Toxic Hazards Associated with Poultry Litter Incineration
by Mike Ewall, September 2002
What Goes In, Must Come Out
One of the most basic principles of incineration is that what goes in, must come out. There is no alchemy going on, so if there are toxic heavy metals like lead, mercury or arsenic going in one end, they must come out in the form of toxic ash and toxic air emissions. When another class of contaminants known as halogens enters an incinerator, you have another situation on your hands. These halogens (chlorine being the most prominent) are often released in the form of acid gases (contributing to acid rain and respiratory problems) and also are released in small volumes of extremely toxic chemicals called dioxins and furans (among the most toxic chemicals ever studied).[1]
Naturally, when evaluating incineration, one of the first questions becomes "what is going in to the incinerator?" Incineration of poultry waste bring much needed attention to what is in poultry waste and in the chicken and turkey feed itself.