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Uses of Agri By-Product in Inhibiting Ammonia and Methane from Cattle Slurry During Storage

Mohd Saufi B.*, Azizi A. A., Mohd Ghazali R., Syarol Nizam A. B., Nur Alyani S., Mohd Alif Omar M., Syuhaidah A. B., Rashidah A. M.

Climate Change Programme, Agrobiodiversity and Environmental Research Centre, Malaysian Agricultural Research & Development Institute (MARDI), MARDI Headquarters, Persiaran MARDI-UPM, 43400 Serdang, Selangor.

Malaysian J. Anim. Sci. 2023 26(1): 01-10

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Liquid manures storages produce significant amounts of ammonia (NH3) and methane (CH4) gas from biological anaerobic fermentation. Small-scale observation studies using 3 kg of slurry for each treatment were carried out to investigate a simple approach to mitigate NH3 and CH4emissions during slurry storage. There were five treatments using agriculture by-products. The agriculture by-products from rice husk, rice straw, cocopeat and wood chips were placed on top of cattle slurry filled inside a small container as physical cover to reduce NH3 volatilization and CH4 emission. During the forty-five days of the undisturbed storage period, an immediate reduction of CH4 and NH3 gas fluxes were observed after the application (day 1). The cumulative NH3 releases were lowered between 28.6% and 66.7% as compared to untreated (Ctrl) after 30 days of observations, and CH4 was inhibited by 4 to 33% after 45 days of storage. Ricestraw was found to be the best as a physical cover in inhibiting both gases (NH3 and CH4) with cumulative inhibition percentages of 31 and 33%, respectively. These preliminary findings provide insight into future manure management systems applicable as one of the greenhouse gas mitigation strategies.