Temporal Variation in Runoff and Soil Loss From Simulated Rainfall on Corn and Soybeans

McIsaac, Gregory F.; Mitchell, James K.

doi:10.13031/2013.28622

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…The incorporation of 5 cm (2 in) of compost did not have any impact on sediment loss, similar to the RV results. While others have demonstrated that rainfall intensity influences erosion rates under simulated conditions (Jennings et al 1987;McIsaac and Mitchell 1992;Parsons and Stone 2006), we often found weak relationships, particularly for the tilled soils because they generated so little runoff.…”

Section: Erosion (Sediment Loss)contrasting

confidence: 79%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Effects of tillage and compost amendment on infiltration in compacted soils

Mohammadshirazi¹,

Brown²,

Heitman³

et al. 2016

Journal of Soil and Water Conservation

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Soils are compacted during land development through soil excavation and heavy equipment traffic. Compacted soils have limited infiltration and are susceptible to erosion. Infiltration can be enhanced by various approaches including tillage and compost addition. The objective of this study was to determine the efficacy of tillage and adding compost to reduce stormwater runoff and sediment loss by improving infiltration in simulated postconstruction soils. Tillage treatments were tested at two sites in the Piedmont region of North Carolina (Piedmont 1 and 2). Prior to applying tillage and amendment, soils at both sites were graded to remove the surface horizon and compacted with a vibratory roller. At Piedmont 1, the treatments were compacted with no tillage, shallow (15 cm [5.9 in] depth) tillage (ST), and deep (30 cm [11.8 in] depth) tillage (DT). At Piedmont 2 the treatments were compacted, DT, and DT with incorporated compost (DT+Com). The grass seed mixtures recommended by the North Carolina Department of Transportation for the location (Piedmont) and time of planting were applied at each site. Runoff volumes (RV) and total suspended solids were measured after each of the first 12 and 13 storm events at Piedmont 1 and 2, respectively. Infiltration rate (IR) and bulk density (BD) were determined five and seven months after establishment at Piedmont 1 and 2, respectively. At both sites, RV and total amount of soil loss were reduced with tillage by 60% to 82% during the monitoring period. Neither deeper tillage nor incorporating compost significantly affected these results. Grass establishment was significantly better with tillage. The IRs measured at the end of the monitoring period were around 1 cm h -1 (0.4 in hr -1 ) in the compacted treatment but ranged from 19 to 33 cm h -1 (7.5 to 13 in hr -1 ) in the tilled treatments, again with no effects of tillage depth or compost. The results suggest that tillage to a depth of at least 15 cm (6 in) can be highly effective for improving soil conditions and reducing runoff and erosion from soils compacted as the result of construction activities. Key words: compost-construction site-erosion-runoff-tillageThe process of constructing roads, buildings, and other structures can result in highly disturbed areas in which the soil is compacted from vehicle and equipment traffic (Gregory et al. 2006). Soils in urban areas may be compacted purposefully to increase strength or unintentionally due to construction activities (Batey and McKenzie 2006; Gregory et al. 2006;Olson et al. 2013).Compaction affects soil physical properties and vegetative growth (Randrup and Dralle 1997). Several studies found that compaction reduced soil porosity (Craul 1994; SchaferLandefeld et al. 2004;Shestak and Busse 2005), infiltration rate (IR) (Brown 2012;Haynes et al. 2013;Siyal 2002;Woltemade 2010; Yang and Zhang 2011), and root growth (Alberty et al. 1984;Gilman et al. 1987), and this leads to increased runoff and erosion (Booth and Jackson 1997;Violin et al. 2011). Runoff from area...

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Section: Erosion (Sediment Loss)contrasting

confidence: 79%

“…Consistent with our results, several studies also showed that intensity influences the type of sediment lost (Jennings et. al 1987;Parsons and Stones 2006;McIsaac and Mitchell 1992).…”

Section: Erosion (Sediment Loss)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of tillage and compost amendment on infiltration in compacted soils

Mohammadshirazi¹,

Brown²,

Heitman³

et al. 2016

Journal of Soil and Water Conservation

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“…Many of the current rainfall simulation techniques use a constant rate of rainfall, but natural rainfall seldom falls at a constant rate (Bosch et al, 1999; Frauenfeld and Truman, 2004). The degree of runoff, soil loss, and phosphorus transported may vary between natural rainfall and constant rate rainfall simulations (Shahlaee et al, 1991; McIsaac and Mitchell, 1992; Cox and Hendricks, 2000; Kleinman et al, 2004). If natural rainfall records are available for areas of interest, simulating rainfall at natural intensity patterns for what is thought to be the most vulnerable time periods could provide more credible data for the development of risk assessment tools.…”

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confidence: 99%

Nitrogen and Phosphorus Runoff Losses from Variable and Constant Intensity Rainfall Simulations on Loamy Sand under Conventional and Strip Tillage Systems

et al. 2007

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Further studies on the quality of runoff from tillage and cropping systems in the southeastern USA are needed to refine current risk assessment tools for nutrient contamination. Our objective was to quantify and compare effects of constant (Ic) and variable (Iv) rainfall intensity patterns on inorganic nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) losses from a Tifton loamy sand (Plinthic Kandiudult) cropped to cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) and managed under conventional (CT) or strip-till (ST) systems. We simulated rainfall at a constant intensity and a variable intensity pattern (57 mm h(-1)) and collected runoff continuously at 5-min intervals for 70 min. For cumulative runoff at 50 min, the Iv pattern lost significantly greater amounts (p < 0.05) of total Kjeldahl N (TKN) and P (TKP) (849 g N ha(-1) and 266 g P ha(-1) for Iv; 623 g N ha(-1) and 192 g P ha(-1) for Ic) than did the Ic pattern. However, at 70 min, no significant differences in total losses were evident for TKN or TKP from either rainfall intensity pattern. In contrast, total cumulative losses of dissolved reactive P (DRP) and NO3-N were greatest for ST-Ic, followed by ST-Iv, CT-Ic, and CT-Iv in diminishing order (69 g DRP ha(-1) and 361 g NO3-N ha(-1); 37 g DRP ha(-1) and 133 g NO3-N ha(-1); 3 g DRP ha(-1) and 58 g NO3-N ha(-1); 1 g DRP ha(-1) and 49 g NO3-N ha(-1)). Results indicate that constant-rate rainfall simulations may overestimate the amount of dissolved nutrients lost to the environment in overland flow from cropping systems in loamy sand soils. We also found that CT treatments lost significantly greater amounts of TKN and TKP than ST treatments and in contrast, ST treatments lost significantly greater amounts of DRP and NO3-N than CT treatments. These results indicate that ST systems may be losing more soluble fractions than CT systems, but only a fraction the total N (33%) and total P (11%) lost through overland flow from CT systems.

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“…McIsaac and Mitchell (1992) and Robichaud and Waldrop (1994) looked at this question but focused on relative measures of erosion, such as soil loss per unit of runoff, not the amount of soil loss. Two difficult problems exist in relating soil loss from simulated and natural rainfall: replicating the erosive energy (erosivity) of a specific storm with a simulator, and "scaling-up" soil loss from the typically small simulator plots to larger field-scales.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimating storm erosion with a rainfall simulator

Nolan

Vliet²,

Goddard³

et al. 1997

Can. J. Soil. Sci.

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Estimating storm erosion with a rainfall simulator. Can. J. Soil Sci. 77: 669-676. Interpreting soil loss from rainfall simulators is complicated by the uncertain relationship between simulated and natural rainstorms. Our objective was to develop and test a method for estimating soil loss from natural rainfall using a portable rainfall simulator (1 m 2 plot size). Soil loss from 12 rainstorms was measured on 144-m 2 plots with barley residue in conventional tillage (CT), reduced tillage (RT) and zero tillage (ZT) conditions. A corresponding "simulated" soil loss was calculated by matching the simulator erosivity to each storm's erosivity. High (140 mm h -1 ) and low (60 mm h -1 ) simulation intensities were examined. The best agreement between simulated and natural soil loss occurred using the low intensity, after making three adjustments. The first was to compensate for the 38% lower kinetic energy of the simulator compared with natural rain. The second was for the smaller slope length of the simulator plot. The third was to begin calculating simulator erosivity only after runoff began. After these adjustments, the simulated soil loss over all storms was 99% of the natural soil loss for CT, 112% for RT and 95% for ZT. Our results show that rainfall simulators can successfully estimate soil loss from natural rainfall events. . Les déperditions correspondantes en conditions simulées étaient calculées en appariant les valeurs d'érosivité du simulateur au pouvoir érosif réel de chaque épisode pluvial. On utilisait une forte (140 mm h -1 ) et une basse (60 mm h -1 ) intensité de précipitations simulées. La meilleure concordance entre les déperditions de sol causées entre les pluies réelles et les pluies simulées s'observait au régime d'intensité pluviale inférieure, moyennant toutefois 3 corrections, la première, pour compenser la moindre (38 %) énergie cinétique du simulateur par rapport aux précipitations naturelles; le second pour tenir compte de la pente plus courte de la parcelle sous simulateur de pluie, tandis que la troisième consistait à ne commencer à calculer l'érosivité en régime simulé qu'après le début du ruissellement. Moyennant ces trois corrections, les déperditions de sol en simulation, tous épisodes pluviaux confondus, correspondaient à 99 % des déperditions par pluie naturelle observées en régime TC, à 112 % en régime TR et à 95 % en régime CST. Il semble que les simulateurs de pluie permettent parfaitement d'estimer les déperditions de sol causées par les épisodes de pluie naturelle.

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Temporal Variation in Runoff and Soil Loss From Simulated Rainfall on Corn and Soybeans

Cited by 10 publications

References 5 publications

Effects of tillage and compost amendment on infiltration in compacted soils

Effects of tillage and compost amendment on infiltration in compacted soils

Nitrogen and Phosphorus Runoff Losses from Variable and Constant Intensity Rainfall Simulations on Loamy Sand under Conventional and Strip Tillage Systems

Estimating storm erosion with a rainfall simulator

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