Welcome to the Virginia Poultry Environmental Management System (EMS) project homepage! This website has been designed to allow producers who have completed our EMS introductory workshop to find the materials they need to successfully complete an EMS on their operations. Those individuals who have not completed one of our workshops can learn more about an EMS and how to implement one for their operation.

If you are unfamiliar with the EMS concept and the benefits derived from the process, you may want to view the material on the Overview and Benefits page. This will describe the EMS framework, as well as how the project originated from the National Partnership for Livestock Environmental Management Systems project.

For those individuals who have completed one of our introductory workshops, or someone who would like to try to implement an EMS on their poultry operation, the EMS Guidebook & Forms and  Assessment Tools pages provide the necessary tools to begin the EMS process. The Virginia EMS Guidebook, along with the templates and examples provided, will enable you to create an EMS specifically tailored for your operation. In creating the EMS as you work through the Guidebook, you will need to assess your current management practices. The Assessment Tools page provides material from the Virginia Poultry Assessment Tool which contains chapters to assess multiple aspects of your poultry operation, and a chapter designed to inform you of Virginia regulations that may impact your operation.

In addition, sources of information that may be useful as you develop your EMS are provided on the Links page. Here you will find additional resources ranging from recognition possibilities, to low cost loan opportunities. Also, since an EMS is designed to encompass all possible aspects of your operation, locations of assessment material for aspects not covered by the Virginia Poultry Assessment Tool are provided.

If you would like more information about the Virginia Poultry Environmental Management System project, do not hesitate to contact Lori Marsh or Matt Habersack.