manure management
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Manure Management
Is manure management an issue for equine facilities?
There are about 325,000 horses in Ontario
o Almost as many horses as dairy cattle
Average of 6 horses per farm (53,000 farms)
Are there any legislation or regulations concerning manure
management in Ontario?
Manure is an environmental concern because of…
o Nitrogen
o Phosphorus
o Pathogens
o Odour
Nitrogen
An important nutrient for plants and animals
Major concern regarding with groundwater contamination (nitrates)
o Causes methemoglobinemia (blue-baby syndrome)
Nitrogen cycle
Nitrogen available from manure
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Phosphorus
Also an important nutrient for plants and animals
Major concern regarding with surface water contamination
o Causes eutrophication (excessive buildup of nutrients in
water)
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How much manure does a horse produce?
A 454kg (1000lb) horse produces…
o 0.04m3 /day (solid manure and bedding)
o 14.7m3 /year (solid manure and bedding) This manure has the following properties…
o Dry matter: 23-63% (35% average)
o % Nitrogen: 0.33-0.9% (0.5% average)
o % Phosphorus: 0.05-0.4% (0.15% average)
o % Potassium: 0.1-1% (0.4% average)
Nutrient Units
What is a Nutrient Unit (NU)?
o A Nutrient Unit (NU) is a measure of how much nitrogen and
phosphate is contained in manure
43kg of nitrogen
55kg of phosphate
o For horses:
Large frame 0.7 animals/NU
Medium frame 1 animal/NU
Small frame 2 animals/NU
o Examples
8 large frame horses 8 ÷ 0.7 = 11.4 NU
8 small frame horses 8÷ 2 = 4 NU
Nutrient Management Act
The Nutrient Management Act, 2002:
o Legislates rules and regulations with regards to manure
handling and storage
o It does effect equine facilities
o You have >300 NU (very rare for horse facilities)
Require a Nutrient Management Plan (NMP)
o You have > 5 NU (many farms) and…
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Apply for a building permit for livestock housing (new or
expanded housing) or manure storage
Requires a Nutrient Management Strategy (NMS)
o Siting restrictions for storages:
15m (50ft) away from any field tile drains 15m (50ft) away from any drilled well
100m (328ft) away from a municipal well
30m (100ft) away from any other wells
50m (164ft) flow path away from surface waters or tile
inlets (such as catch-basins)
150m (492ft) if the manure is 30-50% dry matter
Bedding
Bedding should be used in horse facilities
o Horse comfort
o Liquid absorption
Keeps area dry
Reduces odour
o Use bedding materials that are dust free
o Manure and bedding should be removed daily
Manure Handling
Handled as a solid (due to low moisture content)
Most facilities use wheelbarrows to transport manure from the stall
to the storage
o Labour intensive
o Storages tend to be shallow and taking up a large area
Prefer to stack higher
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Storage
Need to have storage for 240 days (for NMA)
Storages should contain runoff or send runoff to a suitable
containment systemo However, horse manure (plus bedding) tends to have little
runoff compared to other livestock waste
Options for storage…
o Walls or no walls
o Type of flooring
o Roof or no roof
Walls
Help contain the manure, uses less space
Floors
Concrete floors make it easier to load and unload manure
Farms regulated by the NMA must use one of the following:
o Concrete floor
o Earth floor, 0.5m of hydraulically secure soil
o Earth floor, 0.5m of hydraulically soil
TYPE C (typically clay loam) or D (typically clay) if <300
NU
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Siting Manure Storage
Need to perform Minimum Distance Separation (MDS II)
calculations
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o Determines the minimum distance that the new storage must
be from any existing neighbor dwellings, lot lines (side and
rear), roads
o Triggered when you apply for a building permit
Other municipal setbackso Check with municipality for additional regulations
Sizing Manure Storage
This must be done as part of a Nutrient Management Strategy
(NMS)
Can be done with MSTOR
o A software tool that is part of the NMAN software
Land Application of Manure
Should be applied to meet crop requirements
o Meet N requirements
o Meet P requirements
Use NMAN to calculate requirements
Should be immediately incorporated into the soil if possible
o Reduces N volatilization
Composting
Composting is a viable option for horse manure
What is composting?
o The biological decomposition of organic materials by
microorganisms
Controlled, aerobic conditions
Creates a stable, humus-like material called compost
o Common feedstock materials from agriculture operations
are…
Livestock manures and bedding
Other residual plant materials
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Ideal range for C:N 25:1 to 30:1
Horse manure and bedding 12:1 to 63:1 (average of 30:1)
There are numerous composting systems:
o Windrow/pile composting – turning
o Windrow/pile composting – active aeration
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o Windrow/pile composting – passive aeration
o Windrow/pile composting – static pile
o In-vessel composting
o Vermicomposting
Windrow/Pile Composting – Turning
Windrow/Pile Composting – Active Aeration
Windrow/Pile Composting – Passive Aeration
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In-Vessel Composting