News
Delaware Department of Agriculture
Delaware Nutrient Management Commission
Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control

To:  Newsroom Directors and Assignment Editors

                                                                                  
June 28, 2010                                                                                                                 
Vol. 40, No. 221   

Contact: 
DDA: Anne Fitzgerald, 302.698.4520; 302.242.4092 (cell)                                                                                                                

DNREC: Melanie Rapp, 302.739.9902 

Public Hearing Set for July 21 on Proposed New Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO) Regulations

The Delaware Department of Agriculture (DDA), the Delaware Nutrient Management Commission (DNMC), and the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) will hold a public hearing beginning at 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 21 on proposed new Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO) regulations. The meeting will be held at the Delaware Department of Agriculture, 2320 S. Dupont Highway, Dover.

Delaware’s current CAFO regulations will expire in the fall of 2010.

The purpose of the hearing is to consider the adoption of proposed new Delaware CAFO regulations that require owners of designated farms and livestock and poultry producers to obtain CAFO National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits. The proposed new regulations were developed to ensure that CAFO owners take appropriate actions to effectively manage manure, litter and wastewater and protect the state’s water quality.

The proposed new regulations were developed by the Delaware Nutrient Management Commission (DNMC), the Delaware Department of Agriculture (DDA), and the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) and are posted on the DDA website, www.dda.delaware.gov.  Public workshops were held May 25, 26 and 27 to help farmers and livestock producers understand the CAFO permit process and ask questions.

The public and interested parties are invited to attend the hearing and make comments. Accommodations are available for individuals with disabilities by calling (302) 698-4500 or (800) 282-8685 (Delaware only) for aid or assistance.

Written comments will be accepted from July 1 until 4:30 p.m. July 31, 2010 by: U.S. mail addressed to Mark Davis, Nutrient Management Program Administrator, Delaware Department of Agriculture, 2320 S. Dupont Highway, Dover, DE 19901; by fax addressed to Mark Davis, Nutrient Management Program Administrator, (302) 697-6287; or by email, Mark.Davis@state.de.us.

For more information:     Mark Davis, DDA – 302-698-4503
                                        Mark.Davis@state.de.us

                                       Jennifer Walls, DNREC – 302-739-9062 
                                       Jennifer.Walls@state.de.us