Characterization of Effluents From a Dairy Farm

Abstract

This work shows the characterization of the effluent generated by a dairy farm from the southeast area of the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Flow, chemical oxygen demand (COD), total solids (TS) and settleable solids (SS) were measured during one year of monitoring. Four distinct stages were observed that coincide with the operational processes of daily milkings. On average, the effluent per milking was of approximately 7000 L and the TS and SS values were 116 ml/L and 572 mg/L, respectively. COD values were clearly different in the four stages, with an overall average of 3413 mg O2/L. The purpose of the paper was to conduct a detailed characterization in a dairy farm that is representative of the area.