Managing the Farmyard

ASSAP farmyard management advice

• Keeping soiled water to a minimum
• Collecting effluents, organic fertilisers etc
• Storing effluents and organic fertilisers properly

Keeping soiled water to a minimum

• Divert all clean water to a clean water outfall
• Prevent clean water from becoming soiled
• Keep the amount of soiled water that is produced on your holding to a minimum

Collecting effluents and organic fertilisers

Organic fertiliser is slurry, farmyard manure, sewage sludge, industrial sludges etc. All organic fertilisers, effluents and soiled waters must be collected and stored to prevent runoff or seepage, directly or indirectly, into groundwaters or surface water until applied to the land.

Maximising Storage Capacity

Constructing storage facilities for organic fertilisers on the farm is an option that cannot be taken likely. There are a number of other which should be explored before deciding to invest.

Managing organic fertilisers on the farm is essentially about effective recycling. Minimising the volumes to be stored, reduces the capacity of storage required and also the volumes to be spread. One of the best ways to ensure maximum storage capacity on the farm is to eliminate clean water entering storage tanks.

The separation of clean and dirty water requires careful planning, and regular maintenance of guttering and down pipes. All clean water should be directed away from organic fertiliser storage facilities into a sealed storm water system. This means the valuable storage capacity for potentially polluting materials can be maximised.