The available nitrogen released from cattle manure,
which is the most commonly used type of manure in Hokkaido, increases cumulatively with continuous application.
Therefore, a guideline annual upper limit for the application
of cattle manure is indicated and for upland fields is
30 Mg ha
−1 (about 150 kg N ha
−1 as total nitrogen). This
limit was determined in view of both changes in the nitrate
nitrogen concentration in soil solution and the yield or
quality of crops under cattle manure application. From the
same point of view, the annual upper limit of cattle manure
application for open cultivation vegetable fields is 25 Mg
ha
−1 for crops with one cultivation per year such as onion
and 50 Mg ha
−1 for crops with two cultivations per year.
During the combined use of manure and chemical fertilizer,
it is important to reduce the amount of chemical fertilizer by
the correct amount by considering the nitrogen derived from
the manure; the amount of chemical nitrogen that can be
reduced per 1 Mg of applied manure is estimated to be 1 kg
in the case of less than 4 years of continuous application,
2 kg for 5–10 years, and 3 kg for over 10 years.
(3) Grassland
(1) Air
Air pollution caused by dairy farming includes the generation of unpleasant odors and greenhouse gases. The former
mostly occurs in the spring and autumn, which are the primary times for the application of dairy cow manure and
liquid manure (slurry). One countermeasure to this problem
is an improved method of slurry application. The amount of
ammonia volatilized from slurry that is shallowly injected
into grassland is less than the amount that is dispersed in the
customary farming method of using an impact plate. However, the working efficiency of the shallow injection method
is inferior to that of the customary method, and as such it is
not widely adopted.
Regarding the issue of the release of greenhouse gases
from dairy farming, there is an increase in nitrous oxide
emissions when manure is applied to the surface of grassland
together with chemical fertilizers, compared with fertilization using chemical fertilizers alone. However, carbon
derived from the manure accumulates in the grassland,
which is considered to suppress the greenhouse effect of the
nitrous oxide emissions.
(2) Water
The main causes of water pollution generated from grasslands in dairy farming regions are the improper management
and use of cow manure. Representative examples of the
former are the creation of outdoor manure piles and the
storage of slurries in simple pit lagoons, while representative
examples of the latter are the excess application of manure
and the application of manure during the winter.
In Hokkaido, a research project for promoting the
appropriate management and use of livestock manure began
in 1994, and its results were summarized in the “Handbook
on the Treatment and Use of Livestock Manure, 2004.” The
project proposed the “manure-focused fertilization method”
for grassland, which involves the evaluation of fertilizer
nutrient contents supplied by dairy manure, as detailed in
Sect. 5.5.3. As a result of attempts for the local introduction
of the manure-focused fertilization method, the Konsen
Agricultural Experiment Station and the Northern Kushiro
Agricultural Extension Center, in Hokkaido, succeeded in
improving fertilization, for example by greatly reducing
phosphate concentrations, which had markedly accumulated
in the soil in the target area. Additionally, promoting the
introduction of this method demanded the establishment of a
farm support system to enable the implementation of
manure-focused fertilization.
In 2009, Matsunaka et al. (2009) developed the
AMAFE2006 software program (Decision Support System
for Application of Manure and Fertilizer to Grassland and
Forage Corn Field based on Nutrient Recycling) to support
the “manure-focused fertilization method.”
Furthermore, the maximum amount of processed dairy
cow manure that could be applied for grassland renovation
was studied from the perspective of water pollution caused
by the leaching of nitrogen and maintaining the botanical
composition of grassland with mixed seeding. An upper
limit of 60–50 Mg ha
−1 was proposed for the application of
manure in mineral soils and volcanic ash soils, respectively.
For dairy slurries, the limit was a value equivalent to
40 kg N ha
−1 of the fertilizer nitrogen conversion amount
for the second year of renewal.
(3) Heavy metals
Analysis of the necessity for the application of zinc and
copper in fields maintained on volcanic ash soils revealed no
decrease in grass yield if these heavy metals were not supplemented, and a soil concentration level at which the yield
was reduced could not be found (Saigusa et al. 1997, 1999).
Additionally, it was concluded that, as measures to increase
the content of these heavy metals in grass considering the
needs of cattle, rather than applying fertilizer, it is preferable
to increase the fraction of forage legumes, to harvest earlier
and to apply dairy manure. This is because most of the
applied heavy metals accumulate in the surface of grassland,
and therefore, damage from the excess accumulation of these
metals resulting from the continuous application of dairy
manure cannot be ruled out.
5 Hokkaido Region
167
which is the most commonly used type of manure in Hokkaido, increases cumulatively with continuous application.
Therefore, a guideline annual upper limit for the application
of cattle manure is indicated and for upland fields is
30 Mg ha
−1 (about 150 kg N ha
−1 as total nitrogen). This
limit was determined in view of both changes in the nitrate
nitrogen concentration in soil solution and the yield or
quality of crops under cattle manure application. From the
same point of view, the annual upper limit of cattle manure
application for open cultivation vegetable fields is 25 Mg
ha
−1 for crops with one cultivation per year such as onion
and 50 Mg ha
−1 for crops with two cultivations per year.
During the combined use of manure and chemical fertilizer,
it is important to reduce the amount of chemical fertilizer by
the correct amount by considering the nitrogen derived from
the manure; the amount of chemical nitrogen that can be
reduced per 1 Mg of applied manure is estimated to be 1 kg
in the case of less than 4 years of continuous application,
2 kg for 5–10 years, and 3 kg for over 10 years.
(3) Grassland
(1) Air
Air pollution caused by dairy farming includes the generation of unpleasant odors and greenhouse gases. The former
mostly occurs in the spring and autumn, which are the primary times for the application of dairy cow manure and
liquid manure (slurry). One countermeasure to this problem
is an improved method of slurry application. The amount of
ammonia volatilized from slurry that is shallowly injected
into grassland is less than the amount that is dispersed in the
customary farming method of using an impact plate. However, the working efficiency of the shallow injection method
is inferior to that of the customary method, and as such it is
not widely adopted.
Regarding the issue of the release of greenhouse gases
from dairy farming, there is an increase in nitrous oxide
emissions when manure is applied to the surface of grassland
together with chemical fertilizers, compared with fertilization using chemical fertilizers alone. However, carbon
derived from the manure accumulates in the grassland,
which is considered to suppress the greenhouse effect of the
nitrous oxide emissions.
(2) Water
The main causes of water pollution generated from grasslands in dairy farming regions are the improper management
and use of cow manure. Representative examples of the
former are the creation of outdoor manure piles and the
storage of slurries in simple pit lagoons, while representative
examples of the latter are the excess application of manure
and the application of manure during the winter.
In Hokkaido, a research project for promoting the
appropriate management and use of livestock manure began
in 1994, and its results were summarized in the “Handbook
on the Treatment and Use of Livestock Manure, 2004.” The
project proposed the “manure-focused fertilization method”
for grassland, which involves the evaluation of fertilizer
nutrient contents supplied by dairy manure, as detailed in
Sect. 5.5.3. As a result of attempts for the local introduction
of the manure-focused fertilization method, the Konsen
Agricultural Experiment Station and the Northern Kushiro
Agricultural Extension Center, in Hokkaido, succeeded in
improving fertilization, for example by greatly reducing
phosphate concentrations, which had markedly accumulated
in the soil in the target area. Additionally, promoting the
introduction of this method demanded the establishment of a
farm support system to enable the implementation of
manure-focused fertilization.
In 2009, Matsunaka et al. (2009) developed the
AMAFE2006 software program (Decision Support System
for Application of Manure and Fertilizer to Grassland and
Forage Corn Field based on Nutrient Recycling) to support
the “manure-focused fertilization method.”
Furthermore, the maximum amount of processed dairy
cow manure that could be applied for grassland renovation
was studied from the perspective of water pollution caused
by the leaching of nitrogen and maintaining the botanical
composition of grassland with mixed seeding. An upper
limit of 60–50 Mg ha
−1 was proposed for the application of
manure in mineral soils and volcanic ash soils, respectively.
For dairy slurries, the limit was a value equivalent to
40 kg N ha
−1 of the fertilizer nitrogen conversion amount
for the second year of renewal.
(3) Heavy metals
Analysis of the necessity for the application of zinc and
copper in fields maintained on volcanic ash soils revealed no
decrease in grass yield if these heavy metals were not supplemented, and a soil concentration level at which the yield
was reduced could not be found (Saigusa et al. 1997, 1999).
Additionally, it was concluded that, as measures to increase
the content of these heavy metals in grass considering the
needs of cattle, rather than applying fertilizer, it is preferable
to increase the fraction of forage legumes, to harvest earlier
and to apply dairy manure. This is because most of the
applied heavy metals accumulate in the surface of grassland,
and therefore, damage from the excess accumulation of these
metals resulting from the continuous application of dairy
manure cannot be ruled out.
5 Hokkaido Region
167