Problem Solving Topic Outline

You live in the small Catskill town of Fontanalis in the New York City watershed. The region has economic difficulty due to the lack of business, low population, and limited access. Dairy farming used to be the basis of a strong economy. In 1970 there were 25 farms in the township surrounding Fontanalis; now only one remains, the farm of Bill Jordan.

Bill Jordan is the son of a farmer, who is the son of a farmer, who is the son of a farmer. In fact Bill's family has lived on this farm for 175 years. Bill hopes that his son, Jed, will take over the farm when Bill is ready to retire.

The Jordans milk 50 cows, and they have 15 heifers (young cows) and 10 calves under six months old. Two small streams, Blueberry Brook and a smaller, unnamed stream, run through the farm. Bill's grand-dad Caleb Jordan, who first settled the valley, selected this site for the soil fertility and for the abundance of water. Having a stream adjacent to the barn was a great advantage in 1823, when Caleb purchased the land.

Today this location is cause for concern, due to the fact that the barnyard area accumulates high levels of manure which is transported to the Blueberry by rain water. Another concern is that the herd must cross Blueberry Brook to reach the pastures across the stream. Stream disturbance, stream bank erosion, and manure entering the stream raise environmental concerns about farming here today. There are 3,000 feet of stream bank to which the cows have access.

Blueberry Brook is a tributary of Cranberry Creek. Cranberry Creek empties into New York City's Cannonsville Reservoir. New York City water quality is the highest of any of the world's major cities. Retaining water quality is a concern of city water supply officials. To further protect water supply, city officials began discussions with the agricultural communities and other community members of the watershed in 1990. In the resulting agreement, the city will fund a program to help farmers make changes in their operations, thereby protecting the water supply and helping farms to be more profitable. This Whole Farm Planning program has become a national standard recognized by farmers and environmentalists.

Volunteer farmers work in conjunction with agricultural specialists to produce the Whole Farm Plan which addresses eleven pollutant categories commonly encountered on farms. Recommendations of the plan are completed with all costs being paid by New York City.

Each of the plan components is called a Best Management Practice (BMP). For example, fencing animals away from streams is a BMP. Barnyard changes to exclude water is a BMP. A list of the most commonly recommended BMPs is in this packet. Most BMPs have a cost associated with implementation; these costs are included as well.

Your team is asked to recommend BMPs that will both help protect Blueberry Brook and make the Jordan farm more profitable. The problems associated with environmental issues are listed below on a priority basis. Although all eleven items are important, number ten, Fuel Storage, is not as likely to be an environmental threat as number one, Parasites and Phosphorus.

The following is a discussion of some of the environmental categories of concern for the Jordan farm and all farms in the New York City watershed.

1) Parasites and Phosphorus - Animal waste storage.

Water supplies may become contaminated with Cryptosporidium or Giardia. Both cause intestinal illness in humans. Many mammals including beaver, deer, mice, humans, and cattle host these parasites. Research underway at Cornell University indicates that in cattle, the parasite is only found in calves during their first six months of life. Mature cattle seldom host these parasites.

Parasites are assigned the highest priority due to the consequences of water supply contamination. In 1993, Milwaukee's filtered water supply was contaminated and nearly 100,000 citizens were infected. About 100 people with compromised immune systems died as a result.

Remedy: Protect calves' health. Separate calves from other animals. Keep calf manure away from water. House calves in hutches or greenhouse to maintain isolation and protect health.

Associated cost: $1,000 per calf.

2) Pesticides - Storage facilities, handling areas. Remedy: Provide approved storage and handling areas. Associated cost, storage facility $1,200.

3) Phosphorus - Fertilizer storage.

4) Animal and Manure management for phosphorus.

Remedy: Provide storage area for manure until it can be used on fields. Provide the farmer with a manure-spreading plan to ensure that manure is only applied to those fields requiring fertilizer.

5) Nutrients - Concentrated sources.

6) Nutrients Management - Provide plan to minimize the amount of feed purchased.

7) Sediment - Diffuse. Provide plan to minimize erosion from plowed fields. Strip cropping, crop rotation, diversion.

Remedy: Crop rotation initially to start corn 3 yr., hay 6 yr. May have to buy more grain.

8) Sediment - Concentrated. Protect areas such as farm road. Gully erosion, barnyard, etc.

9) Pesticides - Dairy farms use few pesticides. The most commonly used are herbicides to prevent weed growth in corn fields.

Remedy: Farm planners recommend that corn be planted away from water courses. This BMP serves two purposes: keeping the herbicide away from the water and preventing diffuse sediment.

10) Fuel storage - Diesel fuel and gasoline needed to operate machinery are stored on farms to allow uninterrupted operation. Should a fuel tank for any reason leak, fuel reaching water or soil would have serious effects on the environment.

Remedy: Provide fuel storage tank and site which will protect the soil and water if tank leakage or spillage occurs. Associated cost $1,000.

11) Other Material - Any other substances which may be found on the farm. This item allows for agricultural best management practices which may be developed in the future.

Fencing the stream and building a stream crossing would allow the herd to cross while protecting the water and stream banks. If this is done, a watering area must be created for the herd. The pasture has several areas that are constantly wet. By developing one of these areas for watering, the cattle wouldn't need stream access.

As the farm planning team, you are to recommend a plan which will assist the Jordans to operate their farm in ways which provide better water protection. Your team should prepare a plan which prioritizes the environmental issues and recommends suitable best management practices to minimize environmental impact. The plan must also help the farm remain profitable.

The amount of money that may be spent on a farm is determined by the pollution threat and by the number of animals on that farm. Since smaller animals such as sheep produce less waste than cows, a method is used to compensate. One animal unit is 1,000 pounds of animal(s). A typical dairy cow weighs 1,200 pounds, therefore each dairy cow equals 1.2 animal units. Heifers, which are young cows, typically weigh 800 pounds or 0.8 animal units. A 150-pound sheep is 0.15 animal units.

You may make additional recommendations to protect water quality and to improve the economic viability of the Jordan farm. The maps provided show various information about the farm (which parts are forested, which are pasture, topography, soils types, etc.) that will help you determine which environmental concerns are the most relevant.

General Information:

50 dairy cows
15 replacement heifers
10 calves under 6 months of age
Farm has limited rotational grazing

Environmental Problems:

Cows have access to entire stream
Potential for high nutrient runoff on steeper slopes
Excessive phosphorous on fields close to barn
Fuel tank leaking
Milkhouse waste enters road ditch
Wet seeps breaking out of soil in three areas
Continuous corn on two fields

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