Separation of Pig Manure Under Slats: to Reduce Releases in the Environment!

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APPLICATION OF NEAR-INFRARED REFLECTANCE SPECTROSCOPY FOR DETERMINATION OF NUTRIENT CONTENTS IN LIQUID AND SOLID MANURES

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Nitrogen availability of anaerobic swine lagoon sludge: sludge source effects

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Optimization of Liquid Swine Manure Sidedress Rate and Method for Grain Corn

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Lagoon-Biogas Emissions and Carbon Balance Estimates of a Swine Production Facility

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Vegetated buffer strips to remove phosphorous in runoff – are they as good as people say?

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Vegetated buffer strips (VBS) are often promoted as a management practice that farmers can use to help prevent the environmental effects of runoff. Reports in the literature suggest that VBS can be remarkably effective for phosphorous (P) and other farm sourced environmental contaminants. Some claim up to 90% of P can be stopped by VBS. But these are in controlled experiments. What happens in the real world? This study, conducted by ECOMatters Inc., set out to answer that question for cropped land in Manitoba. Vegetated buffer strips are not precisely defined. They are best described as a band of perennial vegetation between a cropped field and the surface drainage ditch or stream. The overall conclusion is that VBS do retain P, but putting them into practice for Manitoba farmers will be very difficult. Runoff happens mostly in spring during snowmelt, and usually is focused into a few spots along the edge of the field. A VBS running the length of the field will be mostly unused, but where the runoff happens, unless the VBS is expanded in width at this location, the VBS will be saturated and unable to fully meet the demand. Vegetated swales should be much more effective, because the runoff passes over a greater length of vegetated ground. A field-edge VBS will help in rainfall events, and will have some limited benefit for snowmelt. Perhaps more importantly is how the VBS is managed. To be most effective, the vegetation should be harvested at intervals, perhaps at least every few years. Burning the VBS probably completely erases any benefit, because the P in the ash will be especially easily carried by runoff.

Nitrate leaching and residual soil nitrogen supply following outdoor pig farming

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The Environmental Limits to Globalization

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Carcass composting for management of farm mortalities: A review

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Gaseous Nitrogen and Carbon Losses from Pig Manure Derived from Different Diets

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Manipulation of the diets of pigs may alter the composition of the manure and thereby the environmental and agricultural qualities of the manure. Laboratory studies were performed to quantify the effect of manipulation of pig diets on the chemical composition of the derived manure (slurry), the potential emission of methane (CH4) and ammonia (NH3) during anaerobic storage of the manure, and the potential nitrous oxide (N2O) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emission after application of the manure to soil. The diets differed in contents of crude protein and salt (CaSO4), and the type and contents of nonstarch polysaccha- rides (NSP). Emissions of NH3 and CH4 during storage were smaller at a low than at a high dietary protein content. The emission of NH3 was significantly related to the contents of ammonium (NH4), total N, and
pH. The emission of CH4 was significantly related to contents of dry matter, total C, and volatile fatty acids in the manure. The effect of manure composition on N2O emission markedly differed between ethe two tested soils, which points at interactions with soil properties such as the organic matter content. These types of interactions require soil-specific recommendations for mitigation of N2O emission from soil-applied pig manure by manipulation of the diet. From the tested diets, decreasing the protein content has the largest potential to simul- taneously decrease NH3 and CH4 emissions during manure storage and N2O emission from soil. An integral assessment of the environmental and agricultural impact of handling and application of pig manure as a result of diet manipulation provides opportunities for farmers to maximize the value of manures as fertilizer and soil conditioner and to minimize N and C emissions to the environment.