One important aspect of dairy farming is the management of effluent disposal. Many regions/countries have strict rules or guidelines regarding effluent disposal from, for example, a farm or cowshed. Many regions/countries prohibit the discharge or disposal of untreated effluent into waterways. This is to prevent waterways, and waterbodies (such as lakes) into which they run becoming polluted with untreated effluent, nitrogen (from either the effluent or fertiliser applied to paddocks), or other undesirables or waste products resultant from farming.
One common method of effluent disposal or treatment involves the use of oxidation ponds. Oxidation ponds usually involve water or other runoff containing effluent first passing through an anaerobic pond (generally relatively deep), followed by a shallower aerobic pond before finally being released into the environment, such as a waterway. Bacterial breakdown in the oxidation pond(s) generally removes or neutralises the effluent from the water.
Advantages of oxidation ponds include the fact that they have a low labour requirement and low maintenance cost, and that there is little chance for human error to cause problems. Disadvantages include the fact that useful farm nutrients may be lost through the pond system, and a resource consent may be required in many regions/countries from the local council or planning authority. Furthermore, with a trend of increasing herd sizes on dairy farms, existing ponds may not be big enough to cope (especially as ponds also collect rain water).
Additionally leakage through the bottom of the ponds can be a problem and/or ponds need to be lined with clay or plastic if soils are free draining. Other disadvantages include the fact that the water being discharged in some cases may still fail to meet pollution limit, and the cost of constructing an oxidation pond(s) can be prohibitive.
Another method of effluent disposal involves the use of effluent spreaders which can be used to spread effluent from a holding pond or tank onto pasture. Similarly, an irrigation system may be utilised to spread effluent back onto pasture. Advantages of these methods include the fact that the effluent may have higher fertiliser value and that it also decreases the reliance on ponds or ditches. Disadvantages include the cost of hiring or utilising an effluent spreader such as a slurry wagon or the cost of installing or maintaining an irrigation system. Furthermore, by spreading effluent on wet farmland, there may be a greater risk of runoff of the untreated effluent into waterways. Moreover, during a wet season or time, the spreading of (wet) effluent onto already wet farmlands may lead to pugging and/or compaction damage to pasture.
Unrelated to effluent disposal, pugging and compaction damage can occur when the soil is so soft and/or wet that the weight of grazing animals or use of farm vehicles and machinery,
cannot be supported by the soil’s surface. This can result in poor drainage, namely where the soil will remain soft and wet, and hence the animals will cause ongoing damage at subsequent grazings. Pugging and compaction damage can also result in reduced pasture utilisation (by say 20% to 40%) as well as a reduction in future pasture yield, depending upon the soil type.
Pugging also allows weeds and poor species of grasses to become established. Moreover, pugging and compaction damage requires more tractor passes for seed bed preparation and sowing and greater fertiliser and topsoil requirements. However, it may not always be possible to add the necessary increased fertiliser requirement due to some region’s/country’s regulations regarding runoff of nitrogen into the waterways.
In order to address the problem of effluent runoff, and/or pugging and/or compaction damage, products such as stand-off pads are often used.
Stand-off pads are, generally purpose-built, drained, loafing or standing spaces where stock can be held for long periods when it is not suitable to have them on pasture, for example during a wet season, inclement weather, or when it is otherwise undesirable to have cattle or other livestock on pasture (for example, when it is desirable to protect or shield the livestock from direct heat or sunlight). A Redpath stand off shelter may also be used.
Stand-off pads may be constructed of wood/wood chips, metal/lime, or concrete. One disadvantage associated with presently available stand-off pads is in relation to draining. That is, many pads often have poor drainage generally and/or simply allow the effluent to drain into the existing effluent disposal systems such as oxidation ponds, or worse, directly into waterway.
With stand-off pads that do not allow for effluent to be drained or flushed away, the removal of effluent may be difficult, time consuming, and/or require regular attention.
Furthermore, it is found that there are usually problems associated with standing of livestock such as cows on presently available concrete pads (predominantly lameness) and wood chip pads (predominantly mastitis). The effectiveness of wood chip pads is generally found to be dependent upon good management and regular maintenance, involving regularly stripping the old surface and replacing it with new wood chips. This can be both time and cost intensive.
It would be desirable to provide a farming structure such as a stand-off pad with minimal or no effluent discharge or cleaning requirement, and which provided livestock with a safe and healthy environment.
The Redpath Stand-Off shelter when combined with a standoff pad which will go at least some way towards addressing the foregoing problems or which will at least provide farmers with a useful option.
