Agricultural Services A division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER WHO CAN HELP? Environmental Management in Swine Production Casselton, ND January 12, 2007
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHERWHO CAN HELP?
Environmental Management in Swine ProductionCasselton, ND
January 12, 2007
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
EnvironmentalConsultants
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Evolution of Consultants
•Past 30 years• Industrial/Hazardous Waste
• SuperFund• Groundwater Remediation• Due diligence
– Phase I & II• Solid Waste Management
– Land fills• Storage Tank Management• Reclamation
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Evolution of Consultants
– Work force•Engineers
– Environmental– Civil– Mechanical
•Geologists•Hydrologists•Environmental Scientists
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
What Happened?
Demand Shift
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Why?
40 % of U. S. waterways still do not meet water quality goals
Runoff from city streets and agriculturalactivities are largely blamed
New Regulations
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Leading Sources of Water Quality Impairment
Rank Rivers Lakes Estuaries
1 Agriculture Agriculture Municipal Point Sources
2 Municipal Urban Runoff Urban RunoffPoint Sources & Storm Sewers & Storm Sewers
3 Urban Runoff & Hydrologic/Habitat AgricultureStorm Sewers Modification
4 Resource Municipal IndustrialExtraction Point Sources Point Sources
Source: EPA National Water Quality Inventory Report to Congress 1993
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Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Evolution of Consultants
In the past agricultural consultants were...
Production BasedNutritionist
Crop ConsultantAccountant
Marketing Specialist
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Evolution of Consultants
Now consultants are...Production & Environmentally Based
NutritionistCrop Consultant
AccountantMarketing Specialist
Environmental Consultants/Managers
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Evolution of Consultants
• Engineering• Livestock waste containment• Facility Designs• Manure and Wastewater Treatment
Alternatives
• Management• Nutrient Management Plans/CNMPs• Air and Odor Management• Environmental Assessments• Conservation Plans
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Evolution of Consultants
• Agricultural Engineering– Natural Transition
•Geotechnical•Hydrological
– Challenges•Functionality•Appropriateness
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Evolution of Consultants
• Agricultural Management– New Training Required
– Application of principles used in production agriculture
– Shared resources•Ex. Water Quality
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Evolution of Consultants
• Work Force– Agricultural Engineers– Agronomists– Animal Scientists– Water Quality SpecialistsPLUS– Hydrologists– Geologists– Etc.
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Who are the Clients?
PRODUCERS!
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Who are the Clients?
• NRCS– EQIP Contracts– A &E
• Individuals• Lawyers• Utility Districts• Large Corporations
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Nature of the Business
• Permit applications– New or existing facilities– Local, State or Federal– Organic certification
• Nutrient Management Plans– NRCS required or part of permit
application
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Nutrient Management Plans
• Includes site assessment– Production, Collection, Storage, Transfer,
Treatment, Utilization of manure and wastewater
• Mapping– Production Unit– Fields– Sensitive areas
• Surface water, wells
• Recommendations
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Nature of the Business
• Education– Employee training
• Lobbying– Commenting on proposed regulations– Cooperation with industry groups
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Nature of the Business
• Litigation Support– Direct consultation with lawyers
– DNA tracking of contaminants
– Quality assurance/validation
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Nature of the Business
• Facility Assessment, Design, Etc.– On-site assessments– Geo-technical investigation, design and
construction• Alternative Use
– Anaerobic Digester– Wind Energy
• Due Diligence
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Facility Assessment, Design, Etc.
• Assessment of existing system– Facility– Manure Management System
• Followed by...– Calculations & schematics– Geo-technical investigation– Design approval– Construction over sight – Certification
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Alternative Use
• Anaerobic Digesters– Design Support
• Geo-technical investigation
– Technical assistance• Results of co-digestion on effluent and potential
impacts from land application
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Due Diligence
• Site assessments for compliance with existing regulations or management plans– For Example:
•Housing density•Compost facility•Well inspection•Fuel storage assessment
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Ongoing Needs...
• Data Management & Record Keeping
• Environmental Managers
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
What is e:Monitor™?
• CRA software program designed for field data collection on mobile computers.
• Data stored in centralized database
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Data Collection
• Data collected on hand-held units is downloaded daily onto main system
• Supervisor reviews and accepts data before it is saved onto main server
• Daily data can be printed out to maintain a hard copy
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Data Entry
• Forms developed for each data set being collected
• Limits established for each parameter that flags “out of range”data
• 3 months of historical data are available to review by user in field
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
• Soil, wastewater, manure and plant analysis• Application records for manure• Manure transfer records• Emergency spill reporting• Wastewater storage levels• Cropping information• Operations and Maintenance• Inspections
Works for any type of data collection!
Sample Applications
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Example: Operations & Maintenance
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Data Management• Once data is collected, approved, and
transferred, it can be accessed by Site personnel.
• Data is available from anywhere with an Internet connection as soon as it is synchronized
• Site information includes topographical drawings, aerial photographs, field maps
• Historical data can be added to populate database
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
FeaturesMapping Digital Photos
GPS
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
FeaturesHistory and Graphing
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Reports and Tables
Spreadsheet and GIS Export
Data View Window
Automated ReportGeneration
Desktop
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Desktop• Allows all
project staff to examine field data
• Supports custom reporting
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Environmental Managers
Why would I need one of those?I bet they cost money!!
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Environmental Managers
• With or without the use of data management tools, an Environmental Manager can help with:
– Quarterly reports– Internal audits– Annual reports– Awareness of new regulations
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Environmental Managers
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Summary
Consultants can provide a multitude of services...and the
list keeps growing!!
How do you find a good consultant?
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
Finding a Good Consultant
• Check resumes of “Team”– Education– Experience
• Contact References• Study Cost Schedule
– Understand contract
• Establish a clear understanding of Scope of Work
Agricultural ServicesA division of Conestoga-Rovers and Associates
QUESTIONS?