<b>By SHELLY STRAUTZ-SPRINGBORN<br>
Michigan Correspondent</b> </p><p>

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Whether you have one or multiple horses, managing manure can be a challenge.</p><p>
“One horse excretes about 50 pounds of manure a day, which translates into about nine tons of manure a year,” said Charles Gould, a Michigan State University extension educator based in Ottawa County.</p><p>
Horse owners can learn about manure management strategies, including storage, transfer and composting, during the “Equine Manure Management and Compost Production” program hosted by MSU extension. The program is offered from 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. on Feb. 23 in Allendale and on March 15 in Grand Rapids. </p><p>Participants will be given the exact location upon registration.</p><p>
Gould, a program presenter, said the primary focus of the program will be to help horse owners understand the importance of manure management, how to develop and implement a manure management plan and options horse owners have to manage manure, such as composting.</p><p>
Participants will also see a demonstration of the Spartan Composting Optimizer spreadsheet and an equine manure management planning CD. Other topics will include how to develop a farm-specific manure management plan that may include land application and odor management.</p><p>
Gould will talk about manure spill response plans and review a sample equine manure management plan.
“This program is aimed at people throughout the equine industry,” Gould said. “We’re really hoping to draw in people who may have just one horse or multiple horses, as well as those who board horses.”</p><p>
Gould said another issue he plans to discuss is how horse owners are protected by Michigan’s Right-to-Farm guidelines.</p><p>
“It’s important to understand that if they get complaints about odor, flies or discharge into surface water, they fall under Right-to-Farm guidelines,” he said.</p><p>
“But, what people don’t understand is that they automatically assume that Right-to-Farm gives them protection without having to do anything. Protection comes when a farm has a manure management systems plan, follows it and documents how they follow their plan.</p><p>
“I’ll tie compost into this, because under Right-to-Farm, it’s appropriate and encouraged to compost manure,” Gould said. A common misconception, he said, is to confuse composting with piling manure and allowing it to rot.</p><p>
“We want to teach people to compost properly,” he said. “When it’s done properly, it’s an awesome product. It takes good management to make good compost. It can be as simple as following the guideline that it takes one bucketload of manure to one bucketload of shavings” to start a compost project.</p><p>
Other discussion, he said, will include learning how much land base is necessary to sustain a specific number of animals.</p><p>
The program has been approved as a Michigan Agriculture Environmental Assurance Program Phase 1 event. One participant at each site will win a 24-inch compost thermometer, compliments of REOTEMP Instruments Corp.</p><p>
The registration fee is $33 for the first person from each farm and $5 for each additional registrant. The fee includes lunch, handouts and one set of program CDs per farm. Contact the Ottawa County MSU extension office at 616-846-8250 for more information.
A registration form is available online at www.msue.msu.edu by selecting “Nutrient Management” and then the “Equine Manure Management and Compost Production Program” link. The deadline to register is Feb. 15.