EPA Offers $8 Million to Provide Environmental Assistance for Livestock Operators

WASHINGTON — The Environmental Protection Agency is requesting applications from organizations for a $7.9 million grant to provide technical assistance to livestock operators, including animal feeding operations, for the prevention of water discharges and reduction of air emissions. 

"These funds support the Bush Administration's commitment to cooperative conservation and environmental stewardship in the agricultural community," said Assistant Administrator for Water Benjamin H. Grumbles, in a release.

The grant recipient will provide livestock operations with two types of technical assistance at no cost to the operator: comprehensive assessments of water and air quality environmental challenges and recommendations for strategies to mitigate these challenges; and development or review of the facility's nutrient management plan, which specifies the amount of manure that can be applied to crops so the potential for runoff to waterbodies is minimized.

All livestock operations in the United States are eligible to receive assistance from the grant recipient.

Nationally, there are an estimated 1.3 million farms holding livestock in the United States. Approximately 238,000 of these farms are considered animal feeding operations. These operations generate more than 500 million tons of animal waste annually and, as a consequence, continually face the challenge of how best to manage these wastes in a manner that minimizes adverse impacts on the environment. This project will assist livestock operations by ensuring that farmers are aware of environmental impacts from their facilities and understand how best to address them. 

The deadline for grant applications is July 9, 2007.

For more information about animal feeding operations and the grant solicitation, click here.