Particulate matter concentrations and emissions in rabbit farms

Abstract

AbstrAct:The extent of the potential health hazards of particulate matter (PM) inside rabbit farms and the magnitude of emission levels to the outside environment are still unknown, as data on PM concentrations and emissions in and from such buildings are scarce. The purpose of this study was to quantify airborne PM10 and PM2.5 (particulate matter which passes through a size-selective inlet with a 50% efficient cut-off at 10 µm aerodynamic diameter or at 2.5 µm aerodynamic diameter, respectively) concentrations and emissions on 2 rabbit farms in Mediterranean conditions and to identify the main factors related with farm activities influencing PM generation. Concentrations of PM10 and PM2.5 were determined continuously using a tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM) in one farm with fattening rabbits and one reproductive doe farm in autumn. At the same time as PM sampling, the time and type of human farm activity being performed was recorded. Additionally, temperature, relative humidity and ventilation rate were recorded continuously. Emissions were calculated using a mass balance on each farm. Results showed PM concentrations in these rabbit farms were low compared with the average values given for poultry and pig farms. Average PM10 concentrations were 0.08±0.06 (fattening rabbits), and 0.05±0.06 mg/m 3 (reproductive does). Average PM2.5 concentrations were 0.01±0.02 (fattening rabbits), and 0.01±0.04 mg/m 3 (reproductive does). Particulate matter concentrations were significantly influenced by the type of human farm activity conducted in the building rather than by animal activity. The main PM-generating activity in the fattening rabbit farm was sweeping, while the major PM-generating activity in reproductive doe farm was sweeping and burning hair from the cages. Average PM10 emissions were 6.0±6.1 (fattening rabbits), and 14.9±31.5 mg/place d (reproductive does). Average PM2.5 emissions were 0.2±1.3 (fattening rabbits), and 2.8±19.5 mg/place d (reproductive does). Emission results indicate that rabbit farms can be considered relevant point sources of PM emissions, comparable to other livestock species. Our results improve the knowledge on factors affecting concentration and emissions of PM in rabbit farms and can contribute to the design of suitable PM reduction measures to control not only PM inside rabbit houses, but also its emission into the atmosphere.

Particulate matter emission from livestock houses: measurement methods, emission levels and abatement systems

“…In this study, we calculated the volumetric CO 2 production at the house level by the values given by , which are composed of the metabolic CO 2 -production by the animal multiplied by a factor 1.1 for the contributions of manure and litter, provided that the manure is removed frequently (i.e., every three weeks) and the litter is not of the deep-litter type (i.e., <0.5 m). Recent studies in broilers where manure was replaced by fresh bedding material between growth cycles, showed that the contribution of the litter to the total CO 2 -production increased exponentially from negligible levels during the first 4 weeks to values between 8 and 20% at the end of the growth cycle (Calvet et al, 2011;Calvet et al, 2012). In a high-rise cage house, Liang et al (2005) measured the CO 2 -production from manure that had accumulated for 6 months and found that it contributed 5 to 9% to the total CO 2 -production.…”

“…Oscillating Microbalance (TEOM) has been used by research groups in Spain (Adell et al, 2012;, the UK , and the USA S. Li et al, 2011;Ni et al, 2012).…”

Risicomodellering veehouderij en gezondheid (RVG) : modellering van regionale endotoxineconcentraties en relaties met gezondheidseffecten

“…Opfokhennen en hanen van legrassen, <18 wk [2] Emissie PM10 Konijnen In een artikel worden PM10 emissies gerapporteerd van 14,9 mg/dag per dierplaats voor voedsters en 5,99 mg/dag per dierplaats voor vleeskonijnen. 49 Deze waarden zijn equivalent aan respectievelijk (14,9 × 10 -3 × 365 dagen =) 5,4 g/jaar per dierplaats en (5,99 × 10 -3 × 365 dagen =) 2,2 g/jaar per dierplaats.…”

Characterization of Bioaerosols in Controlled Environment Broiler Houses at Different Stages of Growth

“…In fact, culture based methods can underestimate the microbial count by a factor of 10-200 times in comparison to nonculture methods (Chi and Li, 2005). Studies investigating microbial count from livestock buildings have reported the total bacterial and fungal count, specific genera and different species count both by culture and non-culture methods (Agranovski et al, 2007;Vucemilo et al, 2008;Oppliger et al, 2008;Rinsoz et al, 2008;Adell et al, 2012;De Roy et al, 2012;Liang et al, 2013;Muller and Nebe-von-Caron, 2010;Nonnenmann et al, 2010;Rubbens et al, 2017). A range of bacterial and fungal counts are reported in different studies in poultry houses and other livestock units (Agranovski et al, 2007;Vucemilo et al, 2008;Oppliger et al, 2008;Lonc and Plew, 2011), suggesting spatiotemporal and seasonal variability in emission from poultry houses (Wojcik et al, 2010).…”