Achieving good waterquality status in intensiveanimal production areas

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LIFE+ AQUA project

2nd EOG meeting

20th – 21st NovemberMilan

THE LIFE+

AQUA projectCRPA spa - Reggio Emilia

Marco Ligabue

Achieving good water QUality status in intensive Animal

production areas

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LIFE+ AQUA: facts & figures

• LIFE+ Environment PROJECT

• October 2010 – March 2014 (42 months)

• BUDGET: € 2.600.000

• Beneficiary: CRPA S.p.A

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THE LIFE+ AQUA project

AQUA intends to demonstrate how it is possible to reduce water pollution from nutrients at river basin level scale by optimising the use of nitrogen and phosphorus in livestock farms.

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LIFE+ AQUA: Objectives• To reduce nitrogen in manure by increasing the N

efficiency in livestock intake.

• To improve the fertilisation efficiency by maximising the efficiency of nutrients use (N-P) (slurry application techniches – crop management)

• To reduce the pressure and impact in agricultural catchments with intensive livestock rearing by manure fraction separation and transfer of the solid fraction outside NVZ.

• To reduce N and P losses through the application of good agro-environmental practices.

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Who is the project address to?

• Farmers from the Northen regions of Italy

• Stakeholders,

• Decision makers

• Public authorities

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Why Northen Italy?

• In this part of Italy more than 70% of the livestock is reared:– 68% of dairy cattle,– 61% of other cattle, – 85% of pigs,– 80% of poultry.

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THE TEAM

• C.R.P.A S.p.A

• CRA

• ERSA

• ERSAF

• Fondazione CRPA

• IPLA

• Veneto Agricoltura

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FUNDINGS

• European Commission• Piedmont Region• Lombardy Region• Veneto Region• Emilia-Romagna Region• HerAmbiente srl• Enìa spa (IREN)• AGCO Italia

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ACTIONS

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The demonstrative Farms

Biagi Romeo - MN

Pinotti L. e A. - CR

Cagnin G. e L. - PD

Sgambaro M. - PD

Bolzon E. e figli - UD

Mori Carlo - RE

Zambelli F.lli - RE

Sevega B. e D. - CN

Mana Stefano - CN

Diana - TV

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The demonstrative Farms

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The project organization chart

CRPA

Fondazione CRPA

CRA

IPLA

ERSA

Veneto Agricoltura

ERSAF

A.2: Cropping management

A.10: Monitoring and evaluation

A.12: After Life Communication Plan

A.6: Economic & environmental evaluation

A.9: Project Management

A.11: Audit

A. 8: Dissemination & dimonstration

A. 1: Reduction of N excreted

A. 4: Transfer of solid fractions

A.3: Environmental measures

A. 7: Networking and transferability

A. 5: Traceability and Certification

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Action 1Reduction of N excreted

• Reduction of N excreted through the application of low N diets in pigs and high N efficiency diets for dairy and beef cattle

• 10 demonstrative farms:

4 dairy cattle farms

3 pig farms

2 (+1) beef cattle farms

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Action 2Cropping management

• Adoption of management and agronomical techniques to reduce N leaching to water and to the atmosphere.

– Application of the best available techniques to distribute slurries: fertirrigation, use of trailing shoes or band spreading on meadows, microirrigation

– Crop rotations characterised by high N uptake, long cropping seasons, ecc.

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Action 3 Environmental measures

• To demonstrate the efficacy of buffer strips and wetlands to reduce nutrient losses to water.

• The effects of water deriving from soils fertilised with 170 kg N/ha/year and 250 kgN/ha/year (as requested by the Italian Derogation) will be compared in the demonstration sites

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Action 4Transfer of solid fractions

• Manure management through a consortium which separates the solid fraction.

• Manure solid fraction transfer to farms with lack of organic matter in soils

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Action 5Traceability and Certification

• To apply good traceability practices to the nutrient’s management producing evidence of:– the use of low protein diets (A1)– the transfer of manure solid fractions to

zones with high need of organic matter (A4).

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Action 6 Economic & environmental evaluation

• Economic and environmental evaluation of action from 1 to 3– Economic assessment by mean of balance sheet of

demonstrative farms + nearby farms

– LCA methodology will be applied to evaluate the environmental impact in the nine demonstrative farms before and after applying the new managements techniques (A1-A2).

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Action 7 Networking and transferability

Country Institute/Centre Contact

The Netherlands

Plant Research International Frans Aarts

UK Rothamsted Research Roland Bol

Italy Ministero dell'ambiente e della tutela del territorio e del mare

Liliana Cortellini

Germany KTLB Helmut Dohler

Spain IRTA Francesc Domingo

Greece Dimitris Perrotis College, American Farm School Athanasios Gertsis

France Institut de l’Elevage Andrè Legall

Italy Po river basin Authority Fernanda Moroni

Italy Ministero delle politiche agricole alimentari e forestali Daniela Quarato

EC European Commission – DG Environment Luisa Samarelli

UK ADAS John Williams

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Azione 8Dissemination & demonstration

•Information actions

•Direct actions: 12 demonstrative actions, 6 courses, 10 information days in schools, Seminars, Conferences

•Indirect actions: website, leaflet, technical articles, electronic newsletter, film, Layman report

Achieving good waterquality status in intensiveanimal production areas

LIF

E09

EN

V/IT

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8 -

AQ

UA

LIFE+ AQUA project

2nd EOG meeting

20th – 21st NovemberMilan

Marco Ligabue, CRPA spa - Reggio Emilia

aqua.crpa.it

aqua@crpa.it