SARP: Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership

Introduction:

Allen Dairy Project - Lewisburg, Tennessee

The shoals at Lillard's Mill in the Duck River.

Rubber liner is installed in the new waste lagoon.

The Allen family’s dairy, Dairy Made Farm in western Marshall County, is a top priority site for conservation work on the upper Duck River.  The farm has been an Allen family operation for generations and is now operated by Cannon and John Daniel Allen.  It  is up-stream and adjacent to a reach of the Duck from Lillards Mill to Venable Spring, one of the most biologically diverse reaches of the entire river system.  The opportunity to work with the landowners on this important site arose late in 2007 and it promises to be an exciting and beneficial project for all involved.

Description of Site:

• The 1,200 acre property borders the Duck River for 5.5 miles
• City of Lewisburg's water supply intake is adjacent to the farm

Problem:

• Aging waste system on the farm in the form of four mature pits in various stages of failure.  The worst of the four is less than 500' from the river.

Strategy:

• Replace the waste system and implement other BMPs on the farm.  High cost of approximately $300,000 to $400,000, roughly half covered by the Farm Bill's Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP).
• Partner agencies such as the Tennessee Department of Agriculture, the Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Servie, and TWRA are contriburing as well.
• The Allens are meeting their required 25% match obligation by donating a conservation easement on a 300' wide, 5.5 mile long bugger along the Duck River, providing permanent protection for this critical stretch of river.

This innovative approach to accomplishing good conservation and providing assistance to a productive farming family is a great  example of successful collaboration.