The El Nino system developing combined with increased sea temperatures from this summer mean long-term forecasts are predicting there could be a wet and stormy season ahead.
While significant rainfall would help to replenish reservoirs and groundwater levels, it could also put slurry storage under pressure. Following a prolonged dry spell, soils can become less able to absorb water. When rain first returns, this may increase surface runoff, including clean water entering slurry stores.
Creating as much storage capacity as possible before winter will reduce the risk of stores becoming too full during prolonged wet weather. Farmers should review storage levels now and make the most of any safe and suitable opportunities to empty stores in accordance with the relevant rules and good agricultural practice.
Storms can also damage roofs, guttering and downpipes, allowing additional clean water to enter slurry systems. Check that gutters and drainage infrastructure are secure and working properly, and repair any damage as soon as it is safe to do so.
Increasing slurry storage capacity can take time, particularly where planning, permitting or significant investment is required. Starting early is therefore essential. In the meantime, completing straightforward maintenance and preventing clean water from entering stores can help farms remain resilient through the winter while protecting water quality.
Andy's experience
NFU member Andy Paton, of J&S Paton, a long-established dairy farm enterprise in one of the wetter parts of the Lancashire/Greater Manchester border, has utilised slurry infrastructure grants (SIG) to increase storage on farm. Andy says they are already reaping the benefits of the new system.
“We installed a robotic milking system nearly six years ago and moved to a housed system from an outdoor summer grazed traditional parlour arrangement. We have a maximum milking herd of 125 cows with two robots being the limiting factor on herd size,” says Andy.
“We previously had a weeping wall storage setup built in the 80’s and covered a number of years ago, but the truth is it was never really fit for purpose and needed updating. We were unsuccessful in the first round of SIG, however we were then invited to make a full application in round two.
“The SIG funding was confirmed and supplemented by a catchment specific grant from United Utilities centred around phosphate reduction in drinking water. This enabled us to install a 5,000 cubic meter concrete tower along with a new reception pit and slurry separation system. This took us from approximately three months storage capacity to a guaranteed six months storage.
“Works started preparing the base in late Sept 2024. The site was ready by the end of October, concreted mid November and panel erection took place on the 12 and 13 December. There was then a wait for the roof to be installed with us unable to put any slurry in until it was completed. However, this was finally done, and the store was ready for slurry in mid January 2025.”
The reception pit and slurry separation part were completed later, but Andy is now in a position where slurry is fully separated with only liquid going to the new store and, with permission from the RPA, solids stored under cover in the old weeping wall store.
“We had soil samples and a nutrient management plan done as part of the phosphate reduction initiative and the separated solids that are rich in phosphates are taken to land away from the farm that have traditionally not been over spread with manure,” says Andy.
“This summer has shown the real benefit of the system. We’ve been able to umbilical out the liquor from the tower to fields over a mile away, we only used bagged fertiliser prior to first cut with yields sufficient to only apply slurry via umbilical post silage for first and second cut with no additional fertiliser required.
“Going forward we expect a big improvement in water quality as there is no prospect of leeching from a leek prone store, and spreading can be timed to fit in with the weather, grass growth and ground conditions.
“Overall we are pleased with the project outcomes. The obvious downside is the sheer scale of the investment required to achieve it - without the additional funding streams we were able to access, we likely wouldn’t have been able to complete the works and certainly not to the standards we have. However, we are now future proof with a secure storage facility that means we can sleep at night without any worries regarding leaks from the slurry store and can actually utilise the value of the stored slurry rather than it just being a headache and a waste product we need to dispose of.”
