Costs of existing and recommended manure management practices for house fly and stable fly (Diptera: Muscidae) control on dairy farms

Costs of fly control practices were estimated for 26 New York and Maryland dairy farms. Objectives were to characterize existing practices, compare them with the cost of more frequent and complete manure removal to reduce fly breeding, and to compare costs of manure removal and insecticide application. Information was collected in scouting visits and personal interviews of farm operators. Equipment, labor, and bedding costs were included for manure removal. Insecticide application costs included chemicals and labor for application. A typical farm with a stanchion barn had manure removal costs of $0.348 per cow per day. Recommended changes would increase costs by $0.016-0.033 per cow per day. Insecticide costs averaged $0.021 per cow per day. It may be possible to eliminate many of the insecticide applications on the farms by using the recommended 7-d manure removal practice. Even if insecticides are not eliminated entirely, increased manure removal costs would be offset by some reduction in insecticide cost. This also would have the additional benefit of greatly slowing the development of insecticide resistance by the flies.     

Simulation of Long-Term Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics in Grassland-Based Dairy Farming Systems to Evaluate Mitigation Strategies for Nutrient Losses

Many measures have been proposed to mitigate gaseous emissions and other nutrient losses from agroecosystems, which can have large detrimental effects for the quality of soils, water and air, and contribute to eutrophication and global warming. Due to complexities in farm management, biological interactions and emission measurements, most experiments focus on analysis of short-term effects of isolated mitigation practices. Here we present a model that allows simulating long-term effects at the whole-farm level of combined measures related to grassland management, animal housing and manure handling after excretion, during storage and after field application. The model describes the dynamics of pools of organic carbon and nitrogen (N), and of inorganic N, as affected by farm management in grassland-based dairy systems. We assessed the long-term effects of delayed grass mowing, housing type (cubicle and sloping floor barns, resulting in production of slurry and solid cattle manure, respectively), manure additives, contrasting manure storage methods and irrigation after application of covered manure. Simulations demonstrated that individually applied practices often result in compensatory loss pathways. For instance, methods to reduce ammonia emissions during storage like roofing or covering of manure led to larger losses through ammonia volatilization, nitrate leaching or denitrification after application, unless extra measures like irrigation were used. A strategy of combined management practices of delayed mowing and fertilization with solid cattle manure that is treated with zeolite, stored under an impermeable sheet and irrigated after application was effective to increase soil carbon stocks, increase feed self-sufficiency and reduce losses by ammonia volatilization and soil N losses. Although long-term datasets (>25 years) of farm nutrient dynamics and loss flows are not available to validate the model, the model is firmly based on knowledge of processes and measured effects of individual practices, and allows the integrated exploration of effective emission mitigation strategies.     

Bacterial contamination of tile drainage water and shallow groundwater under different application methods of liquid swine manure

A 2 year field experiment evaluated liquid manure application methods on the movement of manure-borne pathogens (Salmonella sp.) and indicator bacteria (Escherichia coli and Clostridium perfringens) to subsurface water. A combination of application methods including surface application, pre-application tillage, and post-application incorporation were applied in a randomized complete block design on an instrumented field site in spring 2007 and 2008. Tile and shallow groundwater were sampled immediately after manure application and after rainfall events. Bacterial enumeration from water samples showed that the surface-applied manure resulted in the highest concentration of E. coli in tile drainage water. Pre-tillage significantly (p < 0.05) reduced the movement of manure-based E. coli and C. perfringens to tile water and to shallow groundwater within 3 days after manure application (DAM) in 2008 and within 10 DAM in 2007. Pre-tillage also decreased the occurrence of Salmonella sp. in tile water samples. Indicator bacteria and pathogens reached nondetectable levels within 50 DAM. The results suggest that tillage before application of liquid swine manure can minimize the movement of bacteria to tile and groundwater, but is effective only for the drainage events immediately after manure application or initial rainfall-associated drainage flows. Furthermore, the study highlights the strong association between bacterial concentrations in subsurface waters and rainfall timing and volume after manure application.     

Impacts of biogas production on nitrogen flows on Dutch dairy system: Multiple level assessment of nitrogen indicators within the biogas production chain

Biogas production on dairy farms is promoted as a climate change measure since it captures methane, a greenhouse gas emitted by manure, and produces renewable energy. Digestate is a by‐product of biogas production and is often used for nutrient recycling in a similar way as traditional manure. Despite having similar functions, manure and digestate have different behaviors related to nitrogen recycling and nitrogen emissions which are significant agricultural and environmental concerns of manure. This paper provides an insight into the impact of biogas production on nitrogen emissions and nitrogen recycling issues of the current dairy farming practice. Using the Substance Flow Analysis (SFA) approach, we analyzed the changes on three levels: manure handling, dairy farm, and the whole chain. Four biogas production options on a Dutch dairy farm related to types and sources of feedstocks were considered. We quantified biogas output, nitrogen fertilizer replacement percentage (%) and consequential nitrogen emissions (kgN/year; kgN/m³ biogas produced) of these productions in comparison with the baseline of current dairy farming without biogas. We conclude that biogas production options with additional feedstocks will cause profound changes in the nitrogen recycling on dairy farms and the nitrogen emissions at the chain level. Besides, the results show that determining the optimal biogas production option can be challenging as the evaluation is highly dependent on the used nitrogen indicator and the included level of analysis. Our findings show how SFA and a multilevel perspective can give a broader understanding of environmental trade‐offs.     

An economic assessment of algal turf scrubber technology for treatment of dairy manure effluent

Controlling the input of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from dairies and other livestock operations into the surrounding air- and water-sheds poses both technical and economic challenges to the agricultural community. The purpose of this paper is to assess the economics of algal turf scrubber treatment technology at the farm-scale for a hypothetical 1000-cow dairy. Costs were developed for farms with and without anaerobic pretreatment. The majority of capital costs were due to land preparation, installation of liner material, and engineering fees. The majority of operational costs were due to energy requirements for biomass drying, pumping water, and repayment of capital investment. On farms using anaerobic pretreatment, waste heat from burning of biogas could be used to offset the energy requirements of biomass drying. In addition, biogas combustion exhaust gas could then be recycled back to the algal system to supply dissolved inorganic carbon for optimal algal production and pH control. Under the best case (algal system coupled with anaerobic digestion pretreatment), the yearly operational costs per cow, per kg N, per kg P, and per kg of dried biomass were $454, $6.20, $31.10, and $0.70, respectively. Without anaerobic digestion pretreatment, the yearly operational costs were 36% higher, amounting to $631 per cow, $8.70 per kg N, $43.20 per kg P, and $0.97 per kg of dried biomass. For perspective, a recent survey of 36 Maryland dairy farms found long-term annual profits of about $500 per cow. As no market currently exists for manure grown algal biomass, our cost analysis does not include any value of the biomass generated during manure treatment. In addition, there are a variety of potential uses for the algal biomass from manure treatment that could defray treatment costs. Future opportunities for dairies to participate in nutrient trading approaches to watershed nutrient management may also become important.     

长期施用猪粪红壤稻田土壤Cu、Zn累积规律

为揭示长期施用猪粪红壤稻田土壤Cu、Zn累积规律,以设立于1981年的红壤稻田有机肥定位试验为载体,选取PM1(早稻施猪粪和紫云英)、PM2(早稻施紫云英+晚稻施猪粪)、GMS(早稻施紫云英+晚稻秸秆还田)和NPK(早稻施化肥)等处理为对象,分析了不同试验年限土壤全量和有效态Cu、Zn含量。结果表明:长期施用猪粪显著提高了土壤Cu、Zn含量;连续施用猪粪30 a后,土壤全量Cu、Zn含量分别增加了7.69—9.52 mg/kg和22.42—35.46 mg/kg;生物有效性显著增加,有效态Cu、Zn含量占全量Cu、Zn的比例分别由15%和5%增加到51%和27%。猪粪年度内的施用时间对土壤Cu的累积没有显著影响,早稻施用猪粪加剧了土壤Zn的累积。土壤铜、锌累积分为两个差异显著的阶段,1981—2002年为缓慢增长期,2002—2010年为快速增长期,这可能与2002年后施用的猪粪中Cu、Zn含量增高有关。以研究的结果推算,红壤稻田鲜猪粪施用量在9.5 t hm-2a-1以下,50 a内不会造成土壤Cu、Zn含量超标。     

Herd-level risk factors associated with tuberculosis breakdowns among cattle herds in England before the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease epidemic

A case-control study of the factors associated with the risk of a bovine tuberculosis (TB) breakdown in cattle herds was undertaken within the randomized badger culling trial (RBCT). TB breakdowns occurring prior to the 2001 foot-and-mouth disease epidemic in three RBCT triplets were eligible to be cases; controls were selected from the same RBCT area. Data from 151 case farms and 117 control farms were analysed using logistic regression. The strongest factors associated with an increased TB risk were movement of cattle onto the farm from markets or farm sales, operating a farm over multiple premises and the use of either covered yard or 'other' housing types. Spreading artificial fertilizers or farmyard manure on grazing land were both associated with decreased risk. These first case-control results from the RBCT will be followed by similar analyses as more data become available.     

In situ determination of slurry nutrient content by electrical conductivity

Land application of animal slurries has both agronomic and environmental implications. It can be supported by the quantification of available nutrients in the field. A prototype device for indirect measurement of the nutrient content of slurry based on electrical conductivity (EC) was calibrated on manure samples collected from farms with different livestock typologies. The resulting correlations between EC and nutrient contents of slurries from laboratory analyses have shown good agreement (r(2) from 0.73 to 0.95) with total and ammoniacal nitrogen and, with some exception, Potassium, but failed to demonstrate any significant relationship with total phosphorous. The mean errors obtained using the device in field conditions for nitrogen content were always lower or equal to 10%, while the standard deviations were 12-13% for pig and calf slurries, and 20-21% for dairy cow slurry. The results obtained suggest that the equipment, provided the regression line used to convert EC readings to nutrient contents is related to the livestock typology under observation, can provide good support to practical slurry spreading, even though it does not reach an accuracy comparable to laboratory methods and does not give reliable information on phosphorus.     

Current recommendations for footbath solutions renewal rates in dairy cattle: the need for adaptation?

Footbaths represent a potentially useful strategy for the prevention of claw infectious diseases by treating a large number of animals concomitantly. Nevertheless, under field conditions, footbath solutions are exposed to increasing number of animal passages and therefore, to different volume losses and concentrations of manure contamination which could alter their presumed bactericidal activity. Across increasing number of cow passages, the organic matter (OM) concentration, the microbial load (ML) and the residual volumes were assessed in six commercial farms. The results indicate that the OM concentration and ML increased linearly with the number of passages of animals, and with the number of defecations in the footbath. The OM concentrations and the ML were not impacted by the farm’s feet hygiene status (clean, fair and dirty), suggesting that probably the increasing number of cow passages and defecations influenced more the contamination of footbaths than the hygiene of the feet. In all the farms the volumes decreased drastically after 200 cow passages (50%). The OM concentrations after 150 and 200 cow passages did not exceed the regulatory concentrations in which disinfectant products should demonstrate to still be effective (20 g/l), and coincide with the often advised renewal rates. The findings of this study suggested that beyond the footbath contamination by OM, the renewal rates must be mainly adapted according to the remaining volume to guarantee that the entire foot is covered and therefore assure the topical action of the solution. This study highlights the importance of footbath designs for the successful implementation of these strategies in practice.     

Integrated anaerobic/aerobic biological treatment for intensive swine production

Manure processing could help farmers to effectively manage nitrogen (N) surplus load. Many pig farms have to treat wastewater. Piggery wastewater treatment is a complex challenge, due to the high COD and N concentrations and low C/N ratio. Anaerobic digestion (AD) could be a convenient pre-treatment, particularly from the energetic view point and farm income, but this causes further reduction of C/N ratio and makes denitrification difficult. N removal can only be obtained integrating anaerobic/aerobic treatment by taking into account the best use of electron donors. Experiences gained in Italy during development of integrated biological treatment approaches for swine manure, from bench to full scale, are reported in this paper. Solid/liquid separation as pre-treatment of raw manure is an efficient strategy to facilitate liquid fraction treatment without significantly lowering C/N ratio. In Italy, two full scale SBRs showed excellent efficiency and reliability. Current renewable energy policy and incentives makes economically attractive the application of AD to the separated solid fraction using high solid anaerobic digester (HSAD) technology. Economic evaluation showed that energy production can reduce costs up to 60%, making sustainable the overall treatment.     

Animal-based measures on fattening heavy pigs at the slaughterhouse and the association with animal welfare at the farm level: a preliminary study

Monitoring animal welfare (AW) in pig farms requires both proper indicators and a feasible approach. Animal-based measures (ABMs) are well-established AW indicators. Furthermore, AW screening at the slaughterhouses could be useful for identifying problems on farm. The aim of this study was to evaluate ABMs at the slaughterhouse and, when possible, to compare these ABMs with those collected on the farm. The study was carried out in northern Italy in a commercial abattoir and in a sample of farms. Animal-based measures were recorded on pigs from 62 batches of 54 farms, during ante-mortem (n=10 085 pigs) and post-mortem (n=7952 pigs) inspections. Sixteen of 54 farms were selected to compare ABMs collected at the slaughterhouse with ABMs collected on the farm. Overall, 2295 pigs (mean pigs examined per farm 119±45) were inspected at the slaughterhouse (group S) and 420 pigs (mean pigs per farm 26±5) on the farm (group F). Non-animal-based measures were also collected at the 16 farms. Differences between groups S and F, at the animal level, were assessed by a two-tailed paired Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney test. Differences at the site of observation level (farm and slaughterhouse) were assessed by Fisher’s exact test using a hierarchical log-linear modelling for contingency tables. The most frequent ABMs at the slaughterhouse were manure on the body (47.7%), followed by dermatitis (28.0%), white spot (25.4%) and bursitis (24.7%). Recording ABMs at the slaughterhouse and on the farm usually yielded similar results; however, there were some exceptions. In particular, significant differences were found for non-uniformity of size (P<0.05) and dermatitis (P<0.001), which were higher at the slaughterhouse than on the farm. Results of log-linear modelling underlined the effect of the farm of origin on the percentage of pigs with bursitis, manure on the body and ear injuries that were observed at the slaughterhouse. In group S, significant associations between manure on the body and insufficient presence of clean and dry areas in the corresponding farm were found (P<0.05). Although these results should be interpreted with care due to the limited sample of farms, the slaughterhouse could be a feasible site of observation of ABMs, which could then be integrated in monitoring of AW on farm. Considering the number of slaughtered batches per farm, it would be possible to repeat assessments several times throughout the year for each farm, which could help provide an index for the continuous monitoring of AW.     

Efficient use of animal manure on cropland--economic analysis

Manure contains all the macro- and microelements needed for plant growth; however, it represents one of the most underutilized resources in the US. The major problem with the use of manure on cropland is the direct effect of its composition on application cost. This cost is a function of the mineralization process of organic matter. The mineralization process is influenced by the properties of the manure, properties of the soil, moisture, and temperature. This study evaluates the simultaneous effect of these variables on the optimal use of manure on cropland. The results show that the properties of manure and soil significantly affect the mineralization of organic nitrogen and thus the optimal quantity of manure required to satisfy the nutrient requirement of crops in a given rotation system. Manure application costs range from a low of 18% of the cost of commercial fertilizer for chicken manure applied to one type of soil, to a high of 125% of the cost of commercial fertilizer for cow manure applied to another type of soil. The maximum distance to transfer manure to the field, that will equate its application cost to the cost of commercial fertilizer, ranges from a high of 35 km (22 miles) for chicken manure applied to one type of soil, to a low of 1 km (0.62 miles) for cow manure applied to another type of soil. For rotation system 2, manure application costs range from a low of 37% of the cost of commercial fertilizer for chicken manure applied to one type of soil, to a high of 136% of the cost of commercial fertilizer for cow manure applied to another type of soil. The maximum distance to transfer manure to the field, that will equate its cost to the cost of commercial fertilizer, ranges from a high of 20 km (12.5 miles) for chicken manure applied to one type of soil, to a low of 0 km (0 miles) for cow manure applied to another type of soil.     

发酵肥与秸杆还田对土壤呼吸,固氮与反硝化作用的影响

土壤中施入不发酵新鲜粪肥时反硝化作用增强,固氮活性明显减弱;当施入发酵肥时反硝化作用较弱,而固氮活性比不发酵肥强。在施发酵肥基础上再进行秸秆还田,土壤呼吸作用增强,反硝化作用进一步减弱,固氮活性提高。在秸秆还田时喷雾接种木霉（Ｔｒｉｃｈｏｄｅｒｍａｋｏｎｉｎｇｉ）４５８—２与固氮菌（Ａｚ．ｖｉｎｅｌａｎｄｉｉ）２３０提高了土壤固氮活性。     

The fate of crop nutrients during digestion of swine manure in psychrophilic anaerobic sequencing batch reactors

The objectives of the study were to measure the levels of manure nutrients retained in psychrophilic anaerobic sequencing batch reactors (PASBRs) digesting swine manure, and to determine the distribution of nutrients in the sludge and supernatant zones of settled bioreactor effluent. Anaerobic digestion reduced the total solids (TS) concentration and the soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD) of manure by 71.4% and 79.9%, respectively. The nitrogen, potassium, and sodium fed with the manure to the PASBRs were recovered in the effluent. The bioreactors retained on average 25.5% of the P, 8.7% of the Ca, 41.5% of the Cu, 18.4% of the Zn, and 67.7% of the S fed to the PASBRs. The natural settling of bioreactor effluent allowed further nutrient separation. The supernatant fraction, which represented 71.4% of effluent volume, contained 61.8% of the total N, 67.1% of the NH4-N, and 73.3% of the Na. The settled sludge fraction, which represented 28.6% of the volume, contained 57.6% of the solids, 62.3% of the P, 71.6% of the Ca, 89.6% of the Mg, 76.1% of the Al, 90.0% of the Cu, 74.2% of the Zn, and 52.2% of the S. The N/P ratio was increased from 3.9 in the raw manure to 5.2 in the bioreactor effluent and 9.2 in the supernatant fraction of the settled effluent. The PASBR technology will then substantially decrease the manure management costs of swine operations producing excess phosphorus, by reducing the volume of manure to export outside the farm. The separation of nutrients will also allow land spreading strategies that increase the agronomic value of manure by matching more closely the crop nutrient requirements.     

Effects of fertilization on bacterial community structure and function in a black soil of Dehui region estimated by Biolog and PCR-DGGE methods

Soil microbial community structure and function are commonly used as indicators for soil quality and fertility. In this paper, the bacterial community structure and function in a black soil of Dehui region influenced by fertilization were investigated by Biolog and PCR-DGGE (polymerase chain reaction-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis) methods. Biolog examination showed that substrate richness and catabolic diversities of bacterial communities were the highest in the treatment of farm yard manure, and the lowest in the chemical fertilizer treatment. DGGE fingerprint showed that the majority of bands were similar among all treatments, suggesting that microbial communities with those bands were stable, and not influenced by fertilization. In general, chemical fertilizer decreased the diversity of soil bacterial communities. The PCA (principal component analysis) plots of Biolog and DGGE revealed that the structure and function of bacterial communities were similar in the non-fertilized control and the treatment of farm yard manure alone, which inferred that the application of farm yard manure increased the quantity of soil microbes but had less effect on the changes of community structure. The catabolic function was similar, but the composition structure differed between the treatments of chemical fertilizer alone and combined application of farm yard manure with chemical fertilizer. These results suggest that the use of chemical fertilizer mainly decreased the catabolic activity of the fast growth bacteria or eutrophic bacteria.     

Dynamics of Escherichia coli Virulence Factors in Dairy Herds and Farm Environments in a Longitudinal Study in the United States

Pathogenic Escherichia coli or its associated virulence factors have been frequently detected in dairy cow manure, milk, and dairy farm environments. However, it is unclear what the long-term dynamics of E. coli virulence factors are and which farm compartments act as reservoirs. This study assessed the occurrence and dynamics of four E. coli virulence factors (eae, stx₁, stx₂, and the gamma allele of the tir gene [γ-tir]) on three U.S. dairy farms. Fecal, manure, water, feed, milk, and milk filter samples were collected from 2004 to 2012. Virulence factors were measured by postenrichment quantitative PCR (qPCR). All factors were detected in most compartments on all farms. Fecal and manure samples showed the highest prevalence, up to 53% for stx and 21% for γ-tir in fecal samples and up to 84% for stx and 44% for γ-tir in manure. Prevalence was low in milk (up to 1.9% for stx and 0.7% for γ-tir). However, 35% of milk filters were positive for stx and 20% were positive for γ-tir. All factors were detected in feed and water. Factor prevalence and levels, expressed as qPCR cycle threshold categories, fluctuated significantly over time, with no clear seasonal signal independent from year-to-year variability. Levels were correlated between fecal and manure samples, and in some cases autocorrelated, but not between manure and milk filters. Shiga toxins were nearly ubiquitous, and 10 to 18% of the lactating cows were potential shedders of E. coli O157 at least once during their time in the herds. E. coli virulence factors appear to persist in many areas of the farms and therefore contribute to transmission dynamics.     

Measures to improve dairy cow foot health: consequences for farmer income and dairy cow welfare

Dairy farming in western countries with cubicle housing is an efficient way of dairy farming. Though, a disadvantage is the high prevalence and incidence of foot disorders (clinical and subclinical), which cause high economic losses and also seriously impair the welfare of dairy cattle. To point out the importance of reducing the amount and severity of foot disorders, advice to farmers should include information about the scale of the problem and the consequences in terms of economics and animal welfare. To provide support in making decisions on implementing intervention measures, insight into costs and benefits of different measures should be available. The objective of this study, therefore, is to provide more insight into the costs and benefits, for farmer and cow, of different intervention measures to improve dairy cow foot health. Intervention measures were modeled when they were applicable on a dairy farm with cubicle housing and when sufficient information was available in literature. Net costs were calculated as the difference between the costs of the measure and the economic benefits resulting from the measure. Welfare benefits were calculated as well. Cost-effective measures are: improving lying surface (mattress and bedding, €7 and €1/cow per year, respectively), reducing stocking density (break even) and performing additional foot trimming (€1/cow per year). Simultaneously, these measures have a relative high welfare benefit. Labor costs play an important role in the cost-effectiveness of labor-intensive measures. More insight into cost-effectiveness and welfare benefits of intervention measures can help to prioritize when choosing between intervention measures.     

Recovery of dairy manure nutrients by benthic freshwater algae

Harnessing solar energy to grow algal biomass on wastewater nutrients could provide a holistic solution to nutrient management problems on dairy farms. The production of algae from a portion of manure nutrients to replace high-protein feed supplements which are often imported (along with considerable nutrients) onto the farm could potentially link consumption and supply of on-farm nutrients. The objective of this research was to assess the ability of benthic freshwater algae to recover nutrients from dairy manure and to evaluate nutrient uptake rates and dry matter/crude protein yields in comparison to a conventional cropping system. Benthic algae growth chambers were operated in semi-batch mode by continuously recycling wastewater and adding manure inputs daily. Using total nitrogen (TN) loading rates of 0.64-1.03 g m(-2) d(-1), the dried algal yields were 5.3-5.5 g m(-2) d(-1). The dried algae contained 1.5-2.1% P and 4.9-7.1% N. At a TN loading rate of 1.03 g m(-2) d(-1), algal biomass contained 7.1% N compared to only 4.9% N at a TN loading rate of 0.64 g m(-2) d(-1). In the best case, algal biomass had a crude protein content of 44%, compared to a typical corn silage protein content of 7%. At a dry matter yield of 5.5 g m(-2) d(-1), this is equivalent to an annual N uptake rate of 1,430 kg ha(-1) yr(-1). Compared to a conventional corn/rye rotation, such benthic algae production rates would require 26% of the land area requirements for equivalent N uptake rates and 23% of the land area requirements on a P uptake basis. Combining conventional cropping systems with an algal treatment system could facilitate more efficient crop production and farm nutrient management, allowing dairy operations to be environmentally sustainable on fewer acres.     

Effect of aldrin on nodulation,nitrogen fixation and yield of bengal gram (Cicer arietinum)

Summary The effect of aldrin on nodulation (nodule number and their dry weight) in bengal gram (Cicer arietinum) was not very clear. Aldrin decreased nitrogen fixation and yield at the concentration of 1, 5 and 10 ppm in soil. The application of farm yard manure eliminated completely the adverse effects on yield and partially, the adverse effects on nitrogen fixation. There was an increase in yield with the application of aldrin along with farm yard manure. Nodulation and nitrogen fixation at 1 ppm level of aldrin were more than control in presence of FYM. re]19760102