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Water quality implications of dairy slurry applied to cut pastures in the northeast USA
Author(s) -
Stout W.L.,
Weaver S.R.,
Gburek W.J.,
Folmar G.J.,
Schnabel R.R.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
soil use and management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.709
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1475-2743
pISSN - 0266-0032
DOI - 10.1111/j.1475-2743.2000.tb00191.x
Subject(s) - lysimeter , leaching (pedology) , environmental science , dactylis glomerata , slurry , grazing , water quality , leachate , zoology , nitrate , agronomy , hydrology (agriculture) , environmental engineering , environmental chemistry , chemistry , poaceae , soil water , ecology , biology , soil science , geotechnical engineering , engineering
. Nitrate nitrogen (NO 3 ‐N) leaching from animal production systems in the northeast USA is a major non‐point source of pollution in the Chesapeake Bay. We conducted a study to measure NO 3 ‐N leaching from dairy slurry applied to orchardgrass ( Dactylis glomerata L., cv. Pennlate) using large drainage lysimeters to measure the direct impact of four rates of slurry (urine and faeces) N application (0, 168, 336, 672 kg N ha −1 yr −1 ) on NO 3 ‐N leaching on three soil types. We then used experimentally‐based relationships developed earlier between stocking density and NO 3 ‐N leaching loss and leachate NO 3 ‐N concentration to estimate the added impact of animal grazing. Nitrate N leaching losses from only dairy slurry applied at the 0, 158, 336, and 672 kg N ha −1 yr −1 rates were 5.85, 8.26, 8.83, and 12.1 kg N ha −1 yr −1 , respectively with corresponding NO 3 ‐N concentrations of 1.60, 2.30, 2.46, and 3.48 mg l −1 . These NO 3 ‐N concentrations met the 10 mg l −1 US EPA drinking water standard. However, when a scenario was constructed to include the effect of NO 3 ‐N leaching caused by animal grazing, the NO 3 ‐N drinking water standard was calculated to be exceeded.