A. The director shall adopt by rule, pursuant to the requirements of this section, agricultural general permits consisting of best management practices for regulated agricultural activities. Agricultural general permits are not subject to section 49-245 or 49-246. Except as provided in subsection G of this section, a person is not required to obtain an individual permit for a regulated agricultural activity.

Terms Used In Arizona Laws 49-247

  • Best management practices: means those methods, measures or practices to prevent or reduce discharges and includes structural and nonstructural controls and operation and maintenance procedures. See Arizona Laws 49-201
  • Director: means the director of environmental quality or the director's designee. See Arizona Laws 49-201
  • Discharge: means the direct or indirect addition of any pollutant to the waters of the state from a facility. See Arizona Laws 49-201
  • Environment: means WOTUS, any other surface waters, groundwater, drinking water supply, land surface or subsurface strata or ambient air, within or bordering on this state. See Arizona Laws 49-201
  • Permit: means a written authorization issued by the director or prescribed by this chapter or in a rule adopted under this chapter stating the conditions and restrictions governing a discharge or governing the construction, operation or modification of a facility. See Arizona Laws 49-201
  • Person: means an individual, employee, officer, managing body, trust, firm, joint stock company, consortium, public or private corporation, including a government corporation, partnership, association or state, a political subdivision of this state, a commission, the United States government or any federal facility, interstate body or other entity. See Arizona Laws 49-201
  • Regulated agricultural activity: means the application of nitrogen fertilizer or a concentrated animal feeding operation. See Arizona Laws 49-201
  • Standards: means water quality standards, pretreatment standards and toxicity standards established pursuant to this chapter. See Arizona Laws 49-201

B. The terms and conditions of agricultural general permits adopted pursuant to this section shall be agricultural best management practices which have been determined by the director to be the most practical and effective means of reducing or preventing the discharge of pollutants by regulated agricultural activities. Agricultural best management practices may vary within the state, according to regional and hydrogeologic conditions. The director may waive the use of best management practices in a designated region if the director determines that existing regulated agricultural activities will not cause or contribute to a violation of the adopted water quality standards.

C. The director shall adopt, by rule, agricultural best management practices.

D. In adopting agricultural best management practices, the director shall consider:

1. The availability, the effectiveness and the economic and institutional considerations of alternative technologies.

2. The potential nature and severity of discharges from regulated agricultural activities and their effect on public health and the environment.

E. In adopting best management practices for regulated agricultural activities, the director shall require the application of all economically feasible best management practices which have been determined by the director to be the most practical and effective means of reducing or preventing the discharge of pollutants by regulated agricultural activities but shall not require application of more stringent practices if such a requirement would result in cessation of the regulated activity.

F. Compliance with best management practices adopted pursuant to this section constitutes compliance with this article.

G. If the director, after providing a person with notice and an opportunity for a hearing, determines that the person has violated the applicable best management practices, the director may revoke the agricultural general permit for that person and require that the person obtain a permit pursuant to section 49-241.

H. The director may periodically reexamine, evaluate and propose any modification to or waiver of agricultural best management practices necessary to meet the requirements of this article.