Horse facilities come with many unanticipated costs and challenges. Changing local regulations, damage from storms and other weather events, and limited resources interrupt day-to-day operations. Best Management Practices (BMPs) are practical tactics designed to mitigate the cost and impact of these challenges.

To help horse owners and facility managers with these issues, ELCR, with support from the Dudley T. Dougherty Foundation, has developed a BMP guide. The guide, entitled Best Management Practices Can Help Your Bottom Line, is a series of articles that introduce the basics that any horse facility manager needs to know. The articles are designed to serve as an introduction and include links to local resources for more specialized information. Individual articles cover the following topics: 

Managing Soil

Pasture Management

Pasture Edges and Gateways

Manure Management

Soil Conditions and Soil Protection

Sacrifice Lots

Managing Water

Infiltration Basins and Rain Gardens

Vegetated Buffers

Natural and Engineered Wetlands

Healthy Streams for Water Quality

Planning and Managing Horse Facilities

Site Planning

Paving Surfaces

Wildlife Friendly Fencing

End of Life Issues

The complete BMP guide, Best Management Practices Can Help Your Bottom Line, is available on the ELCR website by using the following linkhttp://elcr.org/bestmananagementpractices/.