“These technical guidelines were developed by the Technical Advisory Group, a partnership among the Government of Alberta, the Natural Resources Conservation Board (NRCB) and the agriculture industry, to add clarity to the regulations under the Agricultural Operation Practices Act (AOPA),” says Vince Murray, AOPA engineer with the Alberta government.
As required by the AOPA, a permit must be obtained prior to constructing a new manure storage or manure collection area. Applications for these permits are made to the NRCB. For more information on who requires a permit, see the AOPA Reference Guide.
AOPA addresses groundwater resource protection for all manure facilities (for solid and liquid manure) by requiring either a protective layer or liner as per Section 9 of the Standards and Administration Regulation. A subsoil investigation is usually required to obtain the information necessary to support an application for a new or expanding manure facility.
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