26 / 40
Pork News & Views
Ministry of Agriculture,
Food and Rural Affairs
26
Pork News &Views
February 2017
for swine and people. Some of these
symptoms are listed below and vary
with severity and length of exposure.
At low concentrations H
2
S has a char-
acteristic rotten egg smell, but at higher
concentrations it paralyzes the sense of
smell and causes death in livestock and
people.
Impact of H
2
S on Swine:
• Distress,
• Eye Irritation, and
• Cyanosis.
Impact of H
2
S on People:
• Fatigue,
• Headaches, and
• Dizziness.
If you or a worker experiences any of
these symptoms after exposure to H
2
S,
exit the area and seek medical attention.
Exposure Limits for Hydrogen
Sulphide
Ontario’s occupational health and safety
regulations have exposure level limits
for H
2
S. The time weighted average for
8 hour exposure, 40 hours per week
must not exceed 10 ppm. Short-term
exposure limit for 15 minute exposure
must not exceed 15 ppm. Immediate
danger for life and health must not
exceed 100 ppm.
Personal H
2
S monitors are highly
recommended for use when washing
and pulling pits. These monitors act as
a warning device. If the alarm sounds
proceed to a safe area immediately.
Management
Appropriate manure pit management
can assist in reducing the risk of H
2
S in
your swine operation. Standard operat-
ing procedures and emergency plans for
manure handling need to be created for
the facility to ensure everyone’s safety.
Safety tips for pulling pits include:
• Familiarize workers with the standard
operating procedures,
• Wear an H
2
S monitor,
• Use good communication,
• Maintain adequate ventilation,
• Pull pits every three weeks to reduce
accumulation of H
2
S, and
• Never bend over into the pit.
Some examples of safety precautions
to be included in a standard operating
procedure for your farm can be found
by visiting “Pit Foaming and Manure
Gases” on the OMAFRA Livestock
website:
http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/livestock/swine/news/novde-
c10a1.htm
References:
LaRoche., S. Hydrogen sulphide aware-
ness for liquid manure handling systems.
Prairie Swine Centre. 2009.
Laura Eastwood, Swine Specialist
519-271-6280
laura.eastwood@ontario.caBest Practice Sheets for the Barn
On a farm it’s often the case that most
people will have their main areas of
responsibility, but there are times when
certain tasks are carried out by people
that don’t do that task routinely. It may
also be that people are rotated through
different jobs for training, or to make
sure everyone knows how to do multiple
jobs in case of an absence, and so on.
In any case it can be challenging to
make sure everyone involved is trained
to do the job correctly and that it is
done consistently from one time to the
next. It’s also true that even though
someone has been taught how to do
a task, with the passage of time some
key things can come to be forgotten or
some steps might be overlooked.
For example, how should a piece of
equipment be cleaned and stored after
use? How should a pen look after being
cleaned and prepared for its next occu-
pants? How should feeders look when
they are adjusted properly?
One way to help keep everyone aware
of what is expected is the use of what
I’ll call Best Practices Sheets. This is
a sheet of paper that has been lami-
nated and posted close to the relevant
area of the barn. On this sheet of
paper are two photos; one is a picture
of how things look when everything
has been done right and the second
is a picture of how things might look
when something has been missed or
done incorrectly. One could have a
big checkmark in the corner and the
other a big X. To the side of the
photos should be a few very short
bullet points about what should, or
shouldn’t, be done and a brief descrip-
tion of the consequences of not doing
things right.
On the back side of the page you could
expand on the best practices that are
expected, provide more detail on how
they should be carried out, and maybe
some more information on the costs
and repercussions of not doing things
properly.
A Best Practices Sheet posted near
every important area of the facility
would provide a reminder of what is
expected when tasks or procedures are
done right.
Review the sheets with anyone who may
need to do a particular task or proce-
dure. This will help ensure that when
it comes to how things should be done
on your farm, everyone is on the same
page.
Jaydee Smith, Swine Specialist
jaydee.smith@ontario.ca519-674-1542