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The Huron Expositor, 1997-09-10, Page 21114118 NUNON OtPOSITOIb flee•essiber 141,1507 MODERN MANURE MANAGEMENT - A liquid manure application seminar in abundant sunshine at the farm of John Arts in McKitbp'Township on Friday was welt attended by many area pork producers and other farmers, who are under, much public scrutiny lately because bacteria from sewage is a problem in this area of the Lake Huron watershed. The. -nuts and bolts' seminar, far more than an image -enhancing exercise, was put on by the Huron Stewardship Council. Systems modified to prevent problems CONTINUED from page 1 Analysis, reinforced much of what Hilborn had to say. Both stressed soil manage- ment and, that farm equip- ment manufacturers are on the cutting edge of technolo- gy, with today's manure spreaders. Manufacturers are working together with pro- ducers and the farming indus- try to solve problems. Nutrient management plans are a "basic, logical thing we do," Roberts said. The agronomist demon- strated how manure maps are made with the help of global positioning systems, which when used in conjunction with high-tech spreaders allow farmers to pinpoint application to a field's requirements, varying with the land's chemical needs and the crop to be grown, among many factors. HIGHLY TECHNICAL Computers allow more pre- cision," Roberts said. "GPS technology gives the ability to get back to a spot." With these cutting edge sys- tems and equipment, the problems are basically calcu- lations. Both main speakers gave examples of how more con- ventional systems are now being modified to prevent particular problems with manure management. Unpleasant odours, for instance, are lessened by manure being applied closer to the ground. In a similar vein, excess runoff that might' lead to more manure getting into the watershed, can be controlled and cut down by, for instance, cultivation before application, or appli- cation at very specific times. Much of both main speak- ers' presentations were simi- larly highly technical. The larger the volume of manure from an operation, the larger the equipment that is required to handle it and the more manpower required to control it, Hilborn com- mented. Getting manure from point A to point B, from beast to barn to land, using conven- tional trucks and storage tanks, subject to varying municipal rules, gets more complicated the larger the operation, the OMAFRA waste specialist said. Some larger operations elsewhere are going to pipelines these days. 'UGLY DUCKLINGS' Representatives from equipment manufacturers , Husky and Nuhn Industries, then took to the Arts fields at Lot 21, Conc. 4 to demon- strate various particulars of what the speakers were talk- ing about. "It's all starting to come together," Hilborn said earli- er. "This is the message we have to get out there." In short, if pig farmers are being painted in the media these days as an unconcerned lot bent simply on bigger profits - the environment be dammed, anyone in atten- dance at Friday's workshop in McKillop could readily come to the conclusion that this is not the case. Pig farm- ers are as concerned with the land and Lake Huron as any- body else. "We are an ugly duckling and what we do is not that pretty," as one of the after- noon's equipment represen- tatives summed up terser. Committee established to deal with manure A Perth County agriculture review committee has been established. Earlier this year, Perth County Council took steps to establish it at the County level for the purpose of deal- ing with complaints concern- ing manure management issues and practices associat- ed with livestock and poultry operations. The committee was established in response to the work of the county's agricultural committee, which was established by county council in 1995 for the purpose of reviewing and discussing issues relating to livestock and poultry opera- tions, particularly manure management. As a part of its work, the agricultural com- mittee made a submission to the province concerning Ontario's agricultural code of practice and certificate of compliance program. Some of the recommendations in the committee's submission were that all new livestock and poultry operations and significant expansions of existing livestock and poultry operations be required to obtain a certificate of compli- ance, that nutrient manage- ment plans be included as a certificate requirement; and that a review committee be established at the county level for the purpose of deal- ing with concerns or com- plaints regarding manure management issues. The Perth County agricul- tural review committee has been established in response to the latter of these recom- mendations. It consists of 12 members from the farm com- munity whose names were put forward by various farm/commodity groups (i.e. cattlemen's association, dairy producers committee, pork producers, egg producers marketing board, chicken producers marketing board, Perth Federation of Agriculture, and the Perth County Christian Farmers). Chair of the agricultural review committee is Paul Bald, the vice -chair is Terry Poole. Where a person has a com- plaint concerning a manure Best participation locally in CURB program CONTINUED from page 1 infections. There is an incu- bation period in humans and symptoms can appear days after exposure; • Bacteria dies in sunlight, however, sediment reduces its penetration and protects the bacteria; • Several sources cause the problem and solutions must come from several sources. PROBLEM STUDIED Prout says it has not been determined how applicable international water quality studies and statistics, recently brought to the attention of Huron County residents, are to the Lake Huron watershed. On the other hand, particu- larly since the early 1980s, local studies and improve- ment programs funded by federal, provincial and municipal governments "have been recognized throughout North America and internationally." "These studies have traced the movement of bacteria through a watercourse and determined how far the bac- teria can travel, how long it takes to travel and the life span of the bacteria in the water column and in the watercourse sediments," the ABCA press release states. "Studies to determine the source of bacteria (human or animal) were in the initial stages before funding was eliminated. Prout laments the demise of the Ontario government's "highly successful" clean up rural beaches program in 1995, "although there was still a demand for grants." GRANTS GONE "More landowners in the Maitland Valley and Ausable Bayfield watersheds volun- tarily participated in this pro- gram than anywhere else in Ontario," he says. The program, generally referred to by its acronym CURB, provided grants for landowners to eliminate sur- face water pollution by repairing faulty septic sys- tems, fencing livestock from watercourses, eliminating barnyard runoff, and improv- ing manure storage "to elim- inate the need for spreading at inappropriate times." "For well more than a decade, watercourses throughout the watersheds and along Lake Huron have been sampled for E. coli bac- teria, present in animal and human waste," Prout states. He adds that both of Huron. County's conservation authorities "have had the mandate of conserving the area's surface water resources" since the 19401. management issue involving a livestock or poultry opera- tion in the county , the com- plaint should be submitted to the clerk of the local munici- pality in which the livestock or poultry operation is locat- ed. In order to be considered by the agricultural review committee a complaint must be in writing and it must be signed by the complainant. The local municipal clerk will then forward the com- plaint to the committee and members will'make arrange- ments to meet on-site with the farm owner/operator of the livestock or poultry oper- ation in question to view the operation, consider and assess the complaint, and to discuss with the farm owner/operator the options available to address or reme- dy the concerns. All com- plaints involving the pollu- tion of watercourses will be forwarded directly ,to the Ministry of Environment and Energy for review and action and will not be dealt with by the agricultural review com- mittee. Anyone wishing additional information concerning the Perth County agricultural review committee or the complaint procedure should contact their local municipal clerk or the County of Perth Planning and Development Office at the County Court House in Stratford (tel. no. (519) 273-3511). Fi rewoo Get R Now & Have It Dry for Next Season! Spotted «_ 1) Pap 1 "Church Church" - M. Henderson 2) Page I - "moan mean" - D. McQuaid September 3 Expositor Exposed! McLaughlin Chev-Olds Ltd. 13 !Mit 111. $Mlaht. 57.1110 •SaMoa •ealsctlonrsaitgs *Satisfaction tossing •Complete BODY SHOP $e*s u -One day there'll be an empty chair... Q. If I make my funeral arrangements now, will I have any immediate financial commitments? A. 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