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Part 1: EEM Development: Ammonia Emissions from Swine BarnsPart 2: EEM Development: Ammonia Emissions from Swine Lagoons
Citation:
Rumsey, I. Part 1: EEM Development: Ammonia Emissions from Swine BarnsPart 2: EEM Development: Ammonia Emissions from Swine Lagoons. EPA/USDA Workshop on NAEMS EEM Development, Durham, North Carolina, May 06, 2020.
Impact/Purpose:
Animal feeding operations (AFOs) are agricultural operations where animals are kept and raised in confined areas. Changes within the animal agriculture industry over recent decades has resulted in fewer but larger AFOs that are also more geographically concentrated. AFOs and the associated waste management practices (e.g. manure handling) emit various pollutants into the atmosphere including ammonia (NH3), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter (PM). Thus, there are concerns regarding these facilities due to the potential impact these compounds can have on human health and the environment. Air emissions from AFOs are not regulated by any AFO specific standards within the Clean Air Act (CAA), but AFOs could emit air pollutants in sufficient quantity to trigger certain general CAA permit requirements. Key to making this determination are reliable methods by which emissions can be estimated from the complex processes at these facilities. As such, the Office of Research and Development (ORD) is working with partners in the Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards (OAQPS) to develop Emissions Estimation Methodologies (EEMs) which can be used to determine farm-scale emissions for the purpose of determining CAA permitting applicability. These EEMs are based on statistical models developed using data from the National Air Emissions Monitoring Study (NAEMS).
Description:
This product is a pair of presentations to be presented to US Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists who will soon be performing peer review of the suite of draft EEMs developed for emissions of NH3, H2S, and PM from swine housing and waste management operations (e.g. barns and lagoons). Having completed a set of draft EEMs for the swine industry, the ORD/OAQPS team is developing a comprehensive report outlining the process and results. The report will include information on activities such as data analysis, establishment of data completeness criteria, determinations of predictor variables, statistical methods, and other decisions made. In the interest of framing the overall effort and facilitating kick-off of the review process, the two organizations will be meeting May 5-6 for a joint workshop organized by OAQPS. OAQPS will be providing a broad overview of the NAEMS program, EEM development, and ultimate use. ORD will then present these materials which provide a detailed walk-through of the process for generating example EEMs (NH3 from swine lagoons and PM from swine houses) which cover many of the most challenging aspects and critical decision points encountered during development. This should provide an opportunity for USDA scientists to become more familiar with the effort and ask questions that will help improve their understanding prior to receiving documents for peer-review. It will also serve as a model for future engagement between the two organizations as USDA will also be participating in review of future EEMs for the poultry and dairy industries.