Modeling of Soil Carbon Storage Capacity Using Farm Management Factors in Drylands

Abstract

SUMMARYThe Carbon Storage Capacity (CSC) of land ecosystems is considered as the criteria for dry land sustainability assessment through analyzing of its management factors. We studied the commonly used management systems and their affected factors to model soil carbon storage in Sarfirooz-abad watershed, Kermanshah province, IRAN. GIS layers of slope degree, slope direction and elevation created, combined and used as the homogeneous map units. Three field management systems of tillage, crop rotation and residual management were defined and their relevant indicators were quantified. The systematic random method was used for soil sampling and 95 composite soil samples were taken from 0-30cm soil depth. In the laboratory, bulk density, texture and organic carbon content of soils was determined and soil organic carbon storage stocks was calculated. To estimate and model the carbon storage capacity and factors affecting, it was studied by stepwise regression, factor analysis and clustering. Results showed that using cluster analysis by seven variables of 15 variables has the significant relation with CSC with a correlation coefficient of 0.724 including plow index, cereals in crop rotation, stubble burning, animal fertilizer, crop rotation, winter fallow and plow direction. The cluster model efficiency of 0.46 was obtained that could predict about 52% of the CSC variability. The crop rotation and tillage were the variables of precise agricultural systems management that is undoubtedly important in CSC of dry lands.

Plastic Pollution in Soils: Governance Approaches to Foster Soil Health and Closed Nutrient Cycles

“…This is because of the energy-intensive production of nitrogen fertilisers, the dependence of many countries on imports of phosphate rock, the increasing contamination of mineral phosphorus fertilisers with heavy metals like uranium and cadmium next to other potentially negative environmental impacts of mineral fertilisation [36,[38][39][40]. Apart from that, organic fertilisation strategies combined with an innovative crop rotation management can enhance the soil carbon storage potential by supplying the soil with organic carbon [41][42][43]. Thus, besides positive effects on the soil conditions and its natural fertility, organic fertilisation contributes to climate protection.…”