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<regulation prefix="Regulation" num=".27" citation="COMAR 26.04.06.27" title_num="26" subtitle_num="04" chapter_num="06" heading="Storage Facility.">
  <paragraph num="A.">
    <text>The Department may not issue a Sewage Sludge Utilization Permit to install, materially alter, or materially extend a sewage sludge storage facility until the storage facility meets all zoning and local land use requirements of the county where the storage facility is to be located.</text>
  </paragraph>
  <paragraph num="B.">
    <text>The Department may issue a Sewage Sludge Utilization Permit to install, materially alter, or materially extend a sewage sludge storage facility if the person applying for a Sewage Sludge Utilization Permit demonstrates that the following conditions and requirements will be met:</text>
    <paragraph num="(1)">
      <text>A 1,000-foot buffer zone shall be maintained between the storage facility property boundary lines and the nearest inhabited off-site dwelling, except that this buffer distance may be reduced if the Department determines that the storage facility has adequate odor control measures;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(2)">
      <text>A storage facility may not be located in a flood prone area;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(3)">
      <text>A storage facility located within a 100-year flood plain shall be evaluated as to its hydrologic impact on adjoining landowners;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(4)">
      <text>The storage facility shall be designed, constructed, and operated to safely store sewage sludge in a manner that will not cause an undue risk to the environment or public health, safety, or welfare as may be determined by the Department;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(5)">
      <text>A storage facility may be located on soils of low to moderate permeability or on soils that seal through sedimentation and biological action, subject to the following:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>The permeability of such soils may not exceed 1.0 x 10-7 cm/sec as measured by appropriate test methods that are acceptable to the Department; or</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>If a storage facility is proposed on other soils, the Department shall require permeability tests or use of an impermeable membrane liner or soil sealant, or any combination of these;</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(6)">
      <text>The minimum design capacity of a storage facility not completely enclosed shall be the maximum volume of sewage sludge to be stored, plus the estimated liquid volume from precipitation on the facility occurring during the period of storage, minus the expected liquid volume of evaporation on from the storage facility surface during the period of storage, plus the liquid volume resulting from the maximum expected 25-year, 24-hour precipitation event;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(7)">
      <text>A storage facility may be constructed of:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>Compacted soils;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Manufactured materials, such as asphalt, steel, or reinforced concrete;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Fiberglass; or</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(d)">
        <text>Other materials approved by the Department;</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(8)">
      <text>A storage facility constructed on an above ground embankment shall meet the following:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>The minimum combined inner and outer slopes of the embankment shall be 5 horizontal to 1 vertical with the wet side slope not steeper than a ratio of 2:1 and the dry side slope not steeper than 3:1;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Embankments having a height of 14 feet or less shall have a minimum top width of 8 feet;</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(c)">
        <text>Embankments having a height of 15 feet to 19 feet shall have a minimum top width of 10 feet; and</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(d)">
        <text>The initial construction height of the embankment may be increased over the design height to insure that the approved top elevation of the embankment is maintained after settlement of the embankment has occurred, subject to the following:</text>
        <paragraph num="(i)">
          <text>The increase in height of the embankment for the initial construction may not exceed 5 percent of the total approved height when compaction rollers are used; and</text>
        </paragraph>
        <paragraph num="(ii)">
          <text>The increase in height of the embankment for the initial construction may not exceed 10 percent of the total approved height when bulldozers or scrapers alone are used;</text>
        </paragraph>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(9)">
      <text>The minimum height of the storage facility after settlement shall be 10 percent greater than the design storage depth for the sewage sludge, except that the Department may waive this provision or reduce the freeboard requirements if the storage facility design includes a secondary containment capability and the accumulated liquids are routinely removed from the storage facility;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(10)">
      <text>The side slopes of an excavated storage facility may not be steeper than 1:1;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(11)">
      <text>A storage facility constructed by both the embankment and excavation method shall meet all of the requirements of §B(8) of this regulation if the design depth of the sewage sludge impounded against the embankment is 3 feet or more;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(12)">
      <text>The storage facility shall be located in a relatively level area, usually less than 5 percent slope, and shall be located no closer than 150 feet from any drainage ditch, swale, or gully, and shall be bermed to prevent run-on of surface water, except that areas with ground slopes of greater than 5 percent may be considered suitable for a storage facility if diversion ditches, increased buffer distances, or other provisions can be made to further control storm water in the area of the storage facility;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(13)">
      <text>The cell floor elevation shall be at least 2 feet above the maximum seasonal high groundwater elevation;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(14)">
      <text>A storage facility may not be located on an unstable area;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(15)">
      <text>The storage facility shall be lined to prevent leakage of material to groundwater, with an acceptable liner being:</text>
      <paragraph num="(a)">
        <text>A compacted soil layer at least 2 feet thick with an installed permeability of 1.0 x 10-5 cm/sec or less in combination with an artificial liner at least 30 mil in thickness with a permeability of 1.0 x 10-7 cm/sec or less, as measured by appropriate test methods that are acceptable to the Department; or</text>
      </paragraph>
      <paragraph num="(b)">
        <text>Other manufactured storage structures acceptable to the Department, including asphalt or reinforced concrete structures, steel tanks, fiberglass tanks, or their equivalent;</text>
      </paragraph>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(16)">
      <text>If a clay or soil liner is specified, the liner shall be constructed with protective layers to prevent erosion, dessication, and other sources of damage;</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(17)">
      <text>Public access to the storage facility shall be controlled; and</text>
    </paragraph>
    <paragraph num="(18)">
      <text>Any other conditions required by the Department to protect the public health and the environment.</text>
    </paragraph>
  </paragraph>
</regulation>