An Incentive for Adopting Best Management Practices for the Application of Manure to Land

Abstract

Although federal and state regulations have greatly reduced pollutants from concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), pollutants from manure applications on land continue to impair water quality. Producers of confined animals not regulated as CAFOs have few incentives to adopt practices to minimize pollution. Given contamination from these producers, regulators might develop a plan to encourage practices to reduce contaminants entering waters. This paper proposes an incentive to encourage farmers to employ best management practices in the application of manure to lands. Farmers who fail to employ acceptable manure application measures would be disqualified from the state’s anti-nuisance defense. In this manner, a government could reduce pollutants from manure applications thereby improving water quality.