Virginia Administrative Code › Title 4 - CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES › Agency 50 - VIRGINIA SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION BOARD › Chapter 85 - NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION REGULATIONS › Section 4VAC50-85-60 - Examination

Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 24, July 15, 2024
A. The department
				shall administer nutrient management certification examinations at least once
				per year. The examinations shall require a demonstration of the ability to
				prepare a nutrient management plan. The department may limit the number of
				applicants taking the examination based upon available examination
				space.
B. Applicants for
				certification shall achieve a passing score on each of the parts of the
				nutrient management certification examination to become eligible for
				certification.
C. The examinations
				for persons involved in agricultural nutrient management shall address the
				elements listed below. To address nutrient management on urban land uses,
				specialty specific examinations may be added to or substituted by the
				department for the elements below.
1. General
				understanding of overall nutrient management concepts such as nutrient cycling
				on farms, the purpose of nutrient management planning, economic aspects of
				nutrient use, and components of a nutrient management plan;
2. Basic soil science concepts such as soil
				physical and chemical properties including texture, structure, organic matter,
				and horizon development, and how such characteristics influence crop
				productivity and adaptation, water runoff, and infiltration;
3. Environmental management concepts such as
				the water cycle, nutrient loss mechanisms, environmental effects of nutrients
				in waters including Chesapeake Bay, identification of high risk sites relating
				to nutrient use and appropriate nutrient management practices to reduce
				nutrient losses;
4. Nutrient
				sampling, testing, and analysis such as basic sampling procedures, relationship
				of soil test level with the likelihood of crop response, soil nitrate testing,
				manure and biosolids sampling and interpretation, and determining nitrogen
				supplied by legumes;
5. Basic soil
				fertility concepts such as relationship of soil pH to nutrient availability and
				toxicity, essential elements for crop growth, limiting factors to crop
				production, cation exchange capacity and related concepts, nutrient cycles, and
				forms of nutrients in soils;
6.
				Fertilizer management concepts such as types of fertilizers, nutrient analysis
				of common materials and grades, basic calculations and blending, calibration of
				equipment, and application methods;
7. Manure management concepts such as
				nutrient content and volume produced, determination of plant available
				nutrients, selecting sites for manure application, proper timing and placement,
				coordination of fertilizers with manure, application methods and
				calibration;
8. Biosolids
				management concepts such as determination of plant available nutrients,
				nutrient content, forms of nutrients, types of sludges, coordination with
				fertilizer applications, and application methods;
9. Nutrient management training and
				certification regulatory requirements, and requirements of other nutrient
				management related laws, regulations, and incentive programs; and
10. Development of multiple components of
				nutrient management plans and completion of calculations comparable to
				development of nutrient management plans such as, but not limited to,
				determination of specific soil types in fields, determination of specific
				nutrient requirements based on soil productivity and soil analysis results,
				evaluation of field limitations based on environmental hazards or concerns,
				timing of nitrogen applications, phosphorus nutrient management planning
				methods and assessment techniques, and interpretation of manure analysis
				results.