Odor Control of an Anaerobic Lagoon with a Biological Cover: Floating Peat Beds

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Soil Sampling of Manured and Non-Manured Fields

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The application of crop nutrients to agricultural soils requires a determination of the existing nutrient status within the crop rooting zone, normally considered to be the top 60 cm. Nutrient levels within agricultural fields can vary considerably, both in area and vertically. In order to determine soil nutrient levels, many different sampling methodologies have been investigated by other researchers in the past. This study was initiated to investigate the nutrient status of agricultural soils in Manitoba that have a history of manure applications and to compare these soils to those that have not received manure. Soils characterized as fine (clays), moderately fine (tills) and coarse (sands) were studied. The sampling locations would be considered representative of soil landscapes commonly referred to as the Red River – Osborne, Newdale, and Almasippi soils. The variability in soil nitrate-nitrogen and phosphorous level was determined in a total of 27 fields, 80 acres in area. Six manured and three non-manured fields were investigated in each soil type. Three soil sampling procedures were conducted at each field location. The first consisted of individually sampling fifteen randomly selected sites identified with global positioning coordinates. The second involved taking a sub-sample from each of these fifteen sites for a single composite sample. The third procedure consisted of selecting, at the investigator’s discretion, two of the random sites to represent the whole field (benchmark sampling). The study found that manured fields have different nitrate-nitrogen and phosphorous fertility levels than non-manured fields. In general, manured fields had higher levels of nutrients, an indication that they have historically received higher level of nutrient applications. This is in agreement with previous studies by DGH Engineering Ltd. The need is apparent to implement manure nutrient management plans, under the supervision of a professional agrologist, that closely match nutrient supply to crop requirements. Nitrate-nitrogen and phosphorous levels varied considerably within each field. This variability was greater in manured fields than non-manured fields and at the soil surface (0 – 15 cm depth) as compared to the soil profile (0-60 cm). As a result, more samples were required to accurately determine soil nutrient status in manured fields, except for nitrate-nitrogen in clay soils. With the exception of tills, more samples are required to determine phosphorous than nitrate-nitrogen levels. Phosphorous levels were higher in manured fields for all soil textures. The phosphorous in both manured and non-manured fields was concentrated at the soil surface. Soil texture had an effect on fertility status. Clays had lower nitrate-nitrogen and higher phosphorous levels than tills and sands. Tills had higher nitrogen and lower phosphorous levels than sands. Landscape position had relatively little impact on nutrient status. In undulating topography (tills), and only in non-manured fields, the lower slope positions contained less nitrate-nitrogen than the mid and upper slopes. There was no difference in sampling accuracy between the analysis of fifteen individual samples and the analysis of a single composite sample from fifteen locations. The benchmark sampling method tended to produce different results at the soil profile depth (0 – 60 cm), particularly for phosphorous.

Measurement and analysis of atmospheric ammonia emissions from anaerobic lagoons

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Tracing Nitrate Transport and Environmental Impact from Intensive Swine Farming using Delta Nitrogen-15

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High yield manure information

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Wisconsin hog farmer Lynn Harrisona

Dietary Protein and fermentable Fiber Affect Notrogen Excretion

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Nitrogen excretion is a concern because of its potential impact on the environment inside and outside of he barn. The effects of reducing dietary protein content and the inclusion of dietary fermentable fiber sources on reducing urinary nitorgen excretion were additive, together resulting in a 55% reduction. Urinary nitrogen excretion could be predicted from plasma urea (PU) concentration. For low compared to high protein diest, urinary and total nitrogen were reduced 27% and 16%, respectively, while nitrogen rentention was reduced 7%. Lower total nitrogen exctretion may reduce land base needed to apply manure in a sustainable manner. Lower urinary nitrogen excretion will reduc ammonia emissions inside and outside the barn. Models to predict urinary nitrogen excretion may be useful to access nitrogen staus on farms.

Negative Air Pressure Covers for Earthen Manure Storages

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Controlling odour is a major challenge affecting expansion of the livestock industry in Western Canada. Manure-storage facilities account for about 30 percent of the
complaints about livestock odours. Covering these facilities can reduce odour and gas emissions by 70 to 95 percent. This report describes the results of:
1. Field tests on a full scale prototype that demonstrated the concept of a negative air pressure (NAP) cover for earthen manure storages 2. A survey of neighbours living around two earthen storages covered with NAP covers 3. Monitoring of the manure quality in a NAP covered earthen storage.

Project Goals
The project goals were to: 1. Demonstrate and evaluate the performance of the negative air pressure cover system under field conditions; 2. Evaluate different ways to anchor the covera

Effect of dietary ideal amino acid ratios, and supplemental carbohydrase in hulless-barley-based diets on pig performance and nitrogen excretion in manure.

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Two experiments were conducted, using a total of 224 (112 barrows + 112 gilts) crossbred pigs, to determine the effect of dietary ideal amino acid ratios, and supplemental carbohydrase in hulless barley (HB) diets, on pig performance and N excretion in manure. The four experimental grower and finisher diets were 1) a covered-barley (CB) control diet, 2) a HB (cv. Condor) diet, 3) same as diet 2 except that the soybean meal was replaced with supplemental lysine, threonine, methionine and tryptophan, to provide ideal amino acid ratios of 0.65 for threonine to lysine and 0.30 for methionine to lysine, and 4) same as diet 3 with supplemental carbohydrase (Ronozyme W) enzyme at 350 g t-1. All diets were fed ad libitum as pellets with free access to drinking water. The average daily gain (ADG) was not different (P > 0.10) between diets 1 and 2, or among diets 2, 3 and 4 during the grower or finisher periods. The feed conversion efficiency was higher (P < 0.01) for diets 3 and 4 than for diet 2 during the grower period, but it was higher (P < 0.05) only for diet 4 than diet 2 during the finisher and combined grower-finisher periods. Backfat thickness, carcass index and dressing % were not different (P > 0.10) among the diets. The absorption of dry matter (88.9 vs. 83.7%) and energy (87.8 vs. 84.1%) was greater (P < 0.05) for diet 2 than diet 1. The excretion of faecal dry matter was 31.6% lower (P < 0.01) for diet 2 than diet 1 during the finisher period. The N excretion was 22.0% lower in pigs fed diet 3 than diet 2. Ammonia, carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide concentration in stored manure were not different (P > 0.10) among the diets, but ammonia production was positively correlate with urinary N excretion. These results indicated that feeding HB diets with supplemental amino acids minimises the excretion of both faecal dry matter and N with no adverse effect on the performance of lean-genotype pigs.

Effect of Reducing Dietary Protein Level and Adding Amino Acids on Performance and Nitrogen Excretion of Early-Finishing Barrows

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This study was designed to evaluate the effect of reducing the protein level of late finishing pigs by 4-5% on growth performance, carcass characteristics and N excretion. The results indicate that dietary protein levels and N excretion can be reduced significantly without affecting pig performance when diets are supplemented with lysine, threonine, tryptophan and methionine. From a production standpoint, this means that a producer needs 38.4 % less land to spread his manure on if the nutrient management plan is based on N. However, amino acid levels need to be based on gram/day intake to avoid problems occurring with differences in feed intake causing an amino acid deficiency.

The impact of manure production rights on capital investment in the Dutch pig sector

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