By Angela Rieck-Hinz, Department of Agronomy
Commercial manure applicators can attend three hours of training on Thursday, Jan. 6, 2011, to meet annual commercial manure applicator certification requirements.
Iowa State University (ISU) Extension and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will conduct Commercial Manure Applicator training from 9 a.m. to noon at 75 locations in Iowa, and four locations in surrounding states. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m. There is no fee for the workshop but applicators must register by Dec. 30 with the ISU Extension county office where they plan to attend. A complete list of county extension offices offering this workshop can be found online.
Commercial manure applicators wishing to recertify and those wanting to certify for the first time should attend. The workshop will provide the required three hours of annual training and will cover applicator rules, manure application on snow-covered and frozen ground, manure nitrogen management update and video on foaming pits and a review of case studies.
All currently certified commercial manure applicator licenses will expire on March 1, 2011. Those wanting to renew must complete training requirements and submit forms and fees to the DNR prior to March 1 to avoid paying late fees.
Applicators unable to attend the Jan. 6 program must schedule a time with their ISU Extension county office to watch the training DVD. Due to scheduling conflicts, many extension offices will no longer accept walk-in appointments to watch these DVDs. Instead county offices offer scheduled dates and times to provide this training.
Beginning March 1, applicators unable to attend training during one of the scheduled reshow dates at a county extension office, will be charged a $10 fee to view the training at their convenience. There will not be a fee charged for scheduled training dates and live workshops. If attending the workshops or watching the three-hour DVD is not convenient, commercial applicators may contact their local DNR field office to schedule an appointment to take the certification exam to meet certification requirements.
In addition to the commercial manure applicator training offered on Jan. 6, ISU Extension also will offer seven dry/solid manure workshops for commercial manure applicators in February 2011. Information regarding these workshops and locations is also contained in the link to the brochure listed above.
Applicators with questions about the commercial manure applicator certification program should contact their ISU Extension county office or visit https://www.extension.iastate.edu/immag/commercial-manure-applicators.
Angela Rieck-Hinz is an extension program specialist for Iowa State University Extension and is the coordinator of the Iowa Manure Management Action Group (IMMAG). Rieck-Hinz can be reached at (515) 294-9590 or by emailing amrieck@iastate.edu.
Links to this article are strongly encouraged, and this article may be republished without further permission if published as written and if credit is given to the author, Integrated Crop Management News, and Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. If this article is to be used in any other manner, permission from the author is required. This article was originally published on December 14, 2010. The information contained within may not be the most current and accurate depending on when it is accessed.
Angie Rieck-Hinz Field Agronomist in NC Iowa
Angie Rieck-Hinz is a field agronomist in north central Iowa for Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. She currently serves, Cerro Gordo, Franklin, Hamilton, Hardin, Humboldt, Webster, Worth and Wright counties. She has worked for ISU Extension and Outreach for over 30 years, serving in v...