In-vitro method and model to estimate methane emissions from liquid manure management on pig and dairy farms in four countries.

Methane (CH4) emissions from manure management on livestock farms are a key source of greenhouse gas emissions in some regions and for some production systems, and the opportunities for mitigation may be significant if emissions can be adequately documented. We investigated a method for estimating CH4 emissions from liquid manure (slurry) that is based on anaerobic incubation of slurry collected from commercial farms. Methane production rates were used to derive a parameter of the Arrhenius temperature response function, lnA', representing the CH4 production potential of the slurry at the time of sampling. Results were used for parameterization of an empirical model to estimate annual emissions with daily time steps, where CH4 emissions from individual sources (barns, outside storage tanks) can be calculated separately. A monitoring program was conducted in four countries, i.e., Denmark, Sweden, Germany and the Netherlands, during a 12-month period where slurry was sampled to represent barn and outside storage on finishing pig and dairy farms. Across the four countries, lnA' was higher in pig slurry compared to cattle slurry (p < 0.01), and higher in slurry from barns compared to outside storage (p < 0.01). In a separate evaluation of the incubation method, in-vitro CH4 production rates were comparable with in-situ emissions. The results indicate that lnA' in barns increases with slurry age, probably due to growth or adaptation of the methanogenic microbial community. Using lnA' values determined experimentally, empirical models with daily time steps were constructed for finishing pig and dairy farms and used for scenario analyses. Annual emissions from pig slurry were predicted to be 2.5 times higher than those from cattle slurry. Changing the frequency of slurry export from the barn on the model pig farm from 40 to 7 d intervals reduced total annual CH4 emissions by 46 %; this effect would be much less on cattle farms with natural ventilation. In a scenario with cattle slurry, the empirical model was compared with the current IPCC methodology. The seasonal dynamics were less pronounced, and annual CH4 emissions were lower than with the current methodology, which calls for further investigations. Country-specific models for individual animal categories and point sources could be a tool for assessing CH4 emissions and mitigation potentials at farm level.

Nitrous oxide and methane emissions during storage of dewatered digested sewage sludge.

This study investigated the effect on greenhouse gas emissions during storage of digested sewage sludge by using a cover during storage or applying sanitisation measures such as thermophilic digestion or ammonia addition. In a pilot-scale storage facility, nitrous oxide and methane emissions were measured on average twice monthly for a year, using a closed chamber technique. The thermophilically digested sewage sludge (TC) had the highest cumulative emissions of nitrous oxide (1.30% of initial total N) followed by mesophilically digested sewage sludge stored without a cover (M) (0.34%) and mesophilically digested sewage sludge stored with a cover (MC) (0.19%). The mesophilically digested sewage sludge sanitised with ammonia and stored with a cover (MAC) showed negligible cumulative emissions of nitrous oxide. Emissions of methane were much lower from TC and MAC than from M and MC. These results indicate that sanitisation by ammonia treatment eliminates the production of nitrous oxide and reduces methane emissions from stored sewage sludge, and that thermophilic digestion has the potential to reduce the production of methane during storage compared with mesophilic digestion. The results also indicate a tendency for lower emissions of nitrous oxide and higher emissions of methane from covered sewage sludge compared with non-covered.

Methods for determining the presence of slurry on the crop and in the upper soil layer after application to grassland.

Slurry injection in grassland may lead to lower ammonia losses and enhance silage quality compared to surface spreading. In order to evaluate the performance of different slurry injectors, there is a need for methods which measure the degree of crop contamination and the position of the slurry in the soil after spreading. The aim of this study was to identify and test possible methods. The amount of cattle slurry present on the grass stubble after spreading was determined by measuring the electrical conductivity of water used for rinsing grass samples. The slurry placement in the soil profile was measured in cross-sections made through the slurry trails. Methods used were analyses of images taken by different cameras, resistance measurements and by measuring the dimensions of the slurry trails. The method for determining the presence of slurry on the crop was practically applicable and is considered to be reliable. The placement of slurry could not be sufficiently resolved from image taken by the different cameras or by measuring resistance. Instead, visual assessment and measurements of width and depth of the slurry trails gave a good description of the slurry placement in the soil profile.

Costs of emission-reducing manure application.

Favourable economics of handling and application of manure are of fundamental importance to encourage the implementation of emission-reducing application techniques. The economics of manure application depend on the costs of the equipment and the time to carry out the field operation. In this study the costs of application techniques designed to reduce ammonia losses were assessed and compared with the costs of conventional broadcast spreading across a range of farm characteristics. A model was developed to calculate the costs and time requirements of manure application. Data on factors affecting the costs were used from different countries in Europe. The calculations showed that for a range of farm characteristics with a manure production of 1000-3000 m(3)y(-1), the costs of manure application by trailing hose, trailing foot, shallow injector and arable land injector were approximately 2 m(-3) higher than for broadcast spreading. The cost difference between broadcast spreading and the other application techniques decreased with farm size. The average additional costs of manure application by a trailing foot or a shallow injector decreased by 15% on small extensive farms to more than 50% on intensive farms, when the fertiliser value of the nitrogen was taken into account. The field application itself took less than 50% of the operating time in the process of the manure handling and application. With an increasing application rate, the relative contribution of the time for field application decreased.