What should be included in your final report?
- Contact and farm information such as location, acreage, number and type of animals.
- Emergency Management Information. Who should be contacted in case of emergency?
- A Farm Map, information for map preparation is included in the online version, on the CD if that is what you are using, and in the prepared written information if you are doing a handwritten report.
- A determination of Animal Units. An AU is 1,000 pounds of live animal. If you have 50 goats that weigh 120 pounds each then you would have (50*120) รท 1000 or 6 AU. If you have 15 1,000 pound horses you will have 15 AU. If you have 7 or fewer AU or if you accept for spreading less than 142 tons of animal manure, then you don’t have to do a formal report, although it is recommended. If you have more than 7 AU or if you accept more that 142 tons of animal manure, then you must complete an Animal Waste Management Plan (AWMP).
- Animal density. This is Animal Units divided by acreage. If your animal density is >1 AU/acre then you must have your AWMP certified by a conservation professional. If <1AU/acre you can write and certify your own plan. Just remember that you must follow the requirements of the rule in doing so.
- The program will allow you to print a report that includes most plan information. Printouts could be as long as 10-15 pages, depending on farm size and number of fields for manure spreading.
- Fill out the Nutrient Management Summary page. Data to fill this out can be found in the printout. This is where you discuss how manure will be disposed of on your farm, what your spreading plan is and if you have enough acreage to dispose of animal waste.
- Respond to the Environmental Advisories in the Printout. These appear in response to your answers about certain environmentally sensitive issues. For example, if your manure storage is less than 100 feet from water and you record this in one of your answers, the following language will appear in the printout: Your answer indicates that there is open water or wetlands within 100 feet of your manure storage. At this distance, there is an increased risk for contamination. A greater distance from open waters should be considered in your manure storage plans. Management practices such as diversion berms or vegetative filters should be considered to prevent manure runoff reaching open waters. You need to respond to the comment that the program has raised in response to your answer. Please check the Educational Materials contained in the program or the NJDA Management publication to find ways that you might respond. You will not need to do this for each environmental advisory listed. Only those listed on the following page.
The following questions that either appear on the computer printout or that you answer in the hard copy version you must respond to.
Manure Storage
If your manure storage is less than any of the following distances, then you must describe what management practices you will undertake to limit any of these risks.
- What is the distance of your manure storage to the nearest open water or wetlands? (<100 Feet)
- Distance of manure storage from property line: (<50 Feet)
- Distance of manure storage to nearest resident: (<200 Feet)
Barnyard Waste
You must respond to a yes answer on this question and describe what management practices you will undertake to limit or mitigate any risks.
- If storm water is contaminated by barnyard manure, silage, wastewater or feed waste, does it have access to nearby waters? (Yes)
Stream Access
You must respond to yes answers on either of these questions and describe what management practices you will undertake to limit or mitigate any risks.
- Do your animals have access to streams, lakes or other open waters on your farm? (Yes)
- Are streams, lakes, and other open waters essential on your farm for livestock water consumption? (Yes)
Field Evaluation
You must respond to a yes answer on this question and describe what management practices you will undertake to limit or mitigate any risks.
- Do you spread manure on frozen ground during winter months on this field? (Yes)