Pork and Dairy production wastewater contains high levels of organic contamination, both soluble and insoluble residues, and urea. The wastewater has been drained and stored in large foul smelling anaerobic lagoons containing essentially all of the organic solids and the nitrogen compounds resulting from the urine waste. The anaerobic degradation of the solids creates highly undesirable odors and high levels of nitrogen and nitrogen compounds, which, when distributed over cropland, easily over-nitrify the soil.

Every farm that produces animals must have a tank to store excess water resulting from animal excretion, barn flushing and cleaning and rainwater. Current practice is to store the excess water with the animal waste in an open earthen basin tank that becomes an anaerobic lagoon. When the lagoon is full the excess water is pumped to spray fields and disperse through spray nozzles. The foul smelling gases resulting from the anaerobic microbial action on the stored animal waste is liberated. The airborne foul odor drifts along the ground for miles. The local neighbors are very unhappy and have recently become irate, with this current practice.

If more nutrients (nitrogen) are added to the soil than is consumed by the crops grown, the excess nitrogen will either run-off into the river and streams or percolate into the groundwater. Both results are illegal. Regulatory limits have been placed on the distribution of nitrogen and its compounds relative to the consumption of the cultivated crops.
Under current practices, the large dairy and pork production facilities do not have sufficient land to distribute their collected waste in an agronomically and environmentally sound manner. Excess nitrogen must therefore be removed prior to land application.