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Manure management and processing
Rednex, Vilnius, June 2013
Fridtjof de Buisonjé [email protected]
Wageningen UR Livestock Research, the Netherlands
We work on the following themes: • atmosphere (gaseous emissions, particulate matter, low-emission animal housing systems); • soil (soil quality, water, minerals and fertilisation, pasturing, grassland and feed crops); • closing mineral cycles (animal-manure-crop cycles, manure technology).
Our research: livestock and environment
Examples:
measurements of emissions from solid manure storage and after field application of slurry
The Netherlands: a small country on the North Sea
• 40.000 km2
• 17 million people
• 4 million cattle
• 12 million pigs
• 100 million poultry
Animal manure: Waste or Fertilizer ? Fertilizer !
The choice of housing system determines the manure management
requirements for the whole farm
Use of straw results in solid manure
No straw results in liquid manure
Slatted floors with slurry
storage underneath
The issue: meat and fertilizer consumption rising
Manure is a valuable fertilizer….
if applied correctly and in the right quantities !
But an environmental risk in a surpluss-situation
Western Europe
Asia
US Corn Belt
The densely populated coastal
regions of Asia, Africa, America’s
Nitrogen surplus from manure and fertilizer
Phosphorus and nitrogen cause eutrophication and
low oxygen levels in coastal waters
EPA (US) warning: Increasing nutrient loads in sweet and salt
waters gives increase in algal blooms worldwide…..
Miami
Effect of excess nutrients on beaches in France and
China
The Netherlands: Rapid growth of animal production after WW II
(ca. 1950 – 1980)
Increasing incomes, increasing meat consumption + export
Uncontrolled manure emissions to air and surface waters; problems
(eutrophication, acidification) from ca. 1965 onward
Manure policy adopted in 1984. Production rights (poultry & pigs) and milk
quota sets limits to animal numbers and milk production.
EU-Nitrates Directive adopted in 1991 (groundwater monitoring)
EU-Water Framework Directive adopted in 2000 (surface water quality)
Environmental improvements since the 1980’s but recently slowing down
2014/2015: abolition of production rights and milk quotum ?! Mandatory
manure processing and export ?
Manure production and transport in the Netherlands
Solid poultry manure 1.400.000 tonnes/year
Pig slurry 12.400.000 tonnes/year
Cattle slurry 54.800.000 tonnes/year
Agricultural land 2.300.000 hectares
Transported pig slurry: 10.000.000 tons per year
Transported cattle slurry: 7.000.000 tons per year
High water content of pig and cattle slurry...
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Pig and cattle slurry
Water
Salts
Organic matter
Water
%
Too much pig and cattle slurry
Most livestock farms in the Netherlands produce more manure than is
allowed to be applied on their own land
Transportation of surplus manure at high cost (5-20 €/ton)
Dry poultry manure suitable for export and incineration
Pig and cattle slurry not suitable for long distance transport
Maximum numbers of animals per hectare
(estimates based on manure production)
≈ 2 dairy cows / hectare
≈ 20 fattening pigs / hectare
≈ 7 sows with piglets / hectare
A farm with 200 dairy cows needs approx. 100 hectares
A farm with 2.000 fattening pigs needs approx. 100 hectares
Not enough land ?!
Manure distribution or export or processing !
Slurry production per animal:
Dairy cattle: 25 tons per dairy cow per year
Fattening pigs: 1.2 tons per pig(place) per year
Sows with piglets: 4.3 tons per sow per year
One truck load: 35 tons...
Key elements of the NL manure policy:
Control of animal numbers (pigs & poultry) and milk production
(but what will happen after abolition in 2014/2015 ?!)
Application standards for nitrogen (N) and phosphate (P2O5) from
animal manure and from chemical fertilizers
Manure application ban in autumn and winter
Mandatory low-emission storage and application methods
Monitoring of manure distribution and export (incl. weighing, GPS-
tracking and chemical analyses of N and P2O5 content of every load)
Financial support for R&D on manure management and processing
technology
Measurement of the environmental effects of the manure policy,
feedback and adjustments if necessary...
Application limits for nitrogen (N) and phosphate (P2O5) from animal
manure (EU-Nitrate Directive / Water Framework Directive)
• Nitrogen (N) max 350 kg/ha/year (crop dependant), from animal manure & from chemical fertilizer !
• max 170 kg N/ha/year from animal manure (‘Derogation’ = max 250 kg for cattle farms with grassland)
• Phosphate application standard depending on soil
phosphate condition: 55 – 100 kg P2O5/ha/year
(P2O5 = P * 2.29)
• In the Netherlands the phosphate application rate is
limiting >> mandatory export and processing of manure (phosphate) !
Nitrogen application standards (manure + fertilizer !)
some examples
Crop Max. kg N / ha /year
Permanent grassland 250-350
Potatoes 205-275
Winter wheat 160-245
Spring wheat 140-150
Sugarbeet 145-150
Maize 140-185
Onion 120
Max. 170 kgN/ha/yr from manure !
Nitrogen efficiency of animal manures and fractions
(Chemical fertilizers have 100 % nitrogen efficiency by law !)
Cattle slurry (with/without grazing) 45/60 %
Pig slurry (on clay and peat/sand and löss) 60/70 %
Liquid fraction and muck water (‘gier’) 80 %
(also for mineral concentrate from Reverse Osmosis)
Solid cattle manure (depending on system) 30-60 %
Solid pig and poultry manure 55 %
Phosphate (P2O5) from animal manure / fertilizer 100 %
Example of calculation of fertilizer allowance
(on top of the nutrients from pig slurry)
Arable land (potatoes): max. 170 kg N/ha/year from animal manure
Total N-application standard for potatoes: 225 kg N/ha/year
Phosphate application standard on arable land: 85 kg P2O5/ha/year.
Pig slurry: 7 kg N/ton and 4 kg P2O5/ton
• N: 170 : 7 = 24 ton pig slurry per hectare
• P2O5: 85 : 4 = 21 ton pig slurry per hectare Phosphate is limiting !
• 21 * 7 = 147 kg N from pig slurry, N-efficiency 60 %: 0.6 * 147 = 88 kg
effective N per hectare, 225 – 88 = 137 kg N-fertilizer allowance
Slurry spraying is not allowed anymore...
Low-emission manure application is the standard
Nitrate in groundwater, EU-Nitrates Directive 1991
350 measuring points
Nitrate levels in upper groundwater in sandy,
clay and peat soils, 1992 - 2009
EU-standard:
50 mg NO3-/liter
Comparison of some slurries and broiler manure (average figures; beware of variation !)
Dry matter (%)
Org. matter
(%) N-total (g/kg)
N-NH3 (g/kg)
P2O5 (g/kg)
K2O (g/kg)
Pig slurry (fatteners) 9,0 6,0 7,2 4,2 4,2 7,2
Pig slurry (sows) 5,5 3,4 4,2 2,5 3,0 4,2
Cattle slurry 9,0 6,8 4,9 2,6 1,8 6,8
Broiler litter 61 51 30 6 17 23
Green Electricity or pellets from dry poultry manure, discussion
about sustainability....
Poultry manure incineration plant
‘BMC Moerdijk’
• 400.000 t/year, 36 MWe
• 25 % phosphate in ash > fertilizer
• Nitrogen & organic matter lost...
• Subsidized
Poultry manure pellets for export
• 80 % organic matter
• NPK 5-3-3 + Ca + Mg + S + trace elements
• Not subsidized
Manure legislation and anaerobic digestion:
Digestate = animal slurry, so the same rules apply !
Slurry transport with manure sampling, data registration and GPS
No manure application during winter !
No manure application in autumn and winter:
covered manure storage capacity for 7 month !
Manure storage under the barn or outside the barn
Manure application only during the growing season
Slurry injection in order to prevent emissions (ammonia, smell)
Nearby if possible
Precision farming with GPS
Mechanical separation: the first step in manure
processing
Screw press filter: Low separation efficiency (P) Cheap (€ 30.000) Low energy consumption Less maintenance Low throughput
Decanting centrifuge: High separation efficiency (P) Expensive (€ 200.000) High energy consumption More maintenance High throughput
Solid fraction, high in phosphate, 25-40 % dry matter
Suitable for export, (co)composting, drying and
pelletizing or anaerobic digestion
Stable organic matter
Reduction of weed seeds and
pathogens
Suitable for transport and storage
(export)
High in nutrients N,P, K and other
(trace) elements
(Mg, Ca, S, Cu, Zn, B, etc.)
Attention for nitrogen loss during
composting (up to 60 % !)
Composting (“biothermal drying”) of solid manure
Biological treatment of veal calf slurry (800.000 tons/year)
Nitrogen removal by nitrification and denitrification, phosphate is precipitated into sludge, similar to municipal Waste Water Treatment Plants
Slurry transport by pipelines to 4 regional installations
Pilot Mineral Concentrate: fertilizer and water from pig slurry
Separation Animal slurry Solid fraction (org. fertilizer)
Conditioning (VS removal)
Reverse osmosis
Concentrate (NK-minerals)
Permeate (water)
Liquid fraction 100 % 20 %
30 %
50 % Reverse osmosis
Discharge of clean water from Reverse Osmosis
no transportation, no disposal costs
Utilisation of Nitrogen from manure surplus
(Mineral Concentrate from reverse osmosis)
Artificial fertilizer
Artificial fertilizer
Manure
Nitrogen from manure
Crop uptake of nitrogen (max 350 kg N/ha/yr)
Actual Desired
(170 or 250 kg N/ha/yr)
Nitrogen from manure surplus
Manure
Pilot plant for the production of biogas and mineral concentrate
from pig slurry and agricultural byproducts
Production of NK-concentrate by reverse osmosis
Composition of mineral concentrate, example:
• RO-concentrate is a N-K fertilizer • 7.5% of Total nitrogen is organic nitrogen • Low content of P is an advantage in NL
Dry Matter g/kg 36.0
Org. Matter g/kg 15.8
N total g/kg 6.9
N NH4 g/kg 6.4
N org. g/kg 0.5
P g/kg 0.2
K g/kg 7.6
Pilot project Mineral Concentrate
European Commission will decide in 2014 whether Mineral Concentrate can be accepted as an EU-fertilizer...
Products from animal manure will only be allowed as a
substitute for artificial fertilizer if:
● Nitrogen efficiency comparable to common artificial fertilizer
● Volatile solids (organic matter) as low as possible (‘absent’)
● Minimal mineral content (e.g. 20 % N)
(EU-Fertilizer Directive 2003/2003)
But: no solution for NL phosphate surpluss !
Application of mineral concentrate in potatoe crop
Pilot Project covers 20.000 hectares with different crops
Conclusions (NL perspective):
Export of phosphate (P2O5) is necessary for maintaining actual animal
numbers and animal production levels in NL
Decreasing manure space in Germany, Belgium and France
Only dry and concentrated manure products are fit for long distance transport
(dried, composted, pelleted)
Poultry manure has the highest potential (as fertilizer, energy & export)
Challenge: a better distribution of Phosphorus !
G. K. MacDonald, E. M. Bennett, P. A. Potter, N. Ramankutty. Agronomic phosphorus imbalances across the world's croplands. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 2011
