At Your Disposal
Smaller livestock operations can reduce pollution and large capital expenditures by forming a waste management cooperative
R. Wade Binion
Agricultural Marketing Specialist
Although the
farming community generally has a high regard for environmental conservation and
pollution control, livestock owners are constantly faced with the challenge of
increasing production while still using environmentally sound management
practices. Most farm operations have been voluntarily addressing this issue for
years, regardless of the size of their operation. However, the disposal of
livestock waste in accordance with governmental regulations will continue to be
a growing concern.
Very often pollution in our waterways
and groundwater is attributed to runoff directly from livestock operations or as
the result of manure spread on cropland as fertilizer. "Dairy Waste Causing
a Stink", or "Maryland Lawmakers Pressured on Farm Pollution" are
just two examples of articles that have appeared in various publications
throughout the country in the past few months.
Pollution concerns
In the summer of
1997, an outbreak of the microbe Pfiesteria piscicida in the Chesapeake
Bay caused the death of thousands of fish in the waters of Maryland and
Virginia. Some scientists believe the widespread presence of Pfiesteria
piscicida resulted from high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in bay
waters, with the probable source being runoff from surrounding farms that use
manure-based fertilizers. In response, states that border the Chesapeake Bay
have proposed various limits and controls on the use of manure based
fertilizers.
These types of controls are not
unique to the Chesapeake Bay area. In North Dakota, for example, state law
prohibits the feeding of livestock within 60 feet of the top bank of a lake or
stream. And Ohio has established an Animal Waste Pollution Abatement Program.
This program requires operators of facilities with more than 1,000 animal units,
or that maintain a controlled discharge waste management system, to obtain
approval and other permits from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
to operate a manure management plan. Other state regulations range from strict
mandatory restrictions to voluntary guidelines designed to assist farmers in
alternative means for disposal or use of animal waste.
Pollution from livestock operations
has also become a federal concern. In March 1999, Vice President Gore released
the National Strategy for Animal Feeding Operations. Developed jointly by the
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the federal EPA, this
document is designed to control the disposal of waste by both growers and
processors of animals. The federal strategy should also ensure that all states
enforce the same regulations.
Waste management practices
Farmers have been
voluntarily addressing pollution from water runoff from individual farms through
the use of "best management practices." These practices are designed
to control non-point source pollution. They involve either diverting water away
from stored manure or controlling the flow of runoff water away from existing
bodies of water through the use of vegetative cover, terracing, conservation
tillage, controlled grazing, and diversion systems.
Other more intensive waste management
systems available to livestock and poultry operations include composting, solid
separators that use anaerobic or aerobic digestion, and bio-digestion. Most of
these systems can be designed to fit various sizes and types of operations.
However, each one can require a large initial capital investment and can be very
labor intensive to operate.
Composting, which is widely used in
the poultry industry, breaks down the organic matter of animal waste under
controlled conditions. The resulting end product is lower in volume and nutrient
content, reducing the risk of pollution. While basically a simple process,
composting can be very labor intensive and can require a large storage area,
making it difficult for the small livestock operator to maintain.
A solid separation system consists of
a large storage tank or lagoon that uses gravity to separate solid matter from
the liquid over time, while breaking down the organic matter through anaerobic
or aerobic digestion. After the solid portion has settled out, the diluted
liquid is siphoned off. Both can then be disposed of in a more controlled
manner, such as on days when no rain is forecasted, reducing the threat of
pollution.
More advanced solid separation
systems use a centrifuge to spin the manure and leave a dense compacted solid.
Although this type of system will separate the solids and liquids much more
quickly, it is requires a much larger capital investment to construct.
Bio-digestion is the most complicated
and capital-intensive system. This type of system combines solid separation with
a method of collecting the methane gas that is emitted during the anaerobic
process. Although highly capital intensive, bio-digestion derives economic
benefit from the three end products it generates: a liquid organic fertilizer, a
solid material that can be used for composting, and methane gas that can be used
as an energy source.
In one instance, a 4,690 cow dairy
operation in Arizona has been able to save nearly $200,000 a year in electricity
costs by using the methane gas produced from its bio-digestion system. Although
this is a very large dairy, the general manager of this operation firmly
believes a biogas system could be an economically viable option for any dairy
with a herd of at least 100 cows.
Even so, smaller livestock operations
with limited space, labor, or financing may find it too economically difficult
to construct and operate any type of waste management system. According to a
study from the Texas Agricultural Extension Service, the $107,071 initial
investment needed to construct a waste management system for a 300-cow dairy was
70 percent greater than the $150,509 needed for a 720-cow dairy herd, when
evaluated on a per-head basis.
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On-farm livestock waste lagoons can create
environmental hazards if not properly designed and maintained.
Some farmers are turning to cooperatives to help meet this
challenge. USDA photos |
A cooperative alternative
Given this, a
cooperatively owned and operated waste management facility could be an excellent
alternative for smaller livestock operations. Already, there are examples of
individual producers who found that operating an individual waste management
systems was not economically feasible, regardless of type or size, and have
utilized cooperative principles and practices to share the cost of constructing
and operating a waste management system with other producers.
In northwestern Connecticut, the
Blackberry River runs through the Canaan Valley, eventually becoming part of the
Housatonic River Watershed. The nearly 2,500 head of cattle in the valley
generate close to 45,000 tons of manure each year. Disposing of this large
volume of waste can be difficult during the winter months when the ground is
usually frozen and covered in snow.
As a result, five farms in the valley
have taken a proactive approach to reducing pollution in the watershed by
forming a jointly owned and controlled waste management cooperative. Initially,
the cooperative was to operate a storage facility, solid separator, and manure
digester at a single site that would be used by all members. The cooperative
would then store liquid waste for use when the ground was not frozen and then
compost the solids for sale commercially.
Once the cooperative began
organizing, leaders determined that a multi-site facility would be better
logistically than a single-site operation. Each site uses a different waste
management method. The cooperative has been essential to the success of this
venture by allowing the individual operations to share labor and equipment
costs. The cooperative is also responsible for administering permits, financing
and supervising facility construction and operation.
The Methane Energy and Agriculture
Development (MEAD) Project is another cooperative venture being planned in
Tillamook County, Oregon, as a joint working effort of public officials, a
private enterprise, and a local cooperative, MEADCO. When completed, the
privately owned company will construct and operate an anaerobic digestion
facility that will operate on manure supplied by 15 dairy farms in the county.
Current plans call for the facility's owner to sell the biogas and soil end
products from the process commercially and return the liquid nutrient end
product to the cooperative members.
Tests on the liquid nutrient end
product have shown that it is free of pathogens such as fecal coliform and weed
seed, is less odorous, and contains a more readily available ammonium form of
nitrogen. This should reduce the risk of groundwater contamination and lengthen
the window of time for spreading the waste during rainy seasons.
If successful, this will help farmers
operate within Oregon Department of Agriculture's Confined Animal Feeding
Operation (CAFO) oversight program. This program is designed to prevent
pollution of groundwater in part by assigning a maximum number of cows for each
dairy based on such factors as manure storage facilities and manure application
processes.
A cooperatively owned waste
management system can offer an economically viable solution to smaller farm
operations in managing animal waste in an environmentally sound manner. If you
are interested in information on cooperatives, contact USDA's Cooperative
Services, Cooperative Development Division at Stop 3254, 1400 Independence
Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-3254; or call (202) 720-3750. 
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