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Dnr Should Finalize Rules On Liquid Manure

The Capital Times :: EDITORIAL :: 9A

Saturday, August 13, 2005
Andrew Hanson

These large livestock operations come by many names -- factory farms, livestock factories, mega-farms, or concentrated animal feeding operations -- and they make up a tiny fraction of the state's livestock farms but account for about 10 percent of all the livestock raised here. And they all have one thing in common: They produce millions of gallons of liquid manure and tons of solid manure as a waste byproduct of Wisconsin's livestock industry. That means fewer farms with more cattle -- and more manure that needs to be disposed of more often.

There is no doubt that manure can be a natural and environmentally beneficial source of fertilizer for growing crops when it is applied under the right conditions. But it makes sense, environmentally and economically, to apply manure when it is likely to stay on the field, not when the ground is frozen and snow-covered, which is when the risk of runoff is highest.

So far this year, the DNR has documented more than 59 manure spills, 12 of which polluted private wells used by Wisconsin families and 12 more that caused fish kills.

The fish are not the only ones hurting. Wisconsin's kids and families are suffering, too. In the spring the DNR documented that four private wells were contaminated in Dodge County by the application of manure on frozen and snow-covered ground, likely by a nearby livestock factory. More wells in Brown County also appeared to be contaminated with manure spread during the early spring. And in 2004 a Kewaunee County family, including a 7-month-old, got sick when a livestock factory spread liquid manure on frozen and snow-covered ground near their home.

The bottom line is that winter manure spreading is an all-too-common, but very dangerous, practice. The risk to our children's health and to our prized rivers and creeks is too great to allow it to continue.

Fortunately, the DNR is proposing to prohibit the surface application of liquid manure from Feb. 1 to March 31 of each year, and during other times in winter when the ground is frozen or covered with more than 4 inches of snow.

Coupled with the spreading restrictions, the DNR is proposing to require at least six months of liquid manure storage capacity for all DNR-permitted livestock factories by 2010. This storage requirement will help prevent the need for spreading liquid manure during these vulnerable times in the winter and early spring.

* This is a very modest and reasonable proposal that will make sure that livestock factories do not spread liquid manure at times when the risk of manure runoff is the greatest. The DNR proposal should help prevent kids from getting sick from contaminated water and stop fish kills by keeping the manure out of our wells and streams. The DNR should finalize these rules to protect children and trout alike.

\ Andrew Hanson is a staff attorney with Midwest Environmental Advocates, a nonprofit environmental law center in Madison. E-mail: ahanson@midwestadvocates.org