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AMES, Iowa — A searchable, web-based database developed by Iowa State University’s Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering can quickly locate published information regarding environmental management practices on U.S. pork production facilities.

The database was developed by a team lead by Robert Burns, faculty member in the department, and was funded by the National Pork Board. The searchable database is available at: http://www.pork.org/environmentalmanagement.

“The database provides a fast and convenient method to identify papers published from 1960 through 2006 regarding environmental management options and information specific to pork production in the United States. The database also provides a basic summary of each paper as well as the paper abstract and citation,” said Burns.

The database’s options allow a flexible search according to specific needs. Searchable categories for the database include:

• Topic category (including surface water quality, groundwater quality, water use and conservation, air emissions and odor, land quality or crop impact or a combination of these)


• Keyword


• Investigators


• Research institution


• Funding source

The database includes fields for project title, research institution, funding source, approximate project cost, paper citation, contact information for the principal investigator, a layman’s summary of the paper and an author’s abstract.

This interactive tool is designed to help producers seeking more information on a variety of environmental management topics. The National Pork Board plans to update the database as new research results become available. Additional information about the pork industry and current research can be accessed at: http://www.pork.org.