As the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 7 offices ramp up efforts to assess livestock farms and their potential for dis­­charging man­­ure and nutrients, farmers should take time to evaluate their feedlots and their farms in hopes of improving their practices before regulators force them to do so, the Coalition to Support Iowa’s Farmers (CSIF) staff told farmers in Osage last week.

“If you have no discharge from your feedlot, but do off of the compost or manure pile, that’s a problem,” said Kent Mowrer, senior field coordinator for CSIF.

The Mitchell County Cattle­men invited CSIF to talk about what the DNR inspections mean to farmers and how...