Efficient Management and Use of Animal Manure

Objective: The objective of this cooperative research project is to conduct cost effective and problem solving research that will evaluate animal waste management practices and treatment strategies that protect water quality, reduce atmospheric emissions, and investigate power plant byproducts as soil amendments. Objective 1: Evaluate the impact of soil chemical amendments, tillage, and manure/litter application to tall fescue grass and corn on soil nutrient content and pathogen survival. Objective 2: Evaluate the impact of soil chemical amendment and vegetative filter strip treatment system on nutrients, microbial pathogens, and veterinary pharmaceuticals transport from beef cattle backgrounding feedlots on karst environment. Objective: 3: Determine the suitability of FGD gypsum as a byproduct of coal-fired power plants as a soil amendment. Removing phosphorus and endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) from animal manure using coal combustion byproducts for better handling and land application. Objective 4: Screening plants for increased phosphorus accumulation and determine related gene expression. Transforming alfalfa to a phosphorus hyper-accumulating plant that could be used in phytoremediation of phosphorus overload from long-term chicken waste applications. Use of manure as a nutrient source for growing algae. Objective 5: Determine if nutrient loading from agricultural watersheds in karst terrain is a function of physical watershed characteristics. Objective 6: Develop new sensitive, accurate, and precise analytical methods for the quantification of malodorous compounds and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions forced by meteorological conditions.