[Report] "Clear Water Like Bottled Water from Pig Manure?"… Visiting Jeju Livestock Manure Resource Recycling Plant

Jeju Yangdon Nonghyup Livestock Manure Joint Resource Plant located in Sangdae-ri, Hallim-eup, Jeju (Photo by Joint Press Corps of Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs)

[Asia Economy Jeju=Reporter Son Seon-hee] On the morning of the 26th, I visited the Jeju Pig Farming Cooperative Livestock Manure Joint Resource Recycling Plant located in Sangdae-ri, Hallim-eup, Jeju. This facility purifies livestock manure such as pig manure in an environmentally friendly way to produce reclaimed water. It is colloquially known as the "Dung Factory." Contrary to the nickname, the plant, which you enter by passing through a disinfection tank large enough to completely cover a full-sized bus, boasts a clean exterior and landscaping.

Established in June 2019, the Jeju Livestock Manure Joint Resource Recycling Plant occupies an area of 37,361㎡ (11,300 pyeong) and is equipped with facilities such as liquid fertilizer tanks, membrane separation tanks, and compost yards. It receives about 296 tons of livestock manure daily from surrounding pig farms and produces 148 tons of liquid fertilizer, 148 tons of purified water (reclaimed water), and 22 tons of compost.

In particular, because chemical purification methods generate additional waste due to the use of coagulants, this joint resource recycling plant employs an eco-friendly physical purification technology. The livestock manure undergoes basic water treatment processes such as sedimentation and filtration, followed by filtration through precision microfiltration membranes (MF) and first, second, and third-stage reverse osmosis membranes (RO). The purified water is so clear that it is visually indistinguishable from commercially sold bottled water. Actual water quality tests show that the discharged water meets regulatory standards and has total dissolved solids (TDS) levels similar to those of bottled water available on the market.

Plant Manager Oh Young-jong explained, "After three rounds of RO treatment, most components contained in the manure are filtered out, and the reclaimed water is used for landscaping at golf courses, cleaning, vehicle disinfection, mist spraying, and factories. However, since beneficial minerals are also completely removed, it is strictly purified water and not used as drinking water."

(From left) Cleaning liquid fertilizer, purified water, and commercially available bottled water processed at the Jeju Pig Farming Cooperative Livestock Manure Joint Resource Facility. The cleaning liquid fertilizer is used as a substitute for compost, and the purified water is utilized by nearby farms, factories, golf courses, landscaping trees, and for cleaning purposes.

The burden of managing increasing livestock manure due to the development of animal husbandry is a headache for farmers. According to the Korea Rural Economic Institute (KREI), as of 2020, the domestic livestock manure generation was approximately 51.94 million tons, showing an increasing trend each year as the number of livestock rises. By animal type, pigs account for the largest share at 20.37 million tons (40%), followed by Hanwoo cattle (16.73 million tons, 32%), chickens (7.49 million tons, 14%), and dairy cows (5.62 million tons, 11%). Of this, about 54%, or 28.02 million tons, is self-treated, while the remaining 23.91 million tons is outsourced for treatment.

Despite the increasing amount of livestock manure, domestic soil nutrient overload, reduced spreading areas, and carbon neutrality policies are gradually limiting the capacity for composting and liquid fertilizer processing. Therefore, regional outsourced treatment facilities are required, but expansion is hindered by local residents' negative perceptions of manure treatment facilities. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, about 34 projects have been abandoned due to resident opposition since 2007.

In particular, in Jeju Island, where over 95% of domestic and agricultural water relies on groundwater resources, the utilization of reclaimed water produced at the joint resource recycling plant is very high. The Jeju joint resource recycling plant has been entrusted with manure treatment from about 100 surrounding farms and produced a total of 36,631 tons of purified water over one year and three months from May last year to last month. The purified water produced is freely taken and used by nearby farms and golf courses that need it. Apart from charging farms for treatment fees, there is no separate income, so the facility is currently operating at a deficit due to maintenance costs.

Plant Manager Oh said, "Supplying purified water also helps alleviate Jeju's water shortage problem. The need for manure treatment is increasingly emphasized, and I hope that supplying reclaimed water to the local community through the joint resource recycling plant will improve the negative perception of animal husbandry."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.