MADISON - Farmers, managers, consultants and others who own or work with large-scale livestock and poultry operations can learn at free workshops in June and July how they may be affected by recent changes to state rules governing manure management by farms required to get water quality protection permits.
"These workshops are meant to provide livestock operators and the people they work with an understanding of the permit process and the expected level of performance for permitted operations under these rule changes," says Gordon Stevenson, Department of Natural Resources Runoff Management section chief. "Ultimately, the goal is to allow those operations that need a permit to obtain one as efficiently as possible while protecting the environment."
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, or CAFOs, those operations with 1,000 animal units or the equivalent of 700 milking cows, 1000 beef cattle, 2500 mature pigs, or 55,000 turkeys, are required to obtain a water quality protection permit from the Department of Natural Resources. Changes effective in May to rules governing manure management by these large-scale farms, found in Chapter NR 243 of the Wisconsin Administrative Code, aim to make state rules consistent with federal ones and to decrease, in particular, winter manure runoff that has contaminated wells, killed fish and polluted streams in past years.
A series of four "Current Permittee Workshops" will focus on explaining the changes for operations that already have a DNR water quality protection permit. A second series of "Expansion Workshops" will focus on those operators that are not currently permitted but are considering expanding to the 1,000 animal unit threshold within the next five years.
If you are unsure or want to know if your size of operation will need a DNR permit, visit http://dnr.wi.gov/runoff/ag/cafo.htm and complete the AU Calculation form.
Livestock operators who are interested in attending any of the workshops should RSVP at least 10 days before the workshop they plan to attend by contacting Laura Lueders by phone (608) 261-4385 or by e-mail at Laura.Lueders@wisconsin.gov.
Attendees will need to provide their name and telephone number, their operation's name, and the name(s) and title(s) of each additional person connected with the WPDES operation who will be attending. Also indicate which workshop you wish to attend. If you need directions to the workshop location, provide an e-mail or fax number to which the information can be sent.
Lunch is included as part of the workshops and each of sessions will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the following locations:
| Current Permittee Workshops | |
| June 20 | UWEX and Jefferson County Offices (864 Collins Road, Jefferson) |
| July 10 | Richland Center High School (23200 Hornet High Dr, Richland Center) |
| July 18 | Town of Washington, Town Hall (5750 Old Town Hall Road, Eau Claire) |
| July 24 | Green Bay UWEX Ag Service Center (1150 Bellevue St, Green Bay) |
| Expansion Workshops | |
| June 29 | Fitchburg Community Center (5510 E. Lacy Road, Fitchburg) |
| July 17 | Town of Washington, Town Hall (5750 Old Town Hall Road, Eau Claire) |
| July 19 | Green Bay UWEX Ag Service Center (1150 Bellevue St., Green Bay) |