DOs Comply with the Control of Pollution (Silage, Slurry and Agricultural Fuel Oil) (Scotland) Regulations 2001. Notify SEPA before bringing into use any new, substantially enlarged or substantially reconstructed slurry storage facility, which together with existing storage capacity should provide 6 months unless otherwise agreed with SEPA. Maintain a freeboard of at least 0.3m, for above ground slurry stores and, 0.75m, for slurry lagoons. Collect all 'seepage' from farmyard manure and high-level slatted buildings as this is classed as 'slurry' under the 2001 Regulations. Prepare and implement a Farm Waste Management Plan (This is mandatory if specified by SEPA in the terms of a Notice served under the Control of Pollution (Silage, Slurry and Agricultural Fuel Oil) (Scotland) Regulations 2001).
| DON'Ts Allow effluent to escape from middens, byres or high-level slatted buildings as this is an offence under the Control of Pollution Act 1974 (as amended). |
Consult SEPA if you are planning to use a waste treatment plant on your farm as it may require a consent, authorisation or permit to be sought. Follow the Scottish Executive "Four Point Plan" which is made up of the following points: produce and implement a risk assessment for manures and slurries; produce and implement a farm nutrient plan; protect watercourses and carry out water margin management; undertake a separate assessment of farmyard drainage.
Keep clean water and dirty water separate. Minimise unroofed collection yards, feed passages etc. Repair or replace roof gutters and downpipes that are broken or missing. Regularly check effluent tanks, slurry tanks and slatted tanks to avoid overflow. Ensure proper maintenance and repair of all slurry storage tanks, pipework and valves. Be a 'good neighbour' and: avoid spreading close to domestic or public buildings; avoid spreading at weekends or public holidays; spread livestock slurries and manures when the wind direction is away from public/residential areas and areas designated for their conservation value; avoid, where possible, spreading in the hours of darkness.
Locate any field heap of farmyard manure: at least 10m away from any clean surface water or field drain or watercourse and at least 50m from any spring, well or borehole. as far away from residential housing as possible.
Spread livestock slurries and manures only when field and weather conditions are suitable to prevent water pollution. | Employ any agricultural contractor or company involved in spreading farm manure and slurries to land unless they are competent and suitably trained. Store slurry or semi-solid manure in middens. Allow dairy washings, parlour or byre drainage, or slurry spilled during handling to enter clean water drains or watercourses. Forget that slurries and manures are a valuable resource and if properly utilised will save you money as well as protecting the environment. Spread livestock slurries: within 10m of a watercourse or at least 50m of a drinking water supply; to steeply sloping fields, when the soil is wet or waterlogged, there is a flooding risk or when heavy rainfall is forecast; when the soil has been frozen for 12 hours or longer in the preceding 24 hours or is covered in snow; at a rate that fails to account for the overall suitability of the land. In any case, the rate should never exceed either 50m
3/ha (normal rate 25-30m
3/ha or 2,200-2,700 gallons/acre) for surface spreading.
Cause direct and indirect entry of livestock slurry into the drainage system, especially with soil injection into fields with gravel backfilled drains. Mix slurry with silage effluent in confined spaces as dangerous fumes can be fatal. Enter a tank unless all recommended safety procedures have been followed. Spread when fields have been pipe or mole drained, or subsoiled over existing drains within the last 12 months. Apply manures or slurries to any statutory conservation sites or other areas with a conservation, archaeological or historic value without prior notification to Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH). Build a woodchip corral without carrying out a detailed assessment of pollution risks to surface and ground waters. Consult with SEPA about the site selection. |