Simulated rainfall was used to evaluate the effectiveness of vegetative filter strips (VFS) of varying lengths (0, 3, 6, 9, 15, and 21 m) in reducing sediment and nutrient losses from plots treated with liquid swine manure at 200 kg N/ha. Mass transport of ammonia nitrogen (NH3-N), total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), ortho-phosphorous (PO4-P), total phosphorous (TP), and total suspended solids (TSS) was reduced significantly (p < 0.05) by fescue VFS. The 3 and 21 m VFS removed 65 and 87% of incoming TKN, 71 and 99% of incoming NH3-N, 65 and 94% of incoming PO4-P, and 67 and 92% of the incoming TP, respectively. Effectiveness of VFS, however, did not increase significantly beyond 3 m for TSS and chemical oxygen demand and averaged 61 and 50%, respectively. Mass transport of TKN, NH3-N, PO4-P, and TP was minimized at the 9 m VFS length. The VFS did not significantly reduce nitrate nitrogen and fecal coliform from the incoming runoff. First-order kinetics described the removal of manure constituents.
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