Land use impact on soil quality in eastern Himalayan region of India

2013 ◽  
Vol 186 (4) ◽  
pp. 2013-2024 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. K. Singh ◽  
L. J. Bordoloi ◽  
Manoj Kumar ◽  
S. Hazarika ◽  
Brajendra Parmar
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Himalayan Region ◽  
Land Use Impact ◽  
Eastern Himalayan Region

scholarly journals Understanding the effect of shifting cultivation practice (slash-burn-cultivation-abandonment) on soil physicochemical properties in the North-eastern Himalayan region

2021 ◽  
pp. 243
Author(s):  
Gaurav Mishra ◽  
Krishna Giri ◽  
Abhishek Jangir ◽  
Duraisamy Vasu ◽  
Jesús Rodrigo-Comino
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Shifting Cultivation ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Himalayan Region ◽  
Available Phosphorus ◽  
Multivariate Techniques ◽  
Available Nitrogen ◽  
The North ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Eastern Himalayan Region

Shifting cultivation (jhum cultivation), a common practice of converting forest land into agricultural land by slash and burn is threatening the ecosystem. This study assesses the effect of shifting cultivation cycles on soil quality in the North-eastern Himalayan region using a minimum of soil properties. To achieve this goal, a soil quality index (SQI) approach and multivariate techniques were used for surface (0-30 cm) and subsurface (30-70 cm) layers of soils in the forest, jhum land, and jhum fallow areas. The highest variability among land uses was found for clay content, SOC (soil organic carbon), exchangeable Mg and K, CEC (cation exchange capacity), and the Ca/Mg relationship. On the contrary, the lowest variation was recorded in bulk density (BD), porosity, and pH. The results of the principal component analysis (PCA) show BD, soil texture, available nitrogen (Nav), available phosphorus (Pav), available potassium (Kav), calcium (Ca) and sodium (Na) as the major indicators of soil quality. The study indicated that surface layers of forest soils have a lower soil quality when compared to jhum lands. Although jhum lands show a better soil quality compared to forests, their continued cultivation without any fertilisation and subsequent depletion of the soil nutrients can cause a degradation of soil quality as observed in jhum fallow lands. The use of these selected indicators for soil quality assessment was useful in terms of saving time and costs.

Prioritization of Soil Erosion-Susceptible Sub-Watersheds Using Multi-Criteria Decision Method in the Lesser Himalayas

2022 ◽  
pp. 74-91
Author(s):  
Shachi Pandey ◽  
Parmanand Kumar ◽  
Vijender Pal Panwar ◽  
Raman Nautiyal
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Soil Erosion ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Remote Sensing Data ◽  
Morphometric Parameters ◽  
Himalayan Region ◽  
Elongation Ratio ◽  
Decision Method ◽  
Lesser Himalayas

Watersheds in the Lesser Himalayan region are highly susceptible to natural hazards, particularly those instigated by action and movement of water, such as soil erosion, flood, and mass movements of lands. Hilly watersheds with diversified land use and fragile ecosystems are responsible for accelerating soil erosion. Soil erosion is one of the most implicit hazards as it degrades water and soil quality in a watershed. The study prioritizes the soil erosion-susceptible zones in the Tons river watershed (India) in the Lesser Himalayan region. The interrelationships and role of morphometry, soil quality, slope, and land use together as four components in soil erosion are studied. Remote sensing data and multi-criteria decision method (MCDM) framework has been used to estimate soil erosion susceptibility of sub-watersheds. Results showed that morphometric parameters like elongation ratio and slope of sub-watersheds play a major role in determining the state of erosion.

Impact of postburn jhum agriculture on soil carbon pools in the north-eastern Himalayan region of India

Soil Research ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 56 (6) ◽  
pp. 615 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lungmuana ◽  
B. U. Choudhury ◽  
Saurav Saha ◽  
S. B. Singh ◽  
Anup Das ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Shifting Cultivation ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Himalayan Region ◽  
The North ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Eastern Himalayan Region ◽  
Vegetation Burning

Land-use change, particularly soil organic carbon (SOC) loss induced by shifting cultivation (jhum) is a common land degradation issue in the hilly tracts of the humid tropics. The SOC concentration comprises different pools (labile and recalcitrant fractions), and each fraction responds to temporal dynamics of adopted management practices at varying magnitudes, such as deforestation followed by cultivation. However, information on the variation of different SOC pools due to cultural practices of vegetation burning and postburn agricultural practices (crop production) associated with shifting cultivation remains inadequate. In the present investigation, we examined the effect of burning and postburning cultivation on SOC pools across different forest fallow periods at Kolasib district, Mizoram state of the north-eastern Himalayan Region of India. Results revealed increase in the soil C stocks and total organic carbon (TOC) due to the increase in the length of fallow periods ranging from 3 to 23 years. The TOC decreased significantly compared with antecedent concentrations before vegetation burning. This was mostly attributed to the reduction in contribution of active pools (very labile and labile) to TOC from 69% to 60%. However, contribution of passive pools (less labile and nonlabile) to TOC concentration increased from 31% to 40%. Postburn cultivation also resulted in reduction of TOC as well as considerable variation in the proportion of different SOC pools to TOC concentration. Among the different pools of SOC, the very labile C pool was most sensitive to land-use change induced by shifting cultivation (phytomass burning and postburn cultivation). The labile SOC pools can act as a sensitive indicator for devising suitable location specific management practices for restoration of soil health through SOC dynamics in degraded jhum lands in hilly ecosystems.

scholarly journals Effect of 25 years old agroforestry practices on soil quality attributes in the north eastern Himalayan region of India

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 2371-2379
Author(s):  
Thounaojam Thomas Meetei ◽  
Burhan U Choudhury ◽  
Kamal P Mohapatra ◽  
N Uttam Singh ◽  
Anup Das ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Quality Attributes ◽  
Himalayan Region ◽  
The North ◽  
North Eastern ◽  
Eastern Himalayan Region ◽  
Agroforestry Practices

Cyathodium denticulatum Udar et Srivastava: A rare liverwort new to Chhattisgarh, Central India

2020 ◽  
pp. 171-174
Author(s):  
Ashwini Kumar Dixit ◽  
Mery Aradhna Kerketta
Keyword(s):  
Rare Species ◽  
Biosphere Reserve ◽  
Central India ◽  
Himalayan Region ◽  
Taxonomic Description ◽  
First Time ◽  
Eastern Himalayan Region

This article reports the occurrence of the thalloid liverwort Cyathodium denticulatum Udar et Srivastava was collected first time from the Achanakmar – Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve (AABR) Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh. It is shown that Cyathodium denticulatum a narrow Himalayan endemic has been reported earlier from Darjeeling, India. There is no record of its occurrence from central India. Cyathodium denticulatum is a rare species known only from eastern Himalayan region. A key to related Indian taxa and taxonomic description is provided.

scholarly journals Assessment of Seasonal Variability in Soil Nutrients and Its Impact on Soil Quality under Different Land Use Systems of Lower Shiwalik Foothills of Himalaya, India

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1398
Author(s):  
Tavjot Kaur ◽  
Simerpreet Kaur Sehgal ◽  
Satnam Singh ◽  
Sandeep Sharma ◽  
Salwinder Singh Dhaliwal ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Surface Soil ◽  
Sandy Loam ◽  
Monsoon Season ◽  
Soil Layer ◽  
Seasonal Effects ◽  
Land Use Systems ◽  
Post Monsoon ◽  
Significant Difference

The present study was conducted to investigate the seasonal effects of five land use systems (LUSs), i.e., wheat–rice (Triticum aestivum—Oryza sativa) system, sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum), orange (Citrus sinensis) orchard, safeda (Eucalyptus globules) forest, and grassland, on soil quality and nutrient status in the lower Satluj basin of the Shiwalik foothills Himalaya, India. Samples were analyzed for assessment of physico-chemical properties at four soil depths, viz., 0–15, 15–30, 30–45, and 45–60 cm. A total of 120 soil samples were collected in both the seasons. Soil texture was found to be sandy loam and slightly alkaline in nature. The relative trend of soil organic carbon (SOC), macro- and micro-nutrient content for the five LUSs was forest > orchard > grassland > wheat–rice > sugarcane, in the pre- and post-monsoon seasons. SOC was highly correlated with macronutrients and micronutrients, whereas SOC was negatively correlated with soil pH (r = −0.818). The surface soil layer (0–15 cm) had a significantly higher content of SOC, and macro- and micro-nutrients compared to the sub-surface soil layers, due to the presence of more organic content in the soil surface layer. Tukey’s multiple comparison test was applied to assess significant difference (p < 0.05) among the five LUSs at four soil depths in both the seasons. Principle component analysis (PCA) identified that SOC and electrical conductivity (EC) were the most contributing soil indicators among the different land use systems, and that the post-monsoon season had better soil quality compared to the pre-monsoon season. These indicators helped in the assessment of soil health and fertility, and to monitor degraded agroecosystems for future soil conservation.

scholarly journals Effects of Land-Use Change on Soil Functionality and Biodiversity: Toward Sustainable Planning of New Vineyards

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 358
Author(s):  
Elena Gagnarli ◽  
Giuseppe Valboa ◽  
Nadia Vignozzi ◽  
Donatella Goggioli ◽  
Silvia Guidi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Soil Biodiversity ◽  
Soil Microarthropods ◽  
Quick Recovery ◽  
Sustainable Planning ◽  
Soil Functionality ◽  
One Year ◽  
Soil Microarthropod

Sustainable agriculture largely depends on soil biodiversity and requires efficient methods to assess the effectiveness of agronomic planning. Knowledge of the landscape and relative pedosite is enriched by data on the soil microarthropod community, which represent useful bio-indicators for early soil-quality detection in land-use change (LUC). In the hilly Maremma region of Grosseto, Italy, two areas, a >10ys meadow converted into a vineyard and an old biodynamic vineyard (no-LUC), were selected for evaluating the LUC effect. For maintaining soil vitality and ecosystem services by meadow, the vineyard was planted and cultivated using criteria of the patented “Corino method”. The aim was to evaluate the LUC impact, within one year, by assessing parameters characterizing soil properties and soil microarthropod communities after the vineyard was planted. The adopted preservative method in the new vineyards did not show a detrimental impact on the biodiversity of soil microarthropods, and in particular, additional mulching contributed to a quick recovery from soil stress due to working the plantation. In the short term, the adopted agricultural context confirmed that the targeted objectives preserved the soil quality and functionality.

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