AgQuest has been successfully aiding dairies and farmers develop sound and economical fertilization and irrigation strategies for over 20 years. Along with our strategic partners, AgQuest has helped improve yields, reduce fertilizer cost, and prepare for regulatory requirements by:
| Establishing base-line soil and water analysis |
| Determining liquid and solid manure content |
| Monitoring crop development and nutrition to optimize manure use |
| Monitoring crop irrigation needs for proper timing for application |
| Maintaining cropping, fertilization, and irrigation records. |
Meet governmental requirements and/or avoid regulatory action
With the ever-increasing scrutiny on dairies and other Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO's) by federal, state, regional, and county regulatory agencies and the threat of litigation from environmental organizations, it is more important than ever for dairy operations to document manure and crop information and to develop sound liquid and dry manure management plans and crop nutrient management plans. With AgQuest's unique blend of in-house professionally certified staff and strategic partners, we are able to offer the highest quality consulting to meet regulatory needs, without unnecessary costs.
AgQuest can help dairies and other CAFO's develop the following documents:
AgQuest can also aid dairies in developing additional regulatory documents, such as: Report of Waste Discharge (ROWD), Waste Discharge Requirements (WDR), and National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits.
More Information
For More Information concerning AgQuest's Dairy Program contact Brook Gale at (559) 75-8095 or e-mail at
consult@calagquest.comGetting the Most out of Your Liquid & Solid Manures
Lagoon water and manure are valuable and useful products from dairies. The key is to transfer them from the dairy operation and use them in productive ways for agricultural crops. This requires knowledge of
nutrients contained in the manures, crop nutrient needs & timing of uptake, irrigation management, and
irrigation systems.
AgQuest has specialized in crop fertility management and irrigation scheduling for over 20 years. Using the latest university guidelines, and our own experience, AgQuest has been interpreting soil & tissue analysis, and developing irrigation regimes for a wide range of system configuration, soil
textures, and water table conditions.
Waste Management Plans and Technical Reports
A Waste Management Plan (WMP) is often requested by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board (CRWQB) as a means of assessing a CAFO's risk potential for surface and groundwater contamination. These plans typically include detailed background information on the facilities:
| Location, acreage, lay-out, and herd size |
| Predicted output of wastewater and manures |
| Waste water retention pond capacity and flood prevention measures |
| Description of planned cropping patterns and measures taken to prevent
over-application of dairy nutrients to lands |
The CRWQB often require that a Technical Report accompany the WMP. This report's objective is to provide technical data to support the WMP and typically contains:
| General soil conditions of the corrals and fields |
| Provide detailed soil reports of pond(s); |
| Proof that the ponds have sufficient capacity |
| Provide the current and highest anticipated groundwater levels and |
| Proof that the confined animal area is protected against inundation by a 100 year flood event |
The RWQCB requires that many components of the WMP and Technical Report be prepared by certified engineers or other qualified persons and chemical analyses be performed by Environmental Laboratory Accreditation Program (ELAP) certified lab. For specific details on requirements, contact your local RWQCB or AgQuest.
Crop Nutrient Management "Strategies"The Crop Nutrient Management "Stategies" are very similar to the Waste Management Plans. However, AgQuest expands on the management of lagoon water and solid manure applications so that manure wastes are utilized in the most useful but cost effective ways. This is done by:
| Determining the liquid and solid outputs from a dairy operation via lab analysis and metering |
| Determine the acreage and crops available to utilize manures |
| Establish base-line condition of fields through soil analysis |
| Develop a plan which balances the dairy outputs with the potential uses |
| Verify crops specific seasonal nutrient needs from tissue analysis |
| Identify measures taken to prevent over-application of dairy nutrients to lands, such as, distribution infrastructure modification needs, handling solid manure, and applying offsite. |
Monitoring ProgramThe periodic Monitoring Program is tailored to each individual CAFO needs, but can be separated into four categories. Through a regular monitoring program of dairy operations and of the croplands, the water and nutrient management plan can be adjusted.
Dairy Manure Wastes
Liquid and solid outputs from dairies are dynamic in that they can change during the year or even during an irrigation application. Monitoring of dairy operations normally includes testing the nutrient content of the lagoon waters and of the manures. A second part of dairy monitoring is periodically measuring the quantities water and manure being generated.
Crop Land Conditions
The water and nutrient needs of crops also vary during the growing season. Monitoring of
croplands involves analyzing soils once or twice for general soil chemistry in the top foot and more specifically for nitrates and salinities in the sub soils. Plant tissue samples are taken at key stages of the cropping season to verify the current nutrient status.
Groundwater Monitoring
Most of the governmental regulations are aimed at avoiding or minimizing groundwater contamination. If the "first encountered water" level is at or less than 50 feet from the surface or if wells are already contaminated, monitoring wells will be required. For the RWQCB, these monitoring
programs must be prepared in association of either a Registred Civil Engineer or geologist. AgQuest and our strategic partners can help develop a monitoring program to meet regulartory requirements.
To aid in irrigation management, AgQuest can install and monitor
shallow groundwater observation wells. These observation wells are generally used to identify shallow water table areas that might interfere with irrigation practices.
Irrigation Timing
Another very important part of maximizing manure utilization without contaminating groundwater, is timing and application of irrigation water. AgQuest can provide irrigation scheduling to best suit crop needs while minimizing deep percolation or run-off of nutrients.
More Information
For more information concerning AgQuest's Dairy Program contact Brook Gale at: (559) 275-8095 or e-mail at
consult@calagquest.com
