Gloria Hafemeister
Correspondent
WISCONSIN DELLS
Being prepared ahead of time is key to avoiding environmental damage from manure handling accidents.
The Professional Nutrient Applicators Association of Wisconsin, Columbia County University of Wisconsin (UW) Extension, Columbia County Land and Water Conservation and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources conducted a manure spill response demonstration at NelDell Farm near Wisconsin Dells.
The event highlighted several demonstrations including a simulated spill on a hillside and waterway area and another on flatter low ground. The demonstrations showed different tactics for immediate response but Joe Bollman, Columbia County agricultural agent, stressed that tactics will vary according to the circumstances, soil type, weather and temperature and topography of the land.
Kevin Erb, UW Extension, acknowledged, “Being prepared is a big thing but luck, timing and location can also be a factor.”
He issued a reminder, “You have a legal requirement to report any spill or incident to the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). A spill program is more than just manure. It can be fuel or any other hazardous material, too.”
Brian Ellefson, DNR ag runoff manager, says bigger farms require a response plan to be in place before they get their permits. He also said a farmer will be in more trouble if he ignores a spill. Reporting it in time to prevent damage to fish, a stream or the environment will be better.
Ellefson continues, “Even if things go okay when you spread, if you get heavy rain right after, go check things to make sure there isn’t a problem.”
The demonstrations illustrated methods to use but Erb cautions, “What works for one situation may not work for another. There are many different circumstances.”
Chisel plowing or mold-board plowing across a field to stop the spill that is heading down a hill may work in many cases but if it means working up a waterway it could mean long-term erosion problems so producers may want to choose another method.
Erb emphasized that the demonstration is a controlled situation with all the equipment in place before the “spill” occurs and berms were made to act as dams in the waterways prior to the demonstration. He advises, “You need to think about having things ready to go before you start to empty your pit.”
He suggests having a wagon filled with bales of straw, shovels, plastic pails, large pieces of plastic, and other supplies and having quick access to a tillage tool.
During the first demonstration Erb blocked off a culvert with a board. He also placed a plastic pail with the bottom cut off around a tile inlet pipe, digging it into the ground all the way around and placing piles of dirt in a horseshoe pattern through the center of the waterway to contain the spill. A septic vacuum truck then sucked out the liquid manure that puddled behind the dirt berm.
At the conclusion of the demonstration a fire truck flushed the surface of the ground where the liquid manure was spilled, catching it in the berm to be vacuumed into the tank.
Erb explains, “Calling a septic vacuum truck works well for cleaning up a large volume spill such as if a tanker tips over or when the liquid manure runs down a waterway and is held back. Having bales of straw or equipment for placing dirt in the waterway or ditch will buy some time to contain the spill until a vacuum truck arrives.”
He points out that tillage will also delay the runoff, but in the long term the tillage can lead to erosion problems if it disturbs a grass waterway.
A second demonstration dealt with spills on flatter fields in a low area. It illustrated the effects of chisel plowing before a spill to stop any runoff and chisel plowing through a spill after it occurs to slow any runoff. In those demonstrations, the liquid followed tire tracks and chisel furrows. It slowed the movement, however, to allow time to clean up excess manure with a skid steer loader.
A third demonstration showed how spreading solid pack manure, waste feed or even sand on spilled liquid manure will act as a wick to slow the movement of the liquid until other means can be used to remove it.
