Gypsum Bedding Risks and Recommendations for Dairy Producers
Channel: Livestock & Poultry Environ. Learning Community
Date: 2013-04-24

For more: http://www.extension.org/67660 Gypsum products created from construction industry waste streams provide low-input cost bedding. Some dairies report decreased somatic cell counts in milk with its use.

Recently, several incidents involving human and livestock death or injury have highlighted the possible creation of dangerous gases at farms using gypsum bedding. Human lives were lost at two separate events. In a third incident, a 2-year old and 4-year old were found unconscious adjacent to a manure storage where gypsum was present. In the European Union (EU) several agencies have forbade the use of gypsum as bedding based on losses of livestock as well as previous policies that restricted gypsum from landfill disposal.

Gypsum is a common term for hydrated calcium sulfate (CaSO4¬-2H2O). It is suspected that under the right manure storage conditions anaerobic bacteria convert the sulfur (S) in gypsum to hydrogen sulfide (H2S), a gas that can be deadly. Movement such as agitation of manure can lead to large H2S fluxes and localized dangerous levels of the gas.

While this is concerning, there remain many farms that utilize gypsum without incident. Data on this subject are lacking.

The goal of this symposium presentation is to update attendees on this 'current event' in manure management.