Ohio’s composting regulations (Capítulo 3745-560 del OAC) provide an innovative model for the region and other parts of the country. Officials have designed rules to suit various land uses (i.e., rural, suburban, urban) and made special efforts to adapt to contemporary community needs via permit exemptions.
Regulation Guidance
Ohio’s revised rules went into effect on October 1, 2018. These updated regulations allow a registration (i.e., permit) exemption for any composting operation under 500 square feet. This is largely “to accommodate community gardens and urban farms,” explains Angel Arroyo-Rodriguez, an environmental planner and composting specialist for the Ohio EPA.
Facilities over 500 square feet must register and obtain a license (essentially a permit-by-rule), which requires an annual fee based on the daily tonnage handled, a plan of financial assurance, and a daily maximum amount of materials to be indicated by the operator. The “allowed daily maximum” of incoming material receipt prevents the facility from receiving more material than it can handle in 24 hours, providing the operator a baseline to avoid material back-up and related long-term issues.
Effective December 2025, through Rule 3745-560-01, those who reside in a single-family residence may compost yard waste, agricultural plant materials, animal waste, food scraps, and bulking agents in no greater than 500 square feet in area. Rule 3745-500-01 regulates how dumping of solid waste is managed. Open dumping of solid waste is not permitted and should be removed and disposed of in accordance with Chapter 3734.
For the purpose of monitoring potential risks to human and environmental health from improper materials management, Ohio’s compost facilities are divided into four categories, based on types of feedstock materials.
La ruta basada en el desempeño
Las regulaciones basadas en el rendimiento son un modelo flexible, utilizado tanto por Ohio como por Estados del noroeste del Pacífico — que exigen cumplir ciertos niveles de calidad, pero no dictan la forma exacta de alcanzar dichos estándares. Los operadores de las instalaciones de compostaje registradas en Ohio son responsables de determinar sus propias capacidades y de cumplirlas. Por ejemplo, los ciudadanos pueden llevar material externo (es decir, residuos de jardín, residuos animales, material vegetal agrícola, restos de comida, agentes espesantes y aditivos) a huertos comunitarios o granjas urbanas más grandes, y luego utilizar el producto final en cualquier lugar, siempre que no haya olores ni contaminación del aire o del agua derivada del proceso de compostaje.
In the case of larger facilities (defined as over 500 square feet) that require an on-site material limit, Ohio has avoided constrictive thresholds for the most part, and thus allows the operator to indicate this amount, based on facility capacity. Arroyo-Rodriguez of the Ohio EPA likes this approach because the amount “is not an arbitrary number; they designed the facility to handle an amount of material, so we’ll hold them to that.” He explained the ease of the process, saying: “At any time they can make the necessary changes to accept more material. They just need to update their registration and license.”
Estas normas basadas en el rendimiento fomentan la innovación y tienen en cuenta las diferentes características de cada emplazamiento, como el clima local y el tipo de suelo. Las normas basadas en el rendimiento reconocen así que no existe un modelo único que sea la mejor opción para todas las instalaciones.
Más información
- Código Administrativo de Ohio, Chapter 3745-560 – Composting Facilities
- Ohio EPA, Division of Materials and Waste Management (DMWM) – Documentos de orientación sobre instalaciones de compostaje
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Publicación original del 31 de julio de 2012.
Updated May 28, 2026