Lagoons, whether wastewater, manure, or leachate, are almost always treated by the use of incorporation agents. The product selected may be needed to improve conditions for microbial proliferation, to increase solids decomposition rates, or to utilize excess sulfur or nitrogen being expelled as odorous gas. Usually, because the three problems tend to be part of the same problem, the product incorporated must deal with all three issues.
Methodology of treatment of lagoons varies with circumstance. Lagoons which do not receive daily inflow may be treatable manually, simply by pouring in the correct dosage initially, and by adding corresponding doses as new inflow occurs. Lagoons which do receive daily or regular amounts will install a product reservoir and a metering pump at the source of the inflow, or somewhere along the route to the lagoon.
The initial dosage for an existing lagoon will vary depending on the product selected. Application of this initial dosage is ideally accomplished as follows: A number of locations around the exterior of the lagoon should be selected. The correct portion of the total dose should then be incorporated at each location. For maximum benefit, pumped injection (by flexible pipe) of the product into the solids beneath the lagoon surface is highly recommended. The faster the product reaches its target area, the faster bacteria will be nourished and subsequently proliferate. Increased proliferation will result in faster degradation of the solids and digestion of the material with substantial reductions in the formation of odorous gases.
