Maintaining dairy cattle in a CAFO requires large quantities of water and produces vast quantities of wastewater and manure. The increasing number of CAFO dairies in eastern New Mexico and West Texas is contributing to significant groundwater contamination and the depletion of the Ogallala aquifer. Consider a CAFO with 1,000 dairy cows and answer the following questions. Required:
a. According to the U. S. Department of Agriculture, the average dairy cow can consume up to 200 L of water daily. An additional 120 L per cow per day is required to wash the milking equipment and milking area. How many liters of water are required to operate this dairy daily?
b. According to the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, the average dairy cow produces 55 kg of wet manure daily. How many metric tons would this dairy produce each day (1,000 kg = 1 metric ton)?
c. The recommended maximum manure application rate for a farm site with low runoff potential is approximately 275 kg per hectare. What size farm would be required to apply all of the manure produced by this dairy each day?
d. Identify one environmental problem that could be caused if the rate of runoff of nitrogen from the manure into natural waters became excessively high. Describe one way to prevent this problem.
e. If this same dairy herd was raised in a free-range operation, identify and explain one environmental problem, other than water pollution, that would be minimized or eliminated.