Ammonia Control for Animal
Housing Systems with Liquid Manure -
Landscaping
| Pro |
Con |
| Visually pleasing |
Time to establish or costly to plant established trees |
| Traps multiple gases and odor |
Potential to have reduced effectiveness over time |
Landscaping may reduce the emission of housing odors, as well
as odors generated by other components of the livestock operation,
beyond the property line. Landscaping acts as a permeable filter
for particle emissions, slowing the particulate movement and diluting
the concentrations of emissions. Trees and shrubs act as biofilters
for odorous compounds that are attached to fine particles. By landscaping
with both a treeline and a row of shrubs, particles at various
heights within a plume can be adsorbed. To maximize absorption,
landscape materials with large surface areas are recommended. Trees
and shrubs placed around the facility should not impede building
ventilation and therefore are often located on the property lines.
Costs associated with landscaping will vary
depending on selected trees and shrubs, and on perimeter size.
The estimate of a shelterbelt planted around a 3000-head hog
facility using "higher" cost trees
($25 per shrub or tree), calculated as $0.68 per pig for one year.
Amortized over 20 years at 5 percent, and including maintenance
costs, the estimate is just $0.09 per pig. In addition to acting
as a natural filtration system, landscaping has the additional
benefits of being aesthetically pleasing to the eye and of restricting
the view of the operation. So, while documented effectiveness on
emissions is scarce, the value of creating a facility that is pleasant
to the eye cannot be underestimated. However, the time between
the planting of immature trees and the time when those trees are
large enough to be effective must be considered before producers
decide on the best practice for their systems. In Iowa , this time
lag may be as long as seven years, depending on the planting varieties.
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