Waste System Restricts Odor Emissions
Published: Aug. 27, 2003
August 26, 2003
URBANA?Being a good neighbor is as important to the researchers and staff at the new University of Illinois Beef/Sheep Unit at the South Farms as the traditional teaching, research, and outreach missions. That?s why the feedlot cattle barns will have a state-of-the-art system for collecting and injecting waste into croplands.
?As far as the neighbors are concerned,? said Dan Faulkner, U of I professor of animal sciences and Extension beef specialist, referring to those living near the new facility,? there should be no odor. The waste management system we will use was designed to keep any odor at a minimum.?
Groundbreaking for the Beef/Sheep Unit, part of Phase One of the South Farms Modernization Project, was held today at the unit?s site near the intersection of South Race Street and Old Church Road at the southeast edge of Urbana.
Faulkner noted that all the components of the new waste management system are in use today but the Beef/Sheep Unit will be the first time all the parts are put together in a single system.
The system begins in pools of water located beneath the slotted floors of the feedlot barns. As animal waste falls through the slots, it is captured in the water. The water then flows into a covered holding system in which the waste is separated into solids and liquid. The waste solids are composted and the liquids move into tanks. Lines running from the tanks inject the liquid waste directly into the soil of nearby cropland, eliminating the need for spreading or spraying, both of which can create odor problems.
As for the compost matter, it will go to research projects and/or be sold to area landscapers.
?There is no system quite like this that we are aware of,? said Faulkner. ?With the nearest houses located about 1 ½ miles away, we wanted to do as much as possible to diminish any potential problems. We worked with engineers and architects to put this particular system together.?
The system is also designed to evolve with advances in waste and odor management technology, he noted.
?We tried to leave it flexible enough that if methane generation or some other new technology is feasible, our system could be adapted to it,? he said.
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