Stables, Kennels & Catteries

STABLES, KENNELS & POLLUTION CATTERIES: PREVENTION PPG24 GUIDELINES These guidelines have been drawn up to assist those involved in the management and operation of stables, kennels and catteries. Compliance with this guidance should minimise the risk of polution occuring. These notes are for guidance only and the information given is without prejudice. They are jointly produced by the Environment Agency for England and Wales, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the Environment and Heritage Service in Northern Ireland, referred to as the Agency or Agencies. Each site will be considered according to individual circumstances and early consultation with your local Agency office is advisable. Contact details can be found at the end of these guidelines. 1. LEGAL FRAMEWORK a. The Agencies are responsible for both the protection of “controlled waters” from pollution and for the prevention of pollution of the environment, harm to human health and detriment to local amenity by waste management activities under the Environmental Protection Act 1990. “Controlled waters” include all watercourses, lakes, lochs, coastal waters and water contained in underground strata (or “groundwater”) and it is an offence to pollute such waters, either deliberately or accidentally. In addition, the formal consent of the Agency is required for many discharges to controlled waters, including both direct discharges and discharges to soakaways. Such consents are granted subject to conditions and are not issued automatically. b. All discharges to the public foul sewer require authorisation by the sewerage undertaker and may be subject to the terms and conditions of a trade effluent consent. c. Waste produced from breeding, boarding, stabling or exhibiting animals is defined as an industrial waste (under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the Control of Waste Regulations 1992) and as such is a controlled waste. The keeping, treatment or disposal of controlled waste is subject to the waste management licensing regime and the Duty of Care (Reference 1). Waste with hazardous properties, such as prescription-only medicines, are subject to additional controls under the Special Waste Regulations 1996. Separate legislation applies in Northern Ireland. Advice is available from the Agencies. d. Where the waste may contain a notifiable disease or come from a quarantine area, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food are the responsible regulator. 2. INTRODUCTION Stables, kennels and catteries are often sited in remote locations away from mains drainage. There are several pollution risks commonly associated with these types of premises. These include the storage of oil (particularly heating oil) and chemicals (including sterilants, biocides, disinfectants and medicines) and foul drainage, including that from associated houses and offices. Unless secure storage facilities, properly designed and installed drainage and sound waste management and spillage control measures are in place, pollution could occur. The disposal of waste will also require careful management. Any industrial waste produced at the premises should be kept separate from ‘normal household’ waste, which is subject to different legislation. The mixing of household and industrial waste results in all of it being classified as industrial. It is likely that household waste, which is waste produced in the curtilage of a domestic property or a self contained part of a building which is used wholly for the purposes of living accommodation, will either be collected free of charge by the local collection authority or may be taken to your local civic amenity site. 3. THE PROBLEMS a. Stables Stables produce highly polluting runoff from dirty yards, from the washing out of stables and from practices such as soaking hay to suppress dust. Exercise pools also present problems particularly when being drained down, due to the presence of treatment chemicals and associated sediments or solids. b. Kennels The wash down of kennels and rainfall related runoff can produce a highly polluting effluent which may also produce large variations in flow to a treatment plant. A suitably sized sedimentation tank should be installed to aid solids separation prior to the treatment plant and to balance flows. However, the presence of biocides such as gluteraldehyde will make drainage from these areas unsuitable for treatment by conventional package sewage treatment plants unless the flow is carefully managed to ensure a suitable level of dilution is maintained. Hunt kennels often have ‘flesh houses’ where animal carcasses are prepared for feeding to the hounds, and drainage from these and carcass storage areas can be grossly contaminated. c. Catteries Generally the risk from catteries is lower, although there are still potential problems associated with washing down and the use of disinfectants. Inadequate storage of heating oil and chemicals can also lead to problems. d. General Stables, kennels and catteries can produce both liquid and solid wastes. Where liquid waste is not conveyed to the public foul sewer or is not discharged within the terms of a discharge consent, it will need to be collected and disposed of at a suitably licensed or exempt facility. This may involve tankering to a sewage treatment works or to an alternative licensed facility. The spreading of septic tank sludge on agricultural land may be exempt from waste management licensing subject to certain criteria, including a demonstrable benefit to agriculture or ecological improvement. Full details of the criteria are available from your local Agency office. Advice should be sought from the local veterinary service if there is any doubt as to the safety of a particular waste application. Any solid waste, such as contaminated bedding, food containers, faecal matter and empty chemical containers must be disposed of via a suitably licensed facility. The composting of waste at the site of production may be exempt from the requirement for a Waste Management Licence but must be registered with the Agency before being brought into use. With the exception of uncontaminated wood, bark and plant matter (which are also exempt subject to certain conditions), the open burning of controlled wastes is an offence under the Environment Protection Act 1990. Disposal at a Civic Amenity site may be possible, but many do not accept industrial waste. Advice on those which can may be obtained either from the Agency or your local authority Special care is required with Clinical Waste such as infected linen, bandaging, used syringes and empty medicine containers. This is particularly relevant where syringes and containers are contaminated with chemicals or drugs, which is likely unless they have been thoroughly washed out. These will need to be collected separately. These may also be defined as ‘Special Waste’ and require to be disposed of via the ‘cradle to grave’ notification procedure prescribed in the Special Waste Regulations 1996. For further guidance on Clinical waste see Reference 2. There may be additional requirements for quarantine kennels, particularly with regard to the incineration of waste. In these cases a special permit (or Authorisation) will be needed. Any material which may contain a notifiable disease, or arising from a quarantine facility, is controlled by MAFF. 4. POLLUTION PREVENTION MEASURES All oil storage tanks should be bunded, secure and located away from any surface water drains (See PPG2-Reference 3). Clean water from roofs or uncontaminated areas should be separated from foul or contaminated water drains, and discharged direct to the nearest watercourse without treatment. The down pipes from roofs should have sealed connections to surface water drains. Wherever possible, connection to the public foul sewer should be made and all sewage and other contaminated effluents discharged to it. This will require the prior consent of the sewage undertaker. If no foul sewer is available, ‘domestic’ foul drainage should be directed to septic tank and soakaway, private sewage treatment plant or cess-pool, depending on the site circumstances. See PPG4-Reference 4. a. Stables Runoff from contaminated yards, manure heaps, stable washing and hay soaking should be directed to an impermeable lagoon or sealed effluent tank for collection, which may, if appropriate, be spread to land or disposed of as outlined in Section 4b below. Filter backwash water from exercise pools should not be spread to land. Small stables may be able to treat effluent via a private sewage treatment plant, depending on the location. Temporary field manure heaps should be located where there is no risk of runoff causing pollution. They should not be located near field drains, within 10 metres of a watercourse or 50 metres of a spring, well or borehole that supplies water for human consumption (see Reference 5). Exercise pool water may have to stand for 7 days after chlorination or other chemical treatments before it can be disposed of. Care should be taken to control the rate of discharge to prevent a sudden increase in flow causing harm to the receiving waters or sewers. The pool chemicals should be kept in a secure store, or within a bunded storage area, preferably covered by a roof. The area should be sited on an impervious base and surrounded by a suitable bund wall resistant to chemical attack. No drainage outlet should be provided. In the event of a chemical spillage, if appropriate and with due regard to health and safety, contain the liquid and use an absorbent material to soak it up. Contact the Agency immediately, using the emergency number shown at the end of these guidelines, if any chemicals have entered or may enter surface water drains. Please be aware of the health and safety implications of dealing with spillages of pool chemicals. b. Kennels and catteries The wash down from kennels and catteries and drainage from flesh houses should be directed to the foul sewer or, if it is not available, to a sealed cess-pool. These areas should be covered to prevent rainwater being collected. The contents of the cess-pool should be removed by a licensed contractor for offsite disposal, or be disposed of by irrigation to agricultural land, subject to specific criteria.

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