The topics in this newsletter are considered to be timely and of interest. Comments and suggestions are invited. The use of trade names in this newsletter is not an endorsement of any company or product by the Maryland Cooperative Extension, University of Maryland, College Park.
David S. Ross, Extension Agricultural Engineer

Rural firefighters, emergency medical personnel, and rescue squads need specialized training and preparation to respond to farm-related injuries, entrapments, fires, and chemical incidents. A completely revised publication from NRAES (the Natural Resource, Agriculture, and Engineering Service) will teach emergency medical and rescue personnel basic principles and procedures for responding to these demanding agricultural emergencies.

Farm Rescue: Responding to Incidents and Emergencies in Agricultural Settings ($8.00 plus S&H/sales tax, 78 pages, August 1999) describes the most common farm emergencies in which rescue, extrication, or other emergency response may be needed. Potential hazards to the victims and responders are clearly identified. The information will enable rescuers to approach a farm rescue with more confidence and a greater awareness of the risks involved. A better understanding of what to expect when responding to a farm emergency is important, not only for the welfare of the patient but also for the safety of those providing assistance.

This publication contains five chapters. Chapter 1, "Overview of Farm Rescue," discusses introductory topics such as organization of the rescue team, general rescue procedures, and contacting help. Chapter 2, "Agricultural Equipment Injuries and Rescue," provides detailed information on tractor overturns, power takeoff driveline (PTO) entanglements, hydraulically operated equipment failures, mixer wagon and self-unloading wagon entanglements, auger and elevator entanglements, electrocution, and harvesting equipment injuries and emergencies. Chapter 3, "Farm Structure Emergencies," covers grain entrapments; silo incidents (gas exposures, unloader entrapments, and fires); and emergencies involving manure storage sites and facilities. Chapter 4, "Farm Chemical Exposures, Fires, and Spills," includes sections on exposure to anhydrous ammonia, agricultural chemical fires, and pesticide exposure and spills. Chapter 5, "Farm Animal Incidents," discusses animal-related injuries and rescue procedures. Three appendixes are included -- rescue tool inventory guidelines, agricultural operator control symbols, and follow-up training and suggested readings. One table and 87 illustrations supplement the text.

Farm Rescue: Responding to Incidents and Emergencies in Agricultural Settings, NRAES-10, is a complete revision of Farm Accident Rescue. Since 1980, NRAES has sold over 136,000 copies of this publication. It has been used as a training manual for agricultural safety programs throughout the United States and Canada and, in this revised form, should continue to be a valuable resource for years to come. Farm Rescue: Responding to Incidents and Emergencies in Agricultural Settings was completely revised by William E. Field, Professor, Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University. Dr. Field has over twenty years of experience in teaching, research, and extension and has received numerous awards and honors for his contributions to the field of agricultural safety and health education. Davis Hill, Executive Director, FARMEDIC, and Dennis J. Murphy, Professor of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, provided invaluable assistance in preparing the publication.

Farm Rescue: Responding to Incidents and Emergencies in Agricultural Settings, NRAES-10, is available for $8.00 per copy plus shipping and handling from NRAES, Cooperative Extension, 152 Riley-Robb Hall, Ithaca, New York 14853-5701. The shipping and handling charge for one copy is $3.75 within the continental United States. If ordering more than one book or if ordering from outside the United States, contact NRAES for shipping rates and possible quantity discounts. All major credits cards are accepted, and checks should be made payable to NRAES. For more information or a free publications catalog, contact NRAES by phone at (607) 255-7654, by fax at (607) 254-8770, or by e-mail at nraes@cornell.edu. To learn more about NRAES, browse through our entire catalog, and order books on-line, visit our web site at www.nraes.org.

The drought of 1999 has raised our awareness of the need for conservation of water used for watering crops. Stretching the benefit of water resources is essential. Trickle irrigation is a method of watering crops by placing the water into the root zone of the desired crop. The delivery efficiency is close to 90 percent because little water is evaporated from the ground surface. Crops grown using a plastic mulch reduce the irrigation water evaporation when the water is delivered under the mulch. Overhead sprinklers may have an efficiency of only 70 percent or less in getting water to the crop roots.

Trickle Irrigation for Cut Flowers, Vegetables, and Small Fruit, Bulletin 356, (23 pages), from the Maryland Cooperative Extension, is available from county Extension offices for $2.00. Copies may also be purchased by mail from Production & Distribution, University of Maryland, 6200 Sheridan Street, Riverdale, Maryland 20737 -- phone 301-403-4263. Make payment to: University of Maryland.

Bulletin 356, written by David S. Ross, Extension Agricultural Engineer, discusses water sources, production layout, plant-soil-water relationships, and trickle irrigation system components and design. Water management and irrigation scheduling are also discussed.

Water conservation can be achieved using trickle irrigation methods and the appropriate water management techniques. Tensiometers are valuable tools for monitoring the moisture level in the soil or organic substrate.

Whether a small garden or a large farm, trickle irrigation should be given a review for efficient and water conserving irrigation.

A new University of Maryland fact sheet describes ways to extend the production season for vegetables and small fruits using protective covers and structures. The goal is to provide cold weather protection early in the Spring and late in the Fall so that frosts do not kill the crop.

UM Fact Sheet 760, Extending the Production Season for Vegetables and Small Fruit, from Maryland Cooperative Extension and available from County Extension offices, was written by Bryan R. Butler, Sr. and David S. Ross. It is seven pages long.

Fact Sheet 760 discusses location and cultural considerations, purposes of season extenders, types of season extenders, potential problems, and pollination of crops using season extension strategies. The types of season extenders covered are mulches, floating row covers, low tunnels or slitted row covers, and high tunnels.

For a copy, contact your Maryland county Extension office.

Expanding a business can bring about many benefits. Foremost among them is improved profitability through increased efficiency. While a multitude of resources exist to help dairy producers project net farm income from a proposed expansion, a concise resource that examines potential impacts on the environment is difficult to find...until now.

A new publication, Environmental Factors to Consider When Expanding Dairies, (NRAES-95) ($9.00 plus S&H/sales tax, 44 pages, June 1999), discussed environmental issues that dairy producers, advisors, and consultants should examine as part of developing an expansion plan. Considering the environmental implications of expansion before expanding helps to prevent cost overruns, preserve environmental quality, protect animal and public health, ensure that current and prospective regulations are achievable, and avoid conflicts with neighbors. In short, it helps to ensure a successfull expansion.

The publication includes six chapters. Chapter 1 discusses land and water considerations, including animal units and nutrient concerns, farmstead location, locating manure storages, and the quantity and quality of available water supplies. Chapter 2, "Nutrient Management," reviews nutrient management plans, using manure as a resource, nutrient export, manure storage versus daily spreading, and pollution control. Chapter 3 is dedicated to one of the major sources of conflict between dairy producers and the public -- odors. The chapter focuses on odor management and treatment methods. The fourth chapter examines common concerns associated with expansion, such as barnyards, pathogens, silos and silage leachate, manure storage, and milking center wastewater storage and treatment. The final two chapters center on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and whole-farm planning. Eight illustrations, fifteenn tables, and an appendix that includes a checklist for CAFO permits supplement the text.

Environmental Factors to Consider When Expanding Dairies was written by Peter Wright, Animal Waste Specialist in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Cornell University and A. Edward Staehr, who was the Farm Business Management Specialist for the Skaneateles Lake Watershed Agricultural Program and is now with Onondaga County Cornell Cooperative Extension. The book was published by the Natural Resource, Agriculture, and Engineering Service (NRAES).

Environmental Factors to Consider When Expanding Dairies, NRAES-95, is available for $9.00 per copy plus shipping and handling from NRAES, Cooperative Extension, 152 Riley-Robb Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853-5701. Shipping and handling for one copy is $3.75 within the continental United States. If ordering more than one book or if ordering from outside the United States, contact NRAES for shipping rates and possible quantity discounts. All major credit cards are accepted, and checks should be made payable to NRAES. For more information or a free publication catalog, contact NRAES by phone at (607) 255-7654, by fax at (607) 254-8770, or by e-mail at nraes@cornell.edu. To learn more about NRAES, browse through our entire catalog, and order books on-line, visit our web site at www.nraes.org.

A book recently published by the Natural Resource, Agriculture, and Engineering Service (NRAES) has been honored with a Blue Ribbon Award in the 1999 ASAE Educational Aids Competition. The Blue Ribbon Award winner from NRAES is Earthen Manure Storage Design Considerations, NRAES-109 ($18.00 plus S&H/sales tax, 100 pages, April 1999).

ASAE (the Society for Engineering in Agricultural, Food, and Biological Systems) presents the Blue Ribbon Awards annually in recognition of "outstanding effort and achievement in the development of noteworthy educational aids." Major emphasis in the competition is placed on how well the educational aids meet the needs of intended audiences.

Earthen Manure Storage Design Considerations, NRAES-109, aims to meet the needs of producers, engineers, and design professionals who are seeking information about designing, constructing, and managing earthen manure storages. Although earthen storages are relatively inexpensive and likely to play an important role in many farm waste management systems, there is a lack of information about safe, environmentally sound, practical designs. The 100-page publication discusses the planning and design of earthen manure storage facilities from locating and sizing a storage to managing it safely and ensuring that it meets all applicable ordinances and regulations. Ordering information is given elsewhere in TOPICS.