Karl Blankenship
ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Joe Glick knew he had a problem. Cows were producing manure on his farm in Lancaster County, PA, but there was no secure place to hold it, which became evident with each downpour.
“We had been dumping our manure out back on a pile,” said Glick, a member of the Plain Sect community. “Every time it rained, you could see manure leachate going out in the field and down the road.”
But fixing the problem was not cheap, especially for a small dairy farm when milk prices have been low — Glick’s farm can handle only about 60 cows, and he said he is getting about a third less for the milk they produce than just last year.
As a result, he said, addressing the issue was “a big bite to do myself.”
That’s when the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay stepped in to help. Using money from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Most Effective Basin program and other sources, it helped install a $100,000 suite of improvements that keep the manure covered and have improved the local stream.
On July 25, state and federal officials gathered at Glick’s farm to announce a $23 million infusion into the Most Effective Basin program, which steers money toward areas of the Chesapeake Bay watershed that have the greatest impact on water quality.
That’s an increase from the $8 million that went into the program last year.
About 60% of the funding, or $14.3 million, is going toward projects in Pennsylvania, which sends more water-fouling nutrients to the Bay than any other state, mostly originating in animal manure and fertilizer. Tweaks to the program aim to streamline distribution of the funds to agencies and organizations to get projects on the ground faster.
The Pennsylvania challenge is difficult because it has about 38,000 farms in the Bay watershed, far more than any other state and most, like Glick’s, are small and operate on tight financial margins.
“[With] the amount of work and sweat equity that they put into keeping these farms viable to feed their families, and to feed all of us, it’s a tremendous challenge,” said Adam Ortiz, administrator of the EPA’s Mid-Atlantic region, which includes most of the Bay watershed. “They are willing to do something for conservation, but they could use a little help, a little guidance, and some resources to do so.”
To reduce runoff and protect the local stream, the project on Glick’s farm included constructing a covered manure stacking area to hold dry manure and allow it to compost while protecting it from the elements. In addition, about three acres were planted to create forested stream buffers, and fencing was installed to protect wetlands along the stream.
To help pay for the work, the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay drew on funding from the Most Effective Basin program, along with funding from the state Department of Environmental Protection and from Land O’Lakes, which purchases Glick’s milk.
“Environmentally, it’s definitely a good thing,” Glick said. And, he added, instead of running off the land, the composted manure is becoming a valuable soil amendment.
Pennsylvania and the Bay region as a whole are behind in meeting their 2025 goals for reducing nutrient pollution in the Chesapeake. But the officials who gathered for the event, which included U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA); state Sen. Scott Martin (R-Lancaster); Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Rich Negrin; and Pennsylvania Farm Bureau President Chris Hoffman, said recent funding increases at the state and federal level will accelerate progress.
“We’re trending in the right direction,” Negrin said. “We’re not where we want to be, but we’re certainly headed in the right way.”
The funding announced at the event is part of about $238 million from the infrastructure bill that is expected to go toward Bay water quality and habitat projects, regionwide, over five years.
“It’s the largest ever investment made by the federal government in the restoration of our local waters in this region,” Ortiz said. “That’s a big deal.”