Search

Aerial emissions from livestock production continue to be an area of attention and concern for both the potential health and environmental impacts. However, information of gaseous, especially greenhouse gas (GHG), emissions for swine breeding/gestation and farrowing production systems is limited. The purpose of this study was to quantify ammonia (NH3), carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrous oxide (N2O), and methane (CH4) concentrations and emissions from a modern breeding-gestation-farrowing system located in central Iowa, USA. A 4300-sow farm was selected for the extensive field monitoring which employed a Mobile Air Emission Monitoring Unit equipped with state-of-the-art gas analyzers and a data acquisition system. The monitored portion of the farm facility consisted of a deep-pit breeding/early gestation (B/EG) barn (1800 head), a deep-pit late gestation (LG) barn (1800 head), and two shallow-pit (pull-plug) farrowing rooms (40 head per room). A dynamic flux chamber was used to monitor gaseous emissions from the external manure storage for the farrowing rooms. Data were collected for 29 consecutive months (January 2011 through June 2013). Daily indoor NH3, CO2, N2O, and CH4 concentrations (ppm, mean ± SD) were 12.0 (±7.6), 1594 (±797), 0.31 (±0.11), and 28.5 (±9.8), respectively, in the breeding/gestation barns; and 9.7 (±4.1), 1536 (±701), 0.30 (±0.10), and 78.3 (±37), respectively, in the farrowing rooms. Daily emissions per animal unit (AU, 500 kg live weight) were 35.1 g NH3, 7.46 kg CO2, 0.17 g N2O, and 263.4 g CH4 for sows in the B/EG barn; and 28.2 g NH3, 6.50 kg CO2, 0.12 g N2O, and 201.3 g CH4 for sows in the LG barn. The average daily emissions per AU (sow and piglets) of the farrowing rooms during the lactation period (birth to weaning) were: 59.7 g NH3, 16.4 kg CO2, 0.73 g N2O, and 107 g CH4. For the monitored period, the external manure storage had the following average daily emission per m2 surface area: 1.26 g NH3, 137 g CO2, and 94.8 g CH4, which was equivalent to daily emissions per AU in the farrowing rooms of 12.2 g NH3, 1.055 kg CO2, and 867 g CH4. Average daily emissions per AU for the total operation (including house-level and manure storage emissions) were 38.5 g NH3, 8.73 kg CO2 (including 7.3 kg from animal respiration), 0.25 g N2O, and 301 g CH4.

Feed additives can change the microbiological environment of the animal digestive track, nutrient composition of feces, and its gaseous emissions. This 2-yr field study involving commercial laying-hen houses in central Iowa was conducted to assess the effects of feeding diets containing EcoCal and corn-dried distillers grain with solubles (DDGS) on ammonia (NH3), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and greenhouse gas (CO2, CH4, and N2O) emissions. Three high-rise layer houses (256,600 W-36 hens per house) received standard industry diet (Control), a diet containing 7% EcoCal (EcoCal) or a diet containing 10% DDGS (DDGS). Gaseous emissions were continuously monitored during the period of December 2007 to December 2009, covering the full production cycle. The 24-month test results revealed that mean NH3 emission rates were 0.58 +/- 0.05, 0.82 +/- 0.04, and 0.96 +/- 0.05 g/hen/day for the EcoCal, DDGS, and Control diet, respectively. Namely, compared to the Control diet, the EcoCal and DDGS diets reduced NH3 emission by an average of 39.2% and 14.3%, respectively. The concurrent H2S emission rates were 5.39 +/- 0.46, 1.91 +/- 0.13, and 1.79 +/- 0.16 mg/ hen/day for the EcoCal, DDGS, and Control diet, respectively. CO2 emission rates were similar for the three diets, 87.3 +/- 1.37, 87.4 +/- 1.26, and 89.6 +/- 1.6 g/hen/day for EcoCal, DDGS, and Control, respectively (P = 0.45). The DDGS and EcoCal houses tended to emit less CH4 than the Control house (0.16 and 0.12 vs. 0.20 g/hen/day) during the monitored summer season. The efficacy of NH3 emission reduction by the EcoCal diet decreased with increasing outside temperature, varying from 72.2% in February 2009 to -7.10% in September 2008. Manure of the EcoCal diet contained 68% higher ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N) and 4.7 times higher sulfur content than that of the Control diet. Manure pH values were 8.0, 8.9, and 9.3 for EcoCal, DDGS, and Control diets, respectively. This extensive field study verifies that dietary manipulation provides a viable means to reduce NH3 emissions from modern laying-hen houses.

Particulate matter (PM) associated with animal feeding operations is a concern for the occupants and the surrounding community. Baseline measurements of PM concentration and emission rate are the first step toward assessing the magnitude of concentrations and emissions and evaluating effectiveness of dust control strategies. This study presents the results of PM measurements at a high-rise layer house (approx. 250,000 hens) in central Iowa using tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM) equipment. Daily average concentrations of PM10 and PM2.5 over a 17-month measurement period were 393 (257 SD) and 44 (36 SD) g m -3 , respectively. Daily average PM10 and PM2.5 emission rates during the same monitoring period were, respectively, 26.1 (15.8 SD) and 3.6 ( 3.7 SD) mg bird -1 d -1 , or 8.16 (4.94) and 1.13 (1.16) g AU -1 d -1 (AU = animal unit = 500 kg body weight). PM emission rate was positively related to ventilation rate

This article addresses the effect of ultrasonication as a pretreatment to anaerobic digestion of four types of animal manure, including swine slurry, beef feedlot manure, dairy manure slurry, and separated dairy manure effluent. The effect of ultrasonication on soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) and biochemical methane potential (BMP) were determined, and the energy efficiency of ultrasonic pretreatment was evaluated. Ultrasonic pretreatment was applied at two amplitudes (80 and 160 µmpp) and at two time settings (15 and 30 s) to each of the four manure types. The SCOD of each manure sample was determined before and after ultrasonic pretreatment. In addition, BMP trials were run on each waste with and without ultrasonic pretreatment. As part of the BMP, biogas production was measured and analyzed for methane content and cumulative methane production. Ultrasonic pretreatment of swine slurry, beef feedlot manure, dairy manure slurry, and separated dairy manure effluent increased the average SCOD up to 23%, 92%, 59%, and 33%, respectively, and the average methane yield up to 56%, 43%, 62%, and 20%, respectively. Increasing the ultrasonic amplitude and treatment time resulted in an increase in manure SCOD and methane production; the greatest methane production was obtained using the ultrasonic pretreatment at the highest power and longest treatment time. The observed greatest methane production from swine slurry, beef feedlot manure, dairy manure slurry, and separated dairy manure effluent were 394, 230, 226, and 340 mL CH4 g-1 VS, respectively. In contrast, the greatest energy efficiency was obtained with the lowest ultrasonic amplitude combined with the shortest treatment time.

SUMMARY Practical means to decrease aerial emissions will enhance the ability of the US egg industry to improve environmental stewardship while continuing to provide consumers safe and affordable eggs. Ammonia emissions from manure-belt laying hen houses have been shown to be less than 10% of the emissions from high-rise counterparts where manure is stored in-house for a year. However, on-farm manure storage for manure-belt houses also emits NH3, which is a part of the total farm emissions. Nevertheless, treating manure in storage sheds to decrease NH3 emissions may be more readily implemented than treatment inside the layer houses because of potential bird health concerns and possible detrimental effects of the treatment on the housing equipment. The laboratory-scale experiments reported here examined the efficacy of 4 commercially available treatment agents, topically applied to laying hen manure at 3 different dosages, in decreasing NH3 emissions from the manure storage. The treatment agents included zeolite, 2 forms of Al + Clear (aluminum sulfate, 48.5% liquid and granular), Ferix-3 (ferric sulfate), and Poultry Litter Treatment (PLT, sodium bisulfate). All the tested agents showed appreciable NH3 emission reduction of 33 to 94%. In all cases, the greatest application dosage provided little additional NH3 reduction as compared with the medium dosage (P > 0.70). Comparison among the dry granular Al + Clear, Ferix-3, and PLT in reduction of NH3 emission over a 7-d manure storage period showed no significant difference when the agents were applied at 0.5 kg/m 2 of manure surface area (P = 0.40) but greater reduction for Al + Clear (92 ± 3%) and Ferix-3 (90 ± 1%) as compared with PLT (81 ± 2%) when applied at 1.0 kg/m 2 (P < 0.01). Further field verification tests of the laboratory-scale findings are warranted.

Alum [Al(SO4) ·14HO] addition to poultry litter has been shown to reduce ammonia (NH) concentrations in poultry houses; however, its effects on greenhouse gas (GHG; NO, CH, and CO) emissions is unknown. The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of alum additions on (i) in-house NH and GHG concentrations, (ii) NH and GHG emissions, and (iii) litter chemical properties. Two identical broiler houses located in northwest Arkansas were used for this study: one house was a control and the other was treated with alum between each flock of birds. Ventilation rates were coupled with in-house NH and GHG measurements to determine emission rates. Overall, alum additions significantly reduced the daily average in-house NH concentration by 42% (8.9 vs. 15.4 μL L), and the overall NH emission rate was reduced by 47% (7.2 vs. 13.4 kg d house). The average cumulative NH emission for the three flocks was 330 kg house flock for the alum-treated house and 617 kg house flock for the control. Concentrations and emissions of nitrous oxide (NO) and methane (CH) from the alum-treated house were not significantly different than the untreated house. However, carbon dioxide (CO) emissions were significantly higher from the untreated house than the alum-treated house. Alum also significantly increased litter N content and reduced the C/N ratio. These results indicate that the addition of alum to poultry litter is not only an effective management practice for reducing in-house NH concentrations and emissions but also significantly reduces CO emissions from poultry facilities.

Complex variation in gas emissions from animal facilities has been shown in recent research reports. Uncertainties in these emission estimates are driving research activities concerning different animal species across the globe. Greenhouse gas (NO and CO) and NH concentrations were measured in a modern, tunnel-ventilated, commercial broiler house in Mississippi during five flocks (spanning approximately 1 yr). These were flocks 9 through 13 on reused pine shavings litter, representing litter reuse beyond 2 yr. Gas concentrations obtained from a photoacoustic multigas analyzer were coupled with ventilation measurements of air flow through the house to develop NH and NO emission rates. Ammonia emission during a flock (43 d) averaged approximately 14.8 ± 9.8 kg d in the commercial house (equivalent to 23.5 g bird marketed or 0.54 g bird d). Nitrous oxide emission averaged 2.3 ± 1.7 kg d in the house (equivalent to 3.64 g bird marketed or 0.085 g bird d). Emission rates increased with time from Day 1 to Day 43 and reached average values on Day 23 and 24 for NH and NO. Even with extended litter reuse, estimates of NH emissions from the broiler house agree well with recently published research that reused litter in eight or fewer flocks. This is important information for farmers who may not be able to afford to replace the litter with fresh bedding material annually.

Naturally occurring estrogens in animal wastes may cause negative environmental impacts, yet their abundance in animal waste treatment and storage structures is poorly documented. To better quantify estrogen concentrations in animal wastes, multiple waste samples were collected from treatment and storage structures at dairy and swine facilities and analyzed for concentrations of 17beta-estradiol (E2), estrone (E1), and 17alpha-estradiol by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy and by enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (E2 only). Mass ratios of each estrogen to the macronutrients nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium were also determined. Because manure application rates are typically macronutrient-based, estrogen to macronutrient ratios are proportional to areal mass application rates of estrogen to fields. Swine farrowing waste (from farrowing sows and piglets) had the highest ratios of E2 to macronutrients. Mean ratios in swine farrowing waste were roughly twice those in swine finishing waste (from growing male and nonpregnant female animals) and more than four times higher than those in dairy waste (from lactating cows in various stages of their reproductive cycles); these differences were statistically significant (alpha = 0.05). Estrone followed a similar trend. In contrast, ratios of 17alpha-estradiol to macronutrients were highest in dairy operations. These results can be used to better predict estrogen loading rates on fields receiving swine and dairy wastes.

Fourteen years of accumulated electrical energy use data related to milking operations at the 160-cow University of Tennessee Dairy Experiment Station in Lewisburg, Tennessee were analyzed to quantify relative effects of production -related factors on energy use within the milking center. Energy use was measured for vacuum pumps, refrigeration compressors, water heaters, and an air compressor. These energy use figures were then related to the recorded production parameters: number of cows milked, the amount of milk sold, percent butterfat of the milk, the total pounds of fat corrected milk, and high and low dry bulb temperature by means of multiple regression. Analyses were made on a monthly and yearly basis. Total dairy energy use could not be computed due to numerous non-dairy load components in the Experiment Station that could not be subtracted. It followed logically that number of cows milked, milk production, and weather conditions represented by dry bulb temperature were found to be the major factors affecting energy use. However, no parameter, or combination of parameters, explained in a statistical sense more than 74% of the variability in the recorded energy use by the equipment studied. Quantity, and not quality, of milk produced was the most significant factor affecting energy use, with the number of cows milked and outside temperatures playing lesser roles. Regression results showing that cow numbers was not a factor related to energy use for milk cooling or vacuum pump operation, lead to some questions about the validity of kWh/cow/yr as an energy use indicator. For the 14 years of data available, average EUIs for the vacuum pumps for milking (1.10 kWh/cwt) and the refrigeration compressors for milk cooling (1.02 kWh/cwt) were near the upper range of published reference values (0.4 to 1.19 kWh/cwt and 0.8 to 1.10 kWh/cwt, respectively), while average EUI for water heaters (0.65 kWh/cwt) were well below the published range (0.95 to 1.40 kWh/cwt). The former two results confirm the validity of the published EUIs that were based only on a few year’s data. Interestingly, the results also indicate a general consistency in the year to year operation of similarly sized dairy operations. The lower EUI for the water heater was due to the use of a preheater and also the every-other-day milk collection at the dairy.

Aerial emissions from livestock production continue to be an area of concern for both the potential health and environmental impacts. However, information on gaseous, especially greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for swine breeding/gestation and farrowing production facilities is meager. A 4300-sow breeding, gestation, and farrowing facility in Iowa was selected for extensive field monitoring. A Mobile Air Emission Monitoring Unit (MAEMU) was installed to monitor the deep-pit breeding-early gestation barn (1800 head), the deep-pit late gestation barn (1800 head), and two shallow-pit (pull-plug) farrowing rooms (40 head per room). A dynamic flux chamber was used to monitor gaseous emissions from the external manure storage for the farrowing rooms. This paper reports on data collected from January 12, 2011 through the completion of the study June 3, 2013. At the time of this abstract writing, results from the study show the following average daily emissions per sow or sow+litter: 13.5 g NH 3 , 2.87 kg CO 2 , 0.09 g N 2 O, and 102 g CH 4 for sows in the breeding/early gestation barn; 13.1 g NH 3 , 3.0 kg CO 2 , 0.08 g N 2 O, and 94 g CH 4 for sows in the late gestation barn; 32.0 g NH 3 , 8.7 kg CO 2 , 0.35 g N 2 O, and 57.7 g CH 4 for sows and litters in the farrowing rooms. The average daily emissions per sow+litter for the external manure storage for the farrowing facility are 6.6 g NH 3 , 1.1 kg CO 2 , 0.88 g N 2 O, and 722 g CH 4 . Farm-level average daily emissions per sow are 17.5 g NH 3 , 4.12 kg CO 2 , 0.11 g N 2 O, and 149 g CH 4 .

Aerial emissions from livestock production continue to be an area of concern for both the potential health and environmental impacts. However, information on gaseous, especially greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for swine breeding/gestation and farrowing production facilities is meager. A 4300-sow breeding, gestation, and farrowing facility in Iowa was selected for extensive field monitoring. A Mobile Air Emission Monitoring Unit (MAEMU) was installed to monitor the deep-pit breeding-early gestation barn (1800 head), the deep-pit late gestation barn (1800 head), and two shallow-pit (pull-plug) farrowing rooms (40 head per room). This paper reports on data collected from January 12, 2011 to March 31, 2012.

In recent years the corn grain ethanol industry has expanded and led to increased availability of dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS). As a result, feeding DDGS to swine is becoming more common in pork production. With feed being the primary cost in pork production and increasing interest in air emissions from animal feeding operations, it is important to understand the impacts of non-traditional dietary formulations on aerial emissions. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impacts of feeding DDGS on ammonia (NH3), hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from deep-pit swine wean-to-finish (5.5 – 118 kg) facilities in Iowa, the leading swine producing state in the USA. To attain the study objectives, two commercial, co-located wean-to-finish barns were monitored: one barn received a traditional corn-soybean meal diet (designated as Non-DDGS regimen), while the other received a diet that included 22% DDGS (designated as DDGS regimen). Gaseous concentrations and barn ventilation rate (VR) were monitored or determined semi-continuously, and the corresponding emission rates (ER) were derived from the concentration and VR data. Two turns of production were monitored for this study, covering the period of December 2009 to January 2011. The daily and cumulative emissions are expressed on the basis of per barn, per pig, and per animal unit (AU, 500 kg live body weight). Results from this project indicate that feeding 22% DDGS does not significantly affect aerial emissions of NH3, H2S, CO2, N2O or CH4 when compared to the Non-DDGS regimen in a deep-pit wean-to-finish swine facility (p-value = 0.10 for NH3, 0.13 for H2S, 0.55 for CO2, 0.58 for N2O, and 0.18 for CH4). ER for the Non-DDGS regimen, in g/d-pig, averaged 7.5 NH3, 0.37 H2S, 2127 CO2 and 72 CH4. In comparison, ER for the DDGS regimen, in g/d-pig, averaged 8.1 NH3, 0.4 H2S, 1849 CO2, and 48 CH4. On the basis of kg gas emission per AU marketed, the values were 8.7 NH3, 0.724 H2S, 2350 CO2 and 84 CH4 for the Non-DDGS regimen; and 12 NH3, 0.777 H2S, 2095 CO2, and 60 CH4 for the DDGS regimen. Results of this extended field-scale study help filling the knowledge gap of GHG emissions and impact of DDGS on gaseous emissions from modern swine production systems.

Dietary manipulation can substantially lower ammonia (NH3) emissions from laying-hen houses or manure storage. Recent lab studies showed a NH3 emission reduction for experimental diets with EcoCal™ and corn dried distiller’s grain with solubles (DDGS) as compared to the standard or control diet. The study reported here was a field verification test about the effects of diets containing DDGS and EcoCal™ on air emissions, hen production performance, and the economic returns for a commercial high-rise layer operation in Iowa. Comparative data were collected during December 2007 to Dec 2009. Feeding EcoCal diet at 7% inclusion rate and DDGS diet at 10% inclusion rate to laying hens in the high-rise houses showed 39% and 14% overall reduction in NH3 emissions, respectively. There were few differences in egg production, egg weight or egg mass (output) for hens fed the EcoCal or DDGS diet as compared to hens fed the control diet. Compared with the control and DDGS hens, the EcoCal hens consumed more feed and had a lower mortality rate, and had a similar feed conversion. The EcoCal hens also tended to have a greater body weight. Egg production was slightly lower for hens fed the DDGS diet (424 eggs hen-1 or 58.5 lb hen-1) than that of the Control (435 eggs hen-1 or 59.2 lb hen-1M) and EcoCal (447 eggs hen-1 or 61.9 lb hen-1) hens. The lower egg production by the DDGS hens (during the first cycle) could have resulted from learning management of the new strain birds during the first cycle. The cash returns (revenue – total cost) of each hen were, respectively, $11.88, $11.18 and $12.35 for Control, DDGS and EcoCal regimens over the 91-wk production period.

Limited data exist in the literature regarding air emissions from U.S. turkey feeding operations. The project described in this article continuously monitored ammonia (NH3) and particulate matter (PM) emissions from turkey production houses in Iowa (IA) and Minnesota (MN) for 10 to 16 months, with IA monitoring Hybrid tom turkeys (35 to 143 d of age, average market body weight of 17.9 kg) for 16 months and MN monitoring Hybrid hens (35 to 84 d of age, average market body weight of 6.7 kg) for 10 months. Mobile air emission monitoring units (MAEMUs) were used in the continuous monitoring. Based on the approximately one-year measurement, each involving three flocks of birds, daily NH3, PM10, and PM2.5 concentrations (mean ±SD) in the tom turkey barn were 8.6 ±10.0 ppm, 1104 ±719 µg m-3, and 143 (±124) µg m-3, respectively. Daily NH3 and PM10 concentrations (mean ±SD) in the hen turkey barn were 7.3 ±7.9 ppm and 301 ±160 µg m-3, respectively. Daily NH3 concentrations during downtime (mean ±SD) were 38.4 ±20.5 and 20.0 ±16.3 ppm in the tom and hen barns, respectively. The cumulative NH3 emissions (mean ±SE) were 141 ±13.1 and 1.8 ±0.9 g bird-1 for the tom turkeys during 108 d growout and 13 d downtime, respectively, and 52 ±2.1 and 28.2 ±2.5 g bird-1 for the hen turkeys during 49 d growout and 32 d downtime, respectively (the extended downtime for the hen house was to ensure monitoring of one flock per season). The cumulative PM10 emission (mean ±SE) was 28.2 ±3.3 g bird-1 for the tom turkeys during 108 d growout and 4.6 ±2.2 and 0.3 ±0.06 g bird-1 for the hen turkeys during 49 d growout and 32 d downtime, respectively. Downtime in the hen house was of greater duration than would be typically observed (32 d vs. 7 d to 14 d typical). The cumulative PM2.5 emission (mean ±SE) was 3.6 ±0.7 g bird-1 for the tom turkeys during 108 d growout (not monitored for the hen turkeys). Because farm operations will vary in flock number, growout days, and downtime; annual emissions can be calculated from the cumulative emissions and downtime emissions per bird from the data provided. Air emissions data from this study, presented in both daily emission and cumulative per-bird-marketed emission, contribute to the improved U.S. national air emissions inventory for animal feeding operations.

Dietary manipulation can substantially lower ammonia emissions from laying hen manure. However, such dietary changes would be of little value if the changes cause inferior egg production and hen performance. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a diet containing EcoCalTM (gypsum and zeolite), which has been shown to lower ammonia emission in laboratory-scale testing, on hen production performance in commercial high-rise laying hen houses. A companion paper describes the effect of the EcoCal diet on ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon dioxide emissions. Two high-rise houses, each containing approximately 255,000 hens, were used for the study. Hens in one house were fed a diet containing 3.5% EcoCal, whereas hens in the other house were fed an EcoCal-free, control diet. The cooperating farm provided the production records. The comparative production data have been collected since October 2006 and the study is scheduled to continue for another 2 years (i.e., through 2009). The period was broken into 2-wk increments for data analyses. Feed consumption was higher for the EcoCal-fed hens from 100 to 105 weeks of age. Egg production was transiently lower for the EcoCal-fed hens during the 92 to 93 wk-of-age period and egg weight was lower during the 96 to 97 wk-of-age period. Consequently, egg mass was lower during both the 92 to 93 and 96 to 97 wk-of-age periods. Feed conversion was more favorable for the control-fed hens from 100 to 103 wk of age. Mortality was lower for the EcoCal-fed hens from 92 to 93 and 100 to 105 wk of age. Results from December 2006 through May 2007 presented in this paper show mostly transient differences in production parameters between the dietary regimens. Future analyses will help better determine or affirm the effects of the EcoCal diet.

Dietary manipulation can substantially lower ammonia (NH3) emissions from laying-hen houses or manure storage. Recent lab studies showed a NH3 emission reduction of 40– 60% for an experimental (EcoCal TM ) diet as compared to the standard or control diet. The study reported here was a field verification test about the effects of EcoCal diet on NH3, hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, hen production performance, and the economic returns for a commercial high-rise layer operation in Iowa. Comparative data were collected during December 2006 to May 2007. The results showed that the EcoCal diet led to NH3 emission reduction by up to 23.2% (0.86±0.04 vs. 1.12±0.03 g NH3 d -1 hen -1 for EcoCal vs. Control diet, respectively) while H2S emission increased by up to 134% (4.38±0.20 vs. 1.82±0.07 mg d -1 hen -1 for EcoCal vs. Control, respectively). However, H2S emissions were small for both dietary regimens.

Particulate matter (PM) in animal feeding operations is a concern for the occupants and the surrounding community. Baseline measurements of the concentration and emission rate of PM are the first step toward assessing the environmental impact of animal feeding operation and evaluating the effectiveness of dust control strategies. This study presents the results of the PM measurement at a high-rise layer house in central Iowa. The average PM10 emission rate over the 9-month measurement period was 21.6 (±10 S.D.) mg/bird/day. Comparing with the emission rates reported literature, the mean and range of PM10 emission from high-rise layer hen barns using cage systems were 33.5 and 19-48 mg/bird/day. The average PM2.5 emission rate over the measurement period was 2 (± 1.5 S.D.) mg/bird/day, which is less than literature values of 3.52-14.2 mg/bird/day.

Quantification of ammonia loss from animal feeding operations by measuring gaseous concentration and air exchange through the emitting source is not always practical, e.g., under natural ventilation conditions. Mass balance over an extended period of time may offer possibilities of remedy. This study compares two NH3-N emission estimate approaches for a commercial turkey grow-out house over one year period: a) a concentration-flow-integration (CFI) method (considered as the reference method), and b) a nitrogen (N) mass-balance method. The CFI NH3-N emission was determined by continuously measuring the NH3 concentration and exhaust air flow rate through the turkey house with a state-of-the-art mobile air emission unit. The mass-balance N emission was calculated by balancing the total N inputs (new bedding, young birds, feed) and N output (litter cake removed between flocks, litter removed at cleanout, amount of marketed birds, mortality, and body N content). The production-related data were acquired from the records kept or presented to the cooperative producer. The results revealed unexpectedly large discrepancy in NH3-N loss between the two methods. The outcome of this study cast serious doubt about the adequacy of using mass balance for estimating NH3 emissions from a dynamic production system such as turkey houses.

Emissions of total suspended particulate (TSP), particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters = 10 µm (PM10), and = 2.5 µm (PM2.5) were continuously monitored at two mechanically ventilated broiler houses in the southeastern United States. Monitoring was performed over a one-year period during 2005-2006 as a joint effort between Iowa State University and the University of Kentucky. Tapered Element Oscillating Microbalances (TEOMs) were used to measure three species of particulate matter (TSP, PM10 and PM2.5). Ventilation rates were measured continuously by monitoring building static pressure and operational status of ventilation fans in conjunction with individual performance curves developed and verified in situ using a Fan Assessment Numeration System (FANS) unit. The magnitude of the TSP, PM10 and PM2.5 emissions are reported as a) annual house total emission and b) on a per 1,000 birds marketed basis. These emission values are: a) 785 kg (1,731 lb) TSP, 330 kg (727 lb) PM10, and 32.5 kg (71.7 lb) PM2.5 per house per year and b) 6.03 kg (13.3 lb) TSP, 2.52 kg (5.56 lb) PM10, and 0.25 kg (0.55 lb) PM2.5, per 1,000 birds marketed. Bird age is the predominant factor influencing particulate emissions. An empirical equation is presented that relates emissions to bird age for the monitored broiler houses. The use of a daily emission factor is not advised for broiler production systems or others in which substantial progressive animal growth occurs over time. The use of emissions per 1,000 birds marketed more realistically expresses emissions and allows for improved emissions inventory tracking.

Considerable progress has been made toward collection of baseline data on air emissions from U.S. animal feeding operations. However, limited data exist in the literature regarding turkey air emissions. The project described in this paper continuously monitors ammonia (NH3) and particulate matter (PM) emissions from turkey production houses in Iowa (IA) and Minnesota (MN) for one year, with IA monitoring Hybrid tom turkeys and MN monitoring Hybrid hens. Mobile Air Emission Monitoring Units are used in the continuous monitoring. Data collection and analysis has been ongoing since May 2, 2007 for the IA site and October 9, 2007 for the MN site. Based on the one-year measurement at the IA site involving three flocks, daily NH3 emissions (g/d-bird) from the IA turkey house varied from 0.04 to 6.4 (mean of 1.9) for flock 1 (May-Aug), 0.2 to 3.4 (mean of 1.3) for flock 2 (Aug-Dec), and 0.16 to 3.8 (mean 1.4) for flock 3 (Dec-Apr). The PM10 emissions (g/d-bird) were 0.04 to 1.6 (mean of 0.58), 0.04 to 0.39 (mean of 0.2), and 0.04 to 0.82 (mean of 0.37) for flocks 1, 2, and 3, respectively; and the concomitant PM2.5 emissions (g/d-bird) were 0 to 0.11 (mean of 0.048), 0 to 0.05 (mean of 0.021), and 0 to 0.14 (mean of 0.053) for flocks 1, 2, and 3, respectively. Annual mean emissions from the tom turkeys (including downtime emission), expressed as grams of constituent per bird marketed, were 169 g NH3, 40 g PM10, and 4.3 g PM2.5 per bird marketed. Data collection and analysis at the MN site are ongoing.

Continuous measurement of aerial emissions from animal feeding operations over prolonged time is labor and resource intensive. Hence, knowledge of strategic, discrete measurements that lead to comparable emission estimation is highly desirable. This paper delineates the effects of sampling schemes on estimation of daily, flock and annual ammonia (NH3) and particulate matter (PM) emission rate (ER) of a turkey grow-out house. The sampling schemes examined include sampling integration time (SIT) – duration of continuous measurement over which the means of the ER components are taken, sampling interval (SI) – time interval between two adjacent instantaneous ER measurements, and measurement frequency (MF) throughout the total monitoring period – how often the periodic measurements take place. Evaluation of the SIT and SI effects involved 70 discrete days of continuous measurement covering cold to warm climates; whereas the effect of MF involved two consecutive flocks of continuous measurements (May 2 – December 17, 2007 with 7-day downtime). The full dataset or reference was based on NH3 or PM ER values collected at 0.5 to 4 min throughout the discrete or consecutive measurement days. The subsets of ER were established at different SIT or SI throughout the discrete days and at different MF throughout the consecutive flocks. The results show that estimation of daily NH3 and PM10 emissions is affected by SIT and SI. Specifically, at SIT of 0.5 to 2 hr, the resultant daily emissions deviated from the reference values by -0.5% to 2.7% for NH3 and by -6.9% to 6.6% for PM10. At SI of 0.5 to 2 hr, the resultant daily emissions deviated from the reference values by -9.9% to 10.2% for NH3 and by -34.7% to 28.8% for PM10. Ammonia or PM10 emissions deviation of the flock, estimated from 1-d, 2-d or 3-d continuous measurement per week throughout the grow-out period, had

Concentrations and emissions of particulate matter with aerodynamic diameters = 10 µm (PM10) were continuously measured in a mechanically ventilated turkey grow-out barn in central Iowa. The PM concentrations were measured with Tapered Element Oscillating Microbalance (TEOM) units; and ventilation rate (VR) of the barn was measured by monitoring the runtime of calibrated ventilation fans. Bird activity (BA) was monitored with passive infrared detectors (PIDs). This paper describes the effects of BA, VR and indoor relative humidity (RH) on the PM concentration and emission rate (ER) based on 18 days of full 24-hr dynamic data collected during 67 days of flock-growing period (bird age of 40 - 107 d) in wintertime. Considerable diurnal variations were observed in BA, PM concentration and PM ER of the turkey barn. The PM concentration and ER were positively related to BA but negatively related to indoor RH. VR was negatively related to PM concentration but positively related to ER. The PM10 ER during the monitoring period varied from 2.71 to 25.6 mg/hr·bird or 13.4 to 28.8 g/d·AU (AU = 500 kg body mass).

Dietary manipulation can substantially lower ammonia emissions from laying hen manure. However, such dietary changes would be of little value if the changes cause inferior egg production and hen performance. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of a diet containing EcoCalTM (gypsum and zeolite), which has been shown to lower ammonia emission in laboratory-scale testing, on hen production performance in commercial high-rise laying hen houses. A companion paper describes the effect of the EcoCal diet on ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon dioxide emissions. Two high-rise houses, each containing approximately 255,000 hens, were used for the study. Hens in one house were fed a diet containing 3.5% EcoCal, whereas hens in the other house were fed an EcoCal-free, control diet. The cooperating farm provided the production records. The comparative production data have been collected since October 2006 and the study is scheduled to continue for another 2 years (i.e., through 2009). The period was broken into 2-wk increments for data analyses. Feed consumption was higher for the EcoCal-fed hens from 100 to 105 weeks of age. Egg production was transiently lower for the EcoCal-fed hens during the 92 to 93 wk-of-age period and egg weight was lower during the 96 to 97 wk-of-age period. Consequently, egg mass was lower during both the 92 to 93 and 96 to 97 wk-of-age periods. Feed conversion was more favorable for the control-fed hens from 100 to 103 wk of age. Mortality was lower for the EcoCal-fed hens from 92 to 93 and 100 to 105 wk of age. Results from December 2006 through May 2007 presented in this paper show mostly transient differences in production parameters between the dietary regimens. Future analyses will help better determine or affirm the effects of the EcoCal diet.

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and nonmethane hydrocarbon (NMHC) emissions from two mechanically ventilated commercial broiler houses located in the southeastern United States were continuously monitored over 12 flocks for a one-year period during 2006-2007 as a joint effort between Iowa State University and the University of Kentucky. H2S and NMHC concentrations were measured using UV-Fluorescence H2S analyzers and methane/nonmethane/total hydrocarbon dual flame ionization detector gas chromatographs. Ventilation rates in each house were measured continuously by monitoring building static pressure and operational status of all ventilation fans in conjunction with individual performance curves developed and verified in situ using a Fan Assessment Numeration System (FANS) unit. United States EPA methods TO-15 and TO-17 were used for the nonmethane hydrocarbon compound speciation. The top-25 compounds are presented. The overall mean H2S and NMHC emission rates for a one-year period were 65.7 ± 42 g/d-house and 0.76 ± 0.43 kg C3H8/d-house, respectively. Annual H2S emission for the two broiler houses (including downtime emissions) averaged 19.2 kg per year per house or 0.147 g per bird marketed when the birds were marketed at 52 days of age with a stocking density of 11.8 bird per m2 (1.1 bird per ft2). Annual NMHC emission averaged 231 kg per year per house (510 lb per year per house) or 1.77 g per bird marketed.

Dietary manipulation can substantially lower ammonia (NH3) emissions from laying-hen houses or manure storage. Recent lab studies showed a reduction of 40–60% in ammonia emissions for an experimental (EcoCalTM) diet as compared the standard or control diet. However, adoption of a mitigation technology at commercial production level should be preceded by substantial field verification tests to document not only NH3 emission reduction, but also impact of the strategy on production performance of the hens and cash returns. A study to assess the effects of feeding diets containing EcoCal on NH3, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, laying-hen production performance, and economic returns was conducted at a commercial laying-hen farm in central Iowa. Two houses (256,000 or 262,000 hens per house) were used for the study. Hens in one house were fed the EcoCal diet while hens in the other house were fed a standard or control diet containing no EcoCal. A state-of-the-art mobile air emissions monitoring unit (MAEMU) and the associated sampling system were used to continuously monitor the gaseous concentrations, ventilation rate and environmental conditions. Comparative data collected from December 2006 to May 2007 are presented in this paper. Data from this period showed that the EcoCal diet led to NH3 emission reduction by up to 23.2% (0.86±0.04 and 1.12±0.03 g/d·hen for EcoCal and Control diet, respectively), at the same time, H2S emission increased by up to 134% (4.38±0.20 and 1.82±0.07 mg/d·hen for EcoCal and Control diet, respectively), although the magnitude of H2S emission is rather small for both dietary regimens. Data on the hen production performance are reported in a companion paper (Roberts et al., 2008).

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, including carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), from broiler houses located in the southeastern United States were continuously monitored over a one-year period. The birds were grown to 52 days of age at an average stocking density of 11.8 birds/m2 (1.1 birds/ft2). Methane and CO2 emissions were measured in two broiler houses while N2O emissions were measured in one house. Carbon dioxide and N2O concentrations were measured using a photoacoustic multi-gas analyzer and CH4 concentrations were measured using a dual-channel methane/non-methane-hydrocarbon (NMHC)/total hydrocarbon analyzer with dual flame ionization detectors. Ventilation rates in each house were continuously calculated by monitoring the building static pressure and operational status of all ventilation fans in conjunction with individual fan performance curves developed and verified in situ using a Fan Assessment Numeration System (FANS) unit. Annual CO2 emissions measured from the two broiler houses averaged 606 Mg (668 US tons) per house. On a marketed bird basis the CO2 emissions averaged 4.64 Mg (5.49 US tons) per 1,000 birds marketed. Annual CH4 emissions averaged 445 kg (982 lbs) per house, or 3.41 kg (7.52 lbs) per 1,000 birds marketed. Annual N2O emissions measured from one broiler house was 225 kg (496 lbs) per house, or 1.72 kg (3.8 lbs) per 1,000 birds marketed. The CO2 equivalents of the CH4 and N2O emissions were, respectively, 85.3 kg (188 lb) and 512.6 kg (1,128 lb) per 1,000 birds marketed. Hence the total CO2 equivalent GHG emissions for the broiler operations monitored in this study were 5.238 Mg per 1,000 birds marketed, with 88.6% contributed by CO2.

Continuous monitoring of ammonia (NH3) emissions from two mechanically ventilated commercial broiler houses located in the southeastern United States was performed during a one-year period over 2005-2006 as a joint effort between Iowa State University and the University of Kentucky. Ammonia concentrations were measured using Innova 1412 photoacoustic NH3 monitors. Ventilation rates in each house were measured continuously by monitoring the building static pressure and operational status of all ventilation fans in conjunction with individual performance curves developed and verified in situ using a Fan Assessment Numeration System (FANS) unit. Expressed in various units, NH3 emissions from the two broiler houses over the one-year production period were of the following values: a) 35.4 g per bird marketed (77.9 lb per 1,000 birds marketed), including both grow-out (50-54 d per flock) and downtime (12-25 d between flocks) emissions; b) annual (365-d) emission of 4.63 Mg (5.1 US tons) per house, including both grow-outs and downtime; c) maximum grow-out daily emission of 30.6 kg/d-house (67.4 lb/d-house) for one house and 35.5 kg/d-house (78.2 lb/d-house) for the other; d) mean grow-out daily emission of 14.0 ± 9.1 ( S.D.) kg/d-house; e) mean downtime daily emission of 8.8 ± 8.3 kg/d-house. Flocks on new bedding had a lower emission rate of 12.4 ± 9.4 kg/d-house, as compared to 14.5 ± 8.9 kg/d-house for flocks on built-up litter. The NH3 emission factor of 35.4 g/bird marketed from this study is substantially lower than that cited by US EPA of 100 g/yr-bird (the US EPA yr-bird unit is equivalent to bird marketed).

Manure storage can be a significant source of ammonia emission that impacts the environment. Ammonia emission from manure storage can be controlled by using physical, chemical and/or biological methods. Five treatment agents, including zeolite, liquid Al+Clear (aluminum sulfate), granular Al+Clear (aluminum sulfate), and granular Ferix-3 (ferric sulfate), and PLT (sodium hydrogen sulfate) were topically applied to stored fresh layer manure. Each agent was tested at three application rates, i.e., low, medium and high. Manure was stored in 19-litter Teflon-lined vessels under a constant ambient temperature of 23 oC with a constant airflow of 3 liter per minute. The ammonia concentrations and emissions from the vessels were measured and ammonia emission reductions by the treatment regimens were evaluated as compared to the control. Reduction of ammonia emission as a result of topical application of the tested manure treatment agents, when compared to the control, over a 7-day manure storage period was as following: A) 68%, 81% or 96%, respectively, for zeolite applied at 2.5%, 5% or 10% of the manure weight; B) 63%, 89%, or 94%, respectively, for liquid Al+Clear applied at 1, 2, or 4 kg m-2 of manure surface area; C) 81%, 93%, or 94%, respectively, for dry granular Al+Clear applied at 0.5, 1.0, or 1.5 kg m-2; D) 82%, 86%, or 87%, respectively, for Ferix-3 applied at 0.5, 1.0, or 1.5 kg m-2; and E) 74%, 90%, or 92%, respectively, for PLT applied at 0.5, 1.0, or 1.5 kg m-2.

Naturally occurring estrogens in animal wastes may cause negative environmental impacts in some watersheds. However, there is little published data regarding the concentrations of these estrogenic compounds in full-scale animal waste treatment and storage structures, thus making risk assessment difficult. To address this knowledge gap, the research described in this paper explores estrogen concentrations in 19 animal waste storage and treatment structures at dairy and swine production facilities in and around Tennessee. Samples have been collected from eight dairy and eleven swine facilities, representing a range of waste storage and treatment structures typical of Tennessee, and much of the southeastern US. The 17 â-estradiol concentrations in all samples have been assayed in triplicate serial dilutions by means of an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), all samples have, or will be, assayed for conventional manure constituents, including total solids, volatile solids, ash, total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), total phosphorus, potassium, and chemical oxygen demand. Concentrations of 17 a-estradiol, 17 â-estradiol, and estrone are being assayed by gas-chromatography mass-spectroscopy (GC-MS), and total estrogenicity is periodically checked with a recombinant yeast reporter assay. At the time of this writing, the GC-MS dataset was incomplete, so that this paper is focused on the 17 â-estradiol ELISA data. Several tentative conclusions can be drawn from the preliminary data presented here, as follow: (1) 17 â-estradiol concentrations are highest in swine finishing hoop structure solids and swine farrowing pit slurry, with concentrations in excess of 20,000 ppt (parts per trillion) observed in both systems. Average 17 â-estradiol concentrations in swine farrowing and finishing lagoons were less than 4000 ppt. A similar trend was seen in dairy systems, where 17 â-estradiol concentrations in dry stacks averaged 10,000 ppt, while concentrations in lagoons and holding ponds were below 2000 ppt. (2) The mass-ratio of 17 â-estradiol to TKN followed a different trend than did the raw 17 â-estradiol concentrations. For example, swine farrowing lagoons had the greatest ratio (ca. 25 ppm), while swine fishing hoop structure solids and swine farrowing pit slurries had ratios four times smaller. We believe that the mass-ratio of 17 â-estradiol to application-rate-limiting macronutrients is a better predictor of the estrogen emission risk than is the raw 17 â-estradiol concentration in the waste. (3) There is spatial heterogeneity in 17 â-estradiol distribution within most structures studied. In 9 of the 11 liquid systems studied, a positive correlation was observed between 17 â-estradiol and depth; in dry-stack dairy systems, older parts of the stack had lower 17 â-estradiol concentrations than did newer parts of the stack.

Concentrations and emissions of particulate matters (PM10 and PM2.5) were continuously measured in a mechanically ventilated turkey grow-out house over one-year period. The PM concentrations were measured using tapered element oscillating microbalances (TEOMs), and the building ventilation rate (VR) was measured by monitoring the operation time of calibrated ventilation fans. Bird activities (BA) were monitored with a passive infrared detector (PID). This paper describes the effects of bird age, BA, VR, air temperature, and indoor relative humidity (RH) on the PM emission rate (ER) based on three flocks (bird age of 35 - 140 d) data collected during the one-year monitoring. Considerable diurnal variations were observed in BA, PM concentration and PM ER of the turkey barn. The PM concentration and ER were positively related to BA but negatively related to indoor RH. VR was negatively related to PM concentration but positively related to ER.

Quantification of aerial emissions from animal feeding operations (AFOs) requires the knowledge of both concentration of the constituent of interest and the ventilation rate (VR) through the emitting source. Daily emissions can be and are normally determined from diurnal integration of frequent measurements, referred to as the diurnal integration method (DIM), but is resource intensive. Alternatively, daily emission may be more economically estimated from daily means of concentration and VR, referred to as diurnal means method (DMM). In this study, DMM was compared with DIM in determining daily ammonia (NH3) emissions from mechanically ventilated laying-hen, turkey and broiler houses under U.S. production conditions. Results show that deviations in daily NH3 emissions between DMM and DIM methods ranged from as small as < 3% (e.g., for medium age turkey under both cold and warm weather conditions) to as high as 98% (e.g., broiler houses in summer). Deviations were related with coefficient of variation (CV) of VR or NH3 concentration, although prediction of the deviation using CV of VR and/or NH3 concentration alone will likely not produce reliable results. The study suggests that caution must be taken when using DMM to estimate daily NH3 emissions from poultry houses under typical US production conditions.