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Pig waste is similar to human waste; filled with bacteria and high amounts of ammonia. At most intensive pig farms, hog waste is kept in large open-air pits called lagoons where waste is broken down by anaerobic bacteria and then sprayed onto crops as fertilizer.
Also, people near CAFOs often complain of the smell, which comes from a complex mixture of ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, and volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds. Waste disposal also makes air worse. Some CAFOs will use "spray fields" and pump the waste of thousands of animals into a machine that sprays it onto an open field.
Ammonia (NH 4 + and NH 3) originates from the brachial excretion from the gills of aquatic animals and from the decomposition of organic matter. As ammonia-N is highly toxic, this is converted to a less toxic form of nitrite (by Nitrosomonas sp.) and then to an even less toxic form of nitrate (by Nitrobacter sp.). This "nitrification" process ...
Ammonia gas has a strong odor that can be smelled at low levels, below the OSA PEL, but does not have any negative health effects. [39] At higher levels, ammonia is irritating to the body's mucous membranes such as the eyes, nose, mouth, throat and lungs. [39] Particulate matter in pig barns often absorbs ammonia as it floats through the air. [40]
As pH or temperature increases, so does the amount of volatilized ammonia. [15] Once ammonia has been volatilized, it can travel as far as 300 miles, [13] and at closer ranges it is a respiratory irritant. [5] Acidification and eutrophication of the ecosystem surrounding the lagoons could be caused by prolonged exposure to volatilized ammonia. [16]
The Enviropig is a genetically modified Yorkshire pig that expresses phytase in its saliva. Grains, such as corn and wheat, have phosphorus that is bound in a naturally indigestible form known as phytic acid. Phosphorus, an essential nutrient for pigs, is then added to the diet, since it can not be broken down in the pigs digestive tract. As a ...
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Also, small-ruminant flocks in North America (and elsewhere) are sometimes used on fields for removal of various crop residues inedible by humans, converting them to food. Small ruminants, such as sheep and goats, can control some invasive or noxious weeds (such as spotted knapweed , tansy ragwort , leafy spurge , yellow starthistle , tall ...