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Elk River Watershed Poultry Manure Composting Project
The Elk River basin is comprised of several smaller watersheds, including Indian Creek (11070208060), Big Sugar Creek (11070208050), Little Sugar Creek (11070208040), Buffalo Creek (11070208080), and Elk River proper (11070208070). The entire Elk River basin has significant agricultural production. Poultry production has become a major factor, if not the most significant agricultural interests in the watershed. There are approximately 275 confinement poultry operations in the Elk River basin. The litter is generally spread on nearby grass pastures at the rate of 2-3 tons per acre, or it is sold to other landowners as a fertilizer source.
Nutrients from poultry and livestock production, mainly phosphorus but in some cases nitrogen as well, have caused several river and creek segments in the Elk River watershed to be listed with category 1 impairment on the 303(d) list. Management of poultry broiler litter usually consists of storage of the poultry litter inside the barns. The litter is then removed and land applied on fields. Most hay and field crops remove large amounts of nitrogen (N) and moderate amounts of phosphorus (P). The poultry litter can cause an increase of soil test phosphorus when over-application on land occurs. Soil phosphorus can also be transported with sediment, impacting the nation's waters. Land applied poultry litter can be directly transported to water by heavy rains shortly after land application. The large volume of poultry litter produced in southwest Missouri is quite difficult to manage. Land application of poultry litter at N fertilization rates causes an excess of phosphorus to accumulate in soils within profitable shipping distance from the production facility.
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
The poultry broiler composting will take place at three potential sites: Neosho High School in Neosho, Missouri; the University of Missouri Southwest Research Center, Mt. Vernon, Missouri; and the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) at a site in Southwest Missouri. The project will build a demonstration composting facility at each site. Two of the sites will have four open-air composting pads (20 ft. x 80 ft) made of different materials with catchment basins or filter strips. These materials are pozzolan-stabilized soil (flyash and/or portland cement), concrete, asphalt, and clay. The MoDOT site may be one large pad, which will demonstrate composting on a larger scale. Poultry broiler litter from one or more farms of less than 1,000 animal unit size in the Elk River/Upper Shoal Creek Watershed will be composted in windrows on the pads using mechanical turning equipment funded by the grant. Runoff water from the catchment basins will be recycled to the compost windrows as needed to maintain adequate moisture for composting using a small pump, hoses and a watering sprinkler system. Any excess storm water will be land applied to soil plant filters. The compost will be turned as needed. The process will continue until a final desirable product is achieved. Necessary tests will be performed to maintain environmentally sound composting. The poultry litter and the carbon sources will be tested initially for heavy metals to show that no detrimental quantities are present. Stormwater runoff from the compost piles will be sampled as individual significant rainfall events occur. Compost will be tested for fertilizer nutrient content and for pathogens prior to utilization. Compost will be used by the Missouri Department of Transportation in establishing vegetation along construction projects, by the University of Missouri for student research in sustainable farming, and by Neosho High School for land application on their farm. Sites for land application will be soil tested. Additional compost markets will be sought and records will be requested to determine how effective compost is in comparison to standard commercial fertilizer for their projects.
OBJECTIVES
1 Demonstrate and create interest in composting, an economically feasible and environmentally friendly way of managing litter for farms where the traditional method of land spreading poses a threat to water quality and/or nuisance odor.
2 Show that composted litter is safer and more easily managed than raw manure and litter.
3 Develop markets for composted litter.
4 Provide an environmentally friendly method of using waste sawdust, wood chips, or other carbon sources.
5 Create a sustainable synergy between poultry producers and end users of composted product.
6 Increase awareness in the general public of the impact of poultry litter in the watershed and desirable ways of mitigating the impact.
PRODUCTS
1 Composted poultry manure
2 Tours of the compost facilities
3 Newsletters to poultry producers and general citizens in the watershed about composting
4 Field days to demonstrate composting
5 Inserts to accompany the compost when it is distributed
6 Educational day featuring compost as a value added product.
7A brochure to explain the composting process along with the environmental and economic benefits.
PROJECT SPONSOR
Jerry Foster
Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Outreach and Assistance Center
Environmental Assistance Office
COOPERATING AGENCIES
Missouri Department of Agriculture, Missouri Department of Transportation, USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), University of Missouri Southwest Research Center, University of Missouri Outreach and Extension (UOE), Neosho High School Vocational Agriculture/FFA, Simmons, Tyson's, Willowbrook, Butterball
CONTACT
Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Outreach and Assistance Center
Environmental Assistance Office
P.O. Box 176
Jefferson City, MO 65102-0176
800-361-4827
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