Governments Add to Environmental Confusion
by Thomas J. Quaife, Editor
Dairy Herd Management

When Duane Windhorst took over the farm from his dad, no one had to worry about odor emissions or whether every bit of manure was being contained on the land in times of heavy rainfall. But now that Windhorst, 63, is ready to pass the farm on to his daughter and son-in-law, it’s obvious that times have changed. 

Windhorst wonders if another couple of generations can survive on this farm, nestled in the rolling hills of southeast Minnesota. The reason: Tougher environmental regulations. 

Producers in Minnesota face some of the most restrictive environmental regulations in the nation. It is Windhorst’s contention that the producers in Minnesota can compete with producers anywhere, but they need to be on a “level playing field” with respect to the environment. Otherwise, many of them will go out of business or move to other states. The ultimate loser will be the Minnesota economy. 

We’re not trying to bemoan the fact that Minnesota producers are being “picked on” here. But, what is happening in Minnesota is illustrative of the confusion that exists in many producers’ minds with respect to the environment. The state regulations are more restrictive than the federal government’s, and then on top of that, many of the counties in Minnesota are even more restrictive than the state. Cross the state line, and a whole new set of standards exists. 

Different regulatory standards between government agencies make it difficult for producers to know where the regulatory bar is being set, and which direction they need to go with their dairy farm operations. 

Fortunately, a couple of leading dairy states -- New York and California -- are doing something to ease the confusion. 

In New York, a number of state agencies have come up with a model comprehensive nutrient management plan that large-scale producers -- and smaller ones, too -- can follow.  Producers know that if they follow the guidelines spelled out in the Agricultural Environmental Management (AEM) initiative, they will be in compliance with all applicable standards. 

One plan, one set of standards. 

Producers in New York can access the following Internet site for information about the AEM initiative: www.cce.cornell.edu/ag/environmental-mgt/.

We suggest that everyone check out this web site and see how the various government agencies can work together to pull their environment regulations into one meaningful package.

In California, meanwhile, the various regulatory agencies are cooperating in the state’s voluntary dairy quality assurance program. Among other things, the program includes an “environmental health” component. After taking some extension courses, dairy producers can create a pollution prevention protocol that is specific to their own farms.  Then, if they choose, they can have someone from the quality assurance program come out to their farms and evaluate the pollution control measures with a checklist that incorporates all of the state and federal regulatory standards. Going through the programs is a good faith effort by producers to comply with the regulations, and the Environmental Protection Agency looks favorably on that. But, the program does not protect the producers against citizen lawsuits.

No one is asking for special favors here.  Most producers just want to know where the bar is being set in terms of environmental regulation. Producers shouldn’t have to keep guessing where the bar is set -- or worse, having to endure the inconsistencies of state, local and federal policy. 

Reprinted with permission from the May 2000 issue of Dairy Herd Management.