NITROGEN COMPOUND‘S ALTERNATION IN GROUNDWATER BY FIELDS MANURING IN LARGE LIVESTOCK ENTERPRISES

Abstract

Livestock enterprises are the biggest source of point pollution, whose effect on groundwater quality has not been researched enough, so it is not enough to make sound conclusions about their effect on the groundwater quality. The aim of this research was to determine what effect annually manure fertilised fields of large livestock enterprises have on groundwater quality.
The experiment was carried out in the Middle Lithuanian Lowland in Kėdainiai district. The groundwater quality research was conducted during 2008–2012 in a manure fertilised field of a livestock enterprise.
There were higher N_total and NO₃-N concentrations (2.4 and 2.8 times respectively) determined in the borehole, which was situated in a manure fertilised field. As groundwater level rises in the boreholes, the N_total and NO₃-N concentrations increase: in the manure fertilised field – r=0.46 and r=0.53, and in the sheds territory – r=0.41 and r=0.48, respectively. NH₄-N concentrations in the boreholes have a tendency to fall as the water level rises – r=0.10 and r=0.28 respectively.
Air temperature, rather than the precipitation level and N_min reserves in the soil, had a bigger impact on the increase of NO₃-N and NH₄-N concentrations in the borehole, while the mentioned factors had no effect on N_total and NO₂ - N concentrations. N_total, NO₃-N, NO₂-N and NH₄-N concentrations (r=-0.31) in borehole, installed in the sheds territory had a tendency to increase when air temperature was low.

 Keywords: borehole, concentrations of N_total, NO₃-N, NO₂-N, NH₄-N, groundwater, manure, soil.

Article DOI: http://doi.org/10.15544/RD.2015.055