A farm or landholding of any size is going to have a significant number of responsibilities concerning environmental hazards that the nature of the farm may incur.

Dealing with these environmental risks will be part of the management of the farm, but will also be subject to national and local laws and regulations.

Depending upon where the farm is, and what country it is situated in, the environmental laws will differ by name, and also to an extent what they cover, but there are a number of general principles that virtually all farms will need to be aware of, and at some level take into account when running a business.

Pollution

Pollution is one of the major issues that need to be addressed by any farm. The two main types of pollution of water and air, including any potential threat to drinking water. Farms of all sizes produce a significant amount of waste material, by the very nature of the work they are involved in.

Safe disposal of products including toxins must take into account the broader environment, especially any body of water that may be situated on farmland.

Air pollution is also a really important issue, in that there will be a significant amount of fuel and other materials likely to be burned on a farm, either through agricultural machinery or other farm related work.

Air pollution  is important because of the effect it can have on employees and anyone who may visit the farm, but also to make sure that it complies with local and national undertakings on trying to reduce carbon emissions and other sources of pollutants.

Drinking water

This can be a major issue in some parts of the world, where trying to keep drinking water safe and free of unhealthy bacteria and germs can be a real struggle.

Waste products from farming and agricultural machinery can often be a source of pollutants into rivers and streams and other sources of drinking water.

Any farm must make absolutely sure that it has strict guidelines in place to make sure that no pollutants enter natural sources of water, and strict mechanisms in place to enforce these guidelines.

Pesticides

Virtually all farms are likely to use pesticides in some way or form, and it is important that there are strict health and safety procedures in place regarding storage and usage and disposal of all forms of pesticide.

There needs to be proper training in  place, either on-site or offsite, that addresses the preparation of the use of pesticides, the different types of pesticides that can be used in farming and agricultural work, how pesticides need to be stored, and what do in the event of a leak or unintended use of any pesticide.

Much farm work will involve driving tractors, jeeps, utility vehicles and other types of machinery, both on the farmland itself and most likely on public highways as well. Aside from the safety issues that arises from this, there are also significant environmental issues that occur because of the high level of industrial machinery and vehicles involved.

There needs to be thought given to, and policies in place to address issues such as how to dispose of used tires and batteries in particular, as well at disposal of older vehicles and their spare parts that no longer are used.

By their very nature of using a lot of vehicles in the course of work done on a farm, there are inevitably going to be oil and fuel spillages, often quite small, but with the potential for much larger incidents as well.

This can of course create potential for significant environmental damage, and there needs to be a proper management plan in place to cover both small spillages, and any large ones that may occur, sometimes as a result of small spillages not being dealt with properly.

Manure

Not a very pleasant subject, but widely used in farm and agricultural work, and a potential area of significant environmental concern.

Again safety and procedures are key to making sure that the usage of manure is handled properly, and does not create any additional environmental risks or concerns.

This applies both to how it is used, how it is stored, and having a preparation plan in place to make sure that all these areas are dealt with correctly in the first place.