Author
Hubbard, Robert | |
NEWTON, GARY - UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA | |
BURTLE, GARY - UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA |
Submitted to: Agronomy Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 1/1/1999 Publication Date: N/A Citation: HUBBARD, R.K., NEWTON, G.L., BURTLE, G.J. LAND APPLICATION OF ALLIGATOR FARM WASTE USING AN OVERLAND FLOW SYSTEM. AGRONOMY ABSTRACTS. p. 11, Abstract #40. 1999. Interpretive Summary: N/A Technical Abstract: Increasing world populations and increased need for protein has resulted in substantial increase in number and size of confined animal feeding operations. This has resulted in large quantities of animal wastes that must be utilized or disposed of economically without causing environmental contamination. Concerns with animal wastes include contamination of soils, surface and groundwater with nitrogen, phosphorus and microorganisms such as coliforms, ecyptosporidium or pfiesteria. Research at Tifton, GA by the Southeast Watershed Research Laboratory and the University of Georgia has shown that overland flow systems where wastewater is applied to grasses and trees can be effective in removing nutrients from wastewater. Nutrient removal from wastewater includes both uptake by vegetation and microbial processes such as denitrification. A new project evaluating the effective- ness of an overland flow system for remediation of alligator farm wastewater was started in 1998. Wastewater from a facility housing over 2500 alligators flows first through a network of treatment ponds and then to the overland flow system. Networks of groundwater wells are being used to evaluate the impact of wastewater application on groundwater quality. Research is important because it evaluates a new low-cost technique for using nutrients contained in lagoon wastewater at a practical on-farm scale |