Journal of Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers ISSN:1738-3692(Print) 2093-7709(Online) 한국농공학회논문집

The objective of this study was to analyze the waste nutrient generation loads from hydroponics for three major crops in Gyeongsangnam-do. Study hydroponic farms were selected for the three major crops such as paprika, strawberry, tomato based on the agricultural statistics data and field investigation. The flow amount and water quality for inflow and outflow of study hydroponic farms were monitored and analyzed on a monthly basis. Monitored samples were analyzed in terms of DO, BOD, T-N, T-P, SS, and EC. The generated load of BOD, T-N, and T-P were calculated from the monitored flow and water quality. The monitoring results showed that the drainage ratio for the circular hydroponic farm was lower than the non-circular hydroponic farm because the outflow from the circular hydroponics were much lower than that from the non-circular. The generated load calculation results showed that the BOD tended to have a smaller value than the TMDLs guideline for land, while T-N and T-P showed higher value than that from the TMDLs guideline. In order to effectively manage the pollutant load discharged from the hydroponics farming complex, it is necessary to manage the non-circulating hydroponics farm. To improve water quality, it is necessary to gradually expand the circulating hydroponics farm through policy and economic support.