{"id":8307,"date":"2017-07-21T11:23:13","date_gmt":"2017-07-21T09:23:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carnisostenibili.cvdemo.online\/en\/?p=8307"},"modified":"2017-07-21T11:23:13","modified_gmt":"2017-07-21T09:23:13","slug":"livestock-and-animal-manure-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.carnisostenibili.it\/en\/livestock-and-animal-manure-management\/","title":{"rendered":"Livestock and animal manure management"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The two-fold impact of animal manure management<\/strong> is caused by the emissions<\/strong> of volatile organic compounds (ammonia, methane and nitrous oxide) into the air and the release of nitrogen<\/strong> into the soil.<\/p>\n

In the case of barn animals<\/strong> these environmental aspects concern two different moments of manure management<\/strong>: the collection and storage phase and the final manure disposal phase. However since in the case of pasture-fed cattle it is impossible to collect the manure<\/strong>, the impact depends on the extent to which it is spread across the meadows which is almost impossible to control.<\/p>\n

Collection and storage of manure in barns<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The first aspect to consider concerns farm management methods<\/strong>, which in the case of deep straw bedding or other absorbent material may result in manure (cattle) or chicken manure (poultry), and slurry manure when livestock<\/strong> is housed on slatted flooring (cows or pigs).<\/p>\n

As it is almost solid, cattle and poultry manure<\/strong> are more easily managed than slurry manure. Therefore, it is preferable, since there are various alternatives for the subsequent stages of storage and disposal<\/strong>. Moreover, manure is produced by herds housed on deep straw bedding<\/strong>, which is better for animal welfare<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

After collection, manure <\/strong>is stored to ensure that it is treated in the most appropriate times, places and ways possible. There are several types of storage systems<\/strong>, but an important aspect is coverage: especially as slurry manure<\/strong> can be kept in either open or closed tanks that generate very different impacts from an environmental viewpoint. Uncovered tanks release larger amounts of volatile organic compounds<\/strong> that are generated by spontaneous fermentation<\/strong> phenomena, which further lead to the emission of methane gas,<\/strong> CO2<\/strong> and other substances.<\/p>\n

As in the case of enteric fermentation<\/strong>, by following the indications in the IPCC50 Guidelines <\/strong>it is possible to estimate the emissions of the three main substances generated during storage: methane, carbon dioxide and ammonia<\/strong>. There are three possible approaches among which the tabular approach and the experimental approach; the intermediate scenario, Tier 2<\/strong>, is the one used for calculating environmental impact<\/strong> since it is quite accurate when used with known data.<\/p>\n

It is possible to make elaborations<\/strong> that enable us to understand the different impacts of the various modes of storage. However, the formulas are more complex than those used for enteric emissions<\/strong>; please refer to the IPCC<\/strong> documents for further details.<\/p>\n

The emissions depend on the quantity and type of manure, and especially on how and where it is stored (the geographical area) as climate exerts<\/strong> a strong influence on the biological degradation processes<\/strong> responsible for the emissions.<\/p>\n

In order to improve sustainability<\/strong>, the livestock sector should invest in more rational manure management systems<\/strong> and wherever possible opt for solid manure<\/strong> and therefore deep litter farming systems<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

In fact, by observing the data in the environmental product declaration<\/strong> published by COOP Italy we can see that nearly half of the manure produced by beef cattle<\/strong> derives from deep litter farming systems.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The Sustainable Meat Project<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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