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,
a National Facilitation Project of the CSREES National Integrated
Water Quality Program, and The
National Center for Manure & Animal Waste Management ,
funded by the USDA Fund for Rural America, are important projects
helping USDA address this issue.
Assessment and Protection Efforts
A critical step in assuring the quality of surface and ground water is
to identify the cause of current or potential contamination problems. Once
these threats
to water quality are identified, actions can be taken toward remediation
of problem areas or prevention of future contamination. Numerous Extension
programs
are working with farmers and citizens to assess and prevent contamination
risks due to animal waste.
Livestock Environmental Management Systems (EMS)
Partners
for Livestock EMS is a 4-year project piloting EMS on beef, dairy, and
poultry operations in nine states (funded by a USDA IFAFS 2000 grant).
EMS are voluntary, flexible business management systems that help farmers
develop their own strategies for integrating environmental considerations into
the
daily operations of a farm through a partnerships/support system between
livestock producers, agricultural organizations, and public agencies.
This
Livestock
EMS is:
Developing
risk assessments and other support tools for designing EMS
Working with
collaborators and stakeholders to explore how EMS can best reduce detrimental
environmental
impacts of livestock production
Exploring
policy implications of the EMS approach
Accomplishments:
Utah State University
Extension has developed a program to integrate EMS
into Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs). (Harrison,
2003)
. Thus
far, two participating CAFO operators have determined what actions should
be taken and are considering whether to change or improve their current activities.
A third operation has already started on an improvement action, deployed
an
environmental management program to implement the system, and begun to measure
and document improvements.
One partner of
the Livestock EMS is the University of Georgia where they are evaluating three
methods of development and implementation of EMS for dry litter
poultry farms (Risse,
2003).
In this project, more than 20 poultry farmers developed EMS using one of
three approaches; independently on their own with guidance materials developed
by
Extension, working with Extension in small group workshops, and through third
party private consultants. Survey results and output are currently being
analyzed to determine the advantages and disadvantages of each of these approaches.
Farm*A*Syst
Throughout the U.S., CSREES is an integral part of Source Water Assessment
and Protection Programs, including Farm*A*Syst
(FAS) . FAS is a partnership
between government agencies and private businesses that enables the prevention
of water pollution on farms, ranches, and in homes using confidential environmental
assessments.
Accomplishment:
According to the Farm*A*Syst(FAS)/Home*A*Syst
(HAS) Program Impacts Update Focus 1999-2000 Report ,
all U.S. states and two U.S. territories have either FAS or HAS materials and
programs or both. In California, more than 900 Concentrated Animal Feeding
Operations (CAFOs) participated in FAS and more than 90 percent made or planned
to make changes in both their operations and in their nutrient management plans.
Other Assessment and Protection Efforts
In addition to EMS and Farm*A*Syst, USDA CSREES is active in other assessment
and protection efforts within the realm of animal waste management to improve
and protect ground and surface water quality.
Accomplishment:
Texas Cooperative
Extension served as a lead agency in the Upper
North Bosque River Project and
the Lake
Fork Creek Project .
Rivers and creeks in these watersheds flow through high density dairy production
regions and had been identified as water quality problem areas with excess
loadings of nutrients and bacteria. These projects achieved rapid, voluntary
adoption of best management practices and systems by agricultural producers
and other citizens to significantly reduce the potential for pollution of surface
and ground water.
Nutrient Management Planning
The U.S. EPA released
a new ruling on CAFO's in
December of 2002 to strengthen this regulatory program. USDA CSREES Extension
is helping the operators of
CAFOs in interpreting and meeting the requirements of this ruling. A great
deal of this work revolves around creating, revising, and implementing nutrient
management plans.
Accomplishment:
New Mexico State University scientists designed nutrient
management software for dairy manure . This
spreadsheet-based program will more effectively use the millions of tons of
manure produced in New Mexico. This software was distributed to county Extension
agents in New Mexico and more than 70 NRCS personnel as well as individual
producers.
Example:
The University
of Georgia AWARE (Animal Waste Awareness in Research and Extension) program offers one-stop shopping to those interested in creating a Nutrient
Management Plan in Georgia .
Manure Testing Programs
Land-Grant Universities either have or can recommend a Soil and Plant analysis
laboratory that provides manure testing. Example laboratories are linked
below:
Alabama:
Auburn University, Soil Testing Lab
California: University
of California, DANR Analytical Lab
Maine: University
of Maine, Maine Soil Testing Service
Iowa: Iowa State
University, Soil and Plant Analysis Laboratory
Nebraska: University
of Nebraska, Soil
and Plant Analysis Lab
Pennsylvania:
Penn State, Agricultural Analytical Services Lab
South Carolina:
Clemson Extension, Agricultural Service Laboratory
South Dakota:
South Dakota State University, Analytical Services
Wisconsin: University
of Wisconsin, Soil and Forage Analysis Lab
The intent of this page is not to catalogue all activities but rather to indicate the types of extension activities in the Animal Waste Management theme across the U.S.
page last modified on
May 29, 2008
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