Case Studies
This ranch has a capacity of 22,000 head of cattle. The waste system consists of 16 lagoons (12 X 18 X 5 meters each). Twelve lagoons are saturated, 2 are closed, and 2 are new lagoons. In the lot, there are 7 separate sections with two lagoons collecting waste from the holding yards. In the pits, the fall manure is mixed with the existing manure daily, collected in lagoons, and gravity fed to the waste lagoon system. Total pit volume is 1,083 m3
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One of the major functions of a poultry farm is the handling of manure and composting it to be utilized as fertilizer. In Central America, stabilized manure is a source of revenue as it is sold as fertilizer
Lazarus & Lazarus, a technology-based construction firm in Honduras, contacted a distributor of Ecological Laboratories to explore technology to improve their poultry litter processing. Ecological Laboratories’ technologists devised a test protocol using MICROBE-LIFT® technology conducted at an experimental poultry farm. This farm is utilized to evaluate new technology to optimize efficiency of operations for poultry farms.
The idea of using MICROBE-LIFT® in poultry production was encouraged by fact that many international manufacturers of veterinarian products have recently introduced feed additives containing various forms of live bacteria. These probiotic products, which usually contain a short list of non-beneficial remaining after the food moves down the digestive track. As the bacteria contained in MICROBE-LIFT® play the same role when used on the solid surfaces (walls, pipes, floors, etc.) of stables, barns and food processing plants, it was logical to think that the non-pathological bacteria consortium in our products would be worth studying in this capacity.
Jim Bledsoe operates several grow houses for chickens. As in other poultry operations, ammonia is a concern that needs to be addressed. Jim had used every product he found on the market that claimed to provide ammonia removal, including market leaders such as All Clear and PLT, but had not achieved the ammonia control desired.
Merlin Newswenger’s dairy farm includes a 70’ X 70’ lagoon with 8’ walls that holds 39,200 cubic feet or approximately 300,000 gallons. This farm currently maintains 72 cows, using straw and shavings as bedding. Due to capacity constraints, the lagoon needed to be cleaned out approximately every four months based on cow numbers and rainfall. Surface solids (crust) were up to 24 inches thick that required extra payment to a manure hauler to agitate the pit before pump-out.
This hog farm had a concrete lagoon system that had a completely encrusted surface that caused problems with pumping and field application of the manure. Odor was a problem.
The Wolfe Power Line Dairy is a 750-head dairy farm with a 1.8 million gallon, above-ground manure storage silo designed to hold six to twelve months of manure production. The storage system is 30 feet below the barn grade and utilizes gravity to feed manure to the bottom of the containment vessel.
The Agrotel Company owns and operates a wholesale agricultural supply company as well as a swine farm in Moca, Dominican Republic. The farm maintains 450 to 500 sows and approximately 10,000 piglets. The barn wash-down and manure wastewater is collected, the solids are separated for feed and fertilizer, and the wastewater flows into a lagoon. There is no surface exit for runoff, but water does percolate through the soil and emit odors downstream.
McClellan Farms is a contract grower for Country View Family Farms (CVFF). The farm consists of two 2100-head finishing operations and one 8800-head nursery operation. The swine in these three buildings produce close to 2.5 million gallons of manure each year that must be managed efficiently.
