Ariz. Admin. Code § 3-10-801

Current through Register Vol. 30, No. 50, December 13, 2024

Section R3-10-801 - Definitions

These words are defined for use in this article, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Agricultural tea":

a. Means a water extract of biological materials, excluding any form of human waste, produced to transfer microbial biomass, fine particulate organic matter and soluble chemical components into an aqueous phase;

b. Includes stabilized compost, manure, non-fecal animal byproducts, peat moss, pre-consumer vegetative waste, table waste, and yard trimmings;

c. Is held for longer than one hour before application; and

d. Is a soil amendment for purposes of this Article.

2. "Agricultural tea additive" means a nutrient source, such as molasses, yeast extract, or algal powder, added to agricultural tea to increase microbial biomass.

3. "Application interval" means the time interval between application of an agricultural input, such as a biological soil amendment of animal origin, to a growing area and harvest of covered produce from the growing area where the agricultural input was applied.

4. "Biological soil amendment" means any soil amendment containing biological materials such as stabilized compost, manure, non-fecal animal byproducts, peat moss, pre-consumer vegetative waste, sewage sludge biosolids, table waste, agricultural tea, or yard trimmings, alone or in combination.

5. "Biological soil amendment of animal origin" means a biological soil amendment which consists, in whole or in part, of materials of animal origin, such as manure or non-fecal animal byproducts including animal mortalities, or table waste, alone or in combination. The term "biological soil amendment of animal origin" does not include any form of human waste.

6. "Composting" means a process to produce stabilized compost in which organic material is decomposed by the actions of undesirable microorganisms under thermophilic conditions for a designated period of time at a designated temperature, followed by a curing stage under cooler conditions.

7. "Curing" means the final stage of composting, which is conducted after much of the readily metabolized biological material has been decomposed, at cooler temperatures than those in the thermophilic phase of composting, to further reduce pathogens, promote further decomposition of cellulose and lignin, and stabilize composition. Curing may or may not involve insulation, depending on environmental conditions.

8. "Growth media" means material that acts as a substrate during the growth of covered produce, such as mushrooms and some sprouts, that contains, may contain, or consists of components that may include any animal waste, such as stabilized compost, manure, non-fecal animal byproducts or table waste.

9. "Non-fecal animal byproduct" means solid waste, other than manure, that is animal in origin, such as meat, fat, dairy products, eggs, carcasses, blood meal, bone meal, fish meal, shellfish waste, such as crab, shrimp, and lobster waste, fish emulsions, and offal, and is generated by commercial, institutional, or agricultural operations.

10. "Pre-consumer vegetative waste":

a. Means solid waste that is purely vegetative in origin, not considered yard trash, and derived from commercial, institutional or agricultural operations without coming into contact with animal products, byproducts or manure or with a consumer end user;

b. Includes material generated by farms, packing houses, canning operations, wholesale distribution centers and grocery stores, products that have been removed from their packaging, such as out-of-date juice, vegetables, condiments and breads, and associated packaging that is vegetative in origin, such as paper or corn-starch based products; and

c. Does not include table waste, packaging that has come in contact with materials, such as meat, that are not vegetative in origin, or any waste generated by restaurants.

11. "Sewage sludge biosolids" means the solid or semi-solid residue generated during the treatment of domestic sewage in a treatment works within the meaning of the definition of "sewage sludge" in 40 CFR 503.9(w).

12. "Soil amendment":

a. Means any chemical, biological, or physical material, such as elemental fertilizers, stabilized compost, manure, non-fecal animal byproducts, peat moss, perlite, pre-consumer vegetative waste, sewage sludge biosolids, table waste, agricultural tea and yard trimmings, intentionally added to the soil to improve the chemical or physical condition of soil in relation to plant growth or to improve the capacity of the soil to hold water; and

b. Includes growth media that serve as the entire substrate during the growth of covered produce, such as mushrooms and some sprouts.

13. "Stabilized compost" means a stabilized finished biological soil amendment produced through a controlled composting process.

14. "Static composting"' means a process to produce stabilized compost in which air is introduced into biological material, in a pile or row that may or may not be covered with insulating material, or in an enclosed vessel, by a mechanism that does not include turning. Examples of structural features for introducing air include embedded perforated pipes and a constructed permanent base that includes aeration slots. Examples of mechanisms for introducing air include passive diffusion and mechanical means, such as blowers that suction air from the composting material or blow air into the composting material using positive pressure.

15. "Surface water" means all water open to the atmosphere, such as rivers, lakes, reservoirs, streams, impoundments, seas, estuaries, and all springs, wells, or other collectors that are directly influenced by surface water.

16. "Table waste" means any post-consumer food waste, irrespective of whether the source material is animal or vegetative in origin, derived from individuals, institutions, restaurants, retail operations, or other sources where the food has been served to a consumer.

17. "Turned composting" means a process to produce stabilized compost in which air is introduced into biological material, in a pile, row, or enclosed vessel, by turning on a regular basis.

18. "Turning" means the process of mechanically mixing biological material that is undergoing a composting process with the specific intention of moving the outer, cooler sections of the material being composted to the inner, hotter sections.

19. "Yard trimmings" means purely vegetative matter resulting from landscaping maintenance or land clearing operations, including materials such as tree and shrub trimmings, grass clippings, palm fronds, trees, tree stumps, untreated lumber, untreated wooden pallets, and associated rocks and soils.

Ariz. Admin. Code § R3-10-801

Adopted by final exempt rulemaking at 26 A.A.R. 681, effective 8/20/2019.