510046_Mortality Compost Permit_20220916

Steven W. Troxler
Commissioner
Mr. Whitley Stephenson
2080 Wilson Mills Road
Smithfield, NC 27577
[phone]
North Carolina Department of Agriculture
and Consumer Services
Veterinary Division
September 7, 2022
Christina L. Waggett
Assistant Commissioner
for Consumer Protection
Michael P. Martin, DVM
State Veterinarian
Re: Composter Permit # 22-09002
Dear Mr. Stephenson:
Pursuant to 02 NCAC 52C.0102, your request to compost swine mortality using an open bin forced aeration system with pre-
processing is approved on your premises at:
Sandy Ridge Pork
2074 Joyner Bridge Road
Four Oaks, NC 27524
Johnston County
If there are changes where dead stock is received from, please contact our office to update this permit.
Approval is granted under the following conditions and stipulations:
1. All North Carolina solid waste, air quality, water quality, and other applicable regulations must be met in siting and
operation of the system;
2. Only poultry or swine are to be processed in this facility; No bovine, caprine, ovine or cervid species shall be
processed in this facility;
3. Mortality to be processed shall originate only from the premises identified above, and the finished product is to be
used solely on lands associated with agricultural operations owned, operated, or leased, by the permittee;
4. The final product of the process must be stored, treated and utilized in accordance with all federal, state, and local
laws, regulations, and permit requirements; the final product shall not be sold or otherwise distributed;
5. Temperatures shall be within the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS) Practice Standard 317 guidelines; Temperatures shall reach a minimum of 131 degrees Fahrenheit within 5
days of filling the unit and shall remain at least at 131 degrees Fahrenheit for a minimum of 5 consecutive days to
maintain the composting process and reduce pathogen load;
6. Dead animals and pre-processed animal tissues shall not to be removed from composting until all flesh, internal
organs, and other soft tissue are fully decomposed; Prior to land application or removal to storage, you must confirm
based on visual inspection of the material that all animal tissue is completely degraded; Remaining larger bone
fragments, or other persistent carcass components, are to be mechanically ground or screened and added back into the
primary composting bin;
7. The proposed facility shall have the following minimum setback requirements*:
• 100-foot buffer between all property lines and compost areas;
• 100-foot buffer between all wells and compost areas, except for monitoring wells;
• 50-foot buffer between perennial streams/rivers and compost areas; and
• 200-foot buffer between dwellings and compost areas.
NC Dept. of Agriculture & Consumer Services
1030 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27699-1030 • [phone] • Fax [phone]
An Equal Opportunity Employer

8. A copy of the permit, plans, and operational reports shall be maintained on site and be available upon request by
North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NCDA&CS) Veterinary Division personnel;
9. An operation and maintenance plan shall be developed for the facility. As a minimum the following should be
included (NRCS Standard 316):
• Method and procedures of mortality disposal for normal losses;
• Odor management or minimization requirements;
• Biosecurity protocols;
• Safety measures and procedures;
• Periodic inspections and temperature monitoring;
• Need for prompt repair or replacement of damaged components; and
• Site, manufacturer, or installer references for trouble shooting.
10. The facility and operational records shall be available for annual inspection by Veterinary Division personnel and a
copy shall be sent to the Veterinary Division upon request;
11. Operational reports shall include temperature monitoring during initial facility start-up and follow-up records that
contain either 10 days/month or annual laboratory results of pathogen load testing;
12. An application for a permit modification shall be required for changes in facility ownership, an increase in facility
capacity, or any other changes from the stipulations of this permit;
13. The Veterinary Division must be immediately notified of any complicating issues involving animal disease or
environmental concerns;
14. The amount of loading time where unmixed or partially -mixed material is left in the mixer/grinder shall be minimized;
Carbon cover material shall be added to minimize vector activity, along with pathogen and odor concerns;
15. At least 12" of coarse carbon material shall be laid on the aeration floor to ensure thoroughly distributed air flow and
to provide for leachate capture;
16. For animal sizes and equipment operational capabilities where the primary and secondary compost stages do not
sufficiently reduce larger animals, a tertiary treatment (NRCS Standard 317) shall be employed; and
17. The State Veterinarian reserves the right to cancel this permit if a specific concern for controlling animal disease
arises, or if any of the aforementioned conditions are not met.
This document shall in no circumstances be interpreted as an endorsement of any specific manufacturer or type of mortality
management system by the State Veterinarian and the Office of the State Veterinarian does not approve or disapprove the
technical or performance standards for specific makes or designs of equipment.
*Additional requirements and regulations will apply from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ)
Division of Solid Waste Management if application for off -farm disposition of composted material is requested. (See 15A
NCAC 13B, Section .1400.)
Sincerely,
Catherine Harris, DVM
Director of Animal Health Programs/Livestock
CRH/cb
cc: Dr. Michael P. Martin, State Veterinarian
Dr. Carol Woodlief, Veterinary Medical Officer
Keith Warren, Advanced Composting Technologies
NCDEQ, Animal Feeding Operations