With Nov. 15 approaching, some Kentucky farms will have to begin reporting emissions of ammonia or hydrogen sulfide to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Agricultural engineers at the University of Kentucky have developed some useful resources to help livestock and poultry farmers stay in compliance. This information is available at https://www.uky.edu/bae/cercla.  

A recent appeals court ruling requires livestock and poultry farms that emit more than 100 pounds of either ammonia or hydrogen sulfide in a 24-hour period to report air emissions as part of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act. The EPA considers animal production facilities to be continuous emitters, which means they only require a single report that covers the entire year.

UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment engineers Morgan Hayes and Doug Overhults developed UK’s informational website, which includes a table for the number of animals that could generate reportable emissions. It also includes links to emission calculators, reporting forms and other helpful information. Hayes and Overhults will update the site as new information becomes available.

Livestock and poultry producers of operations that meet the air emissions requirements should email NRC-CERCLA-EPCRA-REPORT@uscg.mil to report an initial continuous release notification. Farm owners should use the language, “initial continuous release notification,” in their email. They will need to follow up within 30 days with a short, written notification to the EPA Region 4 office in Atlanta.

Farmers should contact their state livestock and poultry associations for species-specific reporting information. 

Producers should stay alert to changes in the reporting deadline. The EPA has asked for the appeals court to postpone the Nov. 15 deadline, but so far, the appeals court has not acted upon this request.