Two Innovative Approaches to Environmentally Friendly Farming

Two projects in the Chesapeake Bay watershed aim to modify farming practices to help improve water quality, at the same time helping to reduce costs. 

Precision Feeding is a new project coordinated by a Chesapeake Bay Foundation partnership. Cows' nutritional requirements fluctuate over time due to age, size, pregnancy and milk production. In addition, hay, silage and other feeds have inconsistent nutrient levels, due to diversity in soil type, weather, time of harvest, and many other factors. The Precision Feeding project will analyze the nitrogen and phosphorus levels in feeds on the farm, as well as in the milk and manure, and work with the farms' nutritionists to adjust the diets to meet the cows' needs more precisely. This is expected to lead to a 30 to 40 fold reduction in the nitrogen and phosphorus content of the farm's manure. The reductions will greatly reduce the farmers' manure management challenges and lead to lower nutrient contributions to local streams and, ultimately, the Chesapeake Bay. Precision feeding is already widespread in swine and poultry production, where feed inputs are provided by scientific analysis. CBF foresees the dairy initiative leading to adoption by about 4,000 Pennsylvania dairy farms, with reductions of approximately 24 million pounds nitrogen pollution and 9.5 million pounds of phosphorus pollution. http://www.cbf.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=14049&printer_friendly=1

In a second initiative, Churchville, PA farmer Lawrason Sayre made a key change in the way he runs his 300-acre beef cattle farm. Sayre converted his cows' feed from grain, a practice that requires significantly more fertilizer, herbicides and pesticides than grass, to a grazing system. Sayre's pastures are planted with clover, alfalfa and orchard grass. In addition to requiring less labor, the practice also saves money and is easier on the environment. By going to a grazing operation, Sayre has reduced the level of phosphorus runoff from their farm after a storm by about 75 percent, according to the USDA's research service. And the Sayres have increased their profitability by $15,000 a year. The farm is split up into 3-acre fields holding about 50 cows each, enclosed by a single strand of electric fence. The cows are moved every few days to a fresh field of pasture and a complete cycle of the farm takes about three weeks. The grass serves as a year-round cover crop. "Basically, we are a 300-acre buffer strip," Lawrason Sayre said. The Chesapeake Bay Foundation recently presented the Sayres with the 2006 Conservationist of the Year award.

Baltimore Sun, May 7, 2006