New York Farm Viability Institute Website Press Releases 

PRESS RELEASE: July 17, 2006

Contact: Shawn Bossard, of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Seneca County, 315-539-9251
R. David Smith, New York Farm Viability Institute, Inc., 315-453-3823

Air Quality, Economics Focus of NYFVI-Funded Dairy Project on Ammonia

Cow manure is the most inexpensive source of fertilizer for dairy farms. The question for farmers is how to gain the crop nutrient benefits from manure while reducing the loss of ammonia-N (Nitrogen) into water and air. Learning the answer before the government initiates new regulations is one of the objectives of a cutting-edge project funded by the New York Farm Viability Institute to evaluate the potential of ammonia-conserving manure management practices.

Ammonia Air Emissions project leader Shawn Bossard says, “New York’s farmers are addressing ammonia-N loss for both environmental and economic reasons. The loss of plant-ready nitrogen through ammonia volatilization (liquid becoming gas) easily equates to $100/acre in lost crop nutrient value. Economically, the more manure-based nutrients we can feed into our soil for crops, the less money farmers have to spend to buy fertilizer. The surrounding environment benefits as more nutrients are kept in the soil and less ammonia is lost into the air.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency may soon look more closely at field losses of ammonia into airsheds - geographic areas of atmosphere that affect nearby water bodies. Although airborne nitrogen in the form of ammonia is lighter than air, eventually ammonia-N rises, combining with other particles, and falls to ground or water surfaces. Excesses of nitrogen in water can lead to algae bloom that creates low oxygen conditions for aquatic plants and animals.

Bossard, executive director of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Seneca County, says dairy farms in Europe are restricted to a specified amount of ammonia release. The Netherlands, for example, has a zero ammonia air emissions standard. Manure must be injected into field soils and all manure storage is covered there.

“Here in the U.S. and New York, farmers managing for ammonia loss are incorporating manure into soils to reduce runoff and air emissions. Farmers using a manure injection system may see as much as a fifty percent reduction in nitrogen costs per field,” Bossard says, “and may also benefit from an equal reduction in phosphorus, an excess of which can lead to algae bloom in nearby water. Better utilization and containment of nutrients will positively impact the long-term use of farm fields.”

The NYFVI-funded project objectives include developing an understanding of the amount of nitrogen lost to the air as well as the amount retained in the soil (nitrogen credits) using surface, aerator and injection systems for manure application. Cornell University’s Aurora Research Farm and Edgewood Farms in Groveland have provided fields for the research. Air chambers developed in Sweden and provided by the University of Vermont will measure ammonia particles retained in control fields, fields with manure surface applied, and fields with manure quickly incorporated into soil.

Bossard says research in Vermont has evaluated ammonia losses from fields with manure surface-applied. This New York project is the next step in understanding how much ammonia loss is saved using equipment that partially incorporates manure into soil. The Cornell Nutrient Management Spear Program will analyze the nitrogen levels in field soil samples and crop yields and will measure the amount of ammonia taken up by plants under three methods of manure application.

Aurora Ridge Dairy, Aurora, NY; Fessenden Dairy, King Ferry, NY; Wyndswept Dairy, Genoa, NY; the University of Vermont; Dairy Support Services, Inc., Truxton, NY; S.C. Hanson Equipment, Horseheads, NY; and Stutzman Research Farm, Arkport, NY, are providing project support.

The NYFVI is a farmer-led, farmer-driven, independent not-for-profit corporation that grants funds for research, extension and innovative technologies to benefit producers at the farm enterprise level across farms of all sizes and all commodity areas. For more information, contact the New York Farm Viability Institute, 159 Dwight Park Circle, Suite 104, Syracuse, NY 13209, 315-453-3823, www.nyfarmviability.org