Development of environmentally superior technologies in the US and policy

“Environmentally superior technology” (EST) represents a research initiative in North Carolina (NC) to develop alternatives to lagoon treatment and land application of swine manure. EST performance standards included impacts of animal waste to surface and groundwater, emission of ammonia and odor, release of disease-transmitting pathogens, and heavy metal contamination of soil and groundwater. Five technologies were shown to meet these standards: a solids separation/nitrification–denitrification/soluble phosphorus removal system; a thermophilic anaerobic digester system; a centralized composting system; a gasification system; and a fluidized bed combustion system. Economic data compiled for all EST showed annualized (10-year) costs of retrofitting existing swine farms with the technologies ranged between $90 and over $400 per 1000 lbs. steady state live-weight. Value-engineering to reduce the costs of targeted EST has been successful. Policy providing institutional incentives to incorporate EST has been enacted as a result of this study.