Nutrient Management - Nutrient Management Plan

A nutrient management plan is a set of conservation practices designed to use fertilizer and/or manure to effectively provide needed crop nutrients while protecting against the potential adverse impacts of manure, erosion and organic byproducts on water quality. When such a plan is designed for animal feeding operations (AFO) it may be termed a "manure management plan." The plans may address:

• soil testing
• Plant tissue testing
• manure testing
• erosion control practices
• According to the soil pH the recommend dose may be varying.
• timing of fertilizer/manure application.

In the United States some regulatory agencies recommend or require that farms implement these plans, in order to prevent water pollution. The U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has published guidance documents on preparing a comprehensive nutrient management plan (CNMP) for AFOs.