Callaway Livestock Producers
Environmental Protection Plan

Mark Stewart
University Outreach and Extension, University of Missouri

County Situation

Callaway County is located in central Missouri, and has the Missouri River as its southern border. Of the 539,000 total acres in the county, 339,372 acres are in farms. The 1992 agriculture census indicates there are 1,300 farms in the county. According to the 1990 state census, county population is 33,700 with 22,457 of the county population living on farms or in rural subdivisions and towns.

Rural, non-farm population (rural) is increasing in the county due to large number of people desiring to live in a rural setting while commuting to work in nearby cities. In 1980, 57.8% of the county population (18,655) lived in rural areas. By 1990, 22,457 people were living in rural areas (68.4% of the population). Total population had increased 1.7% in ten years, while rural population increased by 20.4%.

Although the rural population is increasing, the number of agriculture-related jobs continues to decrease. In 1990, 3.7% of the county population was employed in agriculture-related occupations. Private, non-farm employment in Callaway County provides jobs for 8,482 people. Additional non-farm employment opportunities exist in three adjoining counties.

To the south, Cole County is home of Jefferson City, the state capital. Jefferson City, part of which now extends into Callaway County, has a population of more than 35,000. Numerous opportunities exist for both public and private sector employment. Audrain County to the north has a large industrial employment base which is within commuting distance for many Callaway County residents. To the west is Boone County. Along with being the county seat, Columbia is the host to three colleges and universities. The University of Missouri - Columbia, Columbia College and Stephens College provide many employment opportunities.

The employment opportunities outlined above are responsible for most of the growth in the county's rural population. Most of these new residents are one or more generations removed from the farm. These residents expect rolling green pastures with the occasional cow or horse. Odors from confinement livestock operations or from winter feeding areas are neither expected nor understood. These 'quality of life' concerns are bringing rural residents into conflict with livestock producers.

Agricultural income in Callaway County is more than $38,609,000 per annum. Livestock receipts account for 53% of this income. In 1992, out of 1,300 farms, 877 had beef cattle, 153 had swine, and 27 had dairy cattle. The number of beef operations has remained fairly constant since 1992; however, the number of swine and dairy operations has decreased. The national trend of farms growing larger holds true in Callaway County as well.

While the number of swine and dairy farms has decreased, the number of dairy cattle and swine produced in the county has grown since 1992. These larger operations and the possibilities of increased odors and environment hazards have the rural population concerned. Several communities in the county have organized groups functioning to fight the expansion/increase of large swine production enterprises in the county.

In July of 1996, two other local producers contacted the extension office to express their concern about this situation and the way this problem was developing in the county. They were interested in forming a rapid response group to help contain any spill of livestock manure. They hoped to improve the reputation of livestock producers in the county by showing their readiness to act in the case of an emergency.

These two producers became the nucleus of a steering committee to look at livestock production and environmental issues in the county. At the first committee meeting, the members identified their main objectives as:

• Improved planning for environmental protection by confinement livestock producers
• Improving the relationship between livestock producers and the rural population - through improved environmental stewardship

They chose to do this, first, by actively planning to prevent future problems and second, by informing the rural population of their actions and plans.

Program Execution:

The vehicle the farmers developed to improve environmental protection planning is the Callaway Livestock Producers Environmental Protection Plan (CLPEPP). The CLPEPP program encompasses both a prevention planning process and a rapid response plan. Both roles stress proactive planning by livestock producers and require producers to acknowledge the possible effects their livestock operation may have on neighbors.

To inform rural, non-farm residence, an aggressive media plan was outlined by the committee. The plan included contacting the three county newspapers with a request for a feature piece, articles in the state pork producers' magazine, state cattlemen's magazine, and the Rural Missouri magazine (a publication of the state wide electric power cooperative association).

The CLPEPP committee decided upon the following program execution outline:

1. Conduct an informational/survey meeting for livestock producers and interested rural residents to inform them of the CLPEPP idea and get their input.
   1. Survey the groups for interest (both livestock producers and rural residents)
   2. Break the large group into smaller work groups and ask to provide input to various parts of the plan.
      
2. Produce a planning document which would assist producers in reviewing their waste management plan
   1. Plans would include efforts to reduce odors and prevent spills and runoff.
   2. Plans would identify geographic and topographic features which could serve as conduits for runoff.
      
3. Use information from the survey meeting to produce an emergency response plan outline which producers would each expand upon for their individual operations.
   1. This would include working with the county Emergency Operations Center (EOC)(911) and Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) to ensure that each producer's
      response plan is realistic and workable.
   2. Produce and/or assemble information to be placed in a "planning packet" supplied to each participating producer.
      
4. Conduct a second public meeting where the finished plan would be presented to livestock producers and rural residents to find out if it would meet their needs. Arrange for the National Pork Producers' Environmental Assurance Certification program to be presented in the county.
1. Make media contacts and prepare a public information blitz
2. Assist producers in writing and filing plans with the county EOC.
3. Report through local media the numbers of producers completing and filing plans with the EOC.

The activities undertaken in the program directly addressed both environmental quality and improvement of the livestock producers' image in the county. The general public was informed of the producers' efforts by both the media plan and by presentations given in two communities in the county for groups composed of concerned rural residents.

At the end of this paper is the spill response flow chart developed by the planning committee, the county commission and the EOC. The entire planning document which the producers completed can be found on the Internet at: http://outreach.missouri.edu/cmregion/planning.htm

To date, eight swine and two dairy producers have plans on file with the EOC. These producers represent approximately 65 percent of the swine produced in Callaway county and 70 percent of the dairy cattle in the county. In addition, four additional swine producers have requested packets to fill out their plan. When these plans are completed, operations producing over eighty-five percent of the swine and eighty percent of the milk in the county will be represented in the program.

Information on the CLPEPP program has been shared with community groups who expressed a concern about commercial livestock production operations and their effect on the water and air quality in the county. As a result of these efforts, two local citizens' groups have contacted extension or the CLPEPP committee for a follow up report on the livestock producers efforts. One group has visited with the county commission, indicating they approve of the efforts, the direction taken and the participation of the county EOC. The Callaway County Commission received recognition from the Missouri Association of County Commissions for their efforts in working with the group and providing support through the EOC.

Request for information on CLPEPP are coming in form other counties in Missouri. The state cattleman's and pork producers are using CLPEPP as an example other areas of the state may want to emulate. To date, seven other counties have requested information on the program. Members of the CLPEPP committee or I have gotten the information to the other groups and discussed with them how the committee and plan have operated in Callaway county. Additionally, North Carolina and Iowa extension has expressed some interest in the program.

The CLPEPP effort would not have succeeded with out the support and assistance of the following organizations and agencies.

• Callaway Livestock Producers Association
• Callaway County Emergency Operations Center
• Missouri Pork Producers Association
• Natural Resources Conservation Service
• Missouri Department of Natural Resources
• Missouri Department of Conservation
• University Outreach and Extension, University of Missouri

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