Can I still spread sh1t

[Sonoftheheir]

As above can or can’t I ?

spoke to our local water authority re sludge spreading and it would seem they are seriously considering taking the ea to court over this debacle , nfu are you thinking of the same ?

You have to ask the EA if you’re allowed or not.

 

[roscoe erf]

As above can or can’t I ?

spoke to our local water authority re sludge spreading and it would seem they are seriously considering taking the ea to court over this debacle , nfu are you thinking of the same ?

They were spreading water board waste in tetbury yesterday

 

[som farmer]

Just f**king get on with it ffs keep your head down and get on with it the more fuss made over it the more attention that will be drawn too it Dairy farms been banned from spreading slurry all winter for years but it’s still my busiest slurry spreading time of year

done that, and been pulled up, by EA, luckily no fine, but they/he was not a pleasant experience, the 'he' was a complete and utter jobsworth, and has caused us a lot of hassle, and expense, and we are fully compliant with NVZ regs, all because of a blocked council road drain, near our farm entrance.

 

[farmerm]

The solution to this is quite simple,

we effectively can’t spread sh!t anymore so have to buy ridiculously priced fert instead,

therefore we won’t make any money

so won’t be paying tax.

So to alleviate the loss of income her majesty government will need to make a saving.

So they could cut funding to the waste of time that is the EA!

problem solved,

That starts an unpleasant cycle, gov cuts EA funding so they have to raise revenues by issuing fines to farmers, who make less money, pay less tax so gov funding to the EA gets cuts further so they have to seek to raise even more from fines....

 

[neilo]

So the root cause of these regulations is that there is a nutrient surplus in some areas of the UK ? If that's the case, then the root cause needs addressing.

I would suggest the problem lies with some individual businesses, that choose to stick two fingers up to common sense, piling slurry out onto waterlogged fields all winter, etc. It's not confined to areas of the UK, but to individual businesses. They need hammering, not extra regulations placed on everyone.

When you hear of a dairy unit in South Wales with 2 weeks slurry storage for 1k+ cows, or units in Powys with 540 cows and a couple of chicken sheds on 140ac, then you see the issue.

 

[delilah]

I would suggest the problem lies with some individual businesses, that choose to stick two fingers up to common sense, piling slurry out onto waterlogged fields all winter, etc. It's not confined to areas of the UK, but to individual businesses. They need hammering, not extra regulations placed on everyone.

When you here of a dairy unit in South Wales with 2 weeks slurry storage for 1k+ cows, or units in Powys with 540 cows and a couple of chicken sheds on 140ac, then you see the issue.

It's a structural issue. Lets say you produce 50,000 eggs/week, and have capacity to make use of the manure. Your buyer then says that you have to supply 200,000 eggs/wk or you are dropped. What are you to do ?
Likewise milk. Milkbuyers want the volume from as few a producers as possible, in as concentrated an area as possible, because they in turn are under constant pressure to rationalize their supply infrastructure. I don't need to say who is applying that pressure on them.
All meaningful change is demand driven. If we want to see the chicken and cattle sh1t spread more evenly, then we need to spread the demand for the products of which that sh!t is a by-product.

 

[tepapa]

They could just move all the shite around the country in lorries to where it's needed,

Oh wait a minute..........

 

[paul&mandy]

If everyone did the same in protest, I'm sure the powers that be would be forced to reverse their decision.

Have the French got these rules? Wonder what dates they can plaster there local towns with sh!t?

 

[Andy12345]

So the root cause of these regulations is that there is a nutrient surplus in some areas of the UK ? If that's the case, then the root cause needs addressing.

the root cause in our area is a naturally occuring P index of 3 +, what to do with 20,000 tonnes of seperated cow shite, its only replacing what we remove in the crop but now not allowed! Total madness.
Edit to add we have never , not ever bought in bagged Phosphate!

 

[Luke Cropwalker]

the root cause in our area is a naturally occuring P index of 3 +, what to do with 20,000 tonnes of seperated cow shite, its only replacing what we remove in the crop but now not allowed! Total madness.
Edit to add we have never , not ever bought in bagged Phosphate!

This exactly the type of scenario that a FACTS qualified advisor who knows the farm and the history should be able to give advice and allow spreading to go ahead. Instead the EA know best and some farms will have to fundamentally change what happens on the ground. Yes, there have been some terrible pollution incidents caused by agriculture in the past but the EA need to show a little common sense or at least recognise that the worth of FACTS advisors who are on farm day by day.

 

[Bobthebuilder]

The solution to this is quite simple,

we effectively can’t spread sh!t anymore so have to buy ridiculously priced fert instead,

therefore we won’t make any money

so won’t be paying tax.

So to alleviate the loss of income her majesty government will need to make a saving.

So they could cut funding to the waste of time that is the EA!

problem solved,

Ah yes but what do you do with the that comes from your winter housed animals

 

[robs1]

the root cause in our area is a naturally occuring P index of 3 +, what to do with 20,000 tonnes of seperated cow shite, its only replacing what we remove in the crop but now not allowed! Total madness.
Edit to add we have never , not ever bought in bagged Phosphate!

But if you are buying in concentrate to feed the cows there must be P in that, perhaps the answer is for livestock farms to grow all their own food, if you buy nothing in then all you are doing is recycling the nutrients, cant see how that can be a problem

 

[Courier]

Have the French got these rules? Wonder what dates they can plaster there local towns with sh!t?

Irrelevant - We are global now.....

 

[Drillman]

Ah yes but what do you do with the that comes from your winter housed animals

Ive told the cows to hold it in till spring

so far it’s not. Going well

 

[som farmer]

But if you are buying in concentrate to feed the cows there must be P in that, perhaps the answer is for livestock farms to grow all their own food, if you buy nothing in then all you are doing is recycling the nutrients, cant see how that can be a problem

might not be such a bad idea, we have grown 15 acres s/barley, adding up 45ton grain and 2 ton straw/ac, that adds up to a large saving, + as we all know, what is in cake, a proportion is inert filler, so a better quality ? Over the years, depending on price of grain, we have mill and mixed, caustic treated wheat, and once, crimped maize, but 1st year, for 15yrs, grown our own. And to be honest, cattle have done better on grain, than bought conc. Beans feed really well, but we cannot grow both !

 

[neilo]

Ah yes but what do you do with the that comes from your winter housed animals

Spread it in the Spring when the nutrients are used by growing crops, rather than being leached away by rainfall all winter?

 

[som farmer]

Spread it in the Spring when the nutrients are used by growing crops, rather than being leached away by rainfall all winter?

what do you do with the dirty water, over winter, if they stop that ? It all looks like a buggers muddle, and hope it never happens. Might be an answer to use reed beds.

 

[neilo]

what do you do with the dirty water, over winter, if they stop that ? It all looks like a buggers muddle, and hope it never happens. Might be an answer to use reed beds.

Store it in a lagoon to apply in the Spring/Summer?

We put a separator in at home in the early 90’s. Solids were stacked and spread on arable ground (could easily have been on grassland if necessary) in the Spring, separated liquid sat in a lagoon (hole in the ground) then applied by umbilical in Spring/after first cut/in times of drought.

 

[som farmer]

Store it in a lagoon to apply in the Spring/Summer?

We put a separator in at home in the early 90’s. Solids were stacked and spread on arable ground (could easily have been on grassland if necessary) in the Spring, separated liquid sat in a lagoon (hole in the ground) then applied by umbilical in Spring/after first cut/in times of drought.

we have a lagoon, and will look at a separator.
However, any new storage, including a 'hole in the ground', now require both planning permission, and prior approval, from EA, that includes enlarging existing ones. Either of which, old and new, have to conform to the 'new' regs, which are exceedingly expensive and onerous, as they aim for 0 risk, and from our experiences, they have aerial photo's, from which they calculate size, - our problem, he couldn't agree size, between aerial and actual.

 

[Steevo]

we have a lagoon, and will look at a separator.
However, any new storage, including a 'hole in the ground', now require both planning permission, and prior approval, from EA, that includes enlarging existing ones. Either of which, old and new, have to conform to the 'new' regs, which are exceedingly expensive and onerous, as they aim for 0 risk, and from our experiences, they have aerial photo's, from which they calculate size, - our problem, he couldn't agree size, between aerial and actual.

There's only one option as far as I see it and that is to take a leaf out of Bond villians' books. Hollow out a mountain to store it in - that way it becomes invisible even to the satellites.