Variations of soil organic carbon fractions in response to conservative vegetation successions on the Loess Plateau of China

Land use changes profoundly affect the equilibrium of soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration and greenhouse gas emissions. With the current global climatic changes, it is vital to understand the influence of ecological restoration and conservation management on the dynamics of SOC under different land uses, especially in erosion-endangered Loess soils. Therefore, we investigated changes in SOC through a suit of labile fractions, namely: light fraction organic C (LFOC), heavy fraction organic C (HFOC), coarse particulate organic C (CPOC), fine particulate organic C (FPOC), and dissolved organic C (DOC), from two forests i.e., Robinia pseudoacacia (RP) and Platycladus orientalis (PO), with different ages, in comparison with farmland (FL). The SOC and STN contents significantly increased over 42 years in the RP forest where the contents of CPOC and FPOC were significantly higher than in the FL. Moreover, total SOC and its labile fractions, in the studied land use types, significantly correlated with soil CaCO₃, pH, and STN contents, indicating their key roles in SOC sequestration. The results reported here from different vegetation with different ages provide a better understanding of SOC and STN alterations at different stages of vegetation restoration. Our findings suggest that long-term natural vegetation restoration could be an effective approach for SOC sequestration and soil conservation on the Loess soil.     

Erosion and covered zones altered by surface coverage effects on soil nitrogen and carbon loss from an agricultural slope under laboratory-simulated rainfall events

Soil erosion, one of the most serious environmental concerns, might remove topsoil and essential element from terrestrial land. However, few attentions have been given to investigating how soil erosion regimes affect soil carbon and nitrogen loss. Therefore, this study investigated the effects of surface coverage rates (83%, 67%, 50%, 33%, 17% and 0%) and two positions (up- and downslope) on erosion regimes and its associated soil nitrogen and carbon loss under a sequence of six rainfalls (R1-R6). These results showed that the sediment concentrations with 33% (R4) and 17% (R5) coverage downslope were significantly lower than those with coverage upslope, whereas there was no significant difference between the runoff rates of the two slopes. Thus, surface coverage at different positions induced two soil erosion regimes (deposition- and transport-dominated processes). Dynamics of the DON and DIN concentrations indicated different release processes of soil nitrogen into runoff. The DON contributed to a substantial amount of soil nitrogen loss, which accounted approximately 81% of the organic form. The SBOC is significantly correlated with sediment-enriched clay particles from the deposition-dominated processes and is higher than that from the transport-dominated processes. The DOC is significantly correlated with Rr for transport-dominated processes. These results illustrated the critical role of erosion regimes in soil organic carbon loss in dissolved or sediment-bound form. It is concluded that erosion/covered zones altered by surface coverage could produce transport- and deposition-dominated erosion regimes and consequently affect soil carbon and nitrogen loss. In addition, these results demonstrated that surface coverage pattern may efficiently control soil erosion and soil carbon and nitrogen loss.     

The relative contributions of soil hydrophilicity and raindrop impact to soil aggregate breakdown for a series of textured soils

Soil aggregate breakdown is the first key factor that causes soil erosion. At present, research on the mechanisms of soil aggregate breakdown during rainfall is common. However, the research to on quantifying the relative contributions of internal and external forces to aggregate breakdown remains limited. This paper was conducted to analyse the relative contribution of internal and external forces to aggregate disintegration and the factors affecting aggregate stability during rainfall. Soil aggregates with a series of textures were selected as test soil samples; deionized water was employed as the soaking solution and rainfall material in static disintegration experiments and rainfall simulation tests. The effect of internal force (soil hydrophilicity) on aggregate disintegration was analysed by the static disintegration method, and the combined effects of internal force (soil hydrophilicity) and external force (raindrop impact) on soil aggregate breakdown were analysed by rainfall simulation experiments. The results indicated that external force caused more severe soil aggregate breakdown than internal force, and the crushed aggregate was mainly distributed in the range of 2–0.25 mm. With increasing rainfall kinetic energy, the degree of aggregate breakdown increased gradually, and the degree of aggregation of the soil particles decreased gradually. Furthermore, soil aggregates with a high clay content (> 30%) were more stable than medium-clay (20–30%) and low-clay (< 20%) soil aggregates, and the correlation coefficient provided a good representation of the relationship between the clay content and soil aggregate stability index (ASI). Therefore, external force contributed more to soil aggregate breakdown than internal force during rainfall, and clay plays an important role in aggregate stability. The results of this study are of great significance for elaborating the mechanism and factors affecting aggregate breakdown.     

The USLE soil erodibility nomograph revisited

The nomograph by Wischmeier et al. (1971) for calculating the K-factor in the USLE was extremely useful when there was low access to calculators. However, the generalised calculation of this factor requires the development of analytic procedures. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the nomograph and its underlying equation, which is applicable only when the silt plus very find sand fraction does not exceed 70%. We also examined the quality of fit on the nomograph of the adaptations to the equation that have been proposed, as a means of dealing with those areas where the original equation is not applicable. All models are shown to have areas where the fit is deficient or even unacceptable. Besides, the family of curves on the nomograph for the various values taken by the organic matter are not coincident with the mathematical function from which they presumably derive. The study also identifies those areas of the textural triangle in which the soils originally used in developing the USLE are located, with a view to according a lower predictive value to the contrasting areas in which calculations of the K-factor will necessarily be extrapolations. Finally, a new equation for calculating the K-factor is presented, which accurately reproduces the different sections of the nomograph, and allows the poorly functioning graph to be dispensed with. The paper ends with a link to a tool in R for simplifying the procedure for calculating the K-factor, taking into account varying situations of data availability.     

Determinants for adoption of physical soil and water conservation measures by smallholder farmers in Ethiopia

Adoption rates of soil and water conservation measures remain below the expected levels in Ethiopia despite the considerable investments in reducing land degradation and improving soil fertility. This constitutes one of the key research agendas in the country. This paper underscores the need for investigating the factors hindering or facilitating the adoption of soil and water conservation measures. The study results presented in this paper are based on cross-section data collected from 408 households in eastern Ethiopia, including field observations of 790 plots selected using a multi-stage sampling procedure. A multivariate probit model was employed to analyse the determinants of adoption of three soil and water conservation measures (stone bund, soil bund, and bench terracing) at the plot level. The study findings reveal that household, socioeconomic, and institution characteristics were the key factors that influenced the adoption of soil bund, stone bund, and bench terracing conservation measures. Furthermore, there was a significant correlation among the three soil and water conservation measures, indicating that the adoption of these measures is interrelated. In particular, the results show that there was a positive correlation between stone bunds and soil bunds. However, the correlations between bench terracing and stone bunds as well as bench terracing and soil bunds were negative (implying substitutability). These results imply that the Government and other relevant organizations that are responsible for reducing land degradation in order to increase agricultural production should support the establishment and strengthening of local institutions to facilitate the adoption of soil and water conservation measures.     

The role of social capital in the promotion of conservation farming: the case of ‘landcare’ in the Southern Philippines

‘Social capital’ refers to the relationships of trust, communication, and cooperation that facilitate collective action in a community. It is particularly relevant to soil conservation in developing countries, which requires collective efforts to raise awareness of soil degradation, provide effective training in soil conservation practices, and implement soil conservation measures on individual farms. The Landcare Program in the Southern Philippines promotes simple conservation practices in upland environments through establishing and supporting community landcare groups and municipal landcare associations, thus augmenting the social capital of farmers in these locations. An evaluation of the Landcare Program in Barangay Ned, South Cotabato, based on a survey of 313 farm households and case studies of nine landcare groups, shows that, despite extreme isolation and difficult working conditions, farmers responded by rapidly forming landcare groups and a landcare association, and adopting contour barriers on their maize farms. They utilized the bonding social capital inhering in their local communities to build stocks of bridging social capital, linking them to information, training and resources from outside their immediate locality. A logistic regression model of the factors affecting adoption of contour barriers shows that farmers who had undergone the practical, farmer‐based training provided by the Landcare Program, and who were members of a landcare group, were significantly more likely to adopt conservation measures. These results confirm the value of investing in social capital to promote soil conservation. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The social, economic and institutional factors affecting adoption of soil conservation practices: the Asian experience

The purpose of this paper is to discuss social, economic and institutional factors affecting adoption and continued use of soil conservation practices at the farm level in Asia. Macrosocial factors discussed are population pressure on land resources, poverty, land tenure and national development policies. Microsocial factors selected for examination are awareness of conservation practices, access to information systems, profitability of soil conservation practices, and value orientations of land operators. It is concluded that programs designed to facilitate adoption of soil conservation practices at the farm level in Asia must address macrosocial factors as well as microsocial factors or they will probably not be successful. Specific recommendations for the development of intervention strategies are presented.     

区域土壤侵蚀遥感抽样调查方法

土壤侵蚀是全球性环境问题,土壤侵蚀调查是水土保持规划和生态文明建设的科学基础。为了完善土壤侵蚀抽样调查方法,快速、精准地估算土壤侵蚀实际速率,对基于高分辨率遥感影像进行目视解译,提取高精度土地利用和水土保持措施信息的方法进行了研究。基于现代地理信息科学,充分利用虚拟地球及其提供的公开高分辨率遥感数据资源,考虑土壤侵蚀及其治理的时空特征,采用分层不等概系统空间抽样方法布设抽样单元,通过对公开高分辨率遥感影像的目视解译,完成泛第三极地区土地利用和水保措施的遥感抽样调查。研究实现了2万个抽样调查单元的解译,提取了土地利用和水土保持措施信息;基于CSLE模型完成了典型抽样调查单元的土壤流失速率计算,并对解译结果进行了精度和实用性分析。结果表明:基于公开高分辨率遥感影像、利用分层不等概系统空间抽样方法,可快速提取土地利用和水土保持措施信息,完成区域土壤侵蚀抽样调查。     

Adoption of eco-friendly soil-management practices by smallholder farmers in Shandong Province of China

Land degradation and agricultural pollution have been of great concern around the world in recent years, especially in developing countries. It is necessary to expand some eco-friendly soil-management practices to address serious environmental issues. Using data from 646 small-farm households in Shandong, China, perceptions of eco-friendly soil-management practices and land degradation, adoption attitudes and final adoption decisions are all evaluated, and the factors affecting farmers’ final adoption decisions are estimated by applying a logit model. The results show that the perception levels of land degradation and eco-friendly soil-management practices are very high, and more than 70% of the respondents indicated that they wanted to adopt the practices; however, only a small portion of the interviewed farmers made the final decision to apply these practices. Of all the factors, perception of practices and adoption attitude were the most important ones influencing farmers’ adoption decision positively. Knowledge of environmental regulations, risk type, degree of farmland fertility, agro-technical training, participation in agricultural insurance, interaction with other farmers and membership in farmers’ organizations had positive relationships with adoption decisions, whereas availability of farming funding influenced adoption decisions negatively. According to these findings, ensuring agricultural profit is the primary basis for farmers’ adoption decisions; however, agricultural information—especially information about eco-friendly soil-management technologies—should also be widely dispersed, and environmental regulations should be strictly enforced.     

Farm Households' Simultaneous Use of Sources to Access Information on Cotton Crop Production

This study has investigated farm households' simultaneous use of social networks, field extension, traditional media, and modern information and communication technologies (ICTs) to access information on cotton crop production. The study was based on a field survey, conducted in Punjab, Pakistan. Data were collected from 399 cotton farm households using the multistage sampling technique. Important combinations of information sources were found in terms of their simultaneous use to access information. The study also examined the factors influencing the use of various available information sources. A multivariate probit model was used considering the correlation among the use of social networks, field extension, traditional media, and modern ICTs. The findings indicated the importance of different socioeconomic and institutional factors affecting farm households' use of available information sources on cotton production. Important policy conclusions are drawn based on findings.     

Adoption of soil conservation practices: An empirical analysis in Ontario,Canada

Soil degradation threatens environmental quality and sustainable food production. As a result of efforts to promote soil conservation, farmers in Canada are thought to be reasonably aware of both the importance of conservation and the existence of remedial and preventive practices. Despite this, the adoption of conservation practices has been less than overwhelming. Forces other than awareness and positive attitude seem to be constraining many land managers from employing available conservation methods. This paper presents the findings from an empirical investigation of the use of soil conservation practices and barriers to their adoption in the southwestern region of Ontario, Canada. The analysis is set in the context of literature on technology adoption. A scheme for measuring farm-level conservation effort is developed, and barriers to adoption are derived from an analysis of a range of independent physical, personal, and economic factors, and from the obstacles or constraints identified by producers themselves. Key barriers relate to economic pressures, the complexity and compatibility of practices, and perceptions regarding the actual need for practices. The findings have relevance for the design of public policies and programs, notably the importance of supplying information on farm-level implications of conservation methods and the need for a stable economic environment for agriculture to allow longer-term planning.     

Mitigating soil erosion through farm-level adoption of soil and water conservation measures in Samanalawewa Watershed,Sri Lanka

Abstract

Soil erosion by water is currently one of the most notable types of land degradation in Samanalawewa Watershed in Sri Lanka, creating copious environmental and socioeconomic impacts. Thus, with the aim of detecting and mapping the rates of human-induced soil erosion in the watershed, remote sensing and geographic information system based modelling and field experiments were carried out. The results of the assessment disclosed that the present rate of human-induced soil erosion varies from 0 to 289 t ha^?1 yr^?1 with the majority of the area exceeding the natural rate of soil erosion by 14 to 33 times at present. However, the average rate of human-induced soil erosion has declined dramatically from 19.8 to 4.3 t ha^?1 yr^?1 from 1986 to 2008. In order to analyse the significant determinants of farm-level adoption of soil and water conservation measures, binary logistic regression procedure was applied using the data collected through a household survey (n = 201). The most significant (p<0.01) variables of the study were the farmers’ perceptions of soil erosion problems, gender of the household head, training on soil and water conservation, and ascertained advice from agricultural extension officers while the variables regarding past awareness about soil conservation technologies and off-farm income were significant at p<0.05. Furthermore, the study revealed that the majority (60.2%) of the farmers in the study area had been adopting different types of soil and water conservation measures for a prolonged period of time. Therefore, owing to the current decreasing rate of soil erosion, the soil and water conservation costs and the ratios of human-induced soil erosion vs natural soil erosion had declined significantly while the productivity of their lands had gone up.     

吉林省低山丘陵区水土保持措施对土壤性质的影响

研究了吉林省东部低山丘陵区水土保持措施对土壤性质的影响,并对各水土保持措施的蓄水保土效益进行了分析.研究结果表明,顺垄试验小区蓄水保土效果最差;地埂植物带、灌木埂试验小区水土保持效益居中;生态修复、横垄试验小区水土保持效益较高;水平坑试验小区水土保持效益相当高.不同水土保持措施之间对土壤物理性质的影响存在差异,以生态修复对土壤pH、容重和田间持水量的修复最为明显;各水土保持措施对土壤颗粒组成,即土壤质地的修复效果均不明显,可见水土保持措施并不能在较短时间内改善土壤质地.在进行水土保持措施较短时间内,土壤SOC的消耗要大于其累积,使其在短时间内无法取得较好的SOC恢复效果.速效养分含量受水土保持措施影响非常大,土壤速效养分一部分随土壤侵蚀流失,一部分为植物所吸收利用,从而导致各水土保持措施土壤速效养分含量差异较大,其中生态修复措施对土壤速效养分的恢复效果最佳.在目前现有的水土保持措施下,选择生态修复措施,即自然撂荒是短时期内吉林省东部低山丘陵区进行小流域治理、退耕还林(草)工程和恢复土壤肥力质量较好的选择途径.     

Impact of indigenous‐based interventions on land conservation: a case study of a soil conservation and agroforestry project,Arumeru District,Tanzania

Land degradation has been identified as a serious problem in Tanzania since the 1920s. Among the factors normally cited as contributing to land degradation are deforestation, overgrazing and inappropriate farming practices. Several attempts by the government to arrest the problem have been based on top‐down approaches. Indigenous‐based interventions are among the alternative practices adopted by the Soil Conservation and Agroforestry Project in Arumeru District, Tanzania. The main objective of this study was to assess the impact of the indigenous‐based interventions on land conservation. More specifically the study intended to assess farmers' perception of land degradation, the adoption rate of indigenous‐based interventions, the impact of those interventions, and lastly the sustainability of those interventions. Data for the study were collected through Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) techniques and a questionnaire survey. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS®) was used to analyse quantitative data and Content and Structural‐Functional Analyses were used for qualitative data. The study found that the rate of land degradation was perceived by respondents to be rather severe. The study also revealed that indigenous‐based interventions, which require minimal labour and capital, have been highly adopted by many farmers while labour/capital intensive ones have been taken up by fewer farmers. In general, indigenous‐based interventions appear to have eased farm operations and contributed towards increased crop yield, improved soil fertility and increased income. Success in some of the indigenous interventions warrants their wider promotion beyond the project area. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Global achievements in soil and water conservation: The case of Conservation Agriculture

In response to the dust bowls of the mid-thirties in the USA, soil and water conservation programmes involving reduced tillage were promoted to control land degradation, particularly soil erosion. The farming and land management practices that were considered to adequately address soil and water conservation objectives were based on no-till seeding and maintenance of soil mulch cover. This collection of practices led to what became known as conservation tillage, although no-till systems by definition avoid soil disturbance by no-till direct seeding, and maintain an organic mulch cover on the soil surface.This article is an overview of achievements in soil and water conservation on agricultural lands through the experience derived from the adoption and spread of Conservation Agriculture (CA) world-wide. CA is an agro-ecological approach to sustainable production intensification. It involves the application of three inter-linked principles that underpin agricultural production systems based on locally formulated practices: (i) permanent no or minimum mechanical soil disturbance, which in practice entails direct seeding through mulch into no-till soils; (ii) maintenance of soil cover with crop residues and green manure crops, particularly legumes; and (iii) diversified cropping system involving annuals and perennial in rotations, sequences and associations.In 2011, CA had spread over 125 million hectares (9% of the global cropped land) across all continents and most agro-ecologies, including small and large farms. In addition, there is a significant area of CA orchards in the Mediterranean countries. CA is now considered to be a practical agro-ecological approach to achieving sustainable agriculture intensification. It offers environmental, economic and social advantages that are not fully possible with tillage-based production systems, as well as improved productivity and resilience, and improved ecosystem services while minimizing the excessive use of agrochemicals, energy and heavy machinery. While there are challenges to the adoption of CA, there is also increasing interest from producers, the civil society, donors and private sector institutions to further promote and service the uptake and spread of CA globally.     

Farmers' knowledge and perceptions of soil erosion and conservation measures in the Central Highlands,Kenya

A lack of appreciation of Kenyan farmers' knowledge and their perceptions of soil erosion and soil conservation measures was the reason for low adoption of recommended technologies. This research was carried out to identify the criteria that farmers used to distinguish farm‐types and to use these types to evaluate different knowledge levels and perceptions of soil erosion and existing soil and water conservation (SWC) measures in the Central Highlands of Kenya. Community meetings and semi‐structured household surveys were carried out in a small catchment, with 120 households. Results partly support the idea of using farmer‐developed criteria to distinguish among land managers with reference to a farm‐type classification. Criteria distinguishing three classes of land managers (good, moderate and poor) were significant with regard to the following land husbandry practices: use of hybrid or recycled seed and use of organic and/or inorganic fertilizers. Farmers were aware of on‐going soil erosion and of several erosion control measures. Whereas a majority of farmers preferred grass‐strips as a SWC measures, they did not recognize agroforestry as a form of SWC measure. Farmers perceived that SWC measures could successfully increase crop yields and soil‐water retention, and increase land value. In general, farmers did not perceive that SWC measures successfully prevented erosion phenomena, given the evidence of on‐site erosion indicators. They attributed the continued erosion to high rainfall, steep slopes, lack of maintenance and poorly designed SWC measures. They did not consider poor soil‐cover, up‐down tillage and tall trees to be the causes of erosion. Farmers faced several constraints in adopting SWC measures: lack of labour, tools, capital and know‐how to construct the measures. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

紫色土坡耕地土质埂坎分层入渗试验研究

以相邻田面为对照,利用双环入渗法对三峡库区紫色土坡耕地土质埂坎分层(地埂、坎腰和坎趾)的入渗特征进行研究。结果表明:(1)土质埂坎分层入渗与对照田面入渗均呈先陡降后趋于稳定的趋势,但达到稳定入渗的时间存在差异。地埂达到稳定入渗的时间最长(110min),坎腰、坎趾和田面达稳定入渗的时间分别比地埂少9%,82%,18%。从入渗性能看,土质埂坎各层均表现出初始入渗率平均入渗率稳定入渗率。平均入渗率与120min累积入渗量表现为地埂坎腰田面坎趾,初始入渗率为坎腰地埂田面坎趾,稳定入渗率为田面坎腰地埂坎趾。(2)采用4种模型进行拟合,其中通用经验模型是描述坡耕地土质埂坎入渗的较好模型,其后依次是Kostiakov模型、Horton模型和Philip模型。(3)土质埂坎入渗性能与土壤物理性质具有较好的相关性,初始入渗率与初始含水率、容重呈显著负相关(P0.05),平均入渗率、120min累积入渗量与粉粒体积分数、初始含水率呈显著负相关(P0.05),与砂粒体积分数和总孔隙度呈显著正相关(P0.05)。研究结果可为紫色土区坡耕地土壤侵蚀调控的埂坎措施优化提供依据。