Relationships Between Soluble and Sediment Nutrient Losses, Land Use and Types of Soil in Agricultural Watersheds

1977 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
G.H. Neilsen ◽  
A.F. Mackenzie
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Inorganic Nitrogen ◽  
High Surface ◽  
Sediment Concentration ◽  
Chemical Oxidation ◽  
Nutrient Loss ◽  
Potassium Sulfate ◽  
Agricultural Watersheds ◽  
Nutrient Losses ◽  
Calcium Magnesium

Abstract Seven agricultural watersheds in southwestern Quebec and southeastern Ontario, ranging in area from 2,000 to 20,000 hectares, were monitored systematically during 1973–75 for soluble inorganic nitrogen, total soluble phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sulfate-sulfur, chemical oxidation demand, discharge, suspended sediment concentration, sediment Kjeldahl nitrogen, Bray extractable phosphorus, and ammonium acetate extractable calcium, magnesium and potassium. For 1974–75, annual Kg/ha, loss rates were calculated for the soluble and sediment associated nutrients. Losses varied with nutrient and watershed, with volume of runoff being an important control of nutrient loss variation. Significant amounts of SO4−S in precipitation were suggested by an average watershed soluble N:P:S loss ratio of 10:1:92. Sediment nutrient losses were especially important for N and P, comprising over 40% of their total loss. The importance of spring snow-melt runoff was demonstrated by the high proportion of all nutrients lost at this time. Correlations of nutrient loss, land use and soils suggested that certain land uses resulted in increased stream nutrient losses while increased watershed area of soils with a high surface runoff potential was particularly conducive to increased soluble nutrient and sediment losses.

scholarly journals Morphometric analysis of an Areal Watershed in Taubaté, SP, Brazil

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Vicente Rodolfo Santos Cezar ◽  
Marcelo Dos Santos Targa ◽  
Celso De Souza Catelani
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Morphometric Analysis ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Capacity ◽  
Sediment Concentration ◽  
Sao Paulo ◽  
São Paulo ◽  
Circularity Index

      In 1991, the Integrated Water Resources Management System (SIGRHI) in the State of São Paulo adopted the watershed as a territorial unit for studies, integrated planning and sustainable development. The morphometric analysis of small watersheds, which involves the characterization of geometric parameters, relief, drainage network, combined with land use and occupation, may constitute an important model for environmental analysis of larger watersheds. This study aimed at characterization of the morphometry in the Areal river basin, in the city of Taubaté, São Paulo. The study found 1.89 km² of area, 7.44 km of perimeter and 3.11 km in length of the basin axis, which allowed the calculation of the compactness coefficient (Kc = 1.51), form factor, (F = 0.195) and circularity index (CI = 0.43), indicating that under normal precipitation conditions, this basin is unlikely to be flooded, due to the distance from the unit, leading to smaller concentrate outflow. The results obtained for the Maintenance Coefficient (Cm) indicate that 260 m² is required to maintain each meter of perennial channel. The high values of drainage density (Dd = 3.35 km.km-2) and sinuosity index (Is = 0.95) indicate that drainage channels in the area are rectilinear, thus suggesting the occurrence of a high surface runoff associated with high dissection. The analysis of land use and occupation revealed that, from the seven types of vegetation cover, the dominant cover in the Areal basin is 0.756 km2 (40%) constituted of pasture, while forest represents 0.580 km2 (31%), 0.321 km2 (17%) of the land cover is constituted of degraded forest. In terms of conservation, the Areal basin is conserved because, besides being located in the environmental preservation area of the Una River Basin, it is located at the meeting of two ecological corridors and is occupied by only 8 families of rural producers. On the other hand, the creation of approximately 120 head of cattle in the upper part of the basin and the existence of gully erosion of the order of 0.018 km2 (1%) of the basin area, which led to increased runoff and sediment concentration in the flat areas marginal to the creek of Areal. Based on morphometric analysis, it was concluded that: Areal watershed presents high capacity to form new watercourses and their relief characteristics, with low sinuosity channels and high values of altimetric amplitude, channel gradient, and density. Drainage, allied to the existence of erosive processes, favors sediment flow and transport. Conservation actions are required to control erosion.

scholarly journals Phosphorus and nitrogen losses in relation to forest, pasture and row-crop land use and precipitation distribution in the midwest usa

2011 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 269-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ranjith P. Udawatta ◽  
Gray S. Henderson ◽  
John R. Jones ◽  
David Hammer
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Agricultural Watersheds ◽  
Nutrient Losses ◽  
N Losses ◽  
Filter Strip ◽  
Crop Land ◽  
Row Crop ◽  
Land Use Types ◽  
Perennial Vegetation

Little information is available comparing the influence of land use and precipitation on the control of phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N) losses from agricultural watersheds in claypan soils. Eight watersheds with varying proportions of row-crop, pasture, forest, and grass filter strip condition were examined for three consecutive years to evaluate effects of land use and precipitation on P and N losses from row-cropped watersheds. Total P (TP) and total N (TN) losses were inversely related to the percentage of forest and pasture cover. Forest (n=2), pasture (n=3), row-crop (n=2), and row-crop grass filter strip (n=1) land use types had mean annual TP losses of 0.43, 0.90, 3.82 and 1.30 kg•ha-1•yr-1, respectively and mean annual TN losses of 2.02, 4.34, 29.25 and 12.31 kg•ha-1•yr-1, respectively. During the 3-year study, the respective land use types lost 0.36, 0.64, 13.99 and 7.26 kg NO3-N•ha-1•yr-1. Runoff events on row-cropped watersheds resulted in significantly greater TP, TN, and NO3-N losses than those from pastured and forested watersheds. Stream nitrate-N concentrations averaged 0.39, 0.50, and 2.56 mg•L-1 for forest, pasture, and row-crop land use types, respectively. During the study, 136% of the long-term average precipitation in 1998 caused significant nutrient losses in all watershed categories and the variability within a land use type was larger than in years with below long-term rainfall. The study results emphasize the incorporation of perennial vegetation such as vegetative buffers, grass/conservation reserve program areas, and grass filter strips or other perennial vegetation as a long-term option for effective control of nutrient losses in runoff from agricultural watersheds.

Nutrient Losses and N & P Balances in Small Agricultural Watersheds in Estonia

2003 ◽  
Vol 34 (5) ◽  
pp. 531-542 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arvo lital ◽  
Enn Loigu ◽  
Nils Vagstad
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality Monitoring ◽  
Agricultural Watersheds ◽  
Agricultural Practice ◽  
Nutrient Losses ◽  
Nutrient Balances ◽  
Nitrogen And Phosphorus ◽  
Nutrient Runoff ◽  
Baltic Countries ◽  
Data Loggers ◽  
Runoff Regime

The paper deals with nutrient runoff monitoring results and calculated nutrient budgets on catchment level in small agricultural watersheds in Estonia. A special programme for monitoring of nutrient losses was initiated and a network of monitoring stations, equipped with data-loggers and suitable devices for continuous flow measurement and flow-proportional automatic water sampling were established in Estonia in the mid-1990s. The research methodology is harmonized with the Nordic countries as well as with the other Baltic countries. The results indicate that nutrients losses are relatively low (generally below 11 kg N/ha and 0.9 kg P/ha). It can be partly explained by drastic changes in the Estonian agricultural practice in the 1990s but also by differences in runoff regime. Nutrient balances were calculated for two catchments, based on the data collected from the farms, some special studies and water quality monitoring results in two watersheds in 1995 (1999) - 2001. The nutrient balances for the catchments turned positive after being negative both for nitrogen and phosphorus in the mid-1990s.

Effects of strategic tillage on short-term erosion, nutrient loss in runoff and greenhouse gas emissions

Soil Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 201 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. R. Melland ◽  
D. L. Antille ◽  
Y. P. Dang
Keyword(s):  
Nitrous Oxide ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Heavy Rainfall ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Nutrient Loss ◽  
Nitrous Oxide Emissions ◽  
Nutrient Losses ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Co2

Occasional strategic tillage (ST) of long-term no-tillage (NT) soil to help control weeds may increase the risk of water, erosion and nutrient losses in runoff and of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared with NT soil. The present study examined the short-term effect of ST on runoff and GHG emissions in NT soils under controlled-traffic farming regimes. A rainfall simulator was used to generate runoff from heavy rainfall (70mmh–1) on small plots of NT and ST on a Vertosol, Dermosol and Sodosol. Nitrous oxide (N2O), carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4) fluxes from the Vertosol and Sodosol were measured before and after the rain using passive chambers. On the Sodosol and Dermosol there was 30% and 70% more runoff, respectively, from ST plots than from NT plots, however, volumes were similar between tillage treatments on the Vertosol. Erosion was highest after ST on the Sodosol (8.3tha–1 suspended sediment) and there were no treatment differences on the other soils. Total nitrogen (N) loads in runoff followed a similar pattern, with 10.2kgha–1 in runoff from the ST treatment on the Sodosol. Total phosphorus loads were higher after ST than NT on both the Sodosol (3.1 and 0.9kgha–1, respectively) and the Dermosol (1.0 and 0.3kgha–1, respectively). Dissolved nutrient forms comprised less than 13% of total losses. Nitrous oxide emissions were low from both NT and ST in these low-input systems. However, ST decreased CH4 absorption from both soils and almost doubled CO2 emissions from the Sodosol. Strategic tillage may increase the susceptibility of Sodosols and Dermosols to water, sediment and nutrient losses in runoff after heavy rainfall. The trade-offs between weed control, erosion and GHG emissions should be considered as part of any tillage strategy.

Soil Type Modifies the Impacts of Warming and Snow Exclusion on Carbon and Nutrient Losses

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephanie M. Juice ◽  
Paul G. Schaberg ◽  
Alexandra M. Kosiba ◽  
Carl E. Waite ◽  
Gary J. Hawley ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Nutrient Cycling ◽  
Soil Type ◽  
Soil Characteristics ◽  
Nutrient Loss ◽  
Climate Projections ◽  
Nutrient Losses ◽  
N Losses ◽  
Total N ◽  
The Impact

Abstract The varied and wide-reaching impacts of climate change are occurring across heterogeneous landscapes. Despite the known importance of soils in mediating biogeochemical nutrient cycling, there is little experimental evidence of how soil characteristics may shape ecosystem response to climate change. Our objective was to clarify how soil characteristics modify the impact of climate changes on carbon and nutrient leaching losses in temperate forests. We therefore conducted a field-based mesocosm experiment with replicated warming and snow exclusion treatments on two soils in large (2.4 m diameter), in-field forest sapling mesocosms. We found that nutrient loss responses to warming and snow exclusion treatments frequently varied substantially by soil type. Indeed, in some cases, soil type nullified the impact of a climate treatment. For example, warming and snow exclusion increased nitrogen (N) losses on fine soils by up to four times versus controls, but these treatments had no impact on coarse soils. Generally, the coarse textured soil, with its lower soil-water holding capacity, had higher nutrient losses (e.g., 12-17 times more total N loss from coarse than fine soils), except in the case of phosphate, which had consistently higher losses (23-58%) from the finer textured soil. Furthermore, the mitigation of nutrient loss by increasing tree biomass varied by soil type and nutrient. Our results suggest that potentially large biogeochemical responses to climate change are strongly mediated by soil characteristics, providing further evidence of the need to consider soil properties in Earth system models for improving nutrient cycling and climate projections.

scholarly journals Biogeochemical Regimes in Shallow Aquifers Reflect the Metabolic Coupling of the Elements Nitrogen, Sulfur, and Carbon

2018 ◽  
Vol 85 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Carl-Eric Wegner ◽  
Michael Gaspar ◽  
Patricia Geesink ◽  
Martina Herrmann ◽  
Manja Marz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Organic Matter ◽  
Groundwater Flow ◽  
Inorganic Nitrogen ◽  
Sulfur Metabolism ◽  
Ammonium Oxidation ◽  
Metabolic Potential ◽  
Differentiation Potential ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Monitoring Wells

ABSTRACTNear-surface groundwaters are prone to receive (in)organic matter input from their recharge areas and are known to harbor autotrophic microbial communities linked to nitrogen and sulfur metabolism. Here, we use multi-omic profiling to gain holistic insights into the turnover of inorganic nitrogen compounds, carbon fixation processes, and organic matter processing in groundwater. We sampled microbial biomass from two superimposed aquifers via monitoring wells that follow groundwater flow from its recharge area through differences in hydrogeochemical settings and land use. Functional profiling revealed that groundwater microbiomes are mainly driven by nitrogen (nitrification, denitrification, and ammonium oxidation [anammox]) and to a lesser extent sulfur cycling (sulfur oxidation and sulfate reduction), depending on local hydrochemical differences. Surprisingly, the differentiation potential of the groundwater microbiome surpasses that of hydrochemistry for individual monitoring wells. Being dominated by a few phyla (Bacteroidetes,Proteobacteria,Planctomycetes, andThaumarchaeota), the taxonomic profiling of groundwater metagenomes and metatranscriptomes revealed pronounced differences between merely present microbiome members and those actively participating in community gene expression and biogeochemical cycling. Unexpectedly, we observed a constitutive expression of carbohydrate-active enzymes encoded by different microbiome members, along with the groundwater flow path. The turnover of organic carbon apparently complements for lithoautotrophic carbon assimilation pathways mainly used by the groundwater microbiome depending on the availability of oxygen and inorganic electron donors, like ammonium.IMPORTANCEGroundwater is a key resource for drinking water production and irrigation. The interplay between geological setting, hydrochemistry, carbon storage, and groundwater microbiome ecosystem functioning is crucial for our understanding of these important ecosystem services. We targeted the encoded and expressed metabolic potential of groundwater microbiomes along an aquifer transect that diversifies in terms of hydrochemistry and land use. Our results showed that the groundwater microbiome has a higher spatial differentiation potential than does hydrochemistry.

scholarly journals Fertilización Con Potasio Y Fosfitos, Sobre El Rendimiento De Maíz Duro (Zea Mays) En La Zona Subcentral Litoral

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (15) ◽  
pp. 46
Author(s):  
Álvaro Lamilla Arana ◽  
Eduardo Colina Navarrete ◽  
Carlos Castro Arteaga ◽  
Danilo Santana Aragone ◽  
Guillermo García Vásquez ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Zea Mays ◽  
Experimental Design ◽  
Grain Yield ◽  
Plant Height ◽  
Zea Mays L ◽  
Potassium Sulfate ◽  
Hybrid Corn ◽  
Calcium Magnesium ◽  
San Juan County ◽  
Muriate Of Potash

The investigation evaluated the effect of fertilizers potásicos with fosfitos on the yield of grain of hard corn (Zea mays L.), in the Property "Santiago", located in the Km 26 way Babahoyo-San Juan, county of Los Ríos. A rehearsal settled down in the hybrid corn DK-7088, measuring the answer from the corn to the application of fertilizers potasic and fhosphite, to determine the dose with more effect on the production. 19 treatments were proven with Chloride of potassium, Sulfate of potassium and Nitrate of potassium, with fhosphite of Calcium, Magnesium and Potassium, more a witness without applications. The used experimental design was complete Blocks at random in three repetitions, the evaluated variables were subjected to the variancia analysis, and the test was applied from Tukey to 95% of probability. The evaluated parameters were: plant height, days to flowering, longitude and ear diameter and yield for hectare. Found increases in grain yield with three treatments, highlighting the treatment with the application of muriate of potash in conjunction with Calcium phosphide (9451,65 kg ha1 ). The results indicate the possibility of increases of more than 49% in relation to the witness (6339 kg ha1 ) where there was applied the treatments.

scholarly journals Effects of Soil and Water Conservation Practices on Runoff, Sediment and Nutrient Losses

Water ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 1333 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuguo Han ◽  
Gary Feng ◽  
Ying Ouyang
Keyword(s):  
Water Conservation ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Soil And Water Conservation ◽  
Nutrient Loss ◽  
Conservation Practices ◽  
Fish Scale ◽  
Nutrient Losses ◽  
Bare Land ◽  
Runoff Sediment ◽  
Soil And Water

Rainfall is a major dynamic source of soil erosion and nutrient loss on slopes. Soil and water conservation practices and agricultural activities can change the soil surface morphology and thus affect erosion and nutrient losses. This study focused on the effects of several typical soil and water conservation practices and agricultural land, for the purpose of: (1) determining how these practices prevent erosion and nutrient loss and identifying the hydrodynamic mechanisms; and (2) determining the application conditions for different practices. Runoff, sediment, total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) in fish-scale pits, agricultural land, narrow terraces, shrub cover and bare land, under rainfall events in rainy seasons (from May to November) during the 2010–2015 period, were monitored. Slope hydrodynamic mechanisms and application conditions of these practices were also investigated. The results showed that compared with bare land, fish-scale pits performed the best in preventing runoff, sediment, TN and TP, followed by 30% shrub coverage, narrow terraces and agricultural land, successively. Total runoff, sediment, TN and TP losses in fish-scale pits site were 19.70%, 2.03%, 10.10% and 35.97% of those in bare land of the same area, respectively. Soil and water conservation practices could change the hydraulic characteristics of slopes, decrease Re (Reynolds) and Fr (Froude) numbers, thereby decreasing runoff, sediment, TN and TP losses. Fish-scale pits were suitable for the areas with small single rainfall and good water permeability. When rainfall was greater than 60 mm, narrow terraces had highest efficiency in reducing sediment loss; therefore, they were suitable for the areas with relatively high rainfall intensity and soils similar to the sandy loams of the study area. As to the practice of covering land with plants, the effect was sustainable due to the plants’ long-term growth. Agricultural land was not recommended since the losses on it were relatively higher due to the impact of human activities. In reality, these practices may be applied in combination so as to effectively control water, soil and nutrient losses.

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