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The Northern Virginia Soil and Water
Conservation District, which is a non-regulatory agency, can
assist you in preparing and implementing your Soil and Water
Quality Conservation Plan. Contact
NVSWCD's agricultural water quality specialist for assistance
or call 703-324-1460.
Water quality concerns everyone. No
matter where you live or what kind of work you do, clean water
is vital to sustain life. By implementing practical and economical
management techniques, suburban stable operators can reduce
nonpoint source (NPS) pollution that threatens the quality of
water in our ponds, streams, lakes, and rivers. Furthermore,
stable operators can save money and create a more aesthetically
pleasing environment.
NPS pollution refers to contaminants
that do not come from a definite point such as an industrial
pipe or a sewage treatment plant. Rather, NPS pollution is the
result of sediment, nutrients, bacteria, and organic debris
that are washed into streams and rivers primarily by storm water
and snow-melt runoff over land surfaces. NPS pollution is
responsible for more than 50 percent of the pollution in our
nation's surface and ground waters. Reducing NPS pollution is
vital to protecting invaluable natural resources such as those
found in our neighborhoods and the Chesapeake Bay.
 Agricultural
Best Management Practices (BMPs) are highly recommended for
"backyard" or "small-lot" horse operations.
BMPs provide more efficient use of the limited space available.
These management techniques provide prolonged periods of pasture
for grazing, prevent erosion, and maintain good water quality.
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Select the best location for barns,
fields, manure storage containers or compost bins, watering
systems, and fencing. If the site is not well planned, it
becomes more difficult to prevent diseases, control pests, and
prevent pollution. It is never too late to rearrange the
site for a horse operation if there is a problem with the current
setting.
- Allow for as much vegetated area
as possible between the animals or animal wastes and any water
body. Locate heavily used areas on higher grounds that will
be drier and receive less runoff.
- Watering systems such as troughs
should be strategically located to ensure that the animals
can access them from all fields.
- Situate the paddock or exercise area
close to the barn, allowing easy release of animals to get
their daily exercise.
- Separate fields and pastures with
gated fences to control animal movement and grazing.
- Install diversions to control runoff.
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Overgrazing is a common problem when
large animals are kept on small lots. No matter how much
food supplement is provided, horses will selectively eat all
their favorite growing vegetation. Less favored vegetation will
eventually die out due to constant trampling and over-compaction
of the soil by the weight of the animals. The exposed soil becomes
vulnerable to erosion causing pollutants, such as sediments
and nutrients, to enter water bodies.
A well-managed pasture not only prevents
erosion, it also provides horses and ponies with high quality,
nutritious feed at a lower cost.
- Maintain the fertility level of
the soils in pasture areas for optimum yield. Soil tests
should be done once every three years to determine how
much commercial fertilizer and/or lime is needed.
- Soil samples must be collected and
sent to a soils testing laboratory for analysis. Obtain details
for this process from your nearest library or the Northern
Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District. Soil samples
can be collected at any time of the year. If the soil is wet
at the time of collection, allow it to dry for proper mixing.
Collect ten or more samples from different areas of a field
from depths of about four inches below the surface. Thoroughly
mix the samples together in a clean plastic pail. From that
homogeneous mixture, take a representative sample, and put
it into the sampling box (provided) for shipment to the soils
testing laboratory.
 Installing
a rotational grazing system-dividing a pasture area into smaller
fields by gated fences-provides more pasture for the horses.
While one field is recovering, the animals can graze in another.
This system ensures that overgrazing does not occur. When
done properly, the resting period of the fields will allow
vegetation to recover with renewed vigor, and the horses will
be guaranteed fresh grass for a longer period during the growing
season. Divide pastures in such a way that animals can
have access to clean water, shade, and salt at any time.- Where space is limited, it is nearly
impossible to maintain a pasture if the horses are allowed
to freely graze the entire area. In this situation, subdivide
the plot into two or more lots, using one as an exercise lot
(with no pasture) and the others as grazing pastures. Allow
the horses into the grazing area only when the grass is three
to six inches tall. Proper fertilization and irrigation of
this plot will provide a considerable amount of grazing pasture
and eventually reduce the feed bill.
- When pastures are wet and soft, especially
after heavy rains, the horses' hooves can cause considerable
damage. It is best to keep them out of the pasture until it
dries.
- Interseed your pasture with both
warm and cool season grasses to prolong the availability of
fresh grass, increase erosion protection, and provide continuous
uptake of nutrients that might otherwise contribute to water
pollution. When warm season grasses, such as bermudagrass,
go into dormancy, cool season grasses, such as Kentucky bluegrass
will start their growing period; this keeps your pasture green
nearly all year round.
- Weed control is another concern
in pastures. A lush pasture of grass and clover (no more than
25 percent) is the best way to keep weeds down. However,
if you can't get your pasture dense enough to prevent weed
growth, mow the weeds regularly or before they flower to keep
them under control. If herbicides are used, identify the weed
and determine the most advantageous time to apply the treatment.
The ideal time to chemically treat your weeds is when the
temperature is about 70° and humidity is low. High temperature
and high humidity enhance volatility and reduce effectiveness
of herbicides.
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On a small lot, horse waste accumulates
rapidly. Without proper management, the waste can wash off
the land into a nearby water body. Plant nutrients (nitrogen
and phosphorus), bacteria, and pathogens in the waste can adversely
affect water quality.
 A
well-built structure can be used as a storage facility.
The structure must have adequate capacity to hold the volume
of waste generated until it is disposed of or used. It should
have a protective cover to keep out rainwater and disease-carrying
agents such as flies and rats.
Make plans for disposal or transfer
of manure to ensure that when it is moved, it does not become
a source of pollution at the new site. While in its raw state,
stored waste can be spread on fields, lawns, or gardens.
Considering the possibility of parasite infestation, and the
presence of weed seeds, you should compost all waste spread
on fields grazed by horses.
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Composting is an aerobic (oxygen
requiring) process in which microorganisms break down complex
organic components of animal waste and bedding into simple organic
soil-like material called compost. A simple and relatively
inexpensive composting method involves using a composting bin
on a level, impervious surface. This is ideal for horse operations
with five or fewer horses. The bin should be easily accessible
from the stall and paddock areas. For an operation with one
to three horses, a two-bin system installed on an impervious
surface is adequate. A four to five horse operation may need
a three-bin composting system.
 Install
the composting bins on a non-porous (impervious) surface.
Stack all materials to be composted in one bin until it is full.
Then allow the waste heap to go through the composting process
while the second bin is being filled up.
Composting duration varies considerably
depending on the organic materials being composted and other
conditions. An ideal composting system may take eight to
twelve weeks to complete. This progresses to a curing period
which lasts for another four weeks. During this time, the pile
cools down, and recolonization of other soil microorganisms
takes place. Certain conditions are necessary for timely completion
of composting:
- Organic materials to be composted
must have the appropriate carbon to nitrogen (C:N) ratio that
supports growth and activity of the microorganisms that carry
out composting. These bugs use up carbon for energy and
growth and nitrogen for protein to build up their bodies and
reproduce.
- Typical compost piles from horse
operations consisting of manure and bedding materials and
have a high C:N ratio. This combination composts well
by itself, especially if the bedding material is straw. If
the bedding material is sawdust, it may take a longer time
to compost. The composting process can be increased if materials
with higher nitrogen content, such as grass clippings or urea,
are added occasionally to the pile.
- Oxygen is needed by the microorganisms
during respiration while breaking down the materials. Aerobic
composting requires a lot of oxygen, particularly at the initial
stage. A tremendous amount of energy in the form of heat is
given off, creating an ideal environment for the microorganisms.
They operate best in temperatures between 110°F and 150°F.
At 140°F or higher, pathogens, weed seeds, and fly larvae
in the composting materials are destroyed. However, at temperatures
above 160°F, the microorganisms will die. Therefore,
it is essential to regulate the oxygen and temperature
levels by regularly turning the compost pile over about three
times a month. Ideally, monitor the temperature using
a long-stemmed thermometer.
- Moisture is necessary to permit
biological activities and the supporting chemical processes.
Moisture should be about 50 percent of the content. Estimate
the moisture content by squeezing a handful of composted material.
It should feel like a damp sponge after water has been wrung
out of it-damp, but not dripping. Moisture is continuously
lost due to the high temperature. Therefore, regularly wet
the materials without waterlogging them.
The end product of a composting process
is a simple, inert organic material-called compost- consisting
mainly of humus, plant nutrients, carbon, and microorganisms.
It is a friable dark brown material that can be used in lawns,
pastures, or gardens, or bagged for sale.
Composting has many benefits:
- It reduces environmental and health
risks by controlling parasite re-infestation of horses,
eliminating a potential breeding site for flies, and reducing
the amount of raw manure-polluted runoff that reaches surface
and ground water.
- It provides an efficient manure handling
process by reducing the volume and odor potential.
- It enhances soil tilth and fertility
for the yard, garden, pasture, or even a "horse-less"
neighbor.
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Proper nutrient management means applying
the required amount of plant nutrients to maximize yield. Excessive
nutrient application is discouraged because the traditional
belief of "more-is-better" has been proven wrong.
Excess nitrogen and phosphorus in
fertilizer applications are major components of NPS pollution.
Without proper management practices, these nutrients can wash
off into nearby creeks, ponds, or wetland areas, and ultimately
into the Chesapeake Bay. An overabundance of nutrients causes
eutrophication (nutrient enrichment) of water bodies, supporting
excessive growth of algae and other aquatic weeds. This uncontrolled
growth shades out and kills other sub-aquatic vegetation. At
the end of their life cycle, the algae and weeds decompose,
causing depletion of dissolved oxygen. Oxygen depletion, in
turn, leads to odor problems and harms the aquatic life.
Nutrient management is also important
to our ground water. Though out of sight, ground water is
still vulnerable to NPS pollution. Ground water pollution is
evident in wells that are shallow, improperly cased, or located
down hill from a poorly managed animal waste deposit site. Polluted
ground water can contain high levels of nitrate, which is particularly
harmful to babies (causing Blue Baby Syndrome), or bacteria,
which can cause severe stomach upset even among adults.
Nutrient management planning is site
specific and is part of the Soil and Water Quality Conservation
Plan required by the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act. Your
local soil and water conservation district office can help you
prepare your plan.
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Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
combines appropriate chemical, cultural, and biological pest
control techniques into a single plan to reduce pest population
and keep damage at an acceptable level.
To reduce the dependency on chemicals,
implement environmentally sound biological control techniques.
One such technique involves releasing fly parasites (which
are harmless to animals and humans) near barns, stables, manure
piles, or any other area of expected fly concentration. The
parasites lay their eggs inside immature fly pupae. The eggs
of the parasite then hatch into larvae and feed on the inside
of the pupae. One fly parasite can destroy as many as 50 fly
pupae. For best results, release the parasites in spring before
the fly population becomes a problem.
Ideally, the manure pile should be about
200 feet away from your stable. Simply keeping the pile covered
will control pests.
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Horse management is our main form of
agriculture in Fairfax County. Agricultural activities are a
chief contributing factor for NPS pollution in the Chesapeake
Bay.
The Virginia General Assembly passed
the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act because of the need
for improved water quality. A section of that Act stipulates
that all agricultural land users are required to have a Soil
and Water Quality Conservation Plan, consisting of agricultural
Best Management Practices (BMPs) that can reduce NPS pollution.
The Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act
also requires all agricultural landowners with a Resource Protection
Area (RPA) on their property to establish and/or maintain a
100 foot wide buffer area of vegetation.
A Resource Protection Area (RPA)
comprises lands at or near the shoreline that have an intrinsic
water quality value due to the ecological and biological processes
they perform or are sensitive to impacts which may result in
significant degradation to the quality of state waters. They
include tidal wetlands and tidal shores, non-tidal wetlands
connected by surface flow and contiguous to tidal wetlands or
tributary streams, tributary streams, and a 100-foot wide vegetative
buffer area located landward of these components.
An RPA is the last barrier to the
overland flow of runoff before it reaches surface water.
A vegetative buffer can consist of grass or natural growth.
Never allow a grassed buffer to be grazed or mowed shorter than
three inches. Restricting access of horses into an RPA reduces
the chances of erosion and helps prevent water pollution from
the continuous deposition of animal wastes directly into a water
body.
Avoid fertilizing the vegetative buffer
of an RPA unless it is absolutely necessary. If it must be fertilized,
do the application in small quantities over an extended period
to minimize the chances of nutrients being washed directly into
the nearest water body.
To comply with the Chesapeake Bay
Preservation Act, all agricultural operations-even a single
horse stabled in a backyard-should have a Soil and Water Quality
Conservation Plan with implementable BMPs.
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