Effect of Grass Buffer Zone Length in Reducing the Pollution from Land Application Areas

ABSTRACT Afield study was conducted to determine the effect of length of grass buffer zones in reducing pollutant concentration in rainfall runoff from land application areas. Evaluation of pollutant concentrations in runoff at various distances downslope from an area where caged-layer poultry manure was applied regularly indicated that for the conditions of this experiment a buffer area length to waste area length ratio of 1.0 was usually re-quired to reduce concentrations to those measured in runoff from a similar plot receiving no manure. Less buf-fer area would be needed if concentrations greater than background conditions were acceptable.