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Horse Waste and Water Quality
by Kathy Switky
Many people think that because horse wastes are organic
and biodegradable, they can't harm the natural environment. But, like most things,
in large quantities, horse wastes can cause serious problems. Swept into our waterways
by runoff, they can affect natural chemical and biological processes — and
kill aquatic life.
Wastes from most animals enter our waterways through surface runoff. In small
concentrations such as those present in natural systems, this is not a problem.
But large amounts of animal waste — manure, urine, and bedding —
generated by confined horses and other animals can suffocate and poison aquatic
animals.
Nearly all stream life depends on the small amount of oxygen that is naturally
dissolved in water. When waste hits the waterways, the balance of oxygen is disrupted.
This decomposable material is accompanied by aerobic bacteria that work to break
down that material — and the resultant bacterial population boom consumes
dissolved oxygen, leaving little for the fish, amphibians, and invertebrates living
in the water.
Horse wastes also contain a variety of nutrients,
including nitrogen and phosphorus, which in small quantities are essential for
the survival of aquatic species. But when nitrogen and phosphorus are overabundant,
they can trigger huge growths of algae: algal blooms. The respiration of these
algae, like the bacterial decomposition of organic material, uses up even more
of the dissolved oxygen in the water.
Horse wastes can also contaminate aquatic habitats
directly. In large concentrations, both nitrogen and phosphorus can be toxic.
Salt from horse waste can kill fish and other aquatic life. And fish are particularly
sensitive to ammonia, a by-product of bacterial conversion of urea, a principal
constituent of urine and other animal waste.
In addition to degrading our freshwater systems,
horse waste has been identified by federal, state, and local agencies as a major
factor in the degradation of coastal water quality. Responsible animal management
can minimize all of these threats - so that we can keep our horses and keep our
aquatic ecosystems healthy.
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Why should we care? We all lose something
vital when the web of life upon which we depend is impaired or destroyed. The
main cause of species extinction is the degradation and loss of habitat. In many
instances this loss is directly related to human activity. It is encouraging that
there are many efforts, large and small, to improve stream conditions locally.
Hundreds of volunteers each year clean up beaches and creeks, monitor water quality,
and replace invasive exotic species with native plants up and down the coast.
Many land owners, timber and farm operators are also stepping up to the challenge
of reducing sediment sources from rural roads, landslides, and old logging operations.
Hundreds of thousands of public dollars are being spent to remove barriers to
fish passage, stabilize stream banks, and restore spawning and rearing habitat
for fish and other critters in the creeks.
These efforts are beginning to show positive effects, but more are needed. Animal
waste, particularly when concentrated in confined areas such as corrals or paddocks,
can be lethal, to fish, insects, and other aquatic life if it runs into creeks.
Mike Rugg, Fisheries Biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game,
has participated in numerous field investigations focused on the effects of animal
wastes on fish and aquatic life. According to Rugg, "in each and every case where
animal wastes have been either discharged directly into local creeks, or been
inappropriately discarded on the bank or other locations where runoff was carried
into the creek, serious impacts have resulted: a fish kill, or serious loss of
carrying capacity."
We know that the vast majority of horse owners strongly value our special environment
and are conscientious in their conservation practices. However, significant areas
continue to exist where confined horse facilities may be contributing to stream
degradation, with potentially disastrous results for fish.
Locations have been documented where manure is routinely dumped over creek banks,
and even into creeks, smothering the vegetation and potentially polluting the
streams. In other instances, corrals or stables may be too close to creeks to
adequately buffer their runoff.
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Conservation Practices for Horse Owners
Limit Horses' Access to Waterways
 Provide
animals with other sources of water and shade
Design stream crossings
to minimize erosion
Prevent trampling
of streamside vegetation
Keep water clean
Divert
fresh runoff around contaminated areas to keep clean water clean
Divert contaminated
runoff from manured areas away from waterways
Separate animal
yards and manure storage from waterways with vegetated buffer strips
Minimize use of
chemicals in grooming
Do not let horse
wash water drain directly into waterways Manage animal waste wisely
Clean up manure
and soiled bedding regularly, especially during wet weather
Store horse waste
on an impervious surface and under cover to prevent leaching and runoff
Store waste away
from waterways
Compost! Keep waste
piles moist and aerated to promote decomposition
Taken from: "Horse Owner's Guide to Water Quality Protection,"
published by the Council of Bay Area Resource Conservation Districts and funded
by the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Copies of this publication
are available from the San Mateo County Resource Conservation District, (650)
712-7765.
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While there are numerous laws at the State and Federal
level that protect stream water quality, these agencies largely depend upon local
entities such as cities and the county to develop and enforce water quality protections.
The San Mateo County Stable Ordinance is now being
revised. Recent petitions which claim the entire horse community is "under siege"
and that "our horse population is literally disappearing from rural San Mateo
County" have served to cloud this revision process with fear rather than fact.
To be effective, the new ordinance should include requirements for proper manure
management and control of runoff to ensure that horsekeeping practices are friendly
to the environment.
The Coastside Horse Council, a horse advocacy group, has proposed that the new
ordinance contain only voluntary self-regulating measures for horsekeeping. While
we are entirely supportive of the Horse Council's broad goals of promoting educational
programs to foster good horsekeeping and responsible stewardship of the environment,
we believe that voluntary programs must also have the backup of clear and enforceable
regulations, administered by the County.
The Horse Council is also urging the county to grandfather existing ranches, and
reclassify horses as livestock under the new ordinance. We believe that grandfathering
or exempting all existing horse operations, regardless of their animal waste management
practices, will not be productive in the effort to halt coastal stream degradation
and encourages continuation of the status quo. We also believe that reclassifying
horses as livestock would be contrary to the vast body of State law, and could
have unintended consequences for horse owners.
We support the Coastside Horse Council's requirement that the new ordinance should
establish a reasonable fee structure and we urge the county to include a sliding
scale that costs less for smaller operations. We have also proposed that owners
who pasture small numbers of horses away from sensitive habitats in the rural
areas should be exempted from permits.
There is clearly a reasonable and practical middle
ground where the implementation of conservation practices that protect the environment
can also promote horse health, build good relations between neighbors and add
to a horse property's value. We support both voluntary efforts and clear, reasonable
and effective regulations. The health of our coastal streams and their inhabitants
depends on all of us!
Published May 2001 in Green
Footnotes. Reprinted with permission from the Half Moon Bay Review, February
21, 2001.
Page last updated August 4, 2001. |
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