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Farm and Pasture Management Manure Management
Does horse manure on trails pollute water?
We have horseback riding trails in our park, which we share with hikers. Our policy has been to let equestrians leave their horses' manure on the trail rather than cleaning it up. We instituted this policy because it is safer than having riders get off their horse to try and remove the manure while there are people walking by.
Eventually park staff removes the manure, or it dries and is left to decompose. But we are concerned that if the manure is left on the trail, it may affect water quality. If there is a heavy rain, will the manure leach into the soil and get into the ground water? Or are the chances of the manure affecting water quality low, given the small quantities we’re dealing with?
Depending on its location and management, horse manure could be a concern to water quality; however, I consider it to be a small if not insignificant concern given your situation.
It is unlikely that horse manure from horses on trail rides poses a great risk to ground water. Nitrogen present in urine will most likely be volatilized to ammonia gas very quickly and lost into the atmosphere. Nutrients in feces will be associated mostly with organic matter. Nitrogen will be converted (mineralized) to ammonium or nitrate slowly over several years. Nitrate could leach to the ground but it would be a slow process, and given the number of horses, would probably be an insignificant source. The leaching risk from other nutrients (phosphorous, potassium) would be much less. Your main risk to water quality will come from runoff, not leaching, particularly if your trails follow streams and/or cross streams regularly and if runoff from steep hillsides leads to water. Then there will be a greater concern.
My suggestion is to take precautions to prevent contact between horses and water (streams, lakes, etc.). I realize that this is not always possible, but if you can, design or modify trails in such a way as to prevent defecation in streams, and minimize the risk of contamination around streams by the use of vegetation, buffers, etc.
I would agree with your assessment that the risk is low, especially
given the small quantities of horse manure that you are dealing with.
Wildlife (deer, elk, etc.) and livestock (beef cows, sheep) may be more
of a water quality risk on public lands than trail-riding horses. I have included below a brief overview of pathogens in horse manure and risks to humans.
Pathogenic Microorganisms in Horse Manure
Salmonella According to the National Animal Health Service, Salmonella is believed to be present in horses at very, very insignificant levels. According to this report, Salmonella was found on 0.08% of the operations sampled and in 0.02% of the horses in the northern region of the United States, including New York and New Jersey. What this translates to is 1 in 125 farms had at least one animal shedding salmonella but only 1 in 500 horses shedding salmonella. (Please see Salmonella in the US Horse Population, 2001, USDA-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, http://www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/ceah/cahm/Equine/eq98salm.pdf).
E. coli While E. coli from a number of species, including humans, can cause intestinal disease under certain conditions, no incidence of human disease from E. coli of equine origin has been documented. The bacterial pathogen of greatest concern is E. coli 0157:H7. Research conducted at the University of California has indicated that insignificant amounts of E. coli 0157:H7 were found in adult horse intestines. For more information, you can contact Dr. Rob Atwill at the University of California at Davis, Veterinary School, or Dr. Patrick McDonough, Cornell University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory.
Cryptosporidium parvum and Giardia Cryptosporidium is present only at very low levels in horses. One study found 0.33% of horses were carrying Cryptosporidium parvum and in the same study they found 0.66% of horses carrying Giardia. This means that 1 horse out of 300 was carrying Cryptosporidium and 2 horses out of 300 were carrying Giardia. Work done by other researchers has also found low levels of Cryptosporidium and Giardia. (Please see the following publications: Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigations, “The prevalence of shedding of Cryptosporidium and Giardia spp. Based on a single fecal sample collection from each of 91 horses used for backcountry recreation." Volume 9, pages 56-60, 1997.Proceedings of the 15th Equine Nutritional Physiology Symposium, “The prevalence of Cryptosporidium/Giardia in the trail horse population utilizing public lands.” Proceedings, pages 223-237, 1997.)
Another paper looks at the use of buffer strips to filter Cryptosporidium and shows that when slopes were less then 20% with good ground cover (they used tall fescue grass), and when the length of the buffer strip was 3 meters in length or greater, this was sufficient to remove 99.9% of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts. (See the article at the Journal of Applied and Environmental Microbiology, “Transport of Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts through vegetated buffer strips and estimated filtration efficiency,” Journal number 68, issue 11, pages 5517-5527, 2002.)
Campylobacter I know of no linkage between campylobacter in the horse gut and human health. The Merck Veterinary Manual, Eighth Edition, 1998, makes no reference to Campylobacter disease in horses.
Leptospirosis Not a bacteria, Leptospira is a spirochete that can infect horses, occasionally causing abortion or uveitis (an eye infection). It is not transferred in the feces but in other bodily fluids, e.g. urine. No known incident of human disease as a result of equine infection. Proper control of water runoff and maintenance of pastures as well as appropriate animal health treatment will eliminate any risks. For more information contact Dr. Rob Atwill at the University of California at Davis, Veterinary School, or Dr. Patrick McDonough, Cornell University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory for more information.
While horse manure may not be attractive, it should not be harmful to human health nor pose a significant health risk to people when they come across it on trails.
Answer provided by Mike Westendorf, Ph.D., PAS, Department of Animal Science, Extension Livestock Specialist.
What is the best way to dispose of manure in a suburban area?
I am the manager at a large farm that is in the middle of a residential area. I have 70 horses on the grounds and my manure is a problem. I have to haul it out in 30-cubic-yard dumpsters 3 times a week and it is becoming very costly! Do you have any suggestions on how or where I should dispose of some, if not all, of the manure?
If this is not an option, then composting may be if you have enough space and an appropriate site. A proper compost site should be level, well drained, and at least 100 feet from any bodies of water. Storm water runoff should be controlled and there should be an abundance of vegetative cover or buffers surrounding the site to prevent any contamination of surrounding water bodies, wetlands and the environment. It should be built on an impervious base. This can be earthen but more likely will have to be concrete depending on the soil type, drainage, etc. You can get advice from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) about composting sites. Unfortunately, you will still have to dispose of your compost off-site. This may necessitate other regulatory approval. Farmers can produce their own manure compost for spreading on their own farms, but as soon as it is disposed of offsite (above a certain amount) it will be regulated and may require a permit. There is discussion on the state level to ease the regulations on manure composters disposing of their product off-site. Depending on what you use for bedding, the manure may have more fertilizer value. If you bed heavily with wood products (shavings, chips, etc.) the product will have value as a soil amendment providing organic matter to the soil, but will not be as valuable as horse manure without bedding. Unfortunately the wood products can make the nutrients in the horse manure less available in the soil. Straw-bedded manure would be somewhat more valuable but would also be available for disposal on mushroom farms. The upshot is that if you bed with wood products and if you don't have much space for a composting or storage facility, you may not have a lot of options other than what you are already doing. I would suggest you contact the local NRCS; they will visit your farm and may have some helpful suggestions.
Answer provided by Mike Westendorf, Ph.D., PAS, Department of Animal Science, Extension Livestock Specialist.
What is the status of New Jersey's Equine Waste Management regulations?
Does New Jersey have an Equine Waste Management law up for a vote in the Committee in Trenton? Would this law require horse farms to report a Manure Management Plan to the state?
The rule will have a tiered approach with only larger farms (perhaps 200-300 animal units) having to complete a fully certified nutrient management plan. Farms having more than 8-10 animal units all the way up to the higher threshold will complete a self-certified plan. The smallest farms (less than 8-10 animal units) will not be required (but encouraged) to complete any plan at all. Remaining issues relate to the determination of these threshold numbers, what constitutes an animal unit, and education and enforcement provisions. Probably the most difficult issue remaining is how to regulate manure waste imported to or exported from the farm. For example, it is still unknown who would be responsible to have an approved management plan when waste leaves the farm: the importer or the exporter.
Answer provided by Mike Westendorf, Ph.D., PAS, Department of Animal Science, Extension Livestock Specialist.
The material provided on this site is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, prevent, or treat any illness. Any recommendations are not intended to replace the advice of your veterinarian. Any products mentioned are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. Mention or display of a trademark, proprietary product, or firm in text or figures does not constitute an endorsement by the Equine Science Center or Rutgers University and does not imply approval to the exclusion of other suitable products or firms. |
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