Canada at the Forefront of Agricultural Aerosol Research

STÉPHANE GODBOUT, Caroline Duchaine, Shelley Kirychuk, James Dosman, Patrick Brassard, Valérie Létourneau, Nathalie Turgeon, Araceli Dalila Larios Martínez, Bernardo Predicala, Lifeng Zhang, Matthieu Girard, Research and Development Institute for the Agri-environment

     Abstract Number: 187
     Working Group: Bioaerosols in Agriculture: Sources, Risks and Mitigation

Abstract
Aerosols are ubiquitous in agriculture, especially in livestock operations and can affect the health of workers, animals, and surrounding rural communities. Inside buildings, workers may develop infections and non-infectious respiratory diseases (e.g., lung function reduction, asthma, chronic bronchitis, hypersensitivity pneumonitis). The spread of airborne transmissible animal diseases through aerosols can also have devastating economic impacts on the industry. Once emitted into the environment, these contaminants can also affect rural populations. Furthermore, the widespread use of antibiotics in livestock operations, in therapeutic and subtherapeutic doses, is associated with the selection and multiplication of antibiotic-resistant pathogens, further exacerbating the issue.

Studying aerosols and addressing the health risks is particularly challenging in agriculture due, among other factors, to the relatively low concentrations, the diversity of microorganisms and the scale of potential sources. A national initiative has been put in place in Canada by the Canadian Centre for Rural and Agricultural Health (CCRAH) at the University of Saskatchewan to better understand aerosols in agriculture and accelerate the implementation of mitigation strategies. This multi-million-dollar initiative was financed by the Government of Canada and includes over a dozen researchers from 7 different research institutions (see list below). The project is managed by Agrivita Canada Inc., a not-for-profit company established in 2007, that stimulates, supports, and leads applied safety and health research and development aimed at sustainability and productivity in Canadian agriculture.

A 5-year project recently concluded that produced a wealth of knowledge. For example, emissions of dust and bioaerosols following manure spreading were extensively analysed, both in a full-scale wind tunnel and in the field. The impact of new efforts to improve animal welfare on the health and safety of workers was also investigated for poultry, dairy and swine operations. Air quality reference values were determined for both conventional systems and next-generation buildings integrating animal welfare considerations.