Livestock Sheds and Collecting Urine to Add to Manure
4.10 - Livestock sheds and collecting urine to add to manure
Jaime Selinger, University of Guelph, Canada
Source: Wikipedia
Related video(s): Human urine as fertilizer (Source: Access Agriculture) | Manure shed (English translation) (Source: SAK Global)
Suggested citation for this chapter.
Selinger, J. (2022) Livestock sheds and collecting urine to add to manure. In Farmpedia, The Encyclopedia for Small Scale Farmers. Editor, M.N. Raizada, University of Guelph, Canada. farmpedia.org
Introduction
The soils of smallholder farmers often lack the proper amount of nitrogen, phosphate and potassium, which are essential for healthy and bountiful growth of crops. Urine collected from livestock and humans is very rich in nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium, which is important for plant growth. A family of four can produce the equivalent of a 50 kg bag of NPK fertilizer from urine alone every year (Feineigle, 2011). This urine has a 10:1:4 ratio of NPK, which is a higher nitrogen content than many mineral fertilizers (Feineigle, 2011). Humans produce roughly 500 litres of urine and 50 litres of faeces per person per year (Caldwell & Rosemarin, 2014). These contain about 4 kg of nitrogen, 0.5 kg of phosphorous and 1 kg of potassium, the three basic elements for plant growth. The exact amount varies from region to region depending on food intake. Seventy per cent of the nutrients excreted by humans are in the urine fraction (Caldwell & Rosemarin, 2014). Livestock consumption of leguminous fodder such as acacia, calliandra and erythrina can increase the nitrogen content of their urine (Devendra, 1992).
Since the most prominent nutrient found in urine is nitrogen, it is important to have balanced nitrogen levels in urine that is mixed with manure and to balance urine addition with other nutrients required for plant growth. The importance of nitrogen to plant growth is outlined in Chapter 1.4 – Balanced Fertilization. Using urine as a way to enrich manure is a more cost-effective substitute for fertilizer.
In areas where there is not as much livestock, human urine can also be added to crops as noted above. Akpan-Idiok et al. (2012) recently demonstrated that human urine is strongly alkaline and contains a moderate amount of nutrients (N, P, K, Mg, Ca and Na). Application of either urine or inorganic fertilizer significantly (P<0.05) increased plant nutrient uptake compared with the control (Akpan-Idiok et al., 2012). Human or livestock urine can also be used directly in home gardens.
How the Practice Is Conducted
Urine can be collected from livestock using a concrete floor that is sloped toward a PVC pipe that empties into a manure pit. This pipe leads to a pit or inside a mud/stone wall where it is stored. The mixture is then transferred from the storage area and spread along the soil where the crops are to grow. An alternative to this process is that the urine pipe leads to a storage drum from which urine can be added to the manure. These practices require time and effort from the household. Building a concrete floor with a slope towards a PVC pipe would cost a total of $12 USD in materials and would require up to 3 days of construction labour (Sustainable Soil Management Programme, 2007). A smallholder farmer can undertake this labour, but it requires specialized knowledge and training (e.g. how to mix concrete). The construction of this can be done by digging a manure pit within the livestock shed, into which the urine will be emptied (SSMP, 2007). Then, the smallholder farmer will have to make a floor at the bottom of the shed where the urine will be collected, made out of compacted soil or clay, or cement if they are able to afford it (SSMP, 2007). Other costs for this would be a collection device for the urine after it is disposed into the manure pit (SSMP, 2007).
There is an easier alternative to collecting urine from livestock, specifically by penning the livestock in a certain area where crops will grow prior to planting, so that their urine and feces will directly mix with the soil (Bedford et al., 2016). The animals are able to graze the land and release urine and feces and are able to comfortably move around the land rather than be restricted (Bedford et al., 2016). This process requires little labour on the part of the farming household.
The urine of the livestock is collected within the livestock shed. It is suggested that the livestock shed be created out of fabric, as it provides more ventilation and filtration for sheds in hot climates and is more cost-effective for smallholder farmers and industrial farmers alike (Megadome Buildings, 2016). As resources are sometimes limited for smallholder farmers, the fabric livestock shed will work as long as they have constructed a proper concrete floor and slope towards the manure pit.
This is not a new concept and has been utilized by many smallholder farmers. In a study conducted by Powell & Williams (1993) in the West African Sahel, the yield was compared over the course of six years using urine from livestock as fertilizer compared to chemical fertilizer. The authors found that there was a 52% increase in yields within the first year of the study (Powell & Williams, 1993).
Ammonia Emissions
Ammonia emission is one of the greatest environmental threats from farms (Fangmeier et al., 1994). This is an increasingly destructive threat, since ammonia released into the air can affect the crops in the surrounding area, as well as the possibility of ammonium contamination into groundwater and river/lake water (Fangmeier et al., 1994). Livestock urine can lead to ammonia losses. It is necessary to mix liquid and solid manures to reduce ammonia emissions (Sommer & Hutchings, 2001). Due to ammonia emissions being linked to global warming and climate change, it is necessary to change the diet of livestock and add the required nutrients to soil to reduce these ammonia emissions (Fangmeier et al., 1994). It is important for livestock to be fed a well-balanced diet, including carbohydrate rich foods, as it balances out the nitrogen and reduces ammonia emission into the air. Addition of fermentable carbohydrates, such as bran or pulp, into grow-finishing diets resulted in a 14% reduction of ammonia emission for each percentage increase in carbohydrate (Powers, 2004).
Picture Based Lesson to Train Farmers
South Asian version (pictures only, text for you to insert) — lesson 5.12
East/South Asian version (pictures only, text for you to insert) — lesson 5.12
Sub-Saharan Africa/Caribbean version (pictures only, text for you to insert) — lesson 5.12
Latin America version (pictures only, text for you to insert) — lesson 5.12
North Africa and Middle East version (pictures only, text for you to insert) — lesson 4.11
Source: MN Raizada and LJ Smith (2016) A Picture Book of Best Practices for Subsistence Farmers. eBook, University of Guelph Sustainable Agriculture Kit (SAK) Project, June 2016, Guelph, Canada.
Helpful Links
To learn more about the benefits and challenges of using human urine to improve agriculture, follow these links:
Human Pee Added to Compost Boosts Crops (National Geographic)
Urine: Closing the NPK Loop (Permaculture Research Institute)
Human Pee Proven Fertilizer of the Future? (Modern Farmer)
Feeding Plants with Urine (Gardening Know How)
Refer to SAK Picture Book Lesson 5.10a and 5.10b, p. 54-55, for step by step picture instructions.
References
1. Agriculture and Forestry. (2006). Applying Manure on Perennial Forage. Agriculture and Forestry. Link
2. Akpan-Idiok, A.U., Udo, I.A., & Braide, E.I. (2012). The use of human urine as an organic fertilizer in the production of okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) in South Eastern Nigeria. Resources, Conservation and Recycling, 62, 14-20. DOI
3. Andersson, E. (2015). Turning waste into value: using human urine to enrich soils for sustainable food production in Uganda. Journal of Cleaner Production, 96, 290-298. DOI
4. Arnold, C. (2013). Human Pee Added to Compost Boosts Crops. National Geographic. Link
5. Bedford, M. R., Choct, M., & O'Neill, H. M. (2016). Nutrition Experiments in Pigs and Poultry: A Practical Guide. CABI.
6. Bishwakarma, B.K., Dahal, N.R., Allen, R., Rajbhandari, N.P., Dhital, B.K., Gurung, D.B., Bajracharya, R.M., & Baillie, I.C. (2015). Effects of improved management and quality of farmyard manure on soil organic carbon contents in small-holder farming systems of the Middle Hills of Nepal. Climate and Development, 7(5), 426-436. DOI
7. Caldwell, I., & Rosemarin, A. (2014). Human Urine and Faeces as a Fertilizer. Stockholm Environment Institute.
8. Devendra, C. (1992). Nutritional potential of fodder trees and shrubs as protein sources in ruminant nutrition. Legume Trees and Other Fodder Trees as Protein Sources for Livestock, 100, 95-113.
9. De Vries, J.W., Aarnink, A.J.A., Groot Koerkamp, P.W.G., & De Boer, I.J.M. (2013). Life Cycle Assessment of Segregating Fattening Pig Urine and Feces Compared to Conventional Liquid Manure Management. Environmental Science & Technology, 47, 1587-1597. DOI
10. Fangmeier, A., Hadwiger-Fangmeier, A., Van der Eerden, L., & Jäger, H-J. (1994). Effects of atmospheric ammonia on vegetation – A review. Environmental Pollution, 86(1), 43-82.
11. Feineigle, M. (2011). Urine: Closing the NPK Loop. Permaculture Research Institute. Link
12. Jana, B.B., Bag, S.K., & Rana, S. (2012). Comparative evaluation of the fertilizer value of human urine, cow manure and their mix for the production of carp fingerlings in small holding tanks. Aquaculture International, 20, 735-749. DOI
13. Powell, J. M., & Williams, T. O. (1993). Livestock, nutrient cycling and sustainable agriculture in the West African Sahel. Sustainable Agriculture Programme, International Institute for Environment and Development, 37.
14. Powers, W. (2004). Practices to reduce ammonia emissions from livestock operations. In Rees, R.M., Baddeley, J.A., Bhogal, A., Ball, B.C., Chadwick, D.R., MacLeod, M., Lilly, A., Pappa, V.A., Thorman, R.E., Watson, C.A., & Williams, J.R. (2013). Nitrous oxide mitigation in UK agriculture. Soil Science and Plant Nutrition, 59, 3-15. DOI
15. Sommer, S.G., & Hutchings, N.J. (2001). Ammonia emission from field applied manure and its reduction – invited paper. European Journal of Agronomy, 15, 1-15. DOI
16. The Sustainable Soil Management Programme. (2007). Improved cattleshed for urine collection. ICIMOD. Link
17. Tremorin, D.G., Tenuta, M., Mkhabela, M., Flaten, D.N., & Ominski, K.H. (2012). Nitrous oxide emissions from feces and synthetic urine of cattle grazing forage grass fertilized with hog slurry. Animal Feed Science and Technology, 177(3-4), 225-236. DOI