Manure Use and Management: Glossary

Terms you need to know for Worksheet #8:

Application: Addition of manure to soil.

Application methods: Methods, rates of addition, and frequency of adding wastes to agricultural land that are required by BMPs.

Best Management Practices (BMPs): Nitrogen pollution minimization goals for regulated animal feeding operations. Methods, measures, or practices to prevent or reduce nitrogen pollution discharges. They include structural and nonstructural controls and operation and maintenance procedures. BMPs may be applied before, during, and after discharges to reduce or eliminate the introduction of pollutants into receiving waters.

Biosolids: Means sewage sludge, including exceptional quality biosolids, placed on or applied to land as a soil amendment, conditioner, or fertilizer.

Crop plant needs: Amount of water and nitrogen required to meet the physiological demands of the crop plant to achieve a defined yield.

Cropland: Land that is planted and harvested with crops or improved pasture. Land suitable for manure application is referred to as "available cropland."

Cumulative pollutant loading rate: Refers to the maximum amount of a pollutant that can ever be applied to a land application site.

Exceptional quality biosolids Biosolids that meet state-mandated pollutant concentrations, pathogen reduction, and vector attraction reduction requirements.

Guidance Practices (GPs): Technical practices used to achieve BMPs.

Incorporation: Mixing of manure and soil after application, usually to a depth of 4-9 inches.

Liquid manure: Manure with a moisture content over 90% (less than 10% dry matter). When well agitated, liquid manure will flow and can be pumped or moved by gravity.

Manure nutrient value: Nutrient content of manure. Primary nutrients contained in manure and available for use by crops are nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P), and potassium (K).

Manure: Animal feces and urine plus materials such as bedding and water.

Manure testing: Laboratory analysis of a sample of manure for dry matter, nitrogen (N), phosphorous (P), potassium (K), and other nutrients.

Organic waste: Any biological source of nutrients for crop production, such as manure, sewage sludge, septic tank sludge, industrial by-products, food processing wastes, milk parlor wastewater, silo seepage, and composted materials.

Solid manure: Manure that usually has added bedding, will not flow, and can be stacked and handled by any equipment able to move bulk materials, such as a front end loader.

Spill: Any accidental or unintentional loss of a material that has potential to harm the environment. This includes any loss from storage or transportation, or from application other than at the correct application rates, and on suitable sites.

Waste management plan: Written management plan to handle farm wastes in a way that does not damage the environment. The plan should include manure and soil testing, proper application rates, and an emergency action plan in case of spills or system failures.

Wastewater sludge: Solid portion of used water from a community, including industry, that flows to a treatment plant where it is separated out from the water during processing.

Arizona
Dept. of
Agriculture