Texas dairymen encouraged to help dilute cooling pond controversy

By DAVY MOSELEY | East Texas Edition

These cows are enjoying a lazy swim before making their way to the milking parlor. If TDH has their way, all Texas cooling ponds will continue be closed. -Courtessy photo

January 31, 2002 -- Texas Cooperative Extension is encouraging dairy producers to complete and send in a cooling pond information survey that was mailed to all Texas dairymen last fall.

The survey mailout was prompted by a Texas Department of Health (TDH) ruling that all Texas cooling ponds cease operations immediately. The ruling came on the heals of an FDA inspection that found an off-season cooling pond filled with stagnant, unclean water.

Apparently the survey has been poorly received by dairymen. Only 19 surveys have been returned from East Texas dairymen as of Jan. 25.

"We've just started analyzing data from the Archer County group, and that summary will be finished soon," said Dr. Ellen Jordan, Extension dairy specialist in Dallas. "But, until we get information from the East Texas producers, we can't move forward."

Jordan is heading up an initiative to reverse the ruling and will submit a summary of Somatic Cell Count (SCC) figures of dairies with cooling ponds to TDH in hopes they will withdraw the ruling before warm weather arrives.

"We really need to look at the two groups separately because they manage things differently. But if we don't have enough response from both of them, we may not be able to analyze them separately," Jordan said on Jan. 25.

Jordan stressed, "We are only giving summery data, we will not give any producer information to anyone."

To clarify, the name of the dairy will not be reported to TNRCC, EPA, TAHC, TDH, or any other regulatory agency. Only the dairies' somatic cell figures will be used in an effort to prove that cow cooling ponds promote cow comfort and do not increase incidences of high somatic cell counts.

Cooling ponds are basically shallow wading ponds that cows may enter during hot summer months to keep cool. They promote cow comfort.

Cooling ponds are filled with fresh water that is recirculated. As the water evaporates off the top, it is replenished by a piped-water source to maintain a constant water level. The ponds should be cleaned out each year to prevent them from silting in.

"It is real important that we get this ruling changed before summer, but the only way we can is if (producers) send in the survey," stressed Hopkins County Extension Agent Larry Spradlin.

For more information, contact Jordan at (972)952-9212.