. Earth Science News .
Oil Mist Reduces Airborne Hazards In Concentrated Swine Feeding Operation

The study found ten-fold reductions in the amounts of dust and bacteria in a barn where the spray was used compared with an identical barn where no spray was used.

Baltimore MD (SPX) Nov 28, 2005
A specially developed oil mixture reduced airborne levels of particulate matter at a concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) in a study conducted by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

The researchers evaluated an oil spray developed to reduce the airborne health hazards at industrial feeding facilities. Chronic respiratory illnesses are a serious concern for CAFO workers, as well as for the surrounding communities and animals themselves. The study, published in the current online edition of Environmental, Science and Technology, measured indoor air pollution in a mid-Atlantic swine facility.

It found ten-fold reductions in the amounts of dust and bacteria in a barn where the spray was used compared with an identical barn where no spray was used. In contrast, however, the oil spray did not impact levels of ammonia, another pollutant generated from CAFO facilities.

"From the perspective of worker and community health, this is a step in the right direction," said Ana Rule, the study's lead author and a doctoral candidate at the Bloomberg School's Department of Environmental Health Sciences. "This technology addresses only a portion of the hazards workers and communities face from concentrated animal feeding facilities."

Rule explained there is growing interest in technologies that improve indoor air quality and control emissions to reduce the public health and environmental risks associated with raising large numbers of animals in confined spaces. In addition to particulate matter and ammonia, recent studies have shown that concentrated feeding operations also produce antibiotic-resistant pathogens.

The oil spray technology provides animal producers with a tool to reduce some air pollution hazards to workers and neighbors, and help them comply with local, state and federal air pollution regulations. Although substantial improvement in barn air quality was achieved in the Hopkins study, questions remain as to whether it is enough to protect public health.

"We need to continue our collaboration with the private developers of these products to not only improve their efficacy, but to also demonstrate their utility in other agricultural operations, including poultry and dairy," said the study's senior author Timothy J. Buckley, PhD, a former associate professor at the Bloomberg School who now chairs the Division of Environmental Health Sciences at the Ohio State University School of Public Health. "These results are encouraging, but much work remains to be done."

Rule, A. Chapin, S.A. McCarthy, K.E. Gibson, K.J. Schwab and T.J. Buckley, co-authored the study, "Assessment of an Aerosol Treatment To Improve Air Quality in a Swine Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO)."

The study was supported by the NIOSH Education and Research Center for Occupational Safety and Health and theCenter for a Livable Future, both at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Related Links
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
SpaceDaily
Search SpaceDaily
Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express

Swiss Approve Five-Year Ban On GM In Farming
Geneva (AFP) Nov 27, 2005
A clear majority of Swiss voters defied their government in a referendum on Sunday by approving a blanket five-year ban on the use of genetically modified organisms in farming.







  • Tips For Building Hurricane-Proof Houses
  • Iran Villagers Shelter In Tents After Killer Quake
  • Winter Snows Hamper Kashmir Quake Relief
  • New Tactical Wireless Emergency Broadband Network Introduced

  • ESA Participating In UN's Montreal Summit Working For A Better Atmosphere
  • Global Warming Equals Weapons Of Mass Destruction
  • Climate Talks Begin Amid Warnings From Scientists, Greens
  • STARDEX Team Narrow Down Impact Of Global Warming On Specific Regions

  • Earth From Space: Aircraft Contrails Over The United States
  • Envisat Monitors China's Largest Lake, Rivers Flooding
  • Illegal EU Timber Imports Fuel Forest Disappearance, Poverty In Poorer Countries
  • World's Forests Being Flushed Down The Toilet

  • Canadian Technology To Reduce Emissions Around The World
  • Russia Gives Green Light To Siberia-Pacific Pipeline
  • Airline, Auto Sectors Ripe For Carbon Market: IEA
  • Britain Facing 'Energy Timebomb': Report

  • New Romanian Flu Outbreak Beyond Danube Delta
  • Bird Flu Vaccine Won't Precede Pandemic
  • Poultry Flu Vaccines Need Independent Control: FAO
  • Bad News In British Columbia; Hope In Vietnam For Bird Flu

  • Students Create First-Ever Bacterial Photographs
  • Shakeup Of Reptile Family Tree Reveals Surprising Genetic Relationships
  • Switzerland Fails To Lower Protected Status Of Wolf
  • Silenced Gene In Flatworm Shows Role In Regeneration

  • China Apologizes To Russia Over Toxic Benzene Spill
  • Harbin Residents Get Water Back After Toxic Spill
  • 70% Of Rivers, Lakes Polluted In China
  • Major River Pollution Confirmed In NE China

  • Imaging Technique Visualizes Effects Of Stress On Human Brain
  • New Study Posits Evolutionary Origins Of Two Distinct Types Of Laughter
  • One, Two, Threes not A, B, Cs
  • California Scientists Double Volume Of Data In NIH Biotech Repository

  • The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement