GUIDE TO NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT

Transcription

1 A Producer s Guide to Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans in Wisconsin: GUIDE TO NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT Nutrient management continues to be at the forefront of environmental issues facing Wisconsin livestock and crop producers. Improved nutrient management practices have proven to enhance farm profits and reduce detrimental impacts of nutrients and sediment on waters of the state. JULY 2008 Kevan Klingberg, Extension Outreach Specialist, Discovery Farms Program, University of Wisconsin-Extension Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans (CNMPs), or more appropriately, whole farm/livestock environmental plans, have become an important assessment tool for Wisconsin s agricultural producers and governmental agencies. Changes in agricultural zoning regulations, livestock siting ordinances, and animal feeding operation permits, as well as new requirements for participation in government programs, have increased the need for producers to develop and implement nutrient management plans. This fact sheet serves as a guide for agricultural producers and their consultants to better understand what goes into a CNMP and how to anticipate the planning process if they choose to have a CNMP developed for their farm business. Improved nutrient management practices have proven to enhance farm profits and reduce detrimental impacts of nutrients and sediment on waters of the state.

2 ABOUT CNMPs What is a CNMP? A CNMP is a conservation/farm management assessment and planning tool that is unique to livestock operations, with planning standards and minimum criteria defined and administered by the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). CNMPs document current or planned practices and strategies by which livestock producers address natural resource concerns related to soil erosion, livestock manure handling and disposal of organic by-products. 5 The approach is similar to whole farm soil and water conservation planning. The CNMP records the farm s current cropland and farm management practices and provides the background information needed to apply for cost sharing from state and federal agencies. What is the Value of a CNMP? As previously mentioned, a CNMP is often required for participation in government programs. CNMPs can be used to complement and guide USDA program participation and, in fact, will soon be required for manure storage cost-share through the USDA-Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). Similarly, CNMPs help position producers to apply for and participate in the USDA-Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP). A well-designed CNMP can also be used when applying for a state/local livestock siting permit, a facility expansion permit, or a manure storage permit. In addition to helping meet government program requirements, a CNMP links the producer with a farm-specific team of consultants they hire for plan development. The CNMP consulting team will usually Producers who are interested in specific details about Comprehensive Nutrient Management Planning for their operation should talk to their local NRCS staff. consist of an engineer, an agronomist, a conservationist, and possibly a livestock nutritionist. Each consultant should provide a professional assessment and evaluation of the farm operation. This outside, second opinion of a farming operation, with the associated recommendations for improvements, can be extremely valuable to producers. Producers are free to contemplate these recommendations and decide whether or not to implement any or all of them. Ultimately, the producer and their consultant team prioritize the list of concerns and develop a final action plan of improvable cropland, livestock facility, farm management, and emergency action practices. Finally, a CNMP provides a farmer with a very detailed document that defines current conditions and management practices, establishes plans for change, and outlines a road map toward that change. The document is a dynamic tool for the farm business that provides the producer with a long-range strategy for whole farm management using the latest practices and techniques, to preserve farm profitability while protecting the environment. A well-written and soundly implemented CNMP can serve as a pro-active public accountability document that can be referred to if neighborhood concerns or regulatory issues arise. 6, 8 2 A Producer s Guide to Nutrient Management Plans in Wisconsin:

3 What are the Challenges of Developing a CNMP? The biggest challenge in the development of a CNMP is maintaining the linkage between the plan and the goals of the producer. The final product must be valuable to the producer and must be functional enough that the producer uses it routinely. 2 Producers and their consultants should not view the CNMP as a required exercise for program participation (cost-sharing). Consultants must have meaningful, farm-specific discussions and on-farm interactions with the producer, and not simply plug information into a template for easy money. Another challenge in the CNMP process is budgeting the right amount of time for meaningful dialogues between the producers and their consulting team. Both producer and consultant must make a commitment to the project. Working with a consultant is not a substitute for farmer responsibility. Consultants only learn about an operation and its business needs if the producer spends time sharing their vision for the farm. Producers are seasonally very busy. However, unless a producer commits to providing meaningful information and time to the consultants, the CNMP will be useless and could, in fact, be detrimental to the operation. 1 Conversely, there may be times when finding qualified consultants with adequate time to develop a high quality plan could be a challenge. Producers looking for qualified consultants can view lists of professionals who are qualified to work on CNMPs on the WI-NRCS Certified Planners website 7 and the NRCS-TechReg website. 4 T Fall manure injection after corn harvest. Manure nutients applied for next-season crop. 3

4 CNMP PARTS AND PROCESSES What makes up a CNMP? The main body of the CNMP is a multi-page document containing soil erosion calculations, nutrient budgets, engineering assessments and calculations, facility observations, and public safety/emergency action plans. However, to be functional, all CNMPs should include a 1 or 2-page summary that identifies the highlights of the operation and any actions for improvement or implementation that have been agreed upon. Anyone reading only the summary should be able to easily discern the direction the rest of the plan is heading. Ultimately, the producer will find value in these summary pages and may use them more often than the larger document. Wisconsin NRCS has a detailed website devoted to CNMP components and expectations for creating a document that fully meets NRCS standards. 6 The website contains downloadable tools, references and templates. Many of these templates, tools and the stepped planning processes resulted from a WI-NRCS and UW-Discovery Farms Program project designed to create a CNMP development protocol for Wisconsin. 2 The Wisconsin Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan Contents and Certification provides a summary of the required parts of a CNMP and an area for the livestock producer to accept the plan, and a certification section for the CNMP planners to certify the plan as complete. The tool also serves as a CNMP checklist for necessary items including: 1. Introduction, emergency response, general information and plan summary 2. Maps and site photos 3. Manure and wastewater handling and storage 4. Public health 5. Conservation 6. Nutrient management 7. Record keeping 8. Feed management 9. Pest management 10. Prescribed grazing 11. Appendix When completed, these 11 chapters become the Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan. Feed management, pest management and prescribed grazing components of a CNMP are optional, based on the producer s interest and the consultant s farm inventory and assessment. An assessment of each CNMP component, including the optional pieces, must be provided to develop a complete picture of the farm operation. How does the process work? Farmers who are interested in developing a Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan should first talk to their county NRCS staff. Once the planning process and cost-sharing details are understood, an interested producer may sign up with NRCS for cost sharing to cover a portion of the plan development costs. Producers who want NRCS cost sharing must not begin development of their CNMP until a valid cost-sharing contract is in effect. To begin the CNMP process, the producer is responsible for identifying and hiring qualified consultants to begin the on-farm evaluation process. At a minimum, an engineer and an agronomist begin the detailed process of farm visits, livestock and farmstead facility evaluations and cropland management evaluations. A NRCS-certified soil and water conservation planner will be required to review and approve the CNMP. A feed consultant and other specialists may be needed to address specific issues raised during the planning process. The consultants systematically work with the producer and each other to complete the plan, which includes a targeted list of improvable practices or changes that the producer agrees to pursue to achieve a higher level of environmentally sound agricultural management. 4 A Producer s Guide to Nutrient Management Plans in Wisconsin:

5 Upon plan completion, the producer delivers a copy of the CNMP to the county NRCS office where the plan is reviewed. If the plan is satisfactory, NRCS pays the producer for the cost-sharable pieces based on established flat rate payment schedules. The whole process, from sign-up through delivery of a final plan, should take less than one year. The prioritized list of improvements or changes identified within the CNMP becomes the framework that guides the producers' future applications for cost-sharing on practices such as manure storage, clean water diversions, proper well abandonment, etc. Furthermore, producers with an approved CNMP will likely qualify at a higher participation level for the voluntary USDA-Conservation Stewardship Program. Some producers may have situations where they want others (state or local agencies, private sector consultants or agribusiness) to have access to parts or all of their CNMP. Due to privacy concerns, the NRCS cannot share a producer s CNMP. The decision to share a CNMP is the choice and responsibility of the individual producer. Due to the size of the final CNMP document, it is valuable to have an electronic version (PDF) for delivering and sharing, as well as record keeping and future revisions. Finding qualified consultants Wisconsin NRCS requires that a CNMP Agronomic Planner and a CNMP Engineering Planner participate in the site assessment and the development of a CNMP. This requirement is based on Wisconsin state law, which recognizes that the planning, design, or evaluation of manure and wastewater handling practices constitutes the practice of engineering. The siting of new buildings, evaluation of existing buildings or structures, and assessment of stormwater management practices also require engineering expertise. Individuals who develop CNMPs in Wisconsin must have completed necessary training provided by the University of Wisconsin Extension Conservation Professional Development Program or other NRCS-recognized training sources. 3 The WI-NRCS website lists qualified private sector consultants that producers can contact for CNMP development. 7 Additional qualified CNMP planners can be found through the NRCS-TechReg Technical Service Provider Registry. 4 Consultants only learn about an operation and its business needs if the producer spends time sharing their vision for the farm. 5

6 A CNMP is a conservation/farm management assessment and planning tool that is unique to livestock operations. How much does a CNMP cost? A Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan can cost $5,000 or more, depending on farm size, cropland acres, animal numbers, facility and landscape challenges, expansion plans and current farm environmental condition. The CNMP planner and producer should meet prior to starting the process to discuss plan development cost, program deadlines and the producer's goals and expectations. For CNMPs with an approved cost-sharing contract, individual plan components are funded using flat rates or dollars per unit (acres, animals, etc.). Producers who are interested in signing up for CNMP cost sharing should talk to their local NRCS staff. Once the cost-share contract is in place, producers can seek and hire their technical assistance team. The interactive work between the producer and consultants occurs and the plan is developed and submitted to local NRCS. Once the plan is reviewed and meets the required specifications, NRCS pays the producer, and the producer is responsible for paying their individual consultants. The cost sharing is not intended to cover all the expenses associated with CNMP development, so producers should expect to pay some of the costs. CNMP development is an area where technical assistance by private-sector planners is being used by USDA to meet increasing Farm Bill workload. In the past, traditional soil and water conservation planning for voluntary purposes and program participation was a technical service provided by NRCS. Local NRCS staff may work with producers to update soil and water conservation plans, although the timing may not match with CNMP development deadlines. It should be noted that even traditional soil and water conservation planning is a service that qualified private sector consultants can provide producers. T 6 A Producer s Guide to Nutrient Management Plans in Wisconsin:

7 CNMPs IN WISCONSIN Does a CNMP Meet Wisconsin's Nutrient Management Requirements? The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), as well as local units of government, have specific nutrient management requirements that are based on Wisconsin administrative codes ATCP 50 and NR 151. Any time producers are required to develop a nutrient management plan in accordance with state or local rules, these plans need to be written by a qualified planner and based 9, 11 on the NRCS Nutrient Management 590 Standard. Producers who choose to develop a CNMP will have a nutrient management plan that is in compliance with the current NRCS 590 Standard, as this is a requirement of all CNMPs. There may be circumstances where state and/or local rules require producers to adopt practices that are more stringent than required under the 590 standard. This could be true when working on permits such as the Wisconsin Livestock Facility Siting (ATCP 51), Wisconsin Pollution Discharge Elimination Systems (WPDES) permits, and other Animal Feeding Opera tion permits under NR 243. Parts of the CNMP will help in applying for and developing these permits. However, additional work, data collection, farm evaluations, and documentation are required to fully meet these state and 10, 11 local rules. Summary CNMPs are conservation plans unique to livestock operations with planning standards and criteria defined and administered by the USDA-NRCS. They document current or planned practices and strategies by livestock producers to address natural resource concerns related to soil erosion, livestock manure handling, emergency response actions and disposal of organic by-products. The process of creating a CNMP teams agricultural producers with professional agricultural consultants to assess their current operations, develop plans for change and create a road map toward that change. A CNMP outlines a long-range strategy to improve production practices and maintain or enhance farm profitability, while leading the producer toward sound environmental stewardship. T The Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan provides a set of recommendations on how to improve your farm and reduce your impact on the environment. The long-term impact of the CNMP will positively affect your bottom line. It s an investment in the future. Karl Klessig, Saxon Homestead Farm, Cleveland, Wisconsin 7

8 A Producer s Guide to Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans in Wisconsin: Thanks to Pat Murphy, WI-NRCS, and Stephanie Schneider, WI-DATCP, for review and edits. Fact sheet DF1A0508 This fact sheet is included in a series that provides information collected from Wisconsin farms participating in the Discovery Farms program. For more information on Discovery Farms, contact the Discovery Farms office or see This material is based upon work supported (in part) by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Federal Administration Extension Project Conservation Technology Transfer Program, under Agreement No Graphic Design by Annika Sargent, UW-Extension Environmental Resource Center References 1. K. Klingberg. Getting the Most from Your Agricultural Consultant. University of Wisconsin - Discovery Farms Program. March 26, Popple, T. and K. Klingberg. A Wisconsin Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan Development Protocol. University of Wisconsin Discovery Farms Program. April 1, yfarms.org/nutrient/cnmpr epor t.pdf 3. University of Wisconsin-Extension Conservation Training. CNMP Training Wisconsin. University of Wisconsin Extension. March 26, egionalwaterquality/conser vationtr aining/cnmpwi.cfm 4. USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service. TechReg Technical Service Provider Registry. USDA-NRCS. March 26, eg.usda.gov 5. USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, WI. Comprehensive Nutrient Plan. USDA-NRCS WI. March 26, USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, WI. Comprehensive Nutrient Planning (CNMP). USDA-NRCS WI. March 26, USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, WI. NRCS Certified Planners. USDA-NRCS WI. March 26, USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service, WI. Why Farmers are Choosing Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans (CNMPs). USDA-NRCS WI. March 26, f tp://f tp-fc.sc.egov.usda.gov/wi/cnmp/whycnmp.pdf 9. WI Dept. Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. Nutrient Management Planning. WI-DATCP. April 1, nutrient-mngmt/planning.jsp 10. WI Dept. Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. Siting Livestock Operations. WI-DATCP. April 1, siting/siting.jsp 11. WI Dept. Natural Resources. Agricultural Runoff Management. WI-DNR. April 1, UW-Discovery Farms Office, PO Box 429, Pigeon Falls, WI 54760, This publication is available from the UW-Discovery Farms office ( ), and from county UW-Extension offices and Cooperative Extension Publications ( ). Copies may also be printed from A Producer's Guide to Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plans in Wisconsin: Benefits and Challenges of CNMP UW-Extension publication number GWQ by the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System. University of Wisconsin Extension is an EEO/Affirmative Action employer and provides equal opportunities in employment and programming, including Title IX and ADA requirements. This material is based upon work supported (in part) by the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Federal Administration Extension Project Conservation Technology Transfer Program, under Agreement No