To buy a copy of our advisory 2012 Horse Pasture calendar please visit the Horse Pasture Management Project Calendar page.
This brief guide is intended to provide horse and pony owners and keepers with some basic advice on how to store and dispose of their manure. It will demonstrate how the regulations set down by the Environmental Protection Act of 1990 and the Environmental Permitting Regulations 2007 impact on the way that horse manure should be stored and disposed of. Both the Environment Agency and Local Authorities administer the Act, with the Environment Agency working to ensure that no pollution occurs and local authorities dealing with issues relating to public nuisance. Please be aware that the information on this page is available with pictures as a PDF at the end of the page.
Surrey is a beautiful county, with over 25% having been designated the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and much of the county being of national importance for landscape or nature conservation reasons. Horses and ponies can have an effect on the landscape, and it is up to their owners and keepers to ensure that this effect is a positive one.
The storage and disposal of horse manure impacts on the running of stables and can also affect the visual appearance of a stable yard within the landscape. Neighbours and visitors to the area, such as those on adjacent footpaths and bridleways, may also be affected. A well thought out plan for manure storage and disposal can ensure that the bearing horse manure has on the environment is a positive one. When correctly managed, horse manure is a valuable by-product if it is correctly managed.
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An average horse will produce 20.4 kilos (or 45 pounds) of manure each day, equating to 7.5 tonnes annually! This quantity does not include the addition of soiled stable bedding material. Whilst some manure is dropped onto fields when horses and ponies are turned out, best practice usually involves the collection and removal of droppings from pasture. This assists paddock hygiene (minimising parasite burdens), maximises the grazing potential available from pasture by preventing latrine areas and improves the appearance of the holding.
Stables should be designed to prevent drainage contaminated with manure from entering any watercourse or drain.
Responsible storage is necessary to protect the local environment from the harmful affects that ‘run off’ from manure can have if it is allowed to enter watercourses. Organisms feeding on the effluent will result in an oxygen reducing effect within the water. In addition, eutrophication (the nutrient enrichment of water) encourages the growth of aquatic vegetation, which further reduces the oxygen by respiration, reducing the water’s quality. This has a detrimental impact on wildlife dependent on watercourses. The increased vegetation growth may also impede the flow of water.
Run off may also detrimentally affect hedgerows. The nutrient enrichment will disadvantage the hedge – possibly to the extent of killing it - and encourage the growth of weeds.
Environment Agency guidelines for stables state that the following is mandatory:
As an example of how to ensure that the rules are followed, the Environment Agency offers guidelines for good practice:
A well-constructed manure store must therefore have a concrete base, which slopes to the back of the store (in the absence of a sealed underground tank), and solid sides which will prevent the muck spilling out and contaminating adjacent land. Ideally, the muck should be kept as dry as possible.
Well-composted horse manure can be used as a valuable addition to allotments, gardens and even spread back on the horses’ own fields. Once manure has been composted for twelve months, it is generally accepted that the larvae of harmful parasites will have died.
Practicalities should be considered when siting a muckheap. For example, year-round vehicular access may be required if the manure is to be collected for disposal. The heap will need to be located conveniently for stables, but not so close as to cause horses health problems or a nuisance from flies. Importantly, the location of the heap should be such that it does not cause a nuisance to neighbours or people using public rights of way.
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The issue of disposal of horse waste is a national problem. A certain amount of horse manure has always been composted for use on allotments and private gardens and this practice continues. However, other historical disposal options such as through mushroom growers or farmers are now less available. The decline in the number of farms in the county means there are fewer small farmers with the time or the machinery to remove, compost and dispose of stables’ muck heaps.
For many reasons, including changes in agricultural practices, the majority of horses and ponies are now bedded on materials such as wood shavings, shredded paper, shredded card, and even by-products from hemp. Many of these bedding products do not compost in the same way as straw. Wood shavings, for example, have a high lignin content that slows down their rate of decomposition.
As with most waste, important legislation now controls the disposal of horse waste and for many stables, disposal incurs a financial cost.
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Classification of manure as a waste depends upon how it is utilised:
Where horse manure is being used as a fertiliser on any land (such as grazing, agricultural farms, allotments or private gardens etc.) for benefit, it is not treated as controlled waste. A permit or exemption under the Environmental Permitting Regulations is not required to store or spread the manure as a fertiliser on the premises where it was produced, or at another premises. Neither is a waste transfer note or waste carrier registration required for the movement of manure that is to be used as a fertiliser. However, it should be emphasised that the application of manure to land must be of benefit and that proper management is still required: land applications must not cause pollution or harm. This will involve complying with legal controls such as the Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ) Action Programme, Groundwater Regulations and Water Resources Act. The Code of Good Agricultural Practice, written by Defra and Natural England, should also be followed. More information can be found on Defra's website. This incorporates guidance such as making allowance for the available nitrogen, total phosphate and total potash in manures, when working out fertiliser requirements.
If manure produced at a private, agricultural or commercial stables is disposed of by burning, tipping or burial or mixed with other wastes, then it is classed as a 'Controlled Waste' and subject to Environmental Permitting Regulations. Waste becomes ‘controlled’ where:
Where waste is controlled (i.e. it is not to be used as a fertiliser and is discarded), it is subject to regulation under the Environment Protection Act 1990 and Environmental Permitting Regulations 2007. The permitting regime and 'Duty of Care' etc. apply. Exemptions can be made – subject to complying with the requirements of the Environmental Permitting Regulations - and registered with the Environment Agency. In short, you cannot be exempt if there is a risk of pollution or if a nuisance is caused. Contravention of the regulations constitutes a criminal offence and could lead to heavy penalty upon conviction. Pollution of 'Controlled Waters' is regulated under the Water Resources Act 1991.
The open burning of manure as a controlled waste is an offence under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and Clean Air Act, 1993. Effluent leaching from large manure piles can have serious pollution implications, also prosecutable under the Environmental Protection Act, 1990, the Groundwater Regulations 1998 and the Water Resources Act 1991.
Anyone who keeps horses and ponies producing manure classified as Controlled Waste has a ‘Duty of Care’ to ensure that their horse manure is stored and disposed of correctly. The Environment Agency regulations state:
The best way for horse or pony owners to manage their manure is to compost it in a properly constructed manure store and use it as a fertiliser. If the manure cannot be used at the site of origin, options for manure to be used elsewhere as a fertiliser should be investigated, e.g. at allotment sites.
Horse manure is a valuable by-product. Proper handling will prevent manure from causing environmental harm or causing concern to other users of the county. Horse owners can help to create a positive image of their activities by handling and storing manure as considerately and inoffensively as possible.
Visit the Environment Agencywebpages for detailed waste information.
The advice note is also available to download in PDF format below.
Manure storage and disposal advice
http://www.surreycc.gov.uk/?a=201656
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