General Background

Heavy artillery traffic on the 67,000-acre west range of Fort Hood has caused soil disturbance and deterioration, including loss of topsoil. Removal of perennial vegetation has left the soil open to erosion and has compromised the ability of the ecosystems to restore themselves. In light of the US military's sensitivity to improving environmental factors, remediation of the Fort Hood west range ecosystem through erosion control practices is of high priority.

The Texas Department of Transportation has achieved success using composted dairy manure to restore highway rights-of-way previously resistant to ground cover establishment. Using locally produced compost from confined animal feeding operations (dairies) achieves a synergistic effect. First, applying the compost to the impacted range of Fort Hood improves soil physical and chemical properties, thus facilitating a more rapid and effective re-establishment of vegetation.

Compost supplies essential organic matter, enhancing soil structure and potentially reducing soil erosion. Compost also reduces the nitrogen and phosphorus deficiencies of calcareous sub-soils that have been exposed by heavy military traffic. Also, moving composted manure from the North Bosque River watershed will reduce nutrient loads on already impaired segments of the Bosque River and Lake Waco. The use of compost at Fort Hood provides a much-needed outlet for existing stockpiles of compost and stimulates the development of a more sustainable dairying and composting industry in the region.

Utilization of compost for re-vegetation efforts at Fort Hood protects and enhances water quality conditions in two major watersheds of the region.