July 2016 Articles

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Environmental Best Management Practices for Poultry Production in Louisiana

Environmental Best Management Practices for Poultry Production in Louisiana Source: William Owens, Lavergne, Theresia, Holmes, Jason E., Morgan, Donna S., Girouard, Ernest—LSU AgCenter Louisiana’s poultry industry, which is the largest animal industry in the state, generated $1.7 billion for the state’s economy in 2015. The LSU AgCenter Hill Farm Research Station in Homer, which is in the heart of poultry-producing area, includes two broiler houses used to compare and evaluate the latest innovations in equipment and management techniques for raising broilers under commercial conditions. The station also has a laboratory facility capable of supporting a variety of demonstrations and evaluations that can help educate poultry producers so they can remain in compliance with regulations for nutrient management and water quality. In recent years there has been increased interest in the potential impact of agriculture on water quality. Lawsuits by environmental groups are seeking to force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to establish federal numeric nutrient water quality standards for all states in the Mississippi River Basin. Louisiana agriculture is at the center of this action and must increase its efforts to educate producers in proper nutrient management procedures and conservation practices. There also has been an increase in EPA investigative activity involving Louisiana’s poultry producers, with several site inspections of poultry operations and some rulings involving poultry producers. To address the need for more education, demonstrations and training sessions on poultry environmental best management practices (BMPs) were conducted in 2014 and 2015. These sessions were part of a Conservation Innovation Grant from the U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). In August 2014, approximately 30 LSU AgCenter and NRCS agents met for training at the Hill Farm. In September and October 2014, workshops were held in Many and Ruston for poultry producers with approximately 120 producers in attendance. A poultry field day was held at the Hill Farm in June 2015 to summarize the grant results and train producers in BMPs. Approximately 120 producers, poultry field agents and extension agents participated. These sessions also allowed producers to enroll in the Louisiana Master Farmer Program and acquire credits for Phase I and II of the program, as well as continuing education credits for producers already certified as Master Farmers. Topics covered at these sessions included the effect of the accumulation of exhaust fan dust on vegetation and on the ground next to exhaust fans at poultry houses. Over time dust from the houses is expelled, and this dust is thought to contribute to the degradation of water quality after rain washes it from vegetation into runoff water. Other topics included the benefits and comparison of in-house pasteurization of poultry litter, NRCS guidelines for nutrient management plans and the Water Quality Index for Agriculture (WQIag). Automatic water collection units were used to demonstrate BMP methods and their impact.