Livestock Ammonia Research

and Plans for EWS Project

Assessment

Jay Ham

Professor

Department of Soil and Crop Science

Colorado State University

RMNP Ag Subcommittee, February 14, 2017

Outline • Review of Previous Research and Status

• New Research • USDA / NIFA Grant on Feedlot NH3

• Cooperative work with JBS–Five Rivers on feedlot water applications to reduce NH3 emissions.

• Plans for the Assessment of the Early Warning System Pilot • Analysis and methods for creating the final

report to NRCS and the subcommittee

Highlights from Prior Research

• Ammonia Emissions

• BMPs

• Transport and Deposition

• Measurement Technology

• Feed Management

Grants from USDA (2), EPA, NSF

Beef Feedlot NH3 Emissions Measurement

45-55% of fed nitrogen is lost to the Atmosphere as Ammonia

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

6/17-7/3 7/3-7/17 7/17 -7/28 7/28-8/7 8/7-8/13 8/13-8/21 8/21-8/29

g/h

ead

/day

Daily NH3 Emissions per Head

FeedFeed Production

Atmospheric NH3 50

Removed 20

>95% of total

volatilized NH3

Diet 100

Excreted N 85%

Pens Retention pond

5

Runoff

Stockpile, compost, land application

Nitrogen flows in the feedyard (Slide from Rick Todd, USDA)

< 5%

Bierman et al. (1999), Cole et al. (2006), Farran et al. (2006), Flesch et al. (2007), Todd et al. (2008)

15 10

Haber-Bosch Process

N2

Natural gas

NH4+ fertilizer

FeedFeed Production

Atmospheric NH3 45-55

Removed 15-25

>95% of total

volatilized NH3

Diet 100

Excreted N 75-85%

Pens Retention pond

3

Runoff

Stockpile, compost, land application

Nitrogen flows in a Colorado feedyard

< 5%

Jay Ham, Christina Nash, and Kira Shonkwiler

15-25 2

Haber-Bosch Process

N2

Natural gas

NH4+ fertilizer

Key Findings

• 45-55% of the fed nitrogen is lost the atmosphere as ammonia

• Ammonia volatilization occurs rapidly from fresh urine patches and feces, most is lost in the first few hours after excretion

• Like the work of Todd et al., almost all the emissions occur from the pen surface – not compost piles , ponds, during pen cleaning, etc.

• Ammonia loss in winter remains significant despite lower temperatures

• Reducing crude protein in the diet can reduce pen surface emissions up to 40% - but could decrease rate of gain/profitability.

• New NH3 measurement technologies and inverse modeling provide a viable method to measure NH3 losses from feedlots.

Reducing ammonia losses from beef feedlots after excretion of urea to the pen surface is almost impossible.

New Research on Livestock Ammonia

Study of Ammonia and Methane Emissions from Animal Feeding Operations using Unmanned Aerial System Laser Sensors

• PI: Azer Yalin, Co-PIs, Jeff Pierce, Jay Ham

• USDA-US Department of Agriculture, 2016-2018, $494,062

Effect of Water Application on Ammonia Emissions from Beef Cattle Feedlots

• Jay Ham, Colorado State University

• Justin Miller, JBS Five Rivers Cattle Feeding

UAS Deployment for Ag Monitoring

• Research aims:

1) Quantify ammonia and methane (GHG) emissions from CAFOs.

2) Quantify fraction of ammonia emissions deposited to the ground in the near-field region (first few miles downwind).

• Ground based measurements do not sample full (vertical) extent of atmospheric boundary layer leading to uncertainty in flux determination. UAS measurements can address this gap.

Atmospheric

Boundary

Layer

UAS Sensor Integration

• UAS Platform: – 12’ Senior Telemaster (ARF – Almost Ready to Fly), electric motor, autopilot

– Currently designing platform for 20 pound payload and ~20 minute endurance

• Methane Sensor: – Open-path CRDS (Gen. 2), 1.6 mm, 3 pound sensor head, 3 pound controller

• Ammonia Sensor: – Open-path WMS, 10.3 mm, 3 pound sensor head, 3 pound controller

• Mounting: Sensors hang externally below wing, controllers inside fuselage

Controllers

inside fuselage Sensors

Water Application to Beef Feedlots

Assessment of the Early Warning System Pilot Program

Criteria / Questions

• Science / Implementation: Did the project achieve its stated goals?

• Participation/Awareness/Outreach: Did the livestock industry, MOU agencies, and other stakeholders benefit ? • Social Cost-Benefit Analysis

• Effectiveness: Can the EWS have a measurable impact on inorganic nitrogen deposition in RMNP ? Does it work ? • Cost-Effectiveness Analysis, $$/(gram of N per Ha per year)

Wet Inorganic N Deposition at Loch Vale Reduced vs. Oxidized

NO3 NH4

Key Information for Assessment

• Source Apportionment. What fraction of the deposition originates from livestock operations and other ag operations.

• Performance of the EWS. Accuracy of predictions/warnings, participation (# operations or animals that are in program),fraction of participants that respond to a warning.

• Effectiveness of the BMPs: How much do the BMPs or practices used or curtailed during a warning effect ammonia emmissions.

Source Apportionment

On average, the results show that Colorado is the single largest

contributor(approximately 40%) of reduced nitrogen concentration and

deposition at the core site.

Wet Inorganic N Deposition at Loch Vale East vs. West

NO3 NH4-west NH4-east-not EWS

EWS Performance / Participation Aaron Pina, Brock Faulkner, Russ Schumacher, et al.

Wet Inorganic N Deposition at Loch Vale EWS Participation

NO3 NH4-west NH4-east-not EWS NH4-east-in EWS

Effectiveness of BMPs / Practices

• Most practices and BMP are not very effective at the full scale of the feedlot or dairy

• The upper limit is likely about 25% reduction using something like pen sprinkling.

• Most practices like not cleaning pens or not turning compost will likely cause reductions of 1 to 5%.

Preliminary Analysis

• Preliminary analysis using best available information and using optimistic numbers suggests a fully operational EWS would reduce NH4 wet deposition in RMNP on the order of 1%.

Parameter Percent Reduced N deposition in RMNP from East of Cont. Divide 50

Fraction of East-Origin Deposition Targeted by EWS 50

Fraction of Deposition Events Forecast Correctly 80

Fraction of Producers that comply 60

Effectiveness of BMPs 10

Percent reduced N Deposition Reduction in RMNP 1.2%