Manure Nutrient Recycling and Environmental Assurance

View the project final report

• 2002 annual report
• 2003 annual report

Commodities

• Agronomic: corn, soybeans, wheat, grass (misc. perennial), hay
• Animals: bovine, poultry, swine, sheep
• Animal Products: dairy

Practices

• Animal Production: manure management, grazing - multispecies, pasture fertility, grazing - rotational, watering systems, feed/forage
• Crop Production: cover crops, nutrient cycling
• Education and Training: demonstration, display, extension, on-farm/ranch research, participatory research, workshop
• Farm Business Management: whole farm planning
• Soil Management: nutrient mineralization
• Sustainable Communities: sustainability measures

Manure Nutrient Management Education is vital to Michigan Agriculture. Twelve local projects, ranging from on-farm demonstration plots to field days to class room training events were conducted by MSU Extension Educators. Training for Extension and other agency persons has maintained a consistent message to all livestock producers. This has resulted in on-farm changes include record keeping, manure and soil testing, manure spreading plans, calibration, conservation setbacks and buffers, collection of silage leachate and much greater attention to field applications of manure. This is leading to greater protection of our water resources, recycling of manure nutrients and success in developing comprehensive nutrient management plans (CNMP).

The Manure AOE has utilized these SARE funds in several different avenues.

No. 1: Funding mini-grants to agents to implement a project in their local area. This has taken the form of field tours, on farm plot demonstrations, and/or classroom meetings. All of this activity has been reported in previous annual reports and is included here at the end.
No. 2: Curriculum development, specifically educational materials for agents to use with producers
No. 3: In-service training sessions where agents can learn to use the materials mentioned above.
No. 4: The ability of agent to attend national meetings for professional development and future contacts and resources.
No. 5: Hiring of an assistant for educational deliverables to both CNMP providers and farmers of the state.
Objectives:
The attached Logic Model represents the original objectives. Below are the revised objectives as per June 2003:

The deliverables include:
►Classroom education for agents, NRCS, groundwater technicians and private consultants that increase the comfort level of these professionals in discussing nutrient recycling of manure to crop production.
►Classroom and in-field sessions to improve professionals’ understanding of the sensitivities of surface and ground waters to nutrients from mismanaged manure. Increase their skills in implementing production and management actions to curb these concerns, e.g. cover crops, tillage, residue, grassed water ways, buffers and setbacks.
►Develop and implement a CNMP at the MSU Kellogg Biological Station Dairy Farm to serve as a model site for training professionals in CNMP development, for on-site field and surface water assessment related to nutrient loading, for classroom training and for what it means to be environmentally assured through the new MAEAP program in Michigan.
►Develop training materials to achieve the above.
►Attend out of state training events and network with other similar programs in neighboring states.