As farmers begin to turn their attention towards the winter ahead, now is the time to assess the slurry storage in place on the farm and if it is adequate to carry you over the winter period. As we have seen over the past 12 months, weather conditions can have a major effect on how much slurry storage is required. The difficult conditions in spring meant that the majority of farmers could generally not get out as early as they would traditionally have with slurry. Nitrates regulations govern the amount of slurry storage required on every farm and are dependent on where in the country your farm is located (Figure 1).
As farmers begin to turn their attention towards the winter ahead, now is the time to assess the slurry storage in place on the farm and if it is adequate to carry you over the winter period. As we have seen over the past 12 months, weather conditions can have a major effect on how much slurry storage is required. The difficult conditions in spring meant that the majority of farmers could generally not get out as early as they would traditionally have with slurry.
Nitrates regulations govern the amount of slurry storage required on every farm and are dependent on where in the country your farm is located (Figure 1).
This can vary from as low as 16 weeks in zone A, up to 22 weeks in some areas of zone C. However, as the weather becomes more unpredictable, farmers may need to factor in a couple of weeks of storage as a buffer.
Where 20% or more of your holding lies within one or more counties with a higher storage requirement, you must follow the rules that apply to that zone where the greater storage capacity is required.
For sheep, farmers are required to have six weeks of storage for manure.
One benefit for farmers this year is that they have two weeks extra to spread slurry this autumn. The closed period for slurry spreading has been pushed back from 15 October to 31 October.
However, all land spreading activity is conditional on weather and ground conditions being suitable. Land spreading is still not permitted outside of the closed period if there is a risk that the nutrients might run off into surface water and groundwater.
Requirements
The volume of slurry produced will vary depending on the age of the livestock. The Department of Agriculture has a helpsheet which farmers can use to calculate the storage that they require. Table 1 can be filled in to calculate the amount of storage that you require for livestock over the winter period. Not only is it important to know how much slurry storage is required from a practical point of view but it is also important in relation to a potential Targeted Agricultural Modernisation Scheme (TAMS) application.
If an applicant does not comply with the nitrates regulations and does not have sufficient storage for animal excreta, soiled water and other farmyard manure they will not be eligible for TAMS grant aid.
One option for farmers in this situation would be to construct the tank of the shed without any grant support and make a TAMS application for the remainder of the project. The tank will have to be certified by a structural engineer before the TAMS application is made for the remainder of the project, for it to be accepted.
Soiled water
When it comes to soiled water, you are required to have the equivalent storage for at least 10 days at any time of the year. However, for soiled water facilities constructed on or after 1 January 2015, you must have enough storage for at least 15 days of soiled water. There is no prohibited spreading period for soiled water. However, from a practical point of view if you are constructing a new tank it would be wise to go for a longer period of storage as ground conditions may mean that you can’t get out on land at certain times of the year.
Soiled water is not just washings from the parlour but also includes water from concreted areas, hard standing areas and holding areas for livestock. Soiled water is water which has been contaminated with livestock faeces, urine or silage effluent, chemical fertilisers and washings from vegetables or mushrooms.
Table 2 can be used to calculate the volume of soiled water that will be produced from an uncovered tank or from a concrete area draining into a tank. This soiled water must be taken into account when calculating total slurry and soiled water capacity needed for the farm.
If soiled water is stored together with slurry then as far as the regulations are concerned, it is slurry and must comply with the same rules as slurry. In all cases, farmers should do as much as possible to minimise soiled water produced on the farm. Dairy farmers in particular should be conscious of reducing the time that cows spend walking on uncovered concrete when designing their yard. This will not only reduce soiled water produced but also labour requirements when it comes to cleaning.
The final area that must be considered when calculating storage requirement is the capacity required in tanks for effluent from ensiled forage. The most common option for farmers will be to divert the channels from the silage slab to an existing slatted tank. For grass or arable silage 21m3 of storage is required for 100 tonnes, while this drops to 10m3 for 100 tonnes of maize.
Inspections
In relation to 2016 nitrates breaches following cross-compliance inspection, 38% of breaches were due to the inadequate collection of livestock manure while 19% were due to the failure to minimise soiled water on the farmyard. Penalties of 1%, 3% or 5% may be applied to your BPS payment, depending on the nature of the breach, while more serious breaches may incur a higher sanction. If the same infringement occurs more than once within 36 months, the penalty may be trebled.
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: