Conservation District

Are you building a new house? Perhaps you are expanding your farming operation with a new barn or manure storage facility. Are you moving soil to expand a parking area for your store or business? Any of these activities may require a permit or an approved plan.

The Snyder County Conservation District (SCCD) is here to help you through this process. Any project involving 5,000 sq. ft. of earth disturbance requires an erosion and sediment (E&S) plan to be utilized and available onsite. There are times when this plan may need to be submitted to the SCCD for review.

When the earth disturbance reaches one (1.00) acre or more, an NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) Permit is required and must be submitted for review and approval through the SCCD.

Your local municipality may have further regulations that could affect your project. For more information or assistance, please contact SCCD Resource Conservation Technician Tim Hornberger at (570) 837-3000 x4.

Note: You can also find additional information on our Worksite Erosion Prevention → web page.

The Snyder County Conservation District wants to remind farmers and agricultural, livestock and equine operations that they need the following plans:

• A manure management plan (MMP) or nutrient management plan (NMP) if you produce or utilize manure, and
• An agricultural erosion & sedimentation plan (Ag. E&S Plan) or conservation plan if you raise crops or hay or graze pastures.

If you do have these plans, check if they are up to date and reflect your current operation.

If you do not have these plans or are not sure if your plans are sufficient to satisfy PA regulatory requirements, please call the Conservation District and set up a meeting with Barry Spangler, Ag. Conservation Technician, at 570-837-3000 x5.

You can also visit our Agricultural Erosion Prevention → and Agricultural Nutrient Management → web pages.

Staff funding statements: Staffing for this project promoting agricultural environmental compliance was financed by in part by an U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant provided by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of EPA, DEP, or any of its subagencies.

The PA Manure Management Plan (MMP) workbook and guidance (formally known as the “Land Application of Manure-Manure Management Plan Guidance) has been updated by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and published in the PA Bulletin on April 27, 2024.

This means that any agricultural operation:

1. that produces or applies manure, and
2. is not a concentrated animal operation (CAO) under Act 38, and
3. does not have a volunteer nutrient management plan (NMP),

it will need to update its current MMP (if it mees one of criteria below) or develop a MMP using the new 2024 workbook format.

Operations currently having a MMP using the old 2011 format will need to update their MMP using the new 2024 workbook format if at least one of the changes listed below have taken place or will take place (as per DEP email):

1. A net increase of greater than 10% occurs in AEUs per acre.
2. A change in crop management that results in a reduction of greater than 20% in nitrogen necessary for realistic expected crop yields or the amount the crops will utilize for an individual crop year.
3. If calculations in the plan are in error.
4. If a BMP different than that called for in the approved plan, is proposed to address a manure management or stormwater management concern.
5. If, after the first three (3) years of implementing the plan, actual yields are less than 80% of the expected crop yields used in the development of the plan.
6. If alternative organic nutrient sources will replace or augment nutrient sources described in the plan.
7. If additional lands are brought into the operation through purchase, lease or renting.
8. If there is a change in the manure management system that is expected to result in a different nutrient content that requires a change in manure application rates.

Please note that operational changes may also trigger necessary updates to agricultural erosion & sedimentation (Ag. E&S) or NRCS style conservation plans.

Non-CAO operations who currently have a MMP using the 2011 format will still be valid if changes have not or will not take place.

Some, but not all, of the new 2024 MMP format changes include:

1. An animal density calculation,
2. An indication if the manure spreader will be calibrated prior to manure application,
3. Additional questions regarding agricultural process wastewater (i.e. milkhouse wastewater, and
4. Spreading manure based on crop nitrogen (N) needs will require nutrient balance sheets (NMSs). Soil tests less than 3 years-old and less than 20 ppm phosphorus (P) are still required.

A separate simpler MMP version has been developed for very small operations under specific conditions.

• New 2024 MMP Guidance & Workbook (PDF Version)
• Nutrient Balance Sheet (NBS) Materials — required when applying manure based on nitrogen (N) crop needs.
  • NBS User Guide
  • NBS; Word Version
  • NBS; Excel Version (Penn State Extension PA Nutrient Management Program website)

Please note that operational changes may also trigger necessary updates to agricultural erosion & sedimentation (Ag. E&S) or NRCS style conservation plans.

If you have any questions, reach out to Barry Spangler, SCCD Ag. Conservation Technician, at (570) 837-3000 x5, and he will try to answer them.

Staff funding statements: Staffing for this project promoting agricultural environmental compliance was financed by in part by an U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grant provided by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of EPA, DEP, or any of its subagencies.

If you, a farmer or agricultural/equine operator, is thinking of building a new facility, manure storage or stacking structure, or other work that involves earth disturbance, please make an appointment with the Snyder County Conservation District (SCCD) during the planning stages. If you are gaining or losing pasture and/or cropland, check with the SCCD staff to see what changes are needed in your plans.

• Depending how much land is disturbed, you will need an excavation erosion & sedimentation control plan (Excavation E&S Plan) and possibly a federal excavation (NPDES, National Pollutant Discharge Eliminating System) permit before building your new facility.
• If you add more animals, you will need to reflect that change in your manure management plan (MMP) or need to hire a nutrient management specialist to develop a nutrient management plan (NMP) because you will be a concentrated animal operation (CAO) due to animal density numbers.
• For certain animal expansion plans, you may need to apply for an NPDES concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) permit through the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
• Any work near, along or in a perennial or intermittent stream may be required a general permit through DEP.
• New CAOs, expanding CAOs or expanding CAFOs will need to hire a certified odor management specialist to develop an odor management plan (OMP).
• If a new liquid or semi-liquid manure storage is planned, a P.E. (Professional Engineer) must be hired to design and certify the new structure.
• For new construction, check with your local municipality to see if you are required to secure a building permit and/or land development plan.
• No matter the situation, you must have your conservation or agricultural erosion & sedimentation plans (Ag. E&S Plans) updated to reflect what you will be doing.

The take home message: Check with the SCCD (570-837-3000) early so we can point you in the right direction. We may also be able to point you toward some funding or tax credit options available for farmers who hire a plan writer or install certain farm best management practices (BMPs) such as barnyard improvements, manure storage structures or stream buffers.

Snyder County CAP

Taken from PA DEP CAP Website:

“Forty-three of Pennsylvania’s counties contain waterways that drain to either the Susquehanna or the Potomac rivers. This effort is part of the Phase 3 Watershed Implementation Plan (Phase 3 WIP). State agencies, led by the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), are working with interested parties in the counties whose local waters run to the Chesapeake Bay to create Countywide Action Plans (CAPs). These plans will outline how each county’s share of the state’s 2025 pollution reduction goals will be met. EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Program has modeled Chesapeake Bay pollution sources including pollution entering Pennsylvania’s waterways and where it originates. Each Pennsylvania county has its own goal to reduce its share of pollution. Some counties have more work to do than others. The Phase 3 WIP Steering Committee grouped the 43 counties into tiers. Tier 1 counties have the most pollution to reduce, and Tier 4 counties have the least.

“The state believes that the path to success starts at the local level. County partners understand their communities, economy, waterways, and challenges better than anybody. If you get involved in this process at the local level, you will have a say in how the county’s pollution reduction goals are met. You can shape the mix of solutions that are chosen within your county—and make a difference for your community.

“It is important to note that the county clean water goals do NOT establish any new requirement of regulatory obligations on counites. The goals are simply a way for Pennsylvania to engage with local partners on shared issues and focus resources on efforts that help Pennsylvania reach its Chesapeake Bay goals. This empowers communities to lead efforts to improve their own local water quality using the most beneficial methods for their stakeholders and residents Designated countywide groups (partnerships, local governments, county conservation districts, and other identified stakeholders) will utilize the following templates, to report priority initiatives and planned actions to achieve necessary reductions.”

To view the Snyder County CAP, click here to go to the DEP CAP website .

Rapid Stream Delisting Program

From Chesapeake Conservancy’s website:

“Chesapeake Conservancy is a nonprofit organization based in Annapolis, Maryland. We are a team of conservation entrepreneurs. We believe that the Chesapeake is a national treasure that should be accessible for everyone and a place where wildlife can thrive. We use technology to enhance the pace and quality of conservation, and we help build parks, trails, and public access sites.”

The Conservancy uses technology to identify small watersheds (currently containing DEP identified impaired streams) where a.) nutrient and sediment conservation best management practices (BMPs) are installed (such as streambank fencing, riparian buffers, etc.) and b.) when implemented, these stream segments can be removed from DEP’s impaired streams list.

Three small watersheds within Snyder County were identified by Chesapeake Conservancy.  They are:

• Western section of North Branch Mahantango Creek
• Western section of West Branch Mahantango Creek
• Headwaters of Susquehecka Creek

To view these and all the central PA watersheds identified with hopes to have them delisted if more BMPs are on the ground, go to the Chesapeake Conservancy arcgis.com site here . For more information about Chesapeake Conservancy and its Rapid Stream Delisting Program, contact Adrienne Gemberling, Senior Project Manager, Natural Sciences Center at Susquehanna University, 514 University AVE, Selinsgrove, PA 17870 (570-444-9200).