Manure Management, Odor and Disease Control

Livestock producers are going through much criticism for creating pollution and diseases problems. In the meantime farmers are having production problems, such as costly manure removal, energy consumption, medicine cost and most important the barn is not a safe working place. One of the long-standing and costly problems of handling manure has been the absence of simple, reliable, accurate and a long-lasting system of manure collection and transportation out of the barn.

Historically, several methods of manure handling were used in the industry assumed that manure would be held for some time in the barn. The enterprise tendency to larger livestock production, with a concern for quality of food in an efficient environment requires a number of radical changes and the development of new methods of proper and efficient manure management.

I have devoted years to research, development, design and construction of livestock production (manure handling) in Russia and would like to share my approach to manure management. Barn environment has a major influence on animals and the objective is to provide an environment in the barn which will allow optimal utilization of feed and highest production. In order to provide the livestock industry with adequate manure handling systems, which will be both technically and economically competitive, it is necessary to apply plumbing technology principles.This means excluding manure storage in close proximity to animals in the barn. This requires a manure reception structure with a flushing system in the pen and piping system for transportation of liquid manure. The plumbing technology approach offers proper sanitation and allows to keep the barn clean.

My proven technology allows to solve many existing problems:

1. Improved barn design eliminates odor in and around the barn. This will allow to forget about smell nuisances with much less ventilation. It also allows us to design multilevel barns for wean-to-finish production.
2. Significant improvement in the environment, which increases productivity (pigs have higher rates of growth). Since the new system excludes retention of manure in the pen, it results in pigs being dry and clean.
3. Prevents the spread of diseases. Pigs will not have contact between pens via manure. This will allow the reduction in medicine consumption.
4. Rational use of water allows the reduction of the volume of liquid manure 4-5 times and brings the moisture to 92-95%. Most important it will allow for the selection of proper treatment and utilization technology.
5. The technology reduces capital and maintenance costs and does not require special expertise to operate. The system requires far less farmer attention and can be incorporated into a computerized plant control system.

A completely new engineering design approach is a superior alternative in the design for livestock production. Existing livestock producers and new ones, will highly benefit from the implementation of this technology.

Manure Treatment and Utilization

Liquid manure and other organic wastes are a byproduct of agricultural production with a high content of nutrition and organic matter. Manure contains pathogens and weeds, which are considered to be a greater problem when manure is applied to the soil.

The manure treatment and utilization technology approach is based on the extensive research and technological work, which is based on the concept that all manure and other organic waste should be treated and utilized without increasing the potential for pollution problems.

Waste water and sludge treatment technology and processes are well known and can be adapted for liquid manure treatment.

The scale of the operation is a significant factor in the selection of a manure treatment. There are many factors to consider in the selection of a manure treatment technology but most importantly it requires considerable technical expertise for proper design.

Solid-Liquid Separation Approach

The technology includes equipment for a gravity separation device, pumps and piping. The removed solids undergo composting treatment, followed by land application and the liquid is pumped to irrigation water storage.

The ability to design and accommodate complete flexibility makes the solid-liquid separation technology adaptable to a wide range of productivity, and requires minimum farmer's attention and can be operated by unskilled personnel. This approach can be used as an improvement on existing farms. Most importantly manure should not be stored near the barn.

Thermo-Treatment Approach

The main consideration in manure processing is getting a product which is easy to utilize and environmentally acceptable. For this reason the thermo-treatment of liquid manure brings complete sterilization with simultaneous preparation for dehydration and avoids the possibility of weed germination.

The proposal is to heat the liquid manure inside a special vessel under immediate water-vapor injection. The parameters of that treatment, such as temperature and retention time depends upon the condition of the original product and the requirements of the final product. Based on extensive research and technological work done by Dr. Aron Itkin, the following conclusions have been drawn regarding analyses of hydrated manure:

Treated liquid manure becomes a sterile solution, which can be utilized in many different ways (greenhouses, hydro-phonics, protein recovery and land application) with high effectiveness. Data collected allows for the start of the design and construction of the pilot production line using conventional equipment.

Pig manure consists of organic substances of 70-75% of dry weight. The total value of nutrients (nitrogen, phosphate and potassium) is about 10% of dry weight. The technology allows for utilization of manure in the most efficient and appropriate way. New technology and innovative design will provide farmers and CAFO operators with complete engineering techniques using proven conventional processes and machinery in an economically competitive and environmentally friendly manner.