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Greenhouse Gas Emissions during Co-Composting of Calf Mortalities with Manure

^a Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Lethbridge Research Centre, 5403 1st Ave S., Lethbridge, AB, T1J 4B1 Canada
^b Alberta Agriculture and Food, 5401 1st Ave S., Lethbridge, AB, T1J 4V6 Canada
^c College of Resources and Environment, China Agricultural Univ., Beijing, P.R. China 100094

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

Received for publication February 12, 2007. Composting may be a viable on-farm option for disposal of cattle carcasses. This study investigated greenhouse gas emissions during co-composting of calf mortalities with manure. Windrows were constructed that contained manure + straw (control compost [CK]) or manure + straw + calf mortalities (CM) using two technologies: a tractor-mounted front-end loader or a shredder bucket. Composting lasted 289 d. The windrows were turned twice (on Days 72 and 190), using the same technology used in their creation. Turning technology had no effect on greenhouse gas emissions or the properties of the final compost. The CO₂ (75.2 g d^–1 m^–2), CH₄ (2.503 g d^–1 m^–2), and N₂O (0.370 g d^–1 m^–2) emissions were higher (p < 0.05) in CM than in CK (25.7, 0.094, and 0.076 g d^–1 m^–2 for CO₂, CH₄, and N₂O, respectively), which reflected differences in materials used to construct the compost windrows and therefore their total C and total N contents. The final CM compost had higher (p < 0.05) total N, total C, and mineral N content (NO₃^– + NO₂^– + NH₄⁺) than did CK compost and therefore has greater agronomic value as a fertilizer.

Abbreviations: CK, control compost (manure + straw) • CM, compost containing manure, straw, and calf mortalities • FL, front-end loader • GHG, greenhouse gas • SB, shredder bucket • TC, total carbon • TN, total nitrogen • WC, water content