March 2026 has been wet, hovering around 150 percent of normal precipitation for much of New York. While this has some manure storages approaching or exceeding their full operational capacity, it is critical
to follow the prohibited spreading conditions in the CAFO permit, the
Revised Winter And Wet Weather Manure Spreading Guidanceand the spreading plans in your CNMP as it may have also created saturated soil conditions across much of the state. Care should be taken when deciding if, when and where to make manure applications. You can monitor forecasts to identify days in the near term that may have conditions with lower risk using the
Runoff Risk Forecast for New York State. Monitoring fields and tile outlets for runoff during and after applications is also advised.
Despite fall and winter weather that was more normal for New York than some recent years, a late 2025 crop harvest and a wet March have some producers feeling tight on manure storage capacity. While there is no requirement for minimum days of storage, PRO-DAIRY specialists advise that having at least six-months of storage capacity between farm-located and satellite storages is a risk management strategy that allows for sound (and CAFO compliant) manure application decision-making. Anytime you add cows, don’t properly agitate and/or remove settled solids, add bunker silo storage and runoff, change parlor water usage or make other changes on the farm – you are impacting manure storage capacity. So, if you are feeling pinched this year, it could be a good time to re-evaluate storage volumes and management with your planner.
Before transferring manure to fields, check soil conditions, tile outlets and weather and runoff forecasts to see if prohibited or high-risk conditions are present or if heavy or persistent rain is in the forecast. The CAFO Permit requires that, “Farm personnel shall manage application rates and timing so as to prevent runoff from leaving crop fields during any application event,” and prohibits manure applications on saturated or frozen-saturated soils or when applied at a rate that causes the soil to become saturated at the time of that application. When winter or wet weather conditions exist, manure applications must follow the revised winter and wet weather guidance.
For permitted CAFO farms, the overtopping of a manure storage is a permit violation and requires the storage be re-evaluated by a Professional Engineer before it can be put back into service. Additionally, any
emergency applications of nutrients must be made in accordance with the farm’s Emergency Action Plan and monitored for runoff. Discharges to surface waters; applications above the single manure application rate discussed in Part III.A.8.b of the ECL CAFO general permit (GP-0-22-001); and any storage overtopping must be reported to the Department within 24 hours verbally and in writing within five days. If nutrients must be applied, they should be injected or incorporated if possible to minimize offsite movement.
If a CAFO finds itself in an emergency situation, the farm should discuss with their AEM certified planner other interim solutions that may be available to the farm to alleviate the emergency.
Farms that do not operate under the CAFO permit should also heed these strategies for manure management and application, as no farm is allowed to create a water quality violation as a result of a manure application.
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