Regulatory Requirements for On-Farm Anaerobic Digestion Facilities under Ontario Regulation 267/03

Table of Contents

Section 1: Preamble

This document describes the requirements in the Nutrient Management Regulation (i.e. Ontario Regulation 267/03 – General, as amended (O. Reg. 267/03)), made under the Nutrient Management Act, 2002, S.O. 2002, c. 4, as amended (NMA) for designing and operating an on-farm "regulated mixed anaerobic digestion facility." This type of facility combines off-farm waste materials with manure and other farm-based materials while helping the environment.

The document provides plain language guidance to the regulatory requirements for on-farm mixed anaerobic digestion facilities. These regulations are legal requirements. This document is not intended to replace or supersede any provisions set out in the Waste Management Regulation (i.e. Revised Regulations of Ontario, Regulation 347 – General, as amended (Reg. 347)) and/or O. Reg. 267/03. Stakeholders should seek their own legal advice if they have concerns about the applicability of the law to their operation.

The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) may update this document in the future, so stakeholders should ensure they have the most recent version of this document.

Additional information in the form of Best Management Practices (BMPs) and training opportunities will be developed to help the user understand the requirements and options.

The information contained in this Document is not authoritative. It is derived from the NMA and O. Reg. 267/03 and is for informational purposes only. Efforts have been made to make it as accurate as possible, but in the event of a conflict, inconsistency or error, the requirements set out in the NMA and O. Reg. 267/03 take precedence. Please refer to e-Laws for what the NMA and O. Reg. 267/03 actually provide. The Government of Ontario assumes no liability for any inaccurate or incomplete information nor for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Prior to implementing any changes to your operations, it is strongly recommended that you review the NMA and O. Reg. 267/03 directly and seek any advice you consider appropriate from a qualified person.

Section 2: Introduction

Anaerobic digestion (AD) means the decomposition of organic matter in an oxygen limiting environment. Anaerobic digestion (AD) produces methane gas, which can be used to create an energy product (heat, electricity or natural gas). Anaerobic digestion (AD) of farm wastes is beneficial to the environment because it provides farmers with a renewable energy source, lowers greenhouse gas emissions and reduces odours and pathogens in the input materials.

Adding certain off-farm wastes to an on-farm anaerobic digester can make the digestion process more efficient and increase the amount of methane generated. The anaerobic digestion (AD) process produces a leftover material (called digestate) that has the same nutrient content as the feed material, but with less odour and fewer pathogens. If it meets applicable regulatory requirements, this material can be applied to land as a nutrient-rich organic material that benefits soil and crop growth.

Farm Based AD System Capable of Accepting Off-Farm Source Material.

Figure 1. Farm Based AD System Capable of Accepting Off-Farm Source Material.

Section 3: Rules for Off-Farm Wastes When Added to a Farm Based Digester

Unless exempt, any facility that receives and processes waste needs to obtain a Renewable Energy Approval (REA) if generating electricity for the Feed In Tariff (FIT) program or a Certificate of Approval (C of A) under part 5 of the Environmental Protection Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. E. 19, as amended (EPA) and Reg. 347. In addition, sites where off-farm wastes are land applied also have needed a C of A.

To promote the use of anaerobic digesters on farms, there are limited exemptions for the need of a REA or C of A. These exemptions are for a facility that follows the standards set out in O. Reg. 267/03 for a "regulated mixed anaerobic digestion facility" (see Section 4.0 in this document).

Note that an on-farm anaerobic digestion (AD) facility that uses only agricultural source material and not off-farm waste is currently exempt from approval requirements under Part V of the EPA but will require REA approval if generating electricity for the FIT.

Some mixed anaerobic digestion (AD) facilities incorporate off-farm waste, but do not meet the criteria in O. Reg. 267/03 for a "regulated mixed anaerobic digestion (AD) facility." These facilities would continue to have to meet the requirements of REA or a C of A for a waste management system or waste disposal site under Part V of the EPA and Reg. 347. Please refer to Section 5.0 in this document for additional information on land application of the anaerobic digestion (AD) output from these facilities.

Section 4: Requirements for a Regulated Mixed Anaerobic Digestion Facility

The following sections describe requirements that your facility must meet to be considered a "regulated mixed anaerobic digestion (AD) facility."

Nutrient Management Strategy Requirements

A facility cannot receive off-farm AD materials on a farm unit for treatment in a regulated mixed AD facility if the following requirements are not met:

  1. There is an approved nutrient management strategy for the farm unit on which the agricultural operation is carried out that contemplates receiving materials for treatment in a regulated mixed anaerobic digestion facility, and
  2. The AD facility is operational.

In addition to the requirements that apply to all typical strategies under the Nutrient Management Act (NMA) for a livestock farm, this nutrient management strategy must do the following:

  1. Describe the procedures that will be used at the operation to decide whether the off-farm AD material meets the requirements of O. Reg. 267/03 for treatment by mixed AD;
  2. Describe how any permanent nutrient storage facilities for storage of off-farm AD material will meet the requirements of O. Reg. 267/03;
  3. Describe the procedures that will be used at the operation to manage AD output to meet the requirements of the O. Reg. 267/03; and
  4. Describe how the regulated mixed AD facility will meet the requirements of O. Reg. 267/03.

All nutrient management strategies must include a contingency plan. The contingency plan sets out your actions if you cannot follow the components of your nutrient management strategy or nutrient management plan. Part 11 of the Nutrient Management Protocol provides direction on what should be included in a contingency plan.

On-Farm and Off-Farm Anaerobic Digestion Material Requirements

On-farm AD material must be generated:

  • On the farm unit on which the AD facility is located, or
  • From one or more agricultural operations carried out on several farm units, if the total number of farm animals on all the farm units generates less than 1,000 nutrient units annually.

On-farm AD materials must be organic materials generated through growing, producing or raising farm animals; producing agricultural crops, including greenhouse crops, maple syrup, mushrooms, nursery stock, tobacco, trees and turf grass; producing eggs, cream or milk; or processing products produced primarily from your agricultural operation.

At all times (except where there is further treatment of materials in Schedule 2 then paragraph six of subsection 98.9 of O. Reg. 267/03 applies to):

  • At least 75 per cent, by volume, of the total amount of AD materials that are being treated in the facility must be on-farm AD materials, and
  • At least 50 per cent, by volume, of the total amount of on-farm AD materials that are being treated at the facility must be manure.

Section 98.4 of O. Reg. 267/03 sets out the requirements for receiving off-farm AD materials. In one year, the total volume of off-farm AD materials received for treatment in a regulated facility at a farm unit on which an agricultural operation is carried out must not exceed 10,000 cubic metres (cu. m). This includes off farm materials designated as farm feed (identified by an * in Schedule 1).

In one day, you can receive a maximum of 200 cu. m of off-farm AD materials at the operation. This limit does not apply to farm feed.

No off-farm materials can be brought to the facility until a regulated mixed AD facility is constructed and ready to operate.

General Requirements for Receipt of Materials

Off-farm AD materials brought for treatment in a regulated mixed AD facility on a farm unit where an agricultural operation is carried out must:

  1. Be materials listed in Schedule 1 or Schedule 2 (see section 6.0 of this document),
  2. Not be listed in Schedule 3 (see section 6.0 of this document), and
  3. Under the circumstances described in O. Reg. 267/03, be analyzed for metals at an accredited lab in accordance with the methods specified in the Sampling and Analysis Protocol. The person receiving the materials must have the results of the analysis before he/she accepts delivery of the materials at the facility. If the analysis determines the concentration of metals exceeds the metal content limits set out in Table 1, no person can accept the materials at the farm.
Regulated Metal Maximum metal concentration in materials
(mg/kg of total solids dry wt)
Arsenic 13
Cadmium 3
Chromium 210
Cobalt 34
Copper 100
Lead 150
Mercury 0.8
Molybdenum 5
Nickel 62
Selenium 2
Zinc 500

If a material falls under two schedules, the schedule with the most rigorous requirements must be followed. For example, if a material falls under Schedule 1 and Schedule 2, it must be treated as a Schedule 2 material. If the material falls under both Schedule 2 and Schedule 3, it must be treated as a Schedule 3 material (which means it is not permitted for use as an off-farm material for this type of facility).

Two options exist for receiving off-farm AD materials. It can be received in bulk or it can be received in packaging or storage materials. However, the packaging or storage materials must not remain at the operation after the materials have been delivered.

Off-farm AD materials listed in Schedules 1 and 2 may be transported by truck to the regulated mixed AD facility. If they are, that transportation is exempt from the approval requirements under Part V of the EPA. This exemption is applicable only if every carrier has in his or her possession while transporting the materials a document from the owner or operator of the regulated mixed AD facility that indicates the facility agrees to accept the materials.

Storage of Materials Requirements

Off-farm AD materials can be stored at a farm unit where an agricultural operation is carried out, before treatment in a regulated mixed AD facility, only if the rules described below are followed. (Note: off-farm materials must only be stored on the property where the facility is located.)

No more than 200 cu. m of off-farm AD materials can be stored at any one time. Farm feed is not included in this restriction.

Off-farm AD materials, not including farm feed, must be stored in the following conditions, depending upon the dry matter content:

  1. If dry matter content is less than 18 per cent, store it in a sealed tank.
  2. If it is stored for more than 48 hours (h) prior to use and if the material has a dry matter content of between 18 per cent and 50 per cent, store it in an enclosed storage facility.
  3. If storing for more than 30 days prior to use and the material has a dry matter content of more than 50 per cent, store it in a facility entirely covered by a roof attached to the walls, with walls that enclose at least 75 per cent of the area of the facility.

Farm feed that will be used as off-farm AD materials, with a dry matter content of 18 per cent or more, must be stored with a cover that will prevent it from coming into contact with any precipitation.

Schedule 2 materials must be stored in a facility that was designed by an engineer to minimize odour emissions. The facility must also have been built to meet those design specifications.

Any run-off is to be contained in a way that meets the current run-off requirements set out in O. Reg. 267/03.

Structural and Siting Requirements

If storage facilities for off-farm AD materials are constructed or expanded after July 26, 2007, they must meet the standards in Part VIII, Siting and Construction Standards of O. Reg. 267/03. A digester that is not performing a storage function is not deemed to be a storage facility.

A regulated mixed AD facility cannot be constructed or expanded on a farm unit where an agricultural operation is carried out unless a professional engineer:

  • Designs the construction or expansion by following the requirements of O. Reg. 267/03;
  • Designs the facility to minimize odour emissions when materials are transferred into the storage facility and when they are transferred from the storage facility into the mixed AD facility (if materials listed in Schedule 2 will be treated at the facility);
  • Ensures the facility is designed to manage non-combusted biogas; and
  • Signs a commitment certificate prepared as specified by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) Director, stating the engineer will undertake to meet those requirements and to inspect the construction or expansion on completion.

Requirements for Treatment Processes

Other than the exceptions set out in O. Reg. 267/03 (i.e. section 98.9, subsection 2 and 3), the average time AD materials must be treated in a regulated mixed AD facility is at least 20 days, at a minimum of 35 °C at all times.

The time can be reduced if:

  • A professional engineer designs the facility so that it is able to remove at least 50 per cent of total volatile solids of the materials in the facility in fewer than 20 days,
  • The facility is built to the engineer's design specifications, and
  • The average time the AD materials are treated is at least as long as the time specified by the engineer.
  • The temperature can be reduced if:
  • A professional engineer designs the facility so that it is able to remove at least 50 per cent of total volatile solids of the materials in the facility at a temperature lower than 35 °C,
  • The facility is built to the engineer's design specifications, and
  • The average temperature the AD materials are treated is no less than that specified by the engineer.

Off-farm AD material listed in Schedule 2 must be treated for at least 1 h at no less than 70 °C, or at least 20 h at no less than 50 °C. These materials prior to treatment must be small enough to pass thru a screen whose largest opening has an area of 2.5 cm2.

Materials listed in paragraph 4 of Schedule 2 of O. Reg. 267/03 must not have been removed from the facility where the waste water is treated more than 10 days before it is received at the agricultural operation. Also theses materials must be transferred using a means that minimizes odour emissions if an offensive odour would otherwise be detectable beyond the farm unit on which the materials are received.

Each facility must have a device to monitor the actual temperature at which the materials are being treated. Further, the device should be regularly monitored to ensure that it is measuring the temperature accurately.

Requirements for Generated Biogas

The regulated mixed AD facility must be able to collect and manage all the biogas produced. The gas combustion system must be able to consume 110 per cent of the biogas that the facility can produce. If the system fails, it must have a back-up system available that will start working within 48 h if the rate of release of non-combusted biogas is greater than 20 cu. m/h.

Requirements for Storage of Anaerobic Digestion Output

AD materials cannot be treated in a regulated mixed AD facility unless the farm unit where the facility is located is able to store all of the AD output produced by the treatment during a period of 240 days. O. Reg. 267/03 includes some exceptions to this 240-day storage rule. This storage requirement is in addition to the storage capacity requirements for the farm unit that are set out in section 69 of O. Reg. 267/03.

Equipment used to apply digestate to fields as a nutrient source for growing crops. This equipment injects material into the soil profile, thus maximizing the nitrogen value of the digestate.

Figure 2. Equipment used to apply digestate to fields as a nutrient source for growing crops. This equipment injects material into the soil profile, thus maximizing the nitrogen value of the digestate. 

Requirements for Record Keeping

Every owner or operator of an agricultural operation with a regulated mixed AD facility must keep the following records for at least two (2) years from the day on which the nutrient management strategy stops being in force.

  1. The professional engineer's design specifications;
  2. For every delivery of off-farm AD material:
    1. The name and address of the generator;
    2. The name and address of the hauler;
    3.  The types and volumes of materials received; results of metal analyses; results of anaerobic digestion output analyses; destinations of AD output; and
  3. The date(s) of use, if ever, of a secondary gas combustion system and the length of time it was used.

Additional record-keeping requirements are set out in section 98.13 of O. Reg. 267/03.

Section 5: Land Application of Anaerobic Digestion Output

AD output is considered an agricultural source material:

  1. If the materials were treated in a regulated mixed AD facility, and
  2. If at least 50 per cent, by volume, of the materials were on-farm AD materials.

If AD output that falls within the definition of agricultural source material is going to be applied, the following must be met:

  • Meet every requirement in Part VI of O. Reg. 267/03 that governs land application of agricultural source materials, prescribed materials or nutrients;
  • Not apply this material to land within 150 m of the top of the bank of surface water if the maximum sustained slope of the land is 25 per cent or greater;
  • Not use a high trajectory irrigation gun capable of spraying liquid more than 10 metres unless the output is an aqueous solution or suspension containing more than 99 per cent water by weight; and
  • If direct flow land application systems are used, the requirements of section 50 in O. Reg. 267/03 for non-agricultural source materials will apply to anaerobic digestion output.

These rules apply to all agricultural operations, whether or not the farm unit on which the operation is carried out is required to have a nutrient management plan or not.

Application of Anaerobic Digestion Outputs that are not from a Regulated Mixed Anaerobic Digestion Facility

If the output is from a mixed AD facility that is not a regulated mixed AD facility, the nutrient management plan for the farm unit must be following in order to apply AD output on the farm unit's land.

If a farm unit is not required to have a nutrient management plan, land application of AD output on the farm unit's land must be in accordance with the following rules:

  1. During any consecutive five-year period, the application rate must be such that the total available phosphate, per hectare, from all prescribed materials applied to land must not exceed the greater of:
    • Crop production requirements per hectare for that five years plus 85 kilograms (kg) of phosphate per hectare, or
    • The phosphate removed from the land per hectare in the harvested portion of the crop during that five-year period plus 390 kg of phosphate per hectare.
  2. During any 12-month period, the application rate occurs at such a rate that the total plant-available nitrogen from all prescribed materials applied to land must not exceed 200 kg of plant-available nitrogen per hectare.

Total plant-available nitrogen is the sum of:

(ammonia and ammonium nitrogen) + (nitrite and nitrate nitrogen) + (0.3) (organic nitrogen), where: organic nitrogen = total Kjeldahl nitrogen - (ammonia and ammonium nitrogen)

Section 6: Lists of Off Farm Materials

O. Reg. 267/03 has three schedules (which are copied below). Schedule 1 lists materials that may be accepted at an agricultural operation for treatment in a regulated mixed AD facility. Schedule 2 lists materials that may be accepted subject to the restrictions set out in O.Reg 267/03. Schedule 3 lists materials that cannot be accepted.

Schedule 1: Off-Farm Anaerobic Digestion Materials

The following materials may be received at an agricultural operation for treatment in a regulated mixed anaerobic digestion facility:

  1. Waste products from animal feeds listed in Classes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of Part 1 of Schedule IV to the Feeds Regulation, 1983 (SOR/83-593) made under the Feeds Act (Canada), excluding any materials that contain an animal product that has not been denatured.
  2. Materials that previously would have been a product described in paragraph 1 but are no longer suitable for use in feeding farm animals for reasons that do not include contamination by another material.
  3. Organic waste matter derived from the drying or cleaning of field or nut crops.*
  4. Organic waste matter derived from the processing of field or nut crops.
  5. Organic waste matter derived from the production of ethanol or biodiesel.
  6. Aquatic plants.
  7. Organic waste matter derived from food processing at,
    1. bakeries,
    2. confectionery processing facilities,
    3. dairies and facilities that process dairy products,
    4. fruit and vegetable processing facilities,*
    5. cereal and grain processing facilities,*
    6. oil seed processing facilities,
    7. snack food manufacturing facilities,
    8. breweries and distilleries,
    9. wineries, and
    10. beverage manufacturing facilities.
  8. Revoked: O. Reg. 338/09, s. 81 (3).
  9. Fruit and vegetable waste.
  10. Organic waste materials from a greenhouse, nursery, garden centre or flower shop that is not part of an agricultural operation.

* These are designated as Farm Feed Materials.

Schedule 2: Off-Farm Anaerobic Digestion Materials, Limited

The following materials may be received at an agricultural operation for treatment in a regulated mixed anaerobic digestion facility subject to the restrictions in this Regulation with respect to Schedule 2 materials:

  1. Waste products from animal feeds listed in Classes 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of Part 1 of Schedule IV to the Feeds Regulation (SOR/83-593) made under the Feeds Act (Canada), including any materials that contain an animal product that has not been denatured.
  2. Paunch manure.
  3. Organic waste matter from facilities where food or feed is processed, prepared or distributed.
  4. Organic waste matter produced in a dissolved air flotation process used for the treatment of wastewater from facilities where food or feed is processed or prepared.

Schedule 3: Materials Not Acceptable for Use in a Regulated Mixed Anaerobic Digestion Facility

The following materials shall not be received at an agricultural operation for treatment in a regulated mixed anaerobic digestion facility:

  1. Solvents, where the solvent is a volatile organic compound that is used as a cleaning agent, diluent, dissolver, thinner, or viscosity reducer or for a similar purpose.
  2. Petroleum products and hydrocarbon fuels.
  3. Resins and plastics.
  4. Airplane food waste.
  5. Hazardous waste within the meaning of Regulation 347 (General – Waste Management) made under the Environmental Protection Act.
  6. Any material that has a dry matter content of less than 1 per cent.

For more information:
Toll Free: 1-877-424-1300
Local: (519) 826-4047
E-mail: ag.info.omafra@ontario.ca
Author:

Don Hilborn - Engineer, Byproducts and Manure/OMAFRA; Mohsen Keyvani - Senior Program Support Coordinator/MOE
Creation Date: 19 August 2011
Last Reviewed: 25 August 2011