Duration: 10/01/2000 to 09/30/2005

Administrative Advisor(s):

NIFA Reps:

Non-Technical Summary

Statement of Issues and Justification

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM:

Water quality issues have received a lot of press coverage in recent years as contamination of ground and surface water sources have been brought before the US public. The importance of these issues will continue to escalate as our nation looks more critically at its natural resource base. Water quality is an issue that will continue to be magnified and will not disappear or be played down in the near future. Water quality is a health issue in many parts of the US and world, and it is just as important to poultry production and processing, since water quality can affect poultry health and performance.

This new regional research project will be the only regional project dedicated to the role of water quality issues in poultry production. Water quality issues include the environmental, food safety, growth performance, and profitability of poultry and poultry products. The objective of this new project is to study the role of water used in poultry production and product processing and their effect on the environment, and food safety.

JUSTIFICATION:

Importance in agriculture, rural life and consumer concerns

Agriculture continues to be the dominant industry in rural communities; however, it is becoming more and more evident that stewardship of our natural resource base is not only the responsibility of farmers, but of all citizens. Consequently, society is demanding that agriculture implement environmentally sound sustainable systems of production that have low chemical usage, reduced movement of sediment and nutrients from the land, and have minimal or no off-site impacts. Components of these production systems must include reduction of waterborne pollutants into the environment, high-quality, healthy food products, and profitability. Management of pollutants released into the environment will insure a safe and healthy drinking water supply for humans and animals. In 1990 and 1991, states throughout the U.S. assessed the surface water quality of this nation's rivers, streams, lakes and estuaries. According to EPA sources, agricultural non-point source pollution affected 72 percent of the river and stream miles, 56 percent of lake acres, and 43 percent of estuary acreage. The nation's groundwater quality was also assessed and found generally good; however, local areas have experienced significant contamination with agriculture implicated as one of the main sources of groundwater pollution. One-third of agricultural pollution originates from non-point sources, with causes which may include the mishandling of animal waste such as manure and dead birds, and poultry processing facilities. Public concern over animal waste pollution of our water resources initiated several pieces of federal legislation. Agriculture was greatly affected by these federal laws such as the Coastal Zone Management Act, the Clean Water Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act. Under the Coastal Zone Act Reauthorization Amendment, six management measures are used as a guide for agriculture to prevent non-point source pollution. They are: 1) sediment/erosion control; 2) confined animal facility; 3) nutrient management; 4) pesticide management; 5) livestock grazing; and 6) irrigation. Best management practices (BMP's) within these measures must be economically achievable and must represent the best means possible to reduce the discharge of non-point source pollutants. Manure, waste water, and runoff water that is utilized on agricultural land must be applied in accordance with an animal waste management or nutrient management plan. The Reauthorization Amendment is the foundation for controlling and preventing non-point sources of pollution. The re-authorization also encompasses the Clean Water Act which includes surface and groundwater protection from point and non-point sources of pollutants. Agriculture, in general, and the poultry industry, specifically, will most definitely be affected.

Maintaining profitability while protecting the environment has become a critical issue for the poultry producer. On many farms, traditional agricultural practices related to traditional crop and livestock production cannot provide adequate protection of the environment while sustaining agricultural profitability. To achieve this balance, agriculture must implement cost effective practices which invoke innovative approaches to marketing, production, management, and utilization. Such approaches include reducing total input costs, direct marketing, forward contracting, increasing efficiency through newly developed technologies, and identifying new uses for traditional agricultural products. All of this must be accomplished in harmony with the countrys rich natural resource base.

Extent of the problem

Poultry production in the U.S. is an 18-billion-dollar-a-year industry which has grown dramatically since the 1950's. Increased concentration of poultry production has caused severe environmental problems such as odor, flies, dust and declining water quality. The poultry industry is faced with three major water quality and nonpoint source pollution issues. They are: 1) mortality management; 2) manure/litter management; and 3) processing plant waste. These issues must be addressed by the producers and managers of poultry companies. Water quality issues must be a normal business concern.

Non-point source pollution from animal waste runoff can reduce surface and groundwater quality by introducing excessive levels of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, organic matter, and pathogens into the environment. In 114 watersheds studied throughout the U.S., excessive levels of nitrogen and phosphorus were derived primarily from excessive or irresponsible manure applications. Detailed guidelines on manure-nutrient management programs must be developed for the poultry industry in order to avoid water pollution or improve water quality. Besides manure-nutrient management programs, mortality from poultry production units must be handled in such a way that disposing of the mortality does not pollute ground and surface waters. Alternative handling methods of daily mortality need to be developed that are economical and easily implemented by the industry.

One of the real challenges facing the poultry producer deals with the managing and handling of poultry waste products in ways that minimize adverse impacts, especially water quality impacts. Animal wastes contain materials which cause direct and indirect health problems in other animals and people. Health problems from water contact sports or drinking water always relate to the concentration of contaminants in the water. With more and larger poultry operations confined to smaller areas of land, the likelihood of water contamination increases. That is the single most important reason for concern of both ground and surface waters in areas where there are high numbers of animals producing large amounts of manure and associated by-products.

Water is vital to the poultry industry. Good quality water is necessary for poultry to grow, thrive and be profitable to the producer. On the other hand, the poultry industry must learn to prevent water pollution from large quantities of water discharged from meat and egg processing plants. Development of economical methods to clean up the large volume of discharged water from the processing plants is of high priority. Recycling of reclaimed water from processing plants to the production units is a possibility.

Poultry farms may use water from municipal sources (potable for humans), from wells, streams, ponds, lakes, rainfall catchments, and springs. Because of its very nature of potential hydrogen bonding, water is an excellent solvent for both inorganic and organic substances. For this reason, water is an ideal medium for the proliferation and distribution of harmful components such as chemical elements and microorganisms. Quality of surface and ground water depends upon naturally occurring inclusions such as cations, anions, heavy metals and inadvertent inclusions such as pesticides, herbicides and wash off of excessive organic or inorganic fertilizers, and microorganisms.

Drinking water is of concern to poultry producers due to its great variability in quality and its potential for contamination. Naturally occurring surface and ground waters always contain inclusions ranging from low to very high concentrations. Water quality is characterized by its taste, acidity, alkalinity, odor, color, turbidity, salinity, electrical conductivity, pH, biochemical oxygen demand, hardness, presence of anions, cations, herbicides, pesticides and bacteria. Water inclusions contribute to the diet of chickens, having either nutritional, anti-nutritional, toxic, or infectious properties. Dissolved inclusions and additives are generally considered to be more readily available for absorption. High quality drinking water may be defined as water which contains inclusions which promote vitality and lack inclusions causing morbidity and mortality. As the volume of non-drinkable water increases and the technology for measurement of inclusions improves, we are becoming increasingly aware of water inclusions and their effects on health and nutrition. It is important that we discover the effects of water inclusions, both naturally occurring and supplemental, on the performance of poultry and that we precisely define high-quality drinking water.

Drinking water inclusions can affect the quality of poultry meat and eggs. Water inclusions can discolor poultry products, particularly eggs. Toxic substances can build up in fat and muscle tissues and hens can export toxic substances into eggs. Variations in water quality and management practices (water treatments, additives, and delivery devices) have the potential to influence the health and productivity of poultry and the quality of processed poultry products. Poultry products are required by law to be washed or rinsed with potable water. Often cleaners and disinfectants are added to improve food safety. Wash and rise waters must be handled to avoid environmentally pollution.

Needs and advantages of a cooperative approach

It is important for the American poultry industry to strive toward the compliance of environmental policies and regulations and to exceed future expectations through the development and adoption of environmentally safe technologies. The development of these systems requires a multi-disciplinary approach that can only be accomplished through cooperation of various experimental stations to account for variations in climatic and environmental conditions in the US. Also, these issues must be examined regionally because of the enormous variation in forage and crop biology, soils type, and management systems employed across the US. No single station or investigator is likely to develop a single broad-based program to ensure the environmentally safe disposal of farm-generated poultry by-products or to ensure the safety of ground and surface waters. Unfortunately, local environmental conditions and local management practices vary across the country, so specific recommendations aimed at the poultry producers will have to be tailored for different geographic regions. Field testing and producer education programs must be addressed in different regions of the country to ensure that results of research trials and field tests are presented that pertain to the target audience. The need to refine information to fit local conditions mandates the need to develop an information base that involves researchers from diverse geographical regions and to include experts in nutrition, physiology, waste management, agronomy, horticulture, agricultural engineering, waste water management, and food safety.

Expected benefits

This formation of an interdisciplinary team will allow greater flexibility and innovation that dictates the need to solve non-point source problems for the poultry industry. Resources have been critically limited in recent years, and yet results have been forthcoming. By sharing the circumstances and approaches of several innovative programs, concepts and characteristics portrayed in other states can be tailored to fit the needs of other regions by saving time, money, and energy in solving related problems, as well as boosting programs that may need a new direction or approach.

The development of methods to ensure the environmentally safe disposal of poultry by-products and to ensure the quality of ground and surface waters requires a thorough understanding of scientific principles and their application to real-world situations. A more complete knowledge in these areas will allow for the development of sustainable agricultural systems that utilize science-based technologies to reduce environmental problems and will result in more appropriate management-based systems. The application and integration of these systems will result in improvements in the efficiency of poultry production by reducing costs, lessening the potential for the contamination of ground and surface waters, utilizing by-products in a more economical manner, and reducing the amount of non-point source pollutants being expelled into the environment.

Extension publications, videos, Experiment Station publications, popular articles in trade magazines, and refereed journal articles which discuss results from the project will be used to educate producers and managers of poultry companies on manure/nutrient management, waste water management and dead bird disposal. Through educational materials, producers and managers will further understand and appreciate the impact of various management schemes on water quality and poultry performance.

Oral presentations of the results will be presented at grower meetings, regional meetings, scientific meetings, international meetings, conferences, extension workshops, and the annual meetings of the Poultry Science Association, the Southern Poultry Science Association, the World's Poultry Science meeting, and Southeastern Poultry Association.

Coordination of the educational plan will be through the Chair of the committee. Richard Reynnells, USDA/CSREES/PAS liaison will be actively involved in assisting in national coordination and distribution of information. Coordination of an educational action plan will be discussed as part of meetings and conference calls. Personnel will have responsibilities related to their contributions on individual projects and team efforts.

How this project varies from past efforts

The new project varies from work done in the past by WCC-59 in that additional research emphasis is being placed upon the effects of non-point nutrient pollution associated with poultry production and slaughter. This has important ramifications upon environmental quality issues. Cooperative efforts to evaluate water quality and water deliver device effects on poultry performance will continue, but with added emphasis placed on the microbiologic environment within watering systems. This has an indirect impact on human heath and a direct effect on poultry productivity. Environmental issues, water quality, and food safety are critical public issues. This will be the only regional project that studies these issues specifically in the poultry production arena. The proposed research project is innovative and unique. It addresses the critical nature of environmental issues for the national poultry system in the absence of formal research programs.

Related, Current and Previous Work

An extensive search for related work was conducted in the Current Research Information System (CRIS) database in addition to a physical review of the USDA/CSREES list of Multi-State Research projects. The search found several Multi-State Projects fall within the scope of the new Project proposed by the WCC-59 participants. However, the new proposed project addresses a research problem not being addressed elsewhere. Most of the individual projects, within existing Multi-State Projects represent efforts of specific individuals and/or laboratories and do not duplicate WCC-59 efforts.

In addition, the new Project shares interests with other multi-state projects:

S-275 Animal Manure and Waste Utilization, Treatment, and Nuisance Avoidance for a Sustainable Agriculture

NC-183 Development of New Processes and Technologies for the Processing of Poultry Products (Terminated)

NE-127 Biophysical Models for Poultry Production Systems

S-291 Systems for Controlling Air Pollutant Emissions and Indoor Environments of Poultry, Swine, and Dairy Facilities

W-184 Chemistry and Engineering to Minimize Irrigated Agriculture's Effects on Water Quality

NRSP-3 The National Atmospheric Deposition Program

W-82 Pesticides & Other Toxic Organics in Soil & Their Potential for Ground & Surface Water Contamination

There is no overlap of the proposed New Project with any of the regional projects. However, methodologies generated by the New Project research will contribute to the goals of the related projects.

Project S-275 (Animal manure and waste utilization, treatment, and nuisance avoidance for a sustainable agriculture) shares similar goals to Objective 1 (Develop methods for proper management and recycling of poultry production and processing waste to improve water quality) in the proposed new project, but S-275 does not address any of the issues of Objective 2 (Determine water quality factors that affect poultry performance and market product quality).

The terminated Project NC-183 (Development of New Processes and Technologies for the Processing of Poultry Products) dealt exclusively with poultry, as does the new Project, but was focused on chemical, physical, and microbiological properties of poultry meat products as influenced by new processing techniques and technologies to improve and insure the safety and quality of processed poultry meat products. Two investigators participating on the new Project were formerly in Project NC-183.

The objective of Project NE-127 (Biophysical Models for Poultry Production Systems) are to develop, evaluate, and validate mathematical models appropriate for application to poultry
production based on data generated in response to time-dependent changes of the environment with resulting economic implications. NE-127 utilizes poultry, as does the proposed new Project, however the goals of two projects are dissimilar. One investigator on NE-127 will also be included in the new Project.

Project S-291 (Systems for Controlling Air Pollutant Emissions and Indoor Environments of Poultry, Swine, and Dairy Facilities) includes poultry but the focus is on air pollution. For some potential pollutants, such as nitrogen, there are interrelationships between air and water contamination, but this is not the major focus of the new proposed project.

Projects W-184 (Chemistry and Engineering to Minimize Irrigated Agriculture's Effects on Water Quality), NRSP-3 (The National Atmospheric Deposition Program), and W-82 (Pesticides & Other Toxic Organics in Soil & Their Potential for Ground & Surface Water Contamination) are concerned with ground and surface water contamination. The focus of these Projects do not overlap with the new proposed project.

The new WCC-204, Animal Bioethics project may include the contemporary issue of water quantity and quality (WQ2) for all animals, but the focus and extent would not be a duplication of these proposed research efforts. Two other projects, S-289 (Factors Associated with Genetic and Phenotypic Variation in Poultry: Molecular to Populational), and S-285 (Reproductive Performance of Turkeys) contain little to no potential linkages to the proposed formalized research efforts.

Sera-ieg-17, Minimizing Agricultural Phosphorus Losses for Protection of the Water Resources, focuses on phosphorus sensitive watersheds, the Phosphorus Index, use of BMPs to decrease agricultural phosphorus losses, and the development of soil phosphorus tests and animal manure application strategies. Again, there is little or no conflict with the proposed Water Quality Issues in Poultry Production and Processing project.

The Sera-ieg-24 deals with generic composting issues, but there has been little more than informal interaction. Little or no linkage is foreseen with the Water Quality Issues proposal.

The CRIS search strategy categorized projects as: poultry + water; water; manure; wastewater; NC-183/S-292; NE-127; and, S-275. There was significant overlap in these searches. The attempt was made to not summarize duplicate titles. For the search using the keyword wastewater, six research projects were found to be terminated, four of which could have had application to the proposed project. Two new projects (DAF By-Products as Broiler Feed; and, HACCP Approach to Poultry Processing...) could have some linkage and could be placed within this project at some point. One project was a support center for manure management.

The manure keyword yielded information on three terminated projects and seven new projects. Of the seven, at least four could, or will, come under this project. Using water as the search strategy resulted in reports on nine terminated research efforts and three new research projects. The poultry + water keywords led to four terminated and five new research projects.

The conclusion can be clearly drawn that there are very few linkages between the proposed Water Quality Issues in Poultry Production and Processing Multi-State Research Project, and existing projects. There were no or very few projects discovered in these various search categories that addressed components of the proposed Water Quality Issues project section on Procedures intended to meet our Objectives. The proposed research project is innovative and unique. Given the critical nature of environmental issues dealing with WQ2, the absence of formal research programs to address these issues for the poultry system (with application to other species), and the willingness of many individuals to go to significant effort to submit this application and continue to develop significant cooperative programs, even with no formal recognition, it is very important that approval be provided this group of dedicated professionals.

Objectives

1. Develop Methods for Proper Management and Recycling of Poultry Production and Processing Waste to Improve Water Quality
   
2. Determine Water Quality Factors That Affect Poultry Performance and Market Product Quality
   
3. 
   

Methods

Measurement of Progress and Results

Outputs

• Completion of the objectives as outlined in this research project proposal will not only increase our understanding of the relationship of water quality in poultry production but will bring us the opportunity to apply innovative methods that will ensure the environmentally safe disposal of poultry by-products and will ensure the quality of ground and surface waters. A more complete knowledge in these areas will allow for the development of sustainable agricultural systems that utilize science-based technologies to reduce environmental problems which will enhance management-based systems for the poultry industry. The formation of this interdisciplinary team will allow cooperating members of this research project proposal to recommend the most efficient and economical methods for water quality management in poultry production systems. This water quality program is uniquely situated and information gained from this project will be presented to industry and producer groups around the country by committee members. Members of this research project are located in various regions and have been actively involved in outreach or continuing education programs in the past. Potential also exists to place this information on a variety of internet sites, which would provide interested individuals or groups state of the art information. All forms of technology transfer are expected to be used to effectively reach target audiences

Outcomes or Projected Impacts

Milestones

(0):0

Projected Participation

View Appendix E: Participation

Outreach Plan

Organization/Governance

Regional Technical Committee: The Technical Committee shall consist of the Administrative Advisor (non-voting), CSRS representative (non-voting), a technical representative from each participating SAES appointed by the director, and a technical representative of each cooperating USDA research laboratory named by the appropriate administrator. The responsibility of the Technical Committee shall be to coordinate research activities of the participants and to carry out such other functions as outlined in the Manual for Cooperative Regional Research SEA-CR/OD-1082.

Officers: These shall consist of a Chair, a Secretary, and a Member-at-Large. The Secretary will assume the office of the Chair and the Member-at-Large will assume the office of secretary.

Executive Committee: This subcommittee, consisting of the Chair, Secretary, Member-at-Large, and the Administrative Advisor will act as directed by, and for, the Technical Committee between meetings.

The time and place of the annual meetings will be decided by vote of the members after consultation with the Administrative Advisor or by the Executive Committee when so directed.

Coordination of the educational plan will be through the Chair of the committee. Richard Reynnells, USDA/CSREES liaison will be actively involved in assisting in national coordination and distribution of information. Coordination of an educational action plan will be discussed as part of meetings and conference calls. Personnel will have responsibilities related to their contributions on individual projects and team efforts.

Literature Cited

Attachments

Land Grant Participating States/Institutions

AL, CA, DE, GA, KS, KY, LA, MD, MN, MS, OH, OK, OR, PA, TX, VA

Non Land Grant Participating States/Institutions