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TECHNICAL REPORTS

Waste Management

Chemical and Physical Changes Following Co-Composting of Beef Cattle Feedlot Manure with Phosphogypsum

^a Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Research Centre, 5403 First Avenue South, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada T1J 4B1
^b Agrium Inc., 11751 River Road, Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada T8L 4J1

^* Corresponding author (larney{at}agr.gc.ca)

Received for publication March 4, 2005. Nitrogen (N) loss during beef cattle (Bos taurus) feedlot manure composting may contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and increase ammonia (NH₃) in the atmosphere while decreasing the fertilizer value of the final compost. Phosphogypsum (PG) is an acidic by-product of phosphorus (P) fertilizer manufacture and large stockpiles currently exist in Alberta. This experiment examined co-composting of PG (at rates of 0, 40, 70, and 140 kg PG Mg^–1 manure plus PG dry weight) with manure from feedlot pens bedded with straw or wood chips. During the 99-d composting period, PG addition reduced total nitrogen (TN) loss by 0.11% for each 1 kg Mg^–1 increment in PG rate. Available N at the end of composting was significantly higher for wood chip–bedded (2180 mg kg^–1) than straw-bedded manure treatments (1820 mg kg^–1). Total sulfur (TS) concentration in the final compost increased by 0.19 g kg^–1 for each 1 kg Mg^–1 increment in PG rate from 5.2 g TS kg^–1 without PG addition. Phosphogypsum (1.6 g kg^–1 P) addition had no significant effect on total phosphorus (TP) concentration of the final composts. Results from this study demonstrate the potential of PG addition to reduce overall N losses during composting. The accompanying increase in TS content has implications for use of the end-product on sulfur-deficient soils. Co-composting feedlot manure with PG may provide an inexpensive and technologically straightforward solution for managing and improving the nutrient composition of composted cattle manure.

Abbreviations: AN, available nitrogen • DM, dry matter • EC, electrical conductivity • NORM, naturally occurring radioactive material • PAN, percent available nitrogen • PAS, percent available sulfur • PG, phosphogypsum • TC, total carbon • TN, total nitrogen • TP, total phosphorus • TS, total sulfur • WC, water content

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