29 September 2023
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Evie Price who heads up the Stewardship & Grants team at agricultural compliance company CXCS, provides a refresher on the rules and regulations surrounding the location and construction of temporary field heaps in England.
The rules you have to follow will depend on whether your land is in a designated Nitrate Vulnerable Zone (NVZ). Temporary field heaps can be stored at any point in the year and records must be kept for five years. If you record temporary field heaps on your manure risk map, you don't need to record the start and end dates for your use of field sites separately.
Land Within an NVZ
You must:
• make sure your field heap is at least 10 metres from any surface water (such as a river, pond or ditch) or land drain, or 30 metres if the land slopes at 12 degrees or more
• make sure the location of the field heap is not liable to being waterlogged or flooded
• locate field heaps at least 50 metres from a spring well or borehole
• move the field heap at least every 12 months
• leave a two-year gap before returning to the same site
• keep a record of the sites used for field heaps and the dates of use
• show all the low risk areas suitable for temporary field heaps on your risk map if you plan to use them
Temporary field heaps must:
• be made from manure solid enough to be stacked in a freestanding heap
• not give rise to free drainage from within the stacked material
• be covered with a waterproof material if they contain poultry manure without bedding or litter
• occupy as small a surface area as is needed to support the weight of the heap without it collapsing
Land outside an NVZ
The Farming Rules for Water (FRfW) are a set of rules which apply to all farmers within England, regardless of whether their land is inside an NVZ:
As part of these rules, organic manures must not be stored on land:
• within 10 metres of inland freshwaters or coastal waters
• where there is significant risk of pollution entering inland freshwaters or coastal waters
• within 50 metres of a spring, well or borehole
You must:
• make sure your field heap is at least 10 metres from any surface water (such as a river, pond or ditch) or land drain, or 30 metres if the land slopes at 12 degrees or more
• make sure the location of the field heap is not liable to being waterlogged or flooded
• locate field heaps at least 50 metres from a spring well or borehole
• move the field heap at least every 12 months
• leave a two-year gap before returning to the same site
• keep a record of the sites used for field heaps and the dates of use
• show all the low risk areas suitable for temporary field heaps on your risk map if you plan to use them
Temporary field heaps must:
• be made from manure solid enough to be stacked in a freestanding heap
• not give rise to free drainage from within the stacked material
• be covered with a waterproof material if they contain poultry manure without bedding or litter
• occupy as small a surface area as is needed to support the weight of the heap without it collapsing
Land outside an NVZ
The Farming Rules for Water (FRfW) are a set of rules which apply to all farmers within England, regardless of whether their land is inside an NVZ:
As part of these rules, organic manures must not be stored on land:
• within 10 metres of inland freshwaters or coastal waters
• where there is significant risk of pollution entering inland freshwaters or coastal waters
• within 50 metres of a spring, well or borehole
