The Iowa Learning Farms (ILF) and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach will host a conservation webinar Jan. 5 at noon CST with feature speaker, Kevin Erb, director, Conservation Professional Training Program, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Division of Extension. 

Erb has more than 29 years of experience working with for-hire manure and nutrient management and leads Wisconsin Extension's education, training and outreach programming for for-hire manure applicators. His manure-related research and projects include manure spills and incidents, reducing the impact of heavy manure equipment on rural roads and low-cost GPS systems for knowing where you are in the field when applying manure. He has also been responsible for creating more than 20 intentional manure spills (as training exercises) across the Midwest. 

In the webinar, "Root Causes of Manure Spills: 15 years of Oops, Oh Crap!, and 'How the Heck did that Happen???,'" Erb will offer a real-world overview of accidental manure spills that happen every year during transport, application and storage. Noting that spills will occur, Erb will provide insights into why they happen and steps to prevent them. He will also discuss educational programs that help operators take steps to not only reduce spill chances, but reduce the environmental harm when an accident does occur.

"Accidental manure spills happen," says Erb. "It's what you do next that makes the difference between a minor inconvenience and being the lead story on the 6 o’clock news. We want operators to recognize spills, take immediate action to contain and clean up, and only then get back to the fields to continue with applications. I am eager to share our research that helps us know why spills happen, which is the first step to preventing problems. For example, simple steps such as visually inspecting tankers and storage regularly or understanding the correlation between manure spills and stop signs – and why the majority of accidental valve openings occur within one-tenth of a mile of an intersection, can mean the difference between a good day and the makings of a very bad day."

To participate in the live webinar via Zoom, register here or join via phone at 312-626-6799 or 646-876-9923, with meeting ID 364 284 172. The webinar will also be recorded and archived on the ILF website, so that it can be watched at any time.

A Certified Crop Adviser board-approved continuing education unit (CEU) has been applied for. Those who participate in the live webinar are eligible. Information about how to apply to receive the CEU will be provided at the end of the live webinar.