AFO/CAFO Permits
The North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality has the statutory responsibility to control the pollution of
surface waters, groundwaters, and the air of the state. Water Quality Standards have been developed and
adopted for the surface waters of North Dakota, as provided by the Water Quality Act of 1965. An
extensive Water Pollution Control Act, addressing among other things the control of livestock waste, was
adopted by the 1967 state legislature. The Rules and Regulations for the Control of Pollution from
Certain Livestock Enterprises were first issued in 1972 by the State Health Department and updated in
1989 and 2005.
State law prohibits the following practices.
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Feeding of livestock on ice.
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Feeding of livestock or handling livestock waste in any way that would allow the waste
to directly enter or be washed into these waters of the state by runoff from rain or
snow melt.
Recycling Manure
Livestock waste (Manure) is a valuable resource when used properly. It provides essential
nutrients, organic matter, and moisture to cropland. However, these nutrients, which are so beneficial to
crops and soils, can have detrimental effects when carried into surface waters or groundwater. In surface
waters, they may cause large growths of algae (algal blooms), resulting in fish kills and decreased
recreational opportunities. Nutrients in groundwater may contaminate drinking water wells. Our challenge
then is to use livestock waste as a resource for food production, but prevent it from polluting surface or
groundwater resources.
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation County and Township Zoning Regulations
Zoning Regulations
