The following conservation practice standards (CPSs) and WI construction specifications (WCSs) were revised and announced by NRCS in Wisconsin Field Office Technical Guide (FOTG) Notice WI-104. The revised standards and specification will replace the previous versions. More information about the WI technical standards 561, 627, 632 and 634, which underwent both expert and public review processes, is available here.

A summary of the changes is provided below:

  • CPS 561 Heavy Use Protection – Transferred criteria for feed storage areas from CPS 629, allowed macro-synthetic polyolefin fibers in concrete, added a quality assurance plan for the inspection of macrosynthetic fibers in concrete, allowed glass fiber reinforced polymer bars in concrete, updated base requirements under asphalt, referenced Wisconsin Asphalt Paving Association for asphalt pavement design, and added foundation assessment and soil testing requirements.
  • CPS 627 Wastewater Treatment, Milk House – Adopted this new national standard including transfer of criteria for milkhouse wastewater treatment from CPS 629; manufactured concrete (thin-walled), plastic, and fiberglass tanks must meet performance requirements in Ag Waste Management Field Handbook and DSPS criteria removed; and setback distances increased.
  • CPS 629 Waste Treatment – Standard removed.
  • CPS 632 Waste Separation – Increased the flow capacity of perforated risers by a factor of 2 to account for plugging,  increased minimum hydraulic retention time in sediment basins to 30 minutes to ensure capture of silt particles or heavier, increased settling basin storage from 65% to 100% of a 25-year storm event, and removed settling basin criteria that could not be referenced or supported.
  • CPS 634 Waste Transfer – Manufactured concrete (thin-walled), plastic, and fiberglass tanks must meet performance requirements in Ag Waste Management Field Handbook and DSPS criteria removed; removed gutters (gutters are now considered channels); and updated design flow velocities.
  • WCS-4 Concrete – Added changes in Type IS, IP, and IL cement requirements, changed loss of ignition requirements for fly ash, added requirements for natural pozzolan, added requirements for Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) bars, and added requirements regarding sulfur in aggregate.
  • WCS-4 FRC Concrete (New) – Added details for product selection, batching, installation, and QA/QC for concrete which includes macro-synthetic fibers as a replacement for steel reinforcement.
  • WCS-15 Plastic Pipe Conduit – Adjusted pipe sizes covered by AWWA C900.
  • WCS-27 Bituminous Concrete Pavement (New) – Created new specification.
  • WCS-44 Corrugated Polyethylene Tubing – Adjusted pipe sizes covered by ASTM F894 and AASHTO M294.
  • WCS-202 Polyethylene Geomembrane Lining – Changed puncture resistance requirements in Table 4.
  • WCS-634 Waste Transfer Pipe – Removed AWWA C905 and adjusted pipe sizes covered by AWWA C900, allowed for pipe deflection at joints per manufacturer’s specifications.

Additional specifications were re-dated but no content changes made:  WCS-4 Embedded or Expansive Waterstop, WCS-6 Corrugated Metal Pipe Conduits, WCS-8 Drainfill, WCS-9 Rock Riprap, WCS-10 Fences, WCS-11 Small Rock Aggregate (non concrete), WCS-13 Geotextiles,  WCS-14 Timber Fabrication and Installation, WCS-201 Steel Sheet Piling, and WCS-203 Geosynthetic Clay Liner.

Further details, including copi8es of the current standards and specifications, are available on NRCS’s WI FOTG website.