A petition demanding tighter rules for the safe handling of manure is gaining support in southern Alberta.
Initiated by Ed Malmberg, of Picture Butte, the petition is circulating throughout the Lethbridge area. It has 700 signatures so far. Lethbridge Liberal MLA Ken Nicol plans to present it to the provincial government in February.
The petition asks that all spread manure be plowed into the ground within 24 hours and that all liquid manure be incorporated into the ground immediately.
The provincial code of practice governing safe manure management recommends manure be incorporated within 48 hours.
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Concerned about water
The Picture Butte area has a high concentration of feedlots, dairy, hog and poultry farms. People living in the area want the manure incorporated quickly to prevent air and water pollution. There is concern in the region that feedlot runoff ends up in irrigation canals or rivers and contaminates water supplies.
Malmberg said he is pressuring the government for stricter rules because he wants improvements for the next generation.
“I’m 66 years old. I’ve had cancer and I’ve got nothing to lose,” he said in a phone interview. He is also concerned the large amounts of manure in the area could cause disease in humans and cattle.
Proper management
“This is an industry that has to be looked after properly or they will have a disease that will ruin them,” Malmberg said.
“An infection does not need a visa to come into this country.”
He doesn’t fault all producers, but feels a few are careless and don’t spread manure properly.
As the opposition agriculture critic, Nicol said the province has to initiate an environmental impact study of intensive livestock operations that takes into account geographic and climatic differences.
Each assessment is now based on individual farms and done by each municipality, and there is no mechanism to trigger a broad-based review, said Nicol. A study could also set new guidelines for acceptable concentrations of farms in a region.
“We want an objective study that is not a threat,” said Nicol.
