RUTGERS EQUINE SCIENCE CENTER  TO DEVELOP

‘BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES’ HORSE FARM

Federal, State and University Collaboration Addresses Solutions

To Challenges Facing Equine Operations in an Urbanized State;

Public Seminars and Workshops to be Held as Work Progresses

            NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ (December 13, 2005) – The Equine Science Center, in the largest multidisciplinary, inter-agency program it has ever undertaken, is developing a demonstration working horse farm on the Cook College campus. As it evolves, the public will have access to information about the process so that horse and farm owners and managers can learn from the effort and apply these practices to their own properties.

            The initiative is a collaborative effort involving, in addition to the Equine Science Center, Region II of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture; the New Jersey Department of Agriculture; the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection; and several Rutgers units, including the Center for Turfgrass Science; the Department of Animal Sciences; the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Natural Resources; and Rutgers Cooperative Research and Extension of the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station.

The Equine Science Center, a unit of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, believes that most horse owners and farm and barn managers strive to employ sound practices in the day-to-day management of their animals and facilities. However, said Dr. Karyn Malinowski, director of the Center, “With new environmental and land-use regulations being written and urbanization spreading into rural areas, good ‘horse-keeping’ has been getting harder and harder to achieve. Until now.”

According to Dr. Robert Goodman, executive dean of agriculture and natural resources, dean of Cook College and executive director of the New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, “This program exemplifies the ‘horsepower’ that can be harnessed when educators, government officials and the private sector team up to find solutions to problems and challenges that can’t be addressed by just one agency or organization. The work done by this group will set standards for environmental stewardship that can be adapted by livestock farmers throughout the state and regionally.”

The program is being managed by Dr. Carey A. Williams, extension specialist in horse management at Rutgers, with co-managers Dr. Christopher Obropta, extension specialist in water resources, and Dr. Mike Westendorf, extension specialist in livestock and dairy. Jeff Potent, the EPA land grant university liaison, will facilitate EPA and DEP involvement as the project unfolds.

The demonstration farm will be located at the existing Ryders Lane facility on approximately 40 acres on the Cook campus, just east of Route 1 in New Brunswick.The goal of the initiative is to employ research, education and proactive outreach  to help horse people address serious environmental and pasture management issues.

“As with many areas of the environment,” says Dr. Williams, “New Jersey is on the leading edge of challenges that occur when cities and suburbs expand into traditionally rural areas. Pastoral settings with contentedly grazing animals may be beautiful to look at on a Sunday drive, but can become a problem when one moves in next door.

“The work we are doing to create ‘best management practices’ – or BMPs – for  horse farms is geared to finding scientifically-sound and cost-effective ways farmers can be in compliance with regulations, be good neighbors, and still make a living raising horses and other livestock.”

The BMPs will cover such important issues as maintaining water quality, installing buffers around streams and ponds, building bioswales and bioretention basins, controlling stormwater runoff, complying with regulations concerning nutrient waste management at livestock operations (often referred to as “CAFOs” and “AFOs”), and creating comprehensive nutrient management plans (CNMPs). Manure and other solid waste management also will be highlighted, including the creation of a demonstration composting facility.

Also to be studied are pasture management techniques that protect the environment and optimize forage quality and availability.  Particular attention will be paid to the challenge of keeping animals on small acreage and to the most effective ways of renovating pastures that have been over-grazed or left untended. Researchers will

address weed control, compaction, soil-testing, fertilization, seeding, water and mud control and rotational grazing methods.

Faculty will be testing different kinds of pasture grasses for durability, nutrient content and palatability, and will explore opportunities to breed new grasses that are ideal for various kinds of soil and topographical conditions. In addition, a confined demonstration area of common toxic plants will be created and maintained, enabling educators to teach toxic plant identification and eradication.

Overall, the plan is to create a very efficient, functional livestock facility – complete with well-organized pastures, paddocks, drylots and test areas. In addition, different kinds of fencing will be used in various parts of the farm, allowing for comparisons of materials and suitability.

“Education and collaboration are the key in this project,” says Williams. “As we proceed, the faculty and staff will be running educational workshops and will convene a regional forum for faculty and technical assistance agencies. The public can get a clear picture of what works, what doesn’t work and what will work best for their farms.”

Progress reports on the project will begin to be posted on the Equine Science Center website – www.esc.rutgers.edu – starting in late 2005. The Equine Science Center also will issue fact sheets and bulletins on various aspects of the research.