Nutrients from livestock and poultry manure are key sources of water pollution. Ever-growing numbers of animals per farm and per acre have increased the risk of water pollution. New Clean Water Act regulations compel the largest confined animal producers to meet nutrient application standards when applying manure to the land, and USDA encourages all animal feeding operations to do the same. The additional costs for managing manure (such as hauling manure off the farm) have implications for feedgrain producers and consumers as well. This report's farmlevel analysis examines onfarm technical choice and producer costs across major U.S. production areas for hauling manure to the minimum amount of land needed to assimilate manure nutrients. A regional analysis then focuses on off-farm competition for land to spread surplus manure, using the Chesapeake Bay region as a case study. Finally, a sectorwide analysis addresses potential long-term structural adjustments at the national level and ultimate costs to consumers and producers.

EPA's new restrictions on land application of manure nutrients by concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) could decrease the net return of 6–17% of the medium and large dairy farms with lagoon systems in the southwestern United States. Many of the other dairy CAFOs in the region could achieve higher net income under the restrictions if they reduce feed costs by better utilizing manure and expanding homegrown feed production.

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