Recently, the Department of Environmental Protection updated their manure management manual, which covers all farm operations in Pennsylvania that have animals or spread manure.

Our office has received several calls and a few farmers have stopped in inquiring about the changes and how they affect their operation.

There are two laws in Pennsylvania that affect the handling and application of manure.

The Pennsylvania Nutrient Management Act, currently called ACT 38, covers operations that have more than two animal units per acre available for manure application. Typically, these operations are located in the eastern part of the state where animal numbers are high compared to crop and pasture.

Operations that have a large number of animals on a small acreage, are creating an environmental problem, or have manure or milk house waste runoff directly to water can also be regulated under this act.

The Clean Streams law, which regulates all Earth moving activities in the state, also covers nutrient issues and requires operations to handle manure and wastewater to protect water quality. This provision requires all animal operations to have a manure management plan that addresses and handles waste generated on the farm.

The Manure Management Manual can significantly impact farms and how they currently and in the future handle and spread manure as well as regulate animal exercise areas.

While I am not going to describe in detail the areas that could impact most farmers, I would encourage all farmers to contact our office or the Butler County Conservation district for a copy of the manual to review and understand the update.

In general, the manual gives the producer several options when dealing with the different areas of concern; for example, manure application setbacks from water bodies.

Without soil test results farmers are held to a 100 foot setback. With test results and a filter area, the setback is reduced. And with an established buffer, the setback is reduced even further.

Under the update, producers have a couple options to develop a plan.

• They can write their own or have a private company write a plan. Producers should also weigh their overall objectives and utilization of the plan. If you simply want to comply with the law, writing your own plan would be the way to go. However, this option can be confusing.

• The other option and the preferred method would be to hire a planner, which eliminates the burden of trying to figure out the intricacies of completing the worksheets and provides a building block to work toward implementation.

For those interested in constructing an animal feeding pad or manure storage and would like financial assistance, our office can only accept nutrient management plans that meet our specifications. Plans written by plan writers would meet our criteria.

Keep in mind having someone else write the plan can range anywhere from $750 to $2,000 depending on the size of the operation. Farmers can pay for this out of pocket or they can contact our office for financial assistance.

While we will not begin contracting for plan development until later in the fall, producers can apply all year. Those interested in pursuing funding should contact our office.

Andy Gaver is a conservationist with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service in Butler County.