The Challenge
Operating a 400-hectare dairy farm with 860 cows, Malvin Welch needed to improve effluent management and meet environmental requirements.
The existing system provided only two to four days of storage, requiring near-constant irrigation and leaving little operational flexibility. Site conditions, including the local water table, also meant that above-ground storage was required.
The Solution
Two large uncovered above-ground effluent storage tanks were installed in 2023 and 2024, providing a combined usable capacity of 5 million litres and more than 90 days of storage.
One tank stores green water close to the dairy shed, while the second is positioned further away to increase the available irrigation application area. The tanks work alongside the farm’s feed-pad, flood-wash and solids-separation systems.
Advantages & Benefits of the solution
The high-capacity above-ground solution provided significant storage within a relatively compact footprint, avoiding the limitations associated with the site’s water-table conditions.
The solution delivered:
Over 90 days of effluent storage, compared with the previous two-to-four-day capacity.
Reduced pressure for daily irrigation and improved operational flexibility.
Above-ground storage suited to the site conditions.
Greater irrigation application coverage through the two-tank layout.
Improved environmental compliance, with the farm’s upgraded system positively received following audit.
Capacity to support future expansion, with a third tank under consideration. The result is a compliant, practical effluent-management system that provides the farm with greater control, resilience and confidence for the future.