In 2003 an experimental model of the dairy waste water cleaning facility was equipped for cleaning the wastewater of the milk collection station. We examined the possibilities to destruct the organic pollutants present in the dairy wastewater in the sand filters of vertical and horizontal filtration. The pollution level of the dairy wastewater is from 2 to 4 times higher than that of the domestic wastewater. The dairy wastewater was cleaned following the procedure: cleaning in the aeration-flocculation system-cesspool-two stage sand-reed filter. The pollution of the wastewater leaving the cleaning facility never exceeded the allowable norms. The average BOD5 was 4 mg O2 LE-1 and the maximal value was 9.6 mg O2 LE-1. The investigation revealed that the horizontal sand-reed filter with the filtration path of 7 meters ensured cleaning of the dairy wastewater up to the allowable norms. The organic pollutants were cleaned with the efficiency of 97.2% after filtration through such a sand layer. In order to find out the possibilities of vertical filtration filters use for cleaning the dairy wastewater leaving the milk collection stations, we performed a modelled investigation. The wastewater cleaning efficiency in respect to BOD5 reaches 99.3% in these filters. The calculation according to the regression equation received showed that filtration through 0.6 m sand layer ensured successful cleaning of the wastewater up to the allowable norms. In such a vertical filtration filter the average BOD5 cleaning level was 20 mg O2 LE-1.

The aim of paper is a comparative analysis of on-farm greenhouse gas emissions across family farm types and farm size classes using FADN data in Lithuania. To achieve this, Lithuanian FADN data of 2014 were used for the analysis. The research draws on a sample of 1304 family farms. The methodology is based on an adaptation of the IPCC guidelines using Lithuanian emission factors from Lithuania’s National Inventory Report and the activity data of family farms derived from Lithuanian FADN. The GHG emissions were analysed per farm (t CO2eq farmE-1) and per hectare (CO2eq haE-1 of UAA). The research found out that the major sources of GHG emissions are related to the use of chemical fertilizers on farms comprising 52.6% of the total emissions from family farms. The performed analysis shows that GHG emissions per farm depended on the farm size and ranged from 63.3 t CO2eq farmE-1 to 479.6 t CO2eq farmE-1, on farm size class less than 30 ha UAA and from 500 ha UAA or over, respectively. The GHG emissions on family farms totalled 184.2 t CO2eq farmE-1 and ranged from 5.8 t CO2eq farm E-1 to 234.6 t CO2eq farmE-1, in the permanent crops farms and in the specialist dairying farms, respectively.

Eutrophication caused by water pollution with nutrients (nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P)) is one of the main environmental problems nowadays. Poor water quality might be caused by many natural and anthropogenic factors. The most common anthropogenic factors are water pollution caused by intensive agriculture (e. g. intensive fertilizer use, high density of livestock) and discharges from municipal waste water treatment plants (WWTP). In this study, nutrient load from WWTP to the River Berze basin in time period from the year 2005 to the year 2015 was described. In total, 23 WWTPs of the study area were analysed using descriptive statistics to calculate average values of nutrient amount and concentrations discharged to River Berze basin. From 2005 to 2015 average N and P load from WWTP to the River Berze basin have been reduced, but concentration of N and P in treated wastewater (WW) have increased. The largest WWTP of the study area – Krigeri (WWTP of city Dobele) is subject to the regulations of treated WW quality set by Republic of Latvia Cabinet Regulation No. 34. The WWTP Krigeri meets the regulations, but overall situation in the study area suggests that strict control of smaller WWTP should be made.

Farming outputs in agriculture depend on the nature of production, i.e. different farming systems generate different outputs. All these outputs are important for the society, and, therefore, require an integrated approach in view of the specific farming characteristics, where market and non-market outputs are taken into account. Therefore, the paper focuses on analysis of farming system outputs and methods of their evaluation. The objectives of this paper are to define the features of different farming systems and their outputs, then, to analyse the methods of evaluation of farming system outputs used in the studies. In order to achieve the research aim, analysis of economic scientific literature has been conducted; characteristics of farming systems and their outputs have been analysed; evaluation methods of the market and non-market farming system outputs, revealing their advantages and disadvantages, have been examined. Methods of systemic and logic analysis have been applied to analysis of the farming system outputs and their evaluation. The analysis has shown that intensive farming systems generate more market goods, while extensive farming systems – more public goods. Price-based methods are mostly used for the evaluation of market outputs of farming systems. Stated preferences methods are the most universal techniques used for the determination of the values from non-market farming system outputs. Hedonic pricing approaches are used for evaluation of specific agricultural public goods related to recreation or leisure and related to the particular groups of users.

Highly polluted wastewater is formed on private farms. The wastewater contains Ntotal and Ptotal concentrations up to 150 mg lE-1 and 30 mg lE-1 respectively, which is 2-3 times higher than that contained in domestic wastewater. During the biological treatment of wastewater the removal of organic pollutants (BOD5- biochemical oxygen demand, and SS - suspended solids) is about 96% and the treatment efficiency satisfies the environment protection standards. However, the removal of biogenic pollutants is only 55%, thus the residual pollution with biogenic substances exceeds the maximum allowable rate according to Ntotal and Ptotal for wastewater released into the environment. Currently, different natural and artificial powdery mineral materials (zeolite, filtralite, etc.) containing metals and carbon compounds are transported into Lithuania. Such materials could be used as Ntotal and Ptotal adsorbing filters. In respect of the filter load with pollutants, biologically pre-treated wastewater treatment efficiency of Ntotal and Ptotal was determined to be from 50 to 91% and from 49 to 90% respectively. Having filtrated to the wastewater through a filter containing 50% of zeolite and 50% of filtralite, Ntotal and Ptotal removal efficiency was fluctuating from 28 to 60% and from 23 to 70% respectively. Having made the investigations with different loads of minerals, it was determined that N removal is more efficient in the zeolite mineral filter, while P removal is more efficient in the filtralite filter. In order to reach the best results of biogenic pollution removal, both mineral mixtures should be used for the load of the filter.

Pollution of surface (rain) wastewater forming in the production territory of a pig-breeding enterprise was investigated in the period 2007–2011. The surface water is collected from the production territory from yards with a hard covering and from roofs, enters the rain sewerage, and is released untreated into the natural environment. The aim of this work is to find out what influence on the environment is exerted by surface wastewater released into the natural environment from the production territory of pig-breeding enterprises. Surface wastewater pollution indices and the research frequency were identified according to the requirement to carry out surface water monitoring: surface wastewater samples are collected three times per year. Because of the uneven rainfall distribution during the year, less surface wastewater runoff occurred during the cold period; however, concentrations of indices were higher compared to the end of the warm period (TSS – 18 %, BOD7 – 39 %, Ntotal – was unchanging, oil products – 12.5 %). Only Ptotal concentrations were higher in the end of the warm period in 14 %. The organic pollution in surface wastewater was increased by total suspended solids. The increased concentrations of TSS and biochemical oxygen demand (BOD7 ) were related to a higher precipitation level. The indices’ TSS, BOD7 , Ntotal, Ptotal and oil products concentrations in the surface wastewater runoff from the pig breeding enterprise‘s production territory complied with the requirements for surface water which is collected from this area and released into the environment.