Assist agricultural producers in improving water quality and increase education, technical assistance and financial assistance available to owners and operators of animal feeding operations.

Wyoming is an animal agriculture state, but not necessarily a confined animal feeding operation state. Wyoming livestock operations are predominately grazing based.

To increase livestock producers’ knowledge and understanding of the Clean Water Act and a number of it’s regulations.

Goals – Provide educational, technical and financial resources, on a strictly voluntary basis, to Wyoming producers in order to:

• Assist all CAFOs that are under a state issued National Pollution Discharge Elimination System Permit (NPDES).  Provide the resources necessary to these CAFOs in order to meet all permit conditions and requirements.
• Work with all AFOs with a potentially adverse condition and assist them with correcting that condition to address natural resource concerns.

Assist all other livestock producers who may have a potentially adverse condition, water quality concern or threat .

Leadership of the overall effort was provided by the Wyoming Association of Conservation Districts, with technical support provided by: 

• Wyoming Department of Agriculture 
• Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality
• Natural Resources Conservation Service

Other key participants included:

• Wyoming Stock Growers Association
• Wyoming Wool Growers Association
• Wyoming Farm Bureau Federation
• Rocky Mountain Farmers Union

A Statewide Animal Feeding Operation Information and Education Campaign was conducted through the use of an informational brochure, workshops and demonstration tours.

WACD-DEQ-NRCS partnership accomplished:

• 63 workshops and 14 demonstration sites reaching over 2,300 participants
• 12 Technical Nutrient Management planning workshops reaching over 240 attendees
• $3,431,000 NRCS funds
• $245,971 WACD 319 Grant  funds
• $277,672 Conservation District CWA 319 Grant and local funds
• 100% of producers who requested assistance received assistance

The brochure, “Wyoming Agriculture Producing Food and Fiber - Clean Water: A Guide to Confined Feeding Operation Management”

• Reached over 3,000 livestock producers
• Included a tool to evaluate confined livestock operations
• Intended to be used by landowners and technical specialists to assist in assessing the risk of individual livestock operations
• Is available on the Wyoming Association of Conservation District’s web site at  http://www.conservewy.com/wacd/water_resources/cfbrochure.html