Monday, 20 June 2005 - 3:00 PM
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This presentation is part of 6: Soils--SOC, Production, and Environmental

Trends in Trace Metals in an Ultisol Impacted by Long-Term Applied Broiler Litter.

Irenus A. Tazisong1, Zachary Senwo2, and Robert Taylor2. (1) Alabama A&M University, Plant & Soil Science, P.O. Box 1208, 4900 Meridian St, Normal, AL 35762, (2) Alabama A&M Univ., Po Box 552, Normal, AL 35762-0552

Alabama is third in the USA in broiler chicken (Gallus gallus) production. For each kg of broiler produced, approximately 1 kg of litter is generated. To prevent diseases, improve weight gain, increase egg production, and feed conversion, poultry feeds are enhanced with such metals as Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, Mo, Se, Ca, Mg, etc. The growth in Alabama poultry industries is confined to a small area and the huge amounts of wastes generated are used for pasture growth in the Sand Mountain region. Soils of this region are sloping, permeable, and constitute a system with a high potential for nutrients escape to ground and surface water. Broiler litter from various sources has been applied to these soils for periods ranging from 0 to 20 years. Long-term applied broiler litter to soils may negate any short-term benefits because of the detrimental effects of the accumulated metals in high concentrations. The objectives of this study were: (1) to assess the trends and distributions of trace metals accumulated in an Alabama Ultisol impacted by long-term applied broiler litter, (2) to assess the degrees of the enriched trace metals in this soil.

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