Stakeholder Advisory Group shall be convened periodically to provide input and assistance to the Department.

(f) The practices, processes, and standards and the revised permitting procedures shall address the site size of an operation, the nature of the feedstocks composted, the type of compost production method employed, the quantity and water quality of the stormwater or process water associated with composting facilities, the water quality of the receiving waters, as well as operation and maintenance requirements for the resulting standard stormwater control best management practices and standard process water treatment processes. (2009-322, s. 1(a)-(f); 2011-394, s. 7; 2012-200, s. 5; 2013-413, s. 57(i), (bb); 2014-115, s. 17; 2015-241, s. 14.30(u).)