Purdue News
Purdue News
|
|
August 11, 2000 Davis-Purdue Field Day looks at waste lagoon optionsWEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – When the livestock are gone, what's a farmer to do with the waste lagoon? Purdue University agricultural experts asked themselves that question when they shut down a hog operation at the Davis-Purdue Agricultural Center. They'll share their solution – and others – at the ag center's field day on Aug. 22. The field day runs from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The free event also features crop workshops and a tour of corn and soybean herbicide demonstration plots. Davis-Purdue is located five miles north of Farmland on Indiana 1, in Randolph County. Davis-Purdue staff closed two waste lagoons about a year ago, said Jeff Boyer, the ag center's superintendent. With the help of Purdue agricultural engineers and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM), the lagoons are being turned into freshwater ponds. "We're going to put in dry hydrants so that fire departments can use the water," Boyer said. Don Jones, a Purdue agricultural engineering professor, will discuss waste lagoon closings during a 10 a.m. workshop. He'll be joined by an IDEM representative. "There have been so many livestock farmers go out of business in the last 25 years, and we've got a number of lagoons out there," Jones said. "We need to get some kind of procedure to close these lagoons that is feasible and affordable, as well as environmentally friendly." Jones said he'll present two possibilities: filling in lagoons and reusing the land, or cleaning out the waste pits and converting them into farm ponds. Other field day workshops include "Site Specific Farming: What We Have Learned at the Davis-Purdue Agricultural Center," by Bob Nielsen, Purdue Extension corn specialist; and "Identifying and Controlling Herbicide-Resistant Weeds," by Jeff Stachler, associate weed specialist at the Ohio State University Cooperative Extension Service. Field day visitors can compare the effectiveness of popular herbicides at the herbicide demonstration plots. About 30 corn and 30 soybean demonstration plots will be on display. Those attending can earn continuing education credits in Categories 1A and 10, and in the Certified Crop Advisor program. Herbicide manufacturers are sponsoring a free noon lunch. CONTACTS: Jeff Boyer, (765) 468-7022, jeffb@netdirect.net; Don Jones, (765) 494-1178, jonesd@ecn.purdue.edu. Compiled by Beth Forbes, (765) 494-2722, bforbes@aes.purdue.edu Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
|
