Wisconsin Code § 281.16

Water quality protection; nonpoint sources
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(1) DEFINITIONS. In this section:
(a) “Agricultural facility” means a structure associated with
an agricultural practice.
(b) “Agricultural practice” means beekeeping; commercial
feedlots; dairying; egg production; floriculture; fish or fur farming; grazing; livestock raising; orchards; poultry raising; raising
of grain, grass, mint and seed crops; raising of fruits, nuts and
berries; sod farming; placing land in federal programs in return
for payments in kind; owning land, at least 35 acres of which is
enrolled in the conservation reserve program under 16 USC 3831
to 3836; and vegetable raising.
(bg) “Artificial water body” has the meaning given in s. 30.19
(1b) (a).
(br) “Covered municipality” means a municipality that has
been issued an individual municipal separate storm sewer permit
under s. 283.33 or that is covered by a general municipal separate
storm sewer permit under s. 283.35.
(c) “Livestock operation” means a feedlot or other facility or
a pasture where animals are fed, confined, maintained or stabled.
(d) “Navigable waters” has the meaning given in s. 281.31 (2)
(d).
(e) “Nonpoint source” means a facility or practice that causes,
or has the potential to cause, nonpoint source water pollution.
(f) “Nonpoint source water pollution” means pollution of waters of the state that does not result from a point source, as defined in s. 283.01 (12).
(g) “Water quality management area” means any of the
following:
1. The area within 1,000 feet from the ordinary high-water
mark of navigable waters that consist of a lake, pond or flowage,
except that, for a navigable water that is a glacial pothole lake,
“water quality management area” means the area within 1,000
feet from the high-water mark of the lake.
2. The area within 300 feet from the ordinary high-water
mark of navigable waters that consist of a river or stream.
3. A site that is susceptible to groundwater contamination or
that has the potential to be a direct conduit for contamination to
reach groundwater.
(h) Notwithstanding s. 281.01 (18), “waters of the state” has
the meaning given in s. 283.01 (20).
(2) NONPOINT SOURCES THAT ARE NOT AGRICULTURAL. (a)
The department shall, by rule, prescribe performance standards
for nonpoint sources that are not agricultural facilities or agricultural practices. The performance standards shall be designed to
achieve water quality standards by limiting nonpoint source water
pollution.
(am) 1. In this paragraph:
c. “New development” means development resulting from
the conversion of previously undeveloped land or agricultural
land.
d. “Redevelopment” means development that replaces older
development.
2. Except as provided in subd. 3., the department may not enforce a provision in a rule that establishes a date by which a covered municipality must implement methods to achieve a specified
reduction in the level of total suspended solids carried by runoff,
if the provision requires the covered municipality to achieve a reduction of more than 20 percent. This subdivision does not apply
to total suspended solids carried by runoff from new development
or redevelopment in a covered municipality.
3. If a covered municipality has achieved, on July 1, 2011, a
reduction of more than 20 percent of total suspended solids carried by runoff, the municipality shall, to the maximum extent
practicable, maintain all of the best management practices that
the municipality has implemented on or before July 1, 2011, to
achieve that reduction.
(b) The department shall, by rule, specify a process for the development and dissemination of technical standards to implement
the performance standards under par. (a).
(c) If a covered municipality has obtained all permits required
for the construction of a storm water management pond in an artificial water body, whether navigable or nonnavigable, the department may not prohibit the construction of the storm water management pond as a method by which the covered municipality
may achieve compliance with performance standards under par.
(a) or with an approved total maximum daily load under 33 USC
1313 (d) (1) (C). The department shall give credit to the covered
municipality for any pollutant reduction achieved by the storm
water management pond in determining compliance with performance standards specified in a permit under s. 283.33 (1) (b), (c),
(cg), or (cr) or an approved total maximum daily load under 33
USC 1313 (d).
(3) NONPOINT SOURCES THAT ARE AGRICULTURAL. (a) The
department of natural resources, in consultation with the department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection, shall promulgate rules prescribing performance standards and prohibitions for
agricultural facilities and agricultural practices that are nonpoint
sources. The performance standards and prohibitions shall be designed to achieve water quality standards by limiting nonpoint
source water pollution. At a minimum, the prohibitions shall include all of the following:
1. That a livestock operation may have no overflow of manure storage structures.

2. That a livestock operation may have no unconfined manure pile in a water quality management area.
3. That a livestock operation may have no direct runoff from
a feedlot or stored manure into the waters of the state.
4. That a livestock operation may not allow unlimited access
by livestock to waters of the state in a location where high concentrations of animals prevent the maintenance of adequate sod
cover.
(b) The department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection, in consultation with the department of natural resources,
shall promulgate rules prescribing conservation practices to implement the performance standards and prohibitions under par.
(a) and specifying a process for the development and dissemination of technical standards to implement the performance standards and prohibitions under par. (a).
(c) Using the process specified under par. (b), the department
of agriculture, trade and consumer protection shall develop and
disseminate technical standards to implement the performance
standards and prohibitions under par. (a). The department of
agriculture, trade and consumer protection shall disseminate alternative technical standards for situations in which more than
one method exists to implement the performance standards and
prohibitions.
(d) The conservation practices and technical standards under
pars. (b) and (c) shall at a minimum cover animal waste management, nutrients applied to the soil and cropland sediment
delivery.
(e) An owner or operator of an agricultural facility or practice
that is in existence before October 14, 1997, may not be required
by this state or a municipality to comply with the performance
standards, prohibitions, conservation practices or technical standards under this subsection unless cost-sharing is available, under
s. 92.14 or 281.65 or from any other source, to the owner or operator. For the purposes of this paragraph, sub. (4) and ss. 92.07
(2), 92.15 (4) and 823.08 (3) (c) 2., the department of natural resources shall promulgate rules that specify criteria for determining whether cost-sharing is available under s. 281.65 and the department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection shall promulgate rules that specify criteria for determining whether costsharing is available under s. 92.14 or from any other source. The
rules may not allow a determination that cost-sharing is available
to meet local regulations under s. 92.07 (2) or 92.15 that are consistent with or that exceed the performance standards, prohibitions, conservation practices or technical standards under this
subsection unless the cost-sharing is at least 70 percent of the cost
of compliance or is from 70 percent to 90 percent of the cost of
compliance in cases of economic hardship, as defined in the
rules.
(4) APPLICATION TO ANIMAL FEEDING OPERATIONS. If the
department issues a notice of discharge under ch. 283 for an animal feeding operation, the performance standards, prohibitions,
conservation practices and technical standards under sub. (3) apply to the animal feeding operation, except that if the animal feeding operation is in existence before October 14, 1997, the performance standards, prohibitions, conservation practices and technical standards only apply if the department determines that costsharing is available to the owner or operator of the animal feeding
operation under s. 92.14 or 281.65 or from any other source.

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