There are several techniques that animal feeding operation owners and managers can use to manage odors and gas emissions. Each technique has different costs and benefits. The Feedlot Air Emissions Treatment Cost Calculator is a tool that can be used to compare alternative technologies and designs with different costs and benefits. The calculator has information on biofilters, covers, scrubbers, manure belts, vegetative buffer and anaerobic digesters.
This spreadsheet tool is intended to assist the operator of a livestock or poultry operation to calculate the costs and benefits of installing technologies to treat odors and gases that could be emitted from the facility.
Download the Air Emissions Treatment Cost Calculator
The tool requires Excel 2007 or later versions. Download the spreadsheet. Note: This is a spreadsheet with active macros. Depending on your security settings, you may have to tell your spreadsheet program that it is OK to open it. The four videos below provide instructions on how to use the decision tool.
Instructional Videos for the Air Emissions Treatment Cost Calculator
Four videos below describe the cost calculator and how to use it.
Introduction
Biofilters and Covers
Scrubbers, Manure Belts, Buffers, Digesters
Benefits and Summary
Acknowledgements
Additional materials in this series (videos):
- Air Quality Resources for Policy Makers
- Health Impacts of Air Emissions from Animal Feeding Operations
- Managing Odors and Neighbor Relations and Estimating Setbacks
- Manure Covers and Biofilters for Managing Odors and Air Emissions
The Feedlot Air Emissions Treatment Cost Calculator was developed by Dr. Bill Lazarus (wlazraus@umn.edu) in the Applied Economics Department at the University of Minnesota for a multistate USDA funded research and Extension project. The calculator was suggested by stakeholders that included producers and managers of swine, poultry and dairy producing operations, equipment manufacturers and suppliers, human medicine, veterinary medicine, local and state regulators, local and county elected officials, Extension and NRCS.
Supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under Agreement No. 2010-85112-20520. If you have any questions about the project, contact Dr. Kevin Janni, University of Minnesota, kjanni@umn.edu