- Email: [email protected]
Ammonia Emissions from Broiler Houses
2005 Poultry Science Association, Inc.
Ammonia Emissions from Broiler Houses A. J. Pescatore,*,1 K. D. Casey,† and R. S. Gates† *Department of Animal and Food Sciences, and †Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40546-0215
SUMMARY Air emissions will be one of the greatest challenges facing the poultry industry in the future. Federal regulations as applied to animal agriculture will be further defined as additional baseline data are obtained. Ammonia emissions monitoring requires accurate ventilation estimates, ammonia detection, and trained personnel. There are wide variations in ammonia emissions among houses, ages of birds, and flocks. Ammonia emission levels per house occasionally exceed the threshold of 45 kg /d (100 lb/d) set by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA). In the future poultry producers may need to address ammonia emissions when adopting best management practices for their operations. Key words: ammonia emission; broiler house; ammonia; Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA) 2005 J. Appl. Poult. Res. 14:635–637
DESCRIPTION OF PROBLEM Air emissions are an emerging issue for all of animal agriculture. Broiler houses are one aspect of agriculture that is of particular interest to regulators and environmental groups. The consent agreement published by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) places the responsibility of emissions on producers and growers. Citing current environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act (CAA); the Comprehensive Environment Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); and the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA), the EPA has expressed great interest in emissions from agricultural operations. The CAA is the federal statute that gives the government the 1
authority to regulate the amount of pollutants that can be released into the air. The CAA covers stationary and mobile sources of pollutants. Under this law the EPA is required to set National Ambient Air Quality Standards for pollutants that are considered harmful to public health and the environment. A major stationary source is one that emits 100 tons per year of a pollutant. It is unlikely that this federal threshold will be reached by animal facilities. The CERCLA statute created a “superfund” and dealt with the remediation of hazardous waste sites. This statute also is concerned with assignment of liability and provides for compensations of impacted parties. Although the bulk of the regulation addresses existing problem areas and their remediation, there is also a substantial reporting aspect.
To whom correspondence should be addressed: [email protected].
Downloaded from http://japr.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Georgia on June 24, 2015
Primary Audience: Researchers, Flock Supervisors, Live Production Managers
636
from poultry houses. The amount of information from these studies is, however, limited due to variation in locations, analytic methods, bird management, and litter management. Groot Koerkamp et al. [1] studied ammonia emissions from broiler houses in northern Europe (England, Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany). The ammonia analyzer used was a chemiluminescence nitrogen oxide analyzer with a thermal catalytic converter. Ventilation rates were calculated using prediction models based on total heat production. Litter management in Europe is different than North America; few farms in Europe reuse bedding. This study found that mean ammonia emissions were 0.475, 0.268, 0.213, and 0.444 g/bird daily for England, Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany, respectively. Lacey et al. [2] measured ammonia emissions from broiler houses in Texas using a chemical analyzer to measure ammonia and a vane-thermoanemometer to determine ventilation rate. Measurements were taken 40 m from the exhaust end of the house. The litter management for this study consisted of changing litter in the center (brooding area) of the house (50% of area) after 4 flocks and after 8 flocks for the rest of the house. The third flock studied, which was a winter flock, had the center bedding changed, whereas the remainder of the house had reused litter. The average ammonia emission from this study was 0.632 g/bird daily. Siefert et al. [3] used an inverse Gaussian plume model to measure ammonia emissions from a Maryland broiler house during spring and summer flocks. Ogawa passive ammonia samplers were placed on 10-m towers downwind from the broiler houses, and measurements were taken for 3 to 6 wk. The ammonia emissions ranged from 0.027 to 2.17 g/bird daily with an average of 1.18 g/bird daily. Their calculated average for a 6-wk cycle was 0.74g/bird daily.
MATERIALS AND METHODS A study was conducted to measure ammonia emissions from broiler houses over a 1-yr cycle. Two sites in Kentucky were selected with each site having 4 houses (12.2 × 152.5 m each). Ammonia levels of air exhausted from the buildings were determined by portable monitoring units as described by Xin et al. [4]. This method uses electrochemical sensors to determine am-
Downloaded from http://japr.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Georgia on June 24, 2015
Under the reporting requirements there are 2 compounds of interest in animal facilities: hydrogen sulfide and ammonia. Of particular interest to poultry operations is ammonia. The EPCRA is a federal statute created to address emergency situations and releases of substances into the environment. The key point is that the surrounding community must be notified in order to respond and protect the health and welfare of the community. As in the case of CERCLA, EPCRA includes hydrogen sulfide and ammonia as reportable compounds. The reportable level of ammonia is 45 kg/d (100 lb/d) from a facility, according to EPCRA and CERCLA. How existing regulations will be applied to animal agriculture facilities in the future is a topic of great discussion. This discussion is taking place at the national level, at the state level, and, more importantly, in the judicial system. The questions that are being discussed are: what regulations apply to agriculture, what emissions will be regulated, what level of emissions are allowable, how emissions rates will be determined and by what method, who is responsible, what facilities will be regulated, and what corrective action, if any, will be necessary for compliance. Poultry producers need to be aware of the issues and the future affects that these issues could have on their operations. Ammonia emission is the major concern for poultry operations. Concern about ammonia in poultry production is not new. Traditionally the concern has been with the level of ammonia inside a poultry house. High ammonia concentrations affect bird performance, including poor feed efficiency, blindness, and respiratory problems. Establishing upper limits on ambient ammonia levels controls this effect on production. To accomplish this, simple measurement strategies have been used, such as point-in-time measurements, time weighted averages, and preset warning levels. Although the amount of ammonia in poultry houses is still of concern, ammonia emissions are increasing in importance. Determination of the amount of ammonia exhausted from a broiler house requires accurate measurement of ammonia concentration in the air leaving the building and the volume of air being discharged. Numerous studies have been published throughout the world on ammonia emissions
JAPR: Symposium
PESCATORE ET AL.: SYMPOSIUM: AIR EMISSIONS AND POULTRY PRODUCTION 637 monia concentration. Ammonia levels were measured over a 48-h period at 2- to 3-wk intervals. Air samples were taken 1 m in front of the primary ventilation fan. Exhaust fan capacity was determined by direct measurement with a Fans Assessment Numeration System [5].
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
CONCLUSIONS AND APPLICATIONS 1. There are wide variations in ammonia emissions among houses, ages of birds, and flocks. 2. Ammonia emission monitoring requires accurate ventilation estimates and ammonia detection as well as trained personnel. 3. Ammonia emission levels per house can occasionally exceed the CERCLA and EPCRA threshold of 45 kg/d (100 lb/d). 4. In the future poultry producers may need to address ammonia emissions when adopting best management practices for their operations.
REFERENCES AND NOTES 1. Groot Koerkamp, P. W. G., J. H. M. Metz, G. H. Uenk, V. R. Phillips, M. R. Holden, et al. 1998. Concentrations and emissions of ammonia in livestock buildings in northern Europe. J. Agric. Eng. Res. 70:79–95. 2. Lacey, R. E., J. S. Redwine, C. B. Parnell, Jr. 2003. Particulate matter and ammonia emission factors for tunnel-ventilated broiler production houses in the southern US. Trans. ASAE 46:1203–1214. 3. Siefert, R. L., J. R. Scudlark, A. M. Potter, K. A. Simonsen and K. B. Savidge. 2004. Characterization of atmospheric ammonia
emissions from a commercial chicken house on the Delmarva Peninsula. Environ. Sci. Technol. 38:2769–2778. 4. Xin, H. A., Tanaka, T. Wang, R. S. Gates, E. F. Wheeler, K. D. Casey, A. J. Heber, J. Ni, and T. Lim. 2002. A portable system for continuous ammonia measurement in the field. Paper 024168. ASAE, St. Joseph, MI. 5. Gates, R. S., J. D. Simmons, K. D. Casey, T. J. Greis, H. Xin, et al. 2002. Fans assessment numeration system (FANS) design and calibration specification. Paper 024124. ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
Downloaded from http://japr.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Georgia on June 24, 2015
Ammonia emissions increased with bird age. There was wide variation from house to house on the same site, and there was a difference between sites. For young birds less than 10 d of age ammonia emissions ranged from 0 to 0.57 g/bird daily. For birds 15 to 30 d of age the
range of ammonia was 0.1 to 0.97 g/bird daily. As the birds reached market weight, ammonia emissions ranged from 0.32 to 1.71 g/ bird daily for broilers 30 to 42 d of age, and emissions were 0.71 to 2.34 g/bird daily for broilers over 48 d of age. The ammonia emissions reported in this study are consistent with the levels reported by Groot Koerkamp et al. [1], Lacey et al. [2], and Siefert et al. [3]. The 100-lb threshold for CERCLA and EPCRA was occasionally surpassed for a single broiler house when it held large birds during warm weather. When 4 houses on a site are grouped together the 100-lb threshold was surpassed most of the time.
Ammonia Emissions from Broiler Houses A. J. Pescatore,*,1 K. D. Casey,† and R. S. Gates† *Department of Animal and Food Sciences, and †Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40546-0215
SUMMARY Air emissions will be one of the greatest challenges facing the poultry industry in the future. Federal regulations as applied to animal agriculture will be further defined as additional baseline data are obtained. Ammonia emissions monitoring requires accurate ventilation estimates, ammonia detection, and trained personnel. There are wide variations in ammonia emissions among houses, ages of birds, and flocks. Ammonia emission levels per house occasionally exceed the threshold of 45 kg /d (100 lb/d) set by the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA). In the future poultry producers may need to address ammonia emissions when adopting best management practices for their operations. Key words: ammonia emission; broiler house; ammonia; Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA) 2005 J. Appl. Poult. Res. 14:635–637
DESCRIPTION OF PROBLEM Air emissions are an emerging issue for all of animal agriculture. Broiler houses are one aspect of agriculture that is of particular interest to regulators and environmental groups. The consent agreement published by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) places the responsibility of emissions on producers and growers. Citing current environmental laws, including the Clean Air Act (CAA); the Comprehensive Environment Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA); and the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA), the EPA has expressed great interest in emissions from agricultural operations. The CAA is the federal statute that gives the government the 1
authority to regulate the amount of pollutants that can be released into the air. The CAA covers stationary and mobile sources of pollutants. Under this law the EPA is required to set National Ambient Air Quality Standards for pollutants that are considered harmful to public health and the environment. A major stationary source is one that emits 100 tons per year of a pollutant. It is unlikely that this federal threshold will be reached by animal facilities. The CERCLA statute created a “superfund” and dealt with the remediation of hazardous waste sites. This statute also is concerned with assignment of liability and provides for compensations of impacted parties. Although the bulk of the regulation addresses existing problem areas and their remediation, there is also a substantial reporting aspect.
To whom correspondence should be addressed: [email protected].
Downloaded from http://japr.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Georgia on June 24, 2015
Primary Audience: Researchers, Flock Supervisors, Live Production Managers
636
from poultry houses. The amount of information from these studies is, however, limited due to variation in locations, analytic methods, bird management, and litter management. Groot Koerkamp et al. [1] studied ammonia emissions from broiler houses in northern Europe (England, Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany). The ammonia analyzer used was a chemiluminescence nitrogen oxide analyzer with a thermal catalytic converter. Ventilation rates were calculated using prediction models based on total heat production. Litter management in Europe is different than North America; few farms in Europe reuse bedding. This study found that mean ammonia emissions were 0.475, 0.268, 0.213, and 0.444 g/bird daily for England, Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany, respectively. Lacey et al. [2] measured ammonia emissions from broiler houses in Texas using a chemical analyzer to measure ammonia and a vane-thermoanemometer to determine ventilation rate. Measurements were taken 40 m from the exhaust end of the house. The litter management for this study consisted of changing litter in the center (brooding area) of the house (50% of area) after 4 flocks and after 8 flocks for the rest of the house. The third flock studied, which was a winter flock, had the center bedding changed, whereas the remainder of the house had reused litter. The average ammonia emission from this study was 0.632 g/bird daily. Siefert et al. [3] used an inverse Gaussian plume model to measure ammonia emissions from a Maryland broiler house during spring and summer flocks. Ogawa passive ammonia samplers were placed on 10-m towers downwind from the broiler houses, and measurements were taken for 3 to 6 wk. The ammonia emissions ranged from 0.027 to 2.17 g/bird daily with an average of 1.18 g/bird daily. Their calculated average for a 6-wk cycle was 0.74g/bird daily.
MATERIALS AND METHODS A study was conducted to measure ammonia emissions from broiler houses over a 1-yr cycle. Two sites in Kentucky were selected with each site having 4 houses (12.2 × 152.5 m each). Ammonia levels of air exhausted from the buildings were determined by portable monitoring units as described by Xin et al. [4]. This method uses electrochemical sensors to determine am-
Downloaded from http://japr.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Georgia on June 24, 2015
Under the reporting requirements there are 2 compounds of interest in animal facilities: hydrogen sulfide and ammonia. Of particular interest to poultry operations is ammonia. The EPCRA is a federal statute created to address emergency situations and releases of substances into the environment. The key point is that the surrounding community must be notified in order to respond and protect the health and welfare of the community. As in the case of CERCLA, EPCRA includes hydrogen sulfide and ammonia as reportable compounds. The reportable level of ammonia is 45 kg/d (100 lb/d) from a facility, according to EPCRA and CERCLA. How existing regulations will be applied to animal agriculture facilities in the future is a topic of great discussion. This discussion is taking place at the national level, at the state level, and, more importantly, in the judicial system. The questions that are being discussed are: what regulations apply to agriculture, what emissions will be regulated, what level of emissions are allowable, how emissions rates will be determined and by what method, who is responsible, what facilities will be regulated, and what corrective action, if any, will be necessary for compliance. Poultry producers need to be aware of the issues and the future affects that these issues could have on their operations. Ammonia emission is the major concern for poultry operations. Concern about ammonia in poultry production is not new. Traditionally the concern has been with the level of ammonia inside a poultry house. High ammonia concentrations affect bird performance, including poor feed efficiency, blindness, and respiratory problems. Establishing upper limits on ambient ammonia levels controls this effect on production. To accomplish this, simple measurement strategies have been used, such as point-in-time measurements, time weighted averages, and preset warning levels. Although the amount of ammonia in poultry houses is still of concern, ammonia emissions are increasing in importance. Determination of the amount of ammonia exhausted from a broiler house requires accurate measurement of ammonia concentration in the air leaving the building and the volume of air being discharged. Numerous studies have been published throughout the world on ammonia emissions
JAPR: Symposium
PESCATORE ET AL.: SYMPOSIUM: AIR EMISSIONS AND POULTRY PRODUCTION 637 monia concentration. Ammonia levels were measured over a 48-h period at 2- to 3-wk intervals. Air samples were taken 1 m in front of the primary ventilation fan. Exhaust fan capacity was determined by direct measurement with a Fans Assessment Numeration System [5].
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
CONCLUSIONS AND APPLICATIONS 1. There are wide variations in ammonia emissions among houses, ages of birds, and flocks. 2. Ammonia emission monitoring requires accurate ventilation estimates and ammonia detection as well as trained personnel. 3. Ammonia emission levels per house can occasionally exceed the CERCLA and EPCRA threshold of 45 kg/d (100 lb/d). 4. In the future poultry producers may need to address ammonia emissions when adopting best management practices for their operations.
REFERENCES AND NOTES 1. Groot Koerkamp, P. W. G., J. H. M. Metz, G. H. Uenk, V. R. Phillips, M. R. Holden, et al. 1998. Concentrations and emissions of ammonia in livestock buildings in northern Europe. J. Agric. Eng. Res. 70:79–95. 2. Lacey, R. E., J. S. Redwine, C. B. Parnell, Jr. 2003. Particulate matter and ammonia emission factors for tunnel-ventilated broiler production houses in the southern US. Trans. ASAE 46:1203–1214. 3. Siefert, R. L., J. R. Scudlark, A. M. Potter, K. A. Simonsen and K. B. Savidge. 2004. Characterization of atmospheric ammonia
emissions from a commercial chicken house on the Delmarva Peninsula. Environ. Sci. Technol. 38:2769–2778. 4. Xin, H. A., Tanaka, T. Wang, R. S. Gates, E. F. Wheeler, K. D. Casey, A. J. Heber, J. Ni, and T. Lim. 2002. A portable system for continuous ammonia measurement in the field. Paper 024168. ASAE, St. Joseph, MI. 5. Gates, R. S., J. D. Simmons, K. D. Casey, T. J. Greis, H. Xin, et al. 2002. Fans assessment numeration system (FANS) design and calibration specification. Paper 024124. ASAE, St. Joseph, MI.
Downloaded from http://japr.oxfordjournals.org/ at University of Georgia on June 24, 2015
Ammonia emissions increased with bird age. There was wide variation from house to house on the same site, and there was a difference between sites. For young birds less than 10 d of age ammonia emissions ranged from 0 to 0.57 g/bird daily. For birds 15 to 30 d of age the
range of ammonia was 0.1 to 0.97 g/bird daily. As the birds reached market weight, ammonia emissions ranged from 0.32 to 1.71 g/ bird daily for broilers 30 to 42 d of age, and emissions were 0.71 to 2.34 g/bird daily for broilers over 48 d of age. The ammonia emissions reported in this study are consistent with the levels reported by Groot Koerkamp et al. [1], Lacey et al. [2], and Siefert et al. [3]. The 100-lb threshold for CERCLA and EPCRA was occasionally surpassed for a single broiler house when it held large birds during warm weather. When 4 houses on a site are grouped together the 100-lb threshold was surpassed most of the time.