The Delaware Nutrient Management Commission

The Delaware Nutrient Management Commission

Minutes of the Full Commission Meeting Held December 14, 2010

In attendance:

Commission Members
Present / Others Present
B. Vanderwende, Chair / B. Angstadt / R. Finocchiaro / W. Hudson
D. Baker, Vice Chair / B. Bradford / K. Foskey / W. Powell
M. Adkins / K. Bunting-Howarth / R. Freeman / C. Roberts
R. Baldwin / T. Crenshaw / T. Garrahan / W. Rohrer
K. Blessing / B. Coleman / D. Glass / R. Underwood
N. Callaway
J. Elliott
L. Hill
T. Keen
L. Lee
B. O’Neill
C. Solberg
R. Sterling
S. Webb / Ex-officios Present
J. Llewellyn / E. Kee / D. Ormond
Commission Members
Absent / D. Small / L. Towle

This meeting was properly notified and posted as required by law.

Call to Order/Welcome:

Chairman B. Vanderwende called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. and welcomed everyone in attendance.

Approval of Minutes:

J. Elliott motioned to approve the minutes from the November 09, 2010 Full Commission Meeting.

M. Adkins seconded the motion which passed unanimously.

Discussion and Action Items:

Fertilizer Tonnage Report (Teresa Crenshaw)

Chairman Vanderwende introduced Teresa Crenshaw, who had provided the Commissioners with a handout (a copy of which is attached to the original minutes). Ms. Crenshaw works for the Delaware Department of Agriculture as the Agricultural Compliance Officer, and is charged with the administration of the Delaware Commercial Fertilizer and Soil Conditioner Law. The law is responsible for mandating the labeling of fertilizer products.

·  Companies must register their products and pay a registration fee before offering them for sale in the State of Delaware.

o  The registration fee is supplemented by a requirement that fertilizer manufacturers report the number of tons of product that they distribute within the State.

·  They report on a semi-annual basis, and products are reported for packages weighing over 10 lbs.

o  Products weighing less than 10 lbs. do not have to report tonnage, but the manufacturers pay a higher registration fee for them.

·  The Agricultural Compliance Office employs an inspector who canvasses the marketplace in search of unregistered products to ensure a level playing field for all fertilizer manufacturers.

The report contained the following data:

·  Delaware fertilizer tonnage by County.

o  FY 2009 total tonnage of 109,180 was down significantly from 138,706 in FY 2008

·  Delaware farm and non-farm fertilizer tonnage.

o  Of the 109,180 total tonnage for FY 2009, 95,798 was farm tonnage (agricultural use).

o  Of the 109,180 total tonnage for FY 2009, 13,382 was non-farm tonnage (lawn & garden, etc.).

·  Delaware farm and non-farm fertilizer tonnage by County.

o  Data was provided for FY 2007, FY 2008, and FY 2009.

·  Delaware fertilizer nutrient tonnage (nitrogen, phosphate, and potash).

o  This data represents fertilizer sold in Delaware, not necessarily what has been land applied.

o  Nutrient tonnage is down from FY 2008.

·  FY 2008 and FY 2009 Delaware nutrient tons by County.

o  This data represents the County where fertilizer was sold, not necessarily where it has been applied.

·  This report encompasses fertilizer manufactured out of state, but sold in Delaware.

·  This report encompasses major retailers such as Lowes, Home Depot, etc.

o  Lowes and those types of retailers do not report, but their tonnage is reported by manufacturers that sold the fertilizers to them.

The report is late this year, as this report is generally brought to the Commission around the month of March or April. The data within this report is for Fiscal Year 2009, which begins in July 2008, and goes through June 2009. She is almost ready to report FY 2010 tonnage, and that data should be presented within the next few months.

Ms. Crenshaw had also provided the Commissioners with a 2010 Manure Testing Program handout (a copy of which is attached to the original minutes). She discussed the following:

·  The Agricultural Compliance Section lab opened in 2002, and was charged with the testing of animal manures for residents of the State of Delaware at no charge.

·  The lab provides a full range of analysis.

o  See the handout filed with the original minutes for a full listing of tests provided.

·  The lab participates in the Manure Analysis Proficiency (MAP) Program administered by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.

o  More information about the Program can be found at http://www2.mda.state.mn.us/webapp/lis/manurelabs.jsp.

·  The Compliance lab is certified for 2010, and will be certified for 2011.

·  For Calendar Year 2009, the lab processed 800 manure samples, 584 which were poultry manure.

o  The average turnaround time was 14 days (which does include weekends).

·  Research samples (such as for the University of Delaware and others) numbered 152.

o  Because these are larger samples often in triplicate, they typically take longer than 14 days to process.

Chairman Vanderwende thanked Ms. Crenshaw for her presentation.

Update of CAFO Implementation Process

Chairman Vanderwende introduced Larry Towle, who provided the following:

He had given the Commissioners a handout (a copy of which is attached to the original minutes).

·  This handout shows the current number of CAFOs located within Delaware, as well as any information received from them.

A letter had been sent to all CAFO holders stating that the Program needs a Notice of Intent (NOI), along with a nutrient management plan that meets current standards.

·  The letter provided a check box which designated that a Certified Plan Writer is working on the plan to be submitted sometime in the future.

·  There has been some response to the letter.

·  Due to staffing concerns, a letter has not been sent to CAFOs that are incomplete; that process should start in January or February.

·  The Program could meet the February 9 deadline for having all CAFOs in; they just may not be complete.

o  There is an 18-month implementation period, so by June 2012, all CAFOs should be complete.

·  After the last consultants meeting in Georgetown, a suggestion was made to put the PowerPoint presentation on the website; that has been done so anyone can go to the Nutrient Management website and view the regulatory dates and deadlines, and view an outline of the CAFO process.

Update of Chesapeake Bay TMDL & Delaware Watershed Implementation Program (WIP)

Chairman Vanderwende introduced Secretary Kee, who provided the following report:

Jen Volk came to the Commission some time back and provided an update of the process.

The draft WIP was submitted in early September; EPA said it was deficient;.

·  Since the end of September, there has been tremendous input from farmers and others to develop the WIP plan.

The final draft was submitted on November 29, and they are awaiting EPAs final ruling on the WIP.

·  EPA will communicate their findings at the end of December.

Numerically, putting the data through the Model, the new WIP does meet the target goals.

The issue then becomes reasonable assurance; is the Plan strong enough that the processes are in place to support reaching those goals, and that the goals are realistic.

Secretary Kee went on to say that the Washington Post and some other publications have printed articles where the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and other environmental groups have somehow done the analysis in very short order and have said that the new WIPs are problematic. “I will go on record, and I think that is totally inappropriate on their part. I think they are tampering with the process; they’re trying to sway the process by pandering to this situation; trying to sway EPA. I wrote an email to EPA asking them to disregard such premature conclusions and hopefully they will do the process with due diligence, based on good science.”

Kathy Bunting-Howarth added that they have been having meetings with EPA and that she has received a few emails, and she anticipates the original Administrator reaching out sometime after the holiday toward the end of the year. She believes that everything is going to turn out okay.

L. Towle provided the Commissioners with an email that had been forwarded to him. He has also received some information that compares the gaps between the EPA data and the USDA data; he will email it to anyone that has interest in reading it.

Earlier in the evening during their meeting, the Technology Subcommittee made a commitment that they would work with DNREC, DDA, and NRCS to look at the list of BMPs that are suggested and to help in a collaborative way to ensure that submitted data for the 2010 progress report is good and accurate data which really reflects what is going on out there.

Currently, the Program staff consists of Larry Towle, Bob Coleman, and Judy Baines. DDA has advertised for, and has received a number of applications for an Environmental Scientist position. There were 46 applicants, and 26 met the requirements; a decision will be made and a group consisting of some Commissioners and Larry Towle will conduct interviews. That position should be filled in January, or by February at the latest. There is a commitment from 319 funding to hire another person on a 12-month contract, they are optimistic that the contract will be renewable for some time. There is also a sharing of employees from other sections within the Department; one of which is Mark Davis. He has committed some time to the Nutrient Management Program in general, as well as the contributions he continues to make to the CAFO program. Secretary Kee cannot say that staffing will satisfy EPA, but it has been well received.

Discussion of University of Delaware Manure Stockpiling Research Project

L. Towle provided the following:

The Commissioners were provided with a letter from Greg Binford (a copy of which is attached to the original minutes).

It is a brief summary of the project being conducted in Delmar on land owned by Wayne Horsey.

The University is comparing stockpiling that is proven through science and several years ago approved by the Commission to putting the manure in ag bags, which is done in other parts of the country.

Mr. Horsey has sent a letter asking that the 90-day outdoor storage regulation be waived based on research being conducted.

It will be moved when University of Delaware has finished their research on that farm, sometime in the spring.

·  Delaware Farm Bureau has asked for the Commission’s cooperation in this matter.

J. Elliott motioned that Larry Towle write the necessary letter to have the 90-day stockpile regulation waived in this instance.

D. Baker seconded the motion.

Secretary Kee is concerned that local wildlife has wreaked havoc with ag bags. He is asking for an amended motion that approval be given contingent upon Larry and one or two other Commission members going down to look at it. He is getting some drastic descriptions of the experiment, although he hasn’t seen it. He thinks it would be a mistake to approve something that may not produce data, and then the Commission has approved 150 days for storage and may receive a lot of criticism for it. He has no problem with the intent of the study, and so forth; he just thinks it would be prudent to take a look at it. The pile originated approximately 30 days ago, so the Commission will wait until January when they’ve had a chance to conduct a farm visit.

·  B. Vanderwende attests to the fact that there are some problems with the bags; even with plastic-wrapped hay bales. The plastic bags are maybe 6-mils., but they may be 8.

·  J. Elliott said that this basically came from the University of Arkansas, and he wonders if they had the same wildlife problem. He asked that possibly they could get more information before the January meeting.

·  C. Solberg confirmed that the uncovered pile would meet all other statutory requirements.

The motion was tabled until January, after some members of the Commission can look at the farm.

Final Vote on Certification Regulations

Larry Towle provided:

The Commission voted on and approved the Nutrient Management Certification regulations in October. There were changes made to the regulations so that they mirror the CAFO regulations; staging in the field for 90 days instead of 120 days. The changes to the regulations were advertised and there were no comments received. Tonight, he is asking for a final vote of approval on those regulations so that they can be final in January 2011.

R. Baldwin motioned that the Commission vote to approve the final Nutrient Management Certification regulations.

J. Elliott seconded the motion which passed unanimously.

Chairman Vanderwende asked previous Program Administrator, Bill Rohrer, to come to the front of the room. Mr. Rohrer was presented with a plaque, read into the record by Chairman Vanderwende: “The Delaware Nutrient Management Commission in recognition of William R. Rohrer Jr. Program Administrator, in appreciation for your dedication and service to the Commission, December 1999 to April 2010.” Mr. Rohrer received applause and thanked Mr. Vanderwende for the recognition.

Administrator’s Report:

L. Towle outlined the Administrator’s Report (a copy of which is attached to the original minutes).

There was a complaint received via the website dealing with application of manure west of Wyoming. B. Coleman has contacted the party that conducted the application, and there will be further investigation later this week. EPA was the group that filed the complaint, and Mr. Towle will respond to the EPA and will report on the status of the complaint at next month’s meeting. The complaint was brought forth on December 2nd, but it dealt with statutory issues other than the timing of application.

Subcommittee Reports:

T. Keen provided the following report of the Technology Subcommittee meeting held earlier this evening:

·  Secretary Kee already covered most of the meeting.

·  The Subcommittee will meet twice a month in order to obtain more accurate data to submit for the Chesapeake Bay Model.