Section 5.1. Application of Part VIII siting and construction standards

There are a number of rules that describe how the siting and construction standards apply to certain storage facilities associated with RMADFs. References in Part VIII of O. Reg. 267/03 to a permanent nutrient storage facility shall be read as including a reference to:

  • A facility for the storage of off-farm AD materials
  • Any anaerobic digestion vessels that are part of the regulated mixed anaerobic digestion facility; and
  • In certain circumstances, a facility for the storage of on-farm materials that are fruit, vegetables or plant materials from the production and processing of fruit or vegetables.

References to permanent liquid nutrient storage facilities and permanent solid nutrient storage facilities apply, with necessary modifications, to the above-described facilities.

(see s. 62.1 (2.1), (2.2), 62.2 (1), 63. (1.1), (1.2) O. Reg. 267/03).

The AD vessel and any storage for off-farm or on-farm AD materials is not considered a permanent nutrient storage facility for the purpose of calculating the nutrient storage capacity requirements under s. 69 (1) and design and construction requirements under section 71 (1).

(see s. 62.2(2), O. Reg. 267/03).

The storage facilities for solid manure received from other farms, for on-farm fruit, vegetables or plant materials from the production and processing of fruit or vegetables, or for off-farm AD materials must have a concrete floor or another floor that a professional engineer determines will provide equivalent protection to a concrete floor. This rule applies only to those storage facilities described above that are part of an RMADF that receives more than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials in any 12-month period.

(see s. 80. (1), 80. (3), O. Reg. 267/03).

Section 5.2. Design and construction requirements for the RMADF and permanent nutrient storage facilities involving a professional engineer

There are design and construction rules for an RMADF that require the services of a professional engineer.

No person can expand or construct an RMADF unless a professional engineer:

  1. Designs the construction or expansion of the facility in accordance with the requirements of O. Reg. 267/03
  2. Designs the facility to provide for the transfer of materials into the storage facility and from the storage facility to the AD vessel so that odour emissions are minimized, if materials listed in Schedule 2A or 2B will be treated at the facility
  3. Designs the construction or expansion of the facility to minimize leakage, to minimize corrosion and to be structurally safe and sound
  4. Designs the construction or expansion of the facility to minimize the discharge of noise from it
  5. Ensures that the facility is designed to manage non-combusted biogas
  6. Performs a general review of the construction or expansion to ensure that it complies with Part VIII of O. Reg. 267/03; and
  7. Signs a commitment certificate undertaking to design the construction or expansion of the facility in accordance with O. Reg. 267/03 and to inspect the construction or expansion upon completion.

The construction or expansion of the facility must comply with the professional engineer’s design and the requirements of O. Reg. 267/03.

(see s. 71. (3), O. Reg. 267/03).

Similarly, no person can expand or construct a permanent nutrient storage facility unless a professional engineer designs the construction or expansion of the facility to the standards of permanent storage facilities in accordance with O. Reg. 267/03. The professional engineer must also sign a commitment undertaking to comply with those requirements.

(see s. 71. (1) (a), O. Reg. 267/03).

All RMADFs must be operated in accordance with manufacturer’s specifications unless otherwise specified by the professional engineer that designed the facility.

(see s. 98.2(2), O. Reg. 267/03).

There are additional requirements involving a professional engineer related to the Odour Management Plan, found in Section 7.1 of this document.

Section 5.3. Additional construction requirements

Construction or expansion of an RMADF must be designed to minimize noise, leakage and corrosion, and be structurally safe and sound. Any sampling port for liquids must be installed using specifically designed gasketed fittings and have primary and secondary shut-off valves.

(see s. 98.9 (1) 10., O. Reg. 267/03).

Section 5.4. Requirement for a sampling location

It is important to be able to take a representative sample of material from the AD vessel. For an RMADF that receives more than 10,000  cubic metres of off-farm AD materials in any 12-month period or any Schedule 2B material there must be means by which a sample can be taken that represents the contents of the AD vessel before the materials in the vessel enters the storage for AD output.

(see s. 98.9 (2.4), O. Reg. 267/03).

Section 5.5. Requirements for the storage of off-farm AD materials with respect to run-off and wells

To reduce the risk of contamination, there are rules for the storage of off-farm AD materials. Off-farm AD materials can be stored at a farm unit where an agricultural operation is carried out before treatment in an RMADF only if the rules described below are followed:

  1. Any run-off must be contained in a way that meets the current run-off requirements set out in O. Reg. 267/03
  2. Storage facility siting requirements with respect to wells and surface water pathways (e.g., drainage tiles, flood plains), which are described in section 63 of O. Reg. 267/03 must be met

(see s. 81. (1), s. 63. (1), O. Reg. 267/03).

Section 5.6. Storage of on-farm AD materials

On-farm AD materials must be managed and stored according to the operation’s nutrient management strategy. For manure, there are specific rules that may apply to permanent nutrient storages and temporary field storages. The specific requirements for a temporary field storage are found in sections 82 - 85 of O. Reg. 267/03.

(see Part VIII, O. Reg.. 267/03).

Section 5.7. Additional storage requirements for RMADFs receiving more than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials in any 12-month period

There are a variety of storage requirements for AD materials to reduce risk of environmental impacts. Off-farm AD materials and on-farm AD materials that are fruit, vegetables or plant materials from the production and processing of fruit or vegetables must be stored in a storage facility that was constructed after June 30, 2003, in accordance with the requirements for permanent nutrient storage facilities of O. Reg. 267/03 that were in force at the time the storage facility was constructed.

In addition, for an RMADF that receives more than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials in the preceding 12-month period, manure that is received from another farm unit must also be stored in a permanent nutrient storage facility that was constructed after June 30, 2003, in accordance with the requirements of O. Reg. 267/03 that were in force at the time the storage facility was constructed.

Off-farm AD materials or on-farm AD materials that are fruit, vegetables or plant materials from the production and processing of fruit or vegetables must be stored in a storage facility that is part of a feedstock system. The feedstock system has requirements for odour control, explained in Section 5.11 in this document.

(see s. 98.6 (2), (3), (4), and (5), O. Reg. 267/03).

Section 5.8. Storage volume for off-farm AD materials for RMADFs receiving less than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material in any 12-month period

Smaller RMADFs have lower limits for storage of off-farm AD materials. For an RMADF receiving less than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material in any 12-month period, no more than 200 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials can be stored at any one time. Farm feed is not included in this restriction.

(see s. 98.4 (1) 3., O. Reg. 267/03).

Section 5.9. Setback distances to neighbours

RMADFs are subject to setback distances from neighbours to reduce the potential for odour nuisance impacts.

Section 98.2.1 sets out the basic setback rule as outlined below, but section 98.4 may affect the setback that will apply to certain RMADFs that choose to receive more than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material or any Schedule 2B material.

(see s. 98.2.1, O. Reg. 267/03).

Section 5.10. Setbacks for RMADFs receiving less than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material in any 12-month period, and not receiving any Schedule 2B material

The setbacks for construction of an RMADF that receives less than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material in any 12-month period are as follows:

  • 200 metres to the nearest dwelling, and
  • 450 metres from the nearest residential area or properties for commercial, community or institutional use.

These setbacks do not apply to dwellings or commercial, community or institutional uses located on the same property as a component of an RMADF.

Dwelling, residential area, and commercial, community or institutional use have specific definitions, found in O. Reg. 267/03.

These setbacks align with Ontario’s Minimum Distance Separation Formula, which are applied through municipal bylaws. More details are found in The Minimum Distance Separation (MDS) document formulae and guidelines for livestock facility and anaerobic digester odour setbacks.

(see s. 98.2.1 (1), (2), (3), (4), O. Reg.. 267/03).

Section 5.11. Odour management and setback requirements for RMADFs receiving more than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material in any 12-month period, or any Schedule 2B material

There are several additional requirements and approaches for setback distances and ways of receiving materials for facilities receiving more than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material in any 12-month period or any Schedule 2B material. For these RMADFs, there are three possible scenarios presented below:

Scenario I

If all off-farm AD materials are received in a feedstock system in an enclosed building that is maintained under negative air pressure and if one of the following applies:

  • The RMADF is constructed on or after July 1, 2021 and has at least a 450 metre setback from dwellings, residential areas and commercial, community or institutional uses; or,
  • The RMADF is constructed before July 1, 2021 and has not expanded in a manner that decreases the setback that existed on June 30, 2021 to less than 450  metres (e.g., Digester 1 was built in 2010 and has a 600 metre setback. An expansion is built in 2022 that has a 500 metre setback. Or similarly, Digester 2 was built in 2010 has a 475 metre setback. An expansion is built in 2022 that has a 525 metre setback. In both examples, the setback of the expansion is not less than 450 metres); or,
  • The RMADF is constructed before July 1, 2021 with a setback of less than 450  metres to any dwelling, residential area and commercial, community or institutional uses and is not expanded in a manner that decreases the setbacks that existed on June 30, 2021. (e.g., Digester 3 was built in 2010 and has a 250 metre setback. An expansion is built in 2022 that has a 300 metre setback. In this example, the setback is less than 450 metres however it is not less than the 250 metre setback that existed on June 30, 2022);

then the RMADF may receive:

  • No more than 400 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials (other than farm feed), at the operation on any day
  • No more than 40,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials, including farm feed that is intended for treatment in the RMADF, in any 12-month period; and
  • Schedule 2B materials.

Scenario II

RMADFs with a 450 m setback from dwellings, residential areas and commercial, community or institutional uses that do not receive all of the off-farm AD materials in a feedstock system in an enclosed building that is maintained under negative air pressure, but receive material using one or more of the following methods:

  • In the case of materials received in a form that can flow through a hose, the materials are received through a hose into a closed feedstock system; or
  • In the case of solid materials, where the materials are received:
    • In a feedstock system that is maintained under negative air pressure when closed and is open only during the receipt of the materials, no more than four times per day, and where each opening does not exceed 20 minutes; or
    • In a feedstock system that is designed and operated to maintain negative air pressure when open; or
  • In the case of liquid or solid materials, where some of the off-farm AD materials are received in a feedstock system in an enclosed building that is maintained under negative air pressure, while the remaining materials are received using the other methods listed in this scenario;
  • then the RMADF may receive:
  • No more than 400 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials (other than farm feed), at the operation on any day
  • No more than 40,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials, including farm feed that is intended for treatment in the RMADF, in any 12-month period; and
  • Schedule 2B materials.

Scenario III

There are two cases that may allow an existing RMADF to receive up to 15,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material without requiring a feedstock system in an enclosed building for all feedstocks:

  1. An RMADF built before July 1, 2021 with a setback of less than 450 m from any dwellings, residential areas and commercial, community or institutional uses, that has not expanded on or after July 1, 2021 in a manner that decreases the setbacks that existed on June 30, 2021 (e.g., Digester 4 was built in 2012 and has a setback of 275 metres. An expansion is built in 2022 that has a setback of 300 metres. In this example, the setback of the expansion is less than 450 metres but greater than the setback that existed on June 30, 2021); or
  2. An RMADF that has not expanded on or after July 1, 2021 so that any setback that was greater than 450 metres on June 30, 2021 is decreased to less than 450 metres (e.g., Digester 5 was built in 2012 and has a setback of 500 metres. An expansion is built in 2022 that has a setback of 455 metres. In this example, the expansion setback is less than the original 500 metres, but still greater than the required 450 metres).

For both of these cases if the RMADF does not receive all of the off-farm AD materials in a feedstock system in an enclosed building that is maintained under negative air pressure, they may receive materials using one or more of the following methods:

  • In the case of off-farm AD materials in a form that can flow through a hose, the materials are received through a hose into a closed feedstock system;
  • In the case of solid materials, where the materials are received:
    • In a feedstock system that is maintained under negative air pressure when closed and is open only during the receipt of the materials, no more than four times per day, and where each opening does not exceed 20 minutes; or
    • In a feedstock system that is designed and operated to maintain negative air pressure when open; or
  • In the case of liquid or solid materials, where some of the off-farm AD materials are received in a feedstock system in an enclosed building that is maintained under negative air pressure.

Under these circumstances, the RMADF may receive:

  • No more than 200 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials (other than farm feed) at the operation on any day.
  • No more than 15,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD materials, including farm feed that is intended for treatment in the RMADF, in any 12-month period.
  • However these RMADFs may not receive Schedule 2B material.

For further clarity, if an existing RMADF chooses to receive all of the off-farm AD materials in a feedstock system in an enclosed building, then it may satisfy Scenario 1 above.

If the RMADF cannot satisfy one of these scenarios, then it is not eligible to receive more than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm AD material in any 12-month period. If it cannot meet the requirements in subsection (2) or (6) of section 98.4 of O. Reg. 267/03 (Scenario I or Scenario II) then it cannot receive any Schedule 2B material.

(see s. 98.4 (2) to (15), O. Reg. 267/03).

A person cannot receive on-farm AD materials that are fruit, vegetables or plant materials from the production and processing of fruit or vegetables on a farm unit on which an agricultural operation is carried out for treatment in a RMADF where more than 10,000 cubic metres of off-farm anaerobic digestion materials were received at the farm unit in the preceding 12-month period except into the feedstock system for the RMADF. (see s. 98.4 (12), O. Reg. 267/03).

For clarity, on-farm AD materials such as manure, crop residues, and purpose-grown crop material that are not fruit, vegetables, or plant materials from the production and processing of fruit or vegetables are not required by O. Reg. 267/03 to be received in the feedstock system that is subject to the setback distance and material receipt requirements outlined in these scenarios.