Land, water and air pollution by industrial livestock production
Waste Management of
Intensive Livestock Production (China, Mexico, Thailand and
Viet Nam)
Background
Worldwide there is a continuing rapid expansion of
intensive livestock production. This expansion is fuelled by increasing
demand for livestock products, driven by population growth (mostly in
the urban areas), economic development, and changing food preferences.
Many countries are meeting this demand through expansion of intensive
livestock production units that enable them to take advantage of economies
of scale. These intensive production units tend to be located near the
urban demand where they benefit from relatively good infrastructure, services
and energy supply, and lack of environmental regulations or their enforcement.
Most of the feed inputs into production are produced elsewhere and transported
to production facilities. Meanwhile the unused by-products are disposed
of in the cheapest manner possible, often resulting in water and air pollution.
The main objective of AWI is to link those specialised activities on a
regional scale to limit their environmental impacts and enhance social
benefits. This through re-establishing links between these activities,
such as nutrients fluxes (i.e. manure recycling, feed), economics (i.e.
contracts, labor use), and environment protection (i.e. share of surface
water use). To reach this objective, AWI proposes to develops technologies
(i.e. water management on farm, manure recycling), but moreover policy
instruments (i.e. removal of subsidies on imported concentrates, zoning,
establishment of environmental standards).
Four projects are currently implemented or proposed within the framework
of AWI:
- Thailand, Region 2, South East of Bangkok, 35 000 square kilometres.
- China, Jiangsu Province, North of Shanghai, 100,000 square kilometres.
- Mexico, States of Guanajuato, Michoacan and Jalisco North West of Mexico City, 9,000 square kilometres.
- Vietnam, Ho Chi Min City, Binh Duong province, Dong Nai province, Long An province, 15,200 square kilometres.
Resources
Concept, definition, rationale
of AWI
Country Projects Thailand
and China
Country Projects Mexico
and Vietnam
Nutrient Balance Calculation Program
The Nutrient Balance calculation program developed for the AWI project
is an Excel-based tool to calculate the nutrient fluxes and balance for
a farm or a region. Based on data on the livestock production and manure
management technique (feeding, housing and manure storage systems etc.;
especially pigs and poultry), the program calculates the nutrient excretion
of the livestock as well as the amount and composition of different types
of manure before and after storage and compares the nutrients and heavy
metal content in manure with the nutrient demand and uptake of crop production.
For routine and regional applications the model can be run with default
values for standard conditions (only livestock numbers and crop surfaces
must be entered) established by national or regional experts. For specific
calculations all the relevant parameters can be adjusted to the specific
conditions.
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Waste Management of Intensive Livestock Production (China, Mexico,
Thailand and Viet Nam)| See also | |
| Programme addressing livestock’s role in dryland
management, click here... Programme addressing livestock’s role in the deforestation process, click here... |
Downloads
| Country | Key references and background material |
Formats |
| Proceedings of the Regional Workshop on Area-Wide Integration of Crop-Livestock Activities, 18-20 June, 1998, FAO Regional Office, Bangkok Thailand. |  |
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| Eastern Thailand | Area-Wide Integration of Specialised Livestock and Crop Production in Eastern Thailand. Paper presented at the 9th meeting of the Network on Recycling of Agricultural, Municipal and Industrial Residues in Agriculture, RAMIRAN, 6 - 9 September 2000, Italy. | 
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| Environmental Impact Assessment and Land-planning to Develop Sustainable Industrial Livestock Systems in Eastern Thailand. |
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| Assessment Of Nutrient Management And Environmental Impacts In Eastern Thailand. |
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| China (Jiangsu Province) | Area-Wide Integration Of Specialised Livestock And Crop Production In Jiangsu Province, China. Paper presented at the 9th meeting of the Network on Recycling of Agricultural, Municipal and Industrial Residues in Agriculture, RAMIRAN, 6 - 9 September 2000, Italy. |
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| Elements Of Spatial Analysis Related To The Area Wide Integration Project In Jiangsu Province, China. |
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| Assessment Of Nutrient Management And Environmental Impacts In Jiangsu Province, China |
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| Analyses of Sector Policies With Relevance Intensive Livestock Production In Jiangsu Province, China |
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| Proposal for Environmental Policy Options For Intensive Livestock Farms In Jiangsu Province, China |
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