Using of soil quality indicators to assess their production and ecological functions

The project dealt with an evaluation of the soil quality in the Central Bohemian Region in the Czech Republic. The relevant attributes and characteristics were found regarding the soils in this selected area. Based on the data from soil probes, climate characteristics, soil production function and data on the land use, the characteristics, known as soil quality indicators, were selected. Then the soils were sorted into groups which indicated their suitability for the best land use and planning. The characteristics of the soils that contributed the most to the ecosystem services provided by this part of the environment were chosen as the soil quality indicators. In order to find out how the soils are able to provide ecosystem services, two types of approaches were used – the average score and the total amount of points gained. Maps indicating the soil quality were created using the ArcGIS program. At the same time, research on the differences in the quality in two different layers of the soil was carried out. In most cases, there was a decrease in the soil quality with an increasing depth. The results of this project can be used as a basis for a new soil valuation in the Czech Republic.

Download Full-text

Sedentary Agriculture and Its Implications on Soil Quality in Agro-pastoral Semi-arid Karamoja, Uganda

Journal of Agricultural Science ◽

10.5539/jas.v12n4p148 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (4) ◽

pp. 148

Author(s):

S. Muwanga ◽

R. Onwonga ◽

S. O. Keya ◽

E. Komutunga

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Soil Fertility ◽

Data Base ◽

Soil Quality ◽

Quality Indicators ◽

Soil Depth ◽

Sustainable Land Use ◽

Soil Quality Indicators ◽

Local Soil ◽

Semi Arid

Uganda Government embarked on promoting sedentary agriculture in Karamoja agro-pastoral semi-arid livelihood zone, which experience rapid environmental and high soil quality (SQ) decline. However, studies on sedentary agriculture’s impact on soil quality using farmer’s knowledge is limited. Consequently, a survey was carried out in Karamoja (Iriiri, Matany Sub-counties of Napak of districts and Rengen sub-county of Kotido) to determine the soil quality indicator parameters based on the farmers knowledge in order to build a local soil knowledge data base to better inform sustainable land use strategies. Using a semi-structured questionnaire, forty indigenous farmers per sub-county, were interviewed between August and September, 2015. The study took into account the social demographic characteristics of the people, farming enterprises, methods of crops production, crops yields trends, causes of the perceived yields trends and soil quality indicators. Prospects of developing Karamoja indigenous knowledge data base lies in visible feature that predict soil quality. Farmers used 36 parameters to determine SQ. The parameters were clustered into five categories; soil, crop, biological, environmental and management each category contributing to 42, 19,14,8 and 17% of the total indicators, respectively. The relationship between age group and the perceived indicators of soil fertility was statistically significant (p-value = 0.045) with the majority stating that they use either soil colour, soil depth or soil texture to express the fertility of soil. The farmer’s soil quality indicators assessed in this study, is important in establishing indigenous-scientific hybrid knowledge data base to enhance soil fertility maintenance and better inform policy makers and other stakeholders on development of sustainable land use strategies.

Download Full-text

Evaluation of indirect and direct scoring methods to relate biochemical soil quality indicators to ecosystem services

Soil Science Society of America Journal ◽

10.1002/saj2.20370 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Yushu Xia ◽

Michelle Wander

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Soil Quality ◽

Quality Indicators ◽

Scoring Methods ◽

Soil Quality Indicators

Download Full-text

Effects of land use and land cover on selected soil quality indicators in the headwater area of the Blue Nile basin of Ethiopia

Environmental Monitoring and Assessment ◽

10.1007/s10661-015-5086-1 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 188 (2) ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Ermias Teferi ◽

Woldeamlak Bewket ◽

Belay Simane

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Cover ◽

Soil Quality ◽

Quality Indicators ◽

Soil Quality Indicators ◽

Nile Basin ◽

Blue Nile ◽

Blue Nile Basin ◽

Effects Of Land Use

Download Full-text

Participatory selection of soil quality indicators for monitoring the impacts of regenerative agriculture on ecosystem services

Ecosystem Services ◽

10.1016/j.ecoser.2020.101157 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 45 ◽

pp. 101157 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Raquel Luján Soto ◽

Mamen Cuéllar Padilla ◽

Joris de Vente

Keyword(s):

Ecosystem Services ◽

Soil Quality ◽

Quality Indicators ◽

Soil Quality Indicators ◽

Regenerative Agriculture ◽

Participatory Selection ◽

Selection Of

Download Full-text

Effects of Land Use Change on Soil Quality Indicators in Forest Landscapes of the Western Amazon

Soil Science ◽

10.1097/ss.0000000000000203 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 182 (4) ◽

pp. 128-136 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Santiago Bonilla-Bedoya ◽

Magdalena López-Ulloa ◽

Tom Vanwalleghem ◽

Miguel Ángel Herrera-Machuca

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Use Change ◽

Soil Quality ◽

Quality Indicators ◽

Soil Quality Indicators ◽

Effects Of Land Use

Download Full-text

Response of Potential Indicators of Soil Quality to Land-Use and Land-Cover Change under a Mediterranean Climate in the Region of Al-Jabal Al-Akhdar, Libya

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su14010162 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

pp. 162

Author(s):

Jamal Suliman Alawamy ◽

Siva K. Balasundram ◽

Ahmad Husni Mohd. Hanif ◽

Christopher Teh Boon Sung

Keyword(s):

Land Use ◽

Land Cover ◽

Soil Properties ◽

Soil Quality ◽

Quality Indicators ◽

Land Management ◽

Rainfed Agriculture ◽

Soil Quality Indicators ◽

Al Jabal Al Akhdar ◽

Effects Of Land Use

Conversion of native lands into agricultural use, coupled with poor land management practices, generally leads to changes in soil properties. Understanding the undesirable effects of land-use and land-cover (LULC) changes on soil properties is essential when planning for sustainable land management. This study was conducted in Al Jabal Al Akhdar region, Libya, to assess the effects of land-use and land-cover changes on soil quality inferred by analyzing the relative changes in 17 chemical, physical, and biological soil properties in the upper layer (0–20 cm) of disturbed and undisturbed soil systems. Soil samples were collected from 180 sampling sites with 60 from each of the three types of LULC prevalent in the study area: natural Mediterranean forests (NMF), rainfed agriculture (RA), and irrigated crops (IC). The soil properties of the two agricultural land uses were compared with soil properties under an adjacent natural forest, which served as a control to assess changes in soil quality resulting from the cultivation of deforested land. The results indicate significant reductions in most soil quality indicators under rainfed agriculture as compared to native forest land. Under irrigated agriculture, there were significant changes (p ≤ 0.05) in most of the soil quality indicators, generally, indicating a significant reduction in soil quality, except for improvement of nitrogen and phosphorus levels due to frequent fertilizer application. Our data support the notion that changes in land use and land cover, in the absence of sustainable management measures, induce deterioration of soil properties and ultimately may lead to land degradation and productivity decline.

Download Full-text