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Texas dairies strive to be good environmental stewards – they depend on the land, water and air to make a living and to raise a family.

In order to receive permits to operate, dairy farmers must demonstrate they are protecting these natural resources to regulating agencies that oversee the dairy industry, such as the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. These agencies, and others, have extensive rules that must be followed by the dairy industry.

Texas dairy farm practices, in many instances, exceed the standards mandated by environmental regulations. Dairy operators are embracing new technologies that allow them to do their job providing food for Texas with less of an impact on the environment.

Innovative environmental projects underway include:

  • Anaerobic digester – The first phosphorous reduction and methane digester in the country began operating in June 2005 on the farm of a Hamilton County dairy producer. Both solid and liquid dairy waste are sent through the digester in a multi-step process that produces both electricity and compost while reducing phosphorous in the waste stream by about 80 percent. If successful, the model could be replicated on other Texas dairy farms.

  • Water monitoring – The Environmental Monitoring and Response System (EMRS) Water Pilot Project, unveiled in October 2004, provides monitoring for nutrients at four sites in the Leon/Bosque watersheds and relays data to Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) computers in Austin. If specified amounts of certain nutrients are exceeded, electronic notification is sent to TCEQ´s regional office in Stephenville and other interested parties. TCEQ staff then can review the information and decide if an investigation is needed.

  • Composting – Since 2000, the Bosque and Leon River watershed has been home to one of the largest compost incentive programs anywhere. The program´s goal is to transport excess manure out of the two watersheds and deliver it to six nearby composting facilities. The initial goal was to remove 300,000 tons of cow manure from dairy farms within three years – a benchmark exceeded in less than two years. As of May 31, 2005, almost 867,000 tons of manure had been hauled out of the watershed. After processing, the compost is sold as a soil amendment or for erosion control. The Texas Department of Transportation has been the lead buyer.