According to Minnesota Milk Producers Association executive director Lucas Sjostrom, changes to the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits influence dairy farming. “This impacts large dairies and the dairies with fewer cows could see the regulations copied and pasted at the county permit level, township level or in state law,” said Sjostrom. “The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency made positive changes since the first draft. I appreciate that they are sticking to science in these conversations.” Sjostrom also said the agency is working with Minnesota farm groups on the permit changes. “In the first draft, the agency went for ease of regulation instead of farmer ease. They were picking dates based on the calendar instead of temperature and land cover. It was the different wording that gave us some concern. Getting manure out when its 65 degrees in November with no snow on the field is different than getting manure out when it’s 65 degrees in February with one foot of snow on the field.”
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