Improvement in slurry applications

Design of tools to minimize the impact on the natural environment in slurry applications of pig farms [FEADER file 2016/55B].

Link: Agriculture and rural development > Financing the Common Agricultural Policy

Summary

This project is defined by the problem of pig farms, in general at Galicia,derived from the need to manage the high amounts of manure they produce,in this rainy weather, and may in some cases lead to environmental problems arising from the use of very high doses repeatedly on farmland.

Innovation is sought in the by-product management systems of pig farms, being more efficient in the use of the slurry generated in the operation. The study of different types of pig farms in the Mariñas-Betanzos area will serve to gain an in-depth knowledge of the problem and to design a SIX management tool,to provide livestock management information needed for storage and the subsequent application of slurry, on the lands dedicated to this purpose, in a correct way.

Thanks to the tool designed the farmers can manage more efficiently the storage of slurry and will know the conditions of the application of optimum purin for each case, taking into account land uses and weather conditions,
While allowing the monitoring of the process by the administrations with environmental competencies(Galician waters,town hall, Consellería de Medio Rural, etc…).

Justification

The evolution of the pork sector in recent years has led to a significant intensification of production systems,
which improved performance on pig farms,with an inseparable increase of the byproducts generated in the pig farms,
which is revealed as the main limiting factor of the growth of this sector,as the use that was made of slurry in the extensive agricultural sector,mainly associated to the subscriber of crops and fodder for cattle feeding,
is increasingly restricted due to the reduction of the agricultural area in the benefit of the forest area.

The current problem in the management of these manure derives from its production in large quantities,at places not always suitable and generally in small superficial extension. Further,this has consequences for the economy of the companies of the sector by the high costs of later management,which in many cases,almost exclusively from the cost of transporting them to remote areas.

However,sometimes the problem is that the closest areas where slurry can be applied can be dedicated to forestry.In this way,the application process is complicated because in these plots can not be done efficiently and uniformly,
said application being carried out at specific points in the plot,which can be considered as poured and not as application for subscriber.

One solution to this problem would be the promotion of collaboration between farms, so that by-products unusable in one farm can be used as fertilizer in other.It is also necessary to perform a good management of drinking water and cleaning and a correct approach of the outer pits to avoid dilutions by rainwater, thus reducing handling problems.

The objective of this project is the design of a SIX tool that allows to manage the slurry,
connecting with farms with land that can use them as organic fertilizer,in addition to environmental monitoring of potential impacts.

Project objectives

The main objective of the project is the design of a SIX tool that allows:

• Store all the information of farmers, livestock, analytical, incidents and historical management.
• Plan slurry distribution operations.
• Issue reports on the traceability of the purine movements, according to the requirements of the administration.
• Interact with electronic control devices installed in vehicles, GPS type, to optimize and monitor the routes and times of application.

With the information stored in the application you can establish the appropriate recommendations to try:

• Reduce the volume of slurry in pig farms, developing protocols for a correct management of the water from its origin and that can be applied in other similar farms.
• The definition of joint solutions for efficient and flexible storage of slurry, that allows an optimal use in the agricultural field.The possibility of applying slurry to abandoned land will also be analyzed, that can be recovered for cultivation and thus reduce the risk of fire.
• Monitoring the management of slurry by public administrations (Galician waters,Health,Environment,Rural environment, Town Councils): permissions, incompatibilities, etc.

Participating actors

[metaslider id=5467]

Actions

• Bibliographic review on the subject related to the project.
• Characterization, classification and georeferencing of 12 pig farms,located in the area of influence of the Biosphere Reserve “Mariñas Coruñesas e Terras do Mandeo”,as well as of the parcels that make up the territorial base of each farm.
• Collection of slurry samples in the different production cycles of the farms characterized
• Execution of slurry analysis,
  previously collected according to the typologies of the holdings,with the objective of determining the fertilizer value of the same.
• Sampling of soil in plots associated with each holding, and with permission for the application of slurry.
• Determination of the fertility level of purin receiving land from selected pig farms.
• Creation of a database where all the information necessary for the creation of the SIX tool is structured.
• Development of the tool for the management of pig slurry.
• Starting the SIX tool.
• Dissemination of project results in the rural and scientific fields.
• Project management.