Animal Agriculture and Water Resources in Texas

Ned Meister Director of Commodity and

Regulatory Activities Texas Farm Bureau

Steel Maloney Principal Hydrologist

Cascade Earth Sciences

Overview of the Issue

• Urbanization of rural areas has increased contact with agricultural operations

• Increasing demands on water resources requires management to protect water quality

• Concerns over water quality impacts from animal agriculture (dairies) need to be addressed in Texas

Overview of the Issue

• Dairy industry is a major economic engine– Employment

– Local turnover of dollars– Dairy service companies– Regional agriculture

• Need a solution to maintain a healthy dairy industry

• Municipal water needs– Increasing population base– Water treatment cost– Public concern about water quality

Role of Texas Farm Bureau

• General Farm Organization that promotes agriculture based on policy determined by members through a grass roots process– Organization’s corporate office in Waco,

TX– Interest in water quality same as

municipal users– Seek economically viable solutions to

reduce agricultural impact– Facilitate efforts among basin interests

TFB View of the Issue

• Water quality is important to agriculture and to municipal interests

• A viable dairy industry is important for the economic well being of other Central Texas agriculture

• Technology is available to address dairy waste management

TFB View of the Solution

• TFB Initiated Model Dairy Waste Project

– Grant from Philip Morris Co.

– Selected Dairy Cooperator– Contracted with Cascade Earth Sciences to design and

construct project– Invited participation by the Texas Commission on

Environmental Quality– Ask for and received support from community

Why are there Concerns

• Animal Agriculture concentrates production in a restricted area

• Produced wastes that exceed the carrying capacity of production area

• Without on-site treatment or expanded area to manage produced wastes, impacts to water quality can occur

What are the Potential WQ Impacts• Soil erosion• Storm water runoff with elevated

levels of nutrients• Leached nutrients to groundwater• Direct surface water discharge

Proven Watershed Solutions Exist

• Understanding and utilizing the natural buffering ability of soil and vegetation

• Public policy development based on science, not fears and politics alone

Utilizing Mother Nature to Protect WQ• Land application is the most common

and proven method for animal waste management

• Utilizes the natural treatment and buffering abilities of soil and vegetation

• Is as old as mother nature with thousands of existing systems

Why On-Site Waste Management Makes Sense

• Wastewater reuse reduces fresh water demands

• Reuse of nutrients conserves resources and reduces costs

• It is the “green solution”• Conserves power and fuel

How Land Application Works

If Land Application is So Great Why Are There WQ Problems?

• Soil and vegetation have a limited recycling capacity

• Few systems match site recycling capacity to application rates

• “Process looks so simple I do not need a professional”

Model Dairy Waste Project

• Bosque watershed has phosphorous WQ impacts

• Dairy waste is a potential source of phosphorous

• TFB has organized an effort to improve dairy waste management in Texas

• CES joined the effort and brings 25 years of land based waste management experience

Objective

• Develop waste management system capable of:– Reducing the majority of phosphorous in

wastewater– Reducing odors from lagoons– Generating by-products for use by

operator and sale to third parties– Being economically viable for dairy

Land Limiting Constituent (LLC)• Determining the site recycling

capacity (soil and vegetation) for various constituents of concerns:– Phosphorous– Nitrogen– Hydraulics– Salts– Other

Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)

• Determining the maximum daily load a surface water body can carry without water quality impact

• The TMDL for the Bosque Watershed has determined that phosphorous is most limiting

Balanced Solution

• Animal Ag (Dairy) = Produced Waste• Treatment System Capacity (TSC) =

– Produced waste - LLC – TMDL

• Example– (TSC) 250 lbs = 1000 lbs – 750 lbs – 0 lbs

Approach to Solution

• Determine site recycling capacity (LLC) • Utilize existing infrastructure as much

as possible• Maximize on-site management of

waste• Design system that produces by-

products that are useable on and off site

System Description

• Remove larger solids for composting• Digest wastewater in a manner that

produces phosphorous enriched biosolids and methane

• Recycle treated water back to barns for flushing

• Land apply excess water below LLC

By-product Usage

• Compost – Mixed with peanut hulls “fiber” and used for cow bedding, land application and off-site sale

• Methane – Used for power generation and/or

on-site heating• Biosolids – Land applied on-site below

LLC or composted for off-site sale

System Overview

System Overview

System Overview

System Overview

System Economics

• Goal is to not increase existing waste management cost

• Cash flow from by-products will off set new infrastructure cost

• New system will be less labor intensive

• Grant funds will be primarily used for monitoring and educational purposes

Why Solution Makes Political, Agricultural and Economic Sense

• Partnership with TFB, TCEQ, and Operator to demonstrate solution

• Methods are proven in other applications• Approach allows operator to manage their

own facility and maximize use of by-products• By-products produced have value (power)• Provides an opportunity for the development

of a new service industry to manage systems

Questions?

• For more information about the Model Dairy Waste Project Contact:– Ned Meister (254) 751-2457

• nmeister@txfb.org

– Steel Maloney (208) 233-5443• steelm@Cascade-Earth.com