There are a variety of dangerous situations and accidents that can occur on a farm. The National Safety Council rates the three most dangerous occupations in the United States as mining, farming and construction. Not being prepared for emergencies could result in personal injury, property damage and environmental damage on the farm and in the larger community.

–Can you determine the cause of the spill or discharge?
–If appropriate, were signs present of the condition before the accident occurred?

•Contact the appropriate agencies:

–When were local and state agencies contacted (record the day, hour and minute), notifying them of the spill?
–Did a representative of the state water quality agency or health department respond to the notification? List names, titles, and agencies.
–Did state or local representatives give you any “special” instructions?

Creating a community response plan
When an emergency arises, you may need the assistance of neighboring farmers, fire departments or other county services. Consider who in the community (producers, farmers or community services) owns equipment that may be locally available for use in the event of a manure spill. Large equipment or custom services that may be necessary to respond to and clean up a manure spill include earth moving equipment, generators, pumps, tanker wagons, irrigation equipment and dump trucks.

Also, in a an emergency, you may want permission to access neighboring property if there is a chance to stop a spill from reaching surface waters.  ANM

References omitted but are available upon request at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

—Excerpt from “Small Farm Nutrient Management Primer”