
Managing Poultry Manure Reduces RunoffBy
Tara Weaver June
9, 1998Adding aluminum sulfate (alum) to poultry litter decreases phosphorus runoff
and improves poultry production, according to scientists with USDA's
Agricultural Research Service. More than six billion broiler chickens raised in the United States each year
produce up to nine million tons of poultry litter. The litter is a mixture of
chicken manure, bedding material, spilled food and feathers. Many farmers use the litter as an inexpensive fertilizer for crops because
chicken manure contains nitrogen and phosphorus, two important ingredients in
fertilizer. Water that runs off fields fertilized with poultry litter may carry
excess nutrients, like phosphorus, to nearby waterways, hurting water quality
and aquatic life. ARS soil chemist Philip A.
Moore developed and patented a method for treating poultry litter that
effectively reduces phosphorus runoff from litter. In recent field studies, researchers added alum to poultry litter in
commercial broiler houses at two farms. Then they treated fields with the litter
to see how it would affect phosphorus runoff. Alum applications not only
reduced phosphorus by 70 percent, but also improved feed conversion and produced
heavier birds. The patent for this process has been licensed to General Chemical of
Parsippany, N.J., which is currently selling poultry-grade alum under the name
Al+Clear. ARS soil scientist Thomas J. Sauer is also studying how soil's chemical and
physical properties, seasonal dynamics--such as rain or freezing
temperatures--and vegetation types affect runoff. Sauer says silty alluvial soils along streams and rivers may capture runoff
and could potentially play a big role in retaining nutrients flowing down from
fields at higher elevations. Detailed information on managing poultry manure appears in the June issue of
Agricultural Research magazine. The story is also on the World Wide Web
at: http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/jun98/manu0698.htm Scientific Contacts: Philip A. Moore, Jr. and Thomas J. Sauer,
Poultry Production and Product Safety
Research Unit, Fayetteville, Ark.; phone (501) 575-2654, fax (501) 575-7465,
[email protected];
[email protected]. U.S. Department of Agriculture | |