Manure management can be daunting on any size farm, even small farms. The state of Vermont has taken a serious interest in the impact agriculture and manure management has on water quality. In late 2016, the department of Agriculture, published RAPs, Required Agricultural Practices for farms of all sizes.
These standards are intended to improve the quality of Vermont’s waters by reducing and eliminating cropland erosion, sediment losses, and nutrient losses through improved farm management techniques, technical and compliance assistance, and where appropriate, enforcement. The RAPs establish nutrient, manure, and waste storage standards, make recommendations for soil health and establish requirements for vegetated buffer zones and livestock exclusion from surface water. The RAPs also establish standards for nutrient management planning and soil conservation. Agency of Agriculture
Though our farm does not fall under the requirements to file for certified compliance due to our low numbers of livestock, we are expected to follow the standards outlined none the less. Manure management has been an ongoing topic of discussion in our household for a very long time. We have been doing everything by hand, pitchfork and wheelbarrow style. Manure gets cleaned daily from our run-in and barn. For lack of any other way to handle it, we have established a compost pile just across the road from our barn. This pile grows and then composts down to rich black earth year after year. We have never had the means to move the pile or use it – other than what we shovel into our wheelbarrow to carry off to the garden. This winter, we finally had saved enough money to purchase our first John Deere tractor. This was our first step in moving towards complying with the state requirements, however, we still have a ways to go. Standards show that manure piles must be:
- 100 feet from a road
- 200 feet from surface water
- 100 feet from a dwelling and
- 200 feet from a private water source
Our system fails on several of these requirements that pertain to water, roads, and dwellings.
With the help of the White River Conservation District, we have applied for a grant to help fund a new composting system. Our proposal includes making improvements to our current manure management practices from sheep to field. It includes a three sided loafing area behind our 150 year old barn to protect manure build up from run off, as well as, 3 composting bins set back from the road and existing stream. With this addition and our new tractor, we will be able to allow a hay pack to build up which will be undercover yet providing adequate ventilation for the sheep. In the spring, we will be able to use our tractor to move the hay pack to the composting bins, and in the fall, we will spread it on our fields, thus improving the forage quality. By the time all the lambs are on the ground, we will know if our project has been funded.
Manure Management
Read a copy of the Required Agriculture Practices for Vermont here.
