Transcript www.tceq.state.tx.us

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
• [email protected]
– Steel Maloney (208) 233-5443
• [email protected]