Nutrient management
Resources on managing manure, biosolids and other organic material, including siting, storage, handling, anaerobic digestion and more.
Overview
The resources on this page help you understand how to properly manage your manure, biosolids and other agricultural and non-agricultural source materials.
The information on this page is based on the rules in the Nutrient Management Act, 2002 and O. Reg. 267/03.
Properly managing nutrients will help you maximize their value to your farm operation.
Agricultural source materials include:
- manure
- other on-farm generated materials (such as washwaters and runoff)
Non-agricultural source materials include:
- sewage biosolids
- washwater from food processors
- pulp and paper mill biosolids
General resources
AgriSuite
AgriSuite is a suite of free online tools. The tools can help you determine the best way to store, treat and use materials on your farm.
Depending on the information you enter into AgriSuite, it can create nutrient management strategies and plans to show you how to meet your obligations under the Nutrient Management Act, 2002.
Best management practice books
Browse through and download the PDF for a variety of how-to guides on sustainable agriculture and rural living.
Nutrient management strategy and plans
If you are applying for a building permit for a farm with livestock numbers that are 5 nutrient units or greater, you must submit an approved nutrient management strategy.
If your farm has livestock numbers with 300 nutrient units or greater, you must also have a nutrient management plan.
More information about these plans is found in:
- When farms need a nutrient management strategy, nutrient management plan or non-agricultural source material plan
- How to calculate nutrient units for livestock and poultry
Siting
The Nutrient Management Act, 2002 has rules about where new and expanding facilities are located.
Learn about the requirements around the facility’s relation to sensitive features (such as wells and surface water) and neighbouring land uses (such as houses and schools).
- Minimum Distance Separation (MDS) guidelines
- Siting requirements for permanent nutrient storage facilities
- Building permit requirements to construct, expand or renovate farm buildings
Engineering and design
Your manure and nutrient storage facilities must have enough capacity for your farm operation and protect nearby water sources from contamination.
Learn about the requirements and role of engineers in the design and review of liquid storage facilities, liquid transfer systems and larger solid manure storage facilities.
- Site characterization study for the construction of permanent nutrient storage facilities
- Constructing a permanent concrete or steel liquid nutrient storage facility for agricultural source materials
- Constructing an earthen liquid nutrient storage facility for agricultural source materials
- Constructing a permanent solid nutrient storage facility for agricultural source materials
- Liquid nutrient storages
- Engineering Requirement form
- Engineer’s Commitment certificate
Storage and handling
Manure storages are designed as either a liquid or solid storage system.
The type of system you choose will determine the management options for how the material is transferred from barn to storage, and from storage to field.
Liquid manure systems
Liquid manure facilities must contain all manure and washwaters on the farm. This includes manure solids and extra liquids added when pumping or transferring the manure, sand bedding and gases from anaerobic decomposition.
Learn about the variety of liquid manure storage options.
- Storage of liquid manure
- Aeration of liquid manure
- Gravity manure transfer systems for dairy barns
- On-farm liquid nutrient transfer systems
- Permanent liquid nutrient storage covers
- Sand-laden manure handling and storage
- Decommissioning and/or recommissioning existing nutrient storage facilities
- Hazardous gases on agricultural operations
- Methane gas in hog barns
Solid manure systems
Solid manure systems are common on many farms in Ontario. They include bedding packs in barns, dedicated solid manure storage facilities and temporary field storage sites.
Learn about the variety of solid manure storage options.
- Temporary field storage of non-agricultural source material (NASM)
- Determining maximum days for storage of prescribed materials in temporary field nutrient storage site
- Decommissioning and/or recommissioning existing nutrient storage facilities
- Temporary field storage of solid manure or other agricultural source material
- Nutrient management strategies and horse barns
- Manure storages for small- to medium-size horse farms
Barnyards and feedlots
Ontario has many operations where livestock are fed outside or have access to outside yard areas (outdoor confinement area or barnyard) for all or part of the year.
Refer to managing manure and runoff from these areas for animal performance and environmental reasons.
Runoff and washwater
Some farms have additional materials such as runoff from solid manure storages, barnyards and feedlots, washwater from milking centres to manage along with silage effluent.
Find out more about the requirements to properly manage these additional materials.
- Handling runoff from solid agricultural source material storages and outside livestock areas
- Runoff management checklist
- Publication 826: Vegetated Filter Strip System Design Manual
- Managing silage effluent
Greenhouse nutrient feedwater
Learn how to use “greenhouse nutrient feedwater," the nutrient solution removed from a closed circulation system at a greenhouse operation, registered under the Greenhouse Nutrient Feedwater Regulation, O. Reg. 300/14.
Nutrient solutions are used to grow greenhouse plants. When the solution is no longer suitable for growing greenhouse crops, it can be used to fertilize other agricultural crops.
- Understanding the greenhouse nutrient feedwater regulation
- Generating greenhouse nutrient feedwater
- Applying greenhouse nutrient feedwater on agricultural land
- Transferring, storing and transfer systems
- Permanent storage exemption for 24-month generators
- Video: Greenhouse water treatment
- Video: Greenhouse water analysis
Anaerobic digestion
Anaerobic digestion is when organic materials (such as manure, crop materials and food-processing byproducts) are broken down by micro-organisms in the absence of oxygen in an enclosed vessel.
This process creates biogas. Learn how to use it to run a generator, burn as fuel or as a natural gas replacement.
Land application
Learn how properly applying manure at the right time in the field will maximize the nutrient value to the crop and reduce the potential for environmental degradation.
- Soil sampling and analysis for managing crop nutrients
- Available nutrients and value for manure from various livestock types
- Understand the benefits of manure analysis
- Removing liquid manure from storage
- Automatic and remotely controlled shutoff for direct-flow liquid manure application systems
- Winter application of manure and other agricultural source materials
- Right timing of nutrient application
- Incorporation of liquid and solid prescribed materials
- Manure management for farms producing more manure than their crops need
Recordkeeping requirements
Keeping proper records is necessary for tracking a farm’s progress and is a requirement under the Nutrient Management Act, 2002 and O. Reg. 267/03.
Understand what records are required under the Act.
- Nutrient management regulation protocols
- When farms require a NMS, NMP or NASM plan
- Farms with nutrient management strategies or plans – recordkeeping requirements
- Nutrient management strategies and plans: records, the annual review and update
- Manure agreements with brokers and neighbours
- Farm unit declaration farm form
- Nutrient management farm registration form
- Nutrient management strategy application form
- Nutrient management strategy and/or plan sign-off
Resolve concerns and complaints
There are resources and processes to help you resolve concerns and complaints related to nutrient management.
Find out how to resolve complaints about how nutrients are being stored or applied on a farm, or what to do in the case of a manure spill.