Opencast coal mining activities result in severe damage to soil and vegetation, and the reconstruction of soil and vegetation is critical in opencast coalmine areas. To better understand the spatial distribution characteristics of soil and vegetation in opencast coalmines, a spatial correlation analysis was conducted on the soil and vegetation properties of the Anjialing and Antaibao opencast coalmines

Studying soil microbial activity is important for evaluating soil microbial conditions and soil nutrient cycling. This study examined how the conversion of cropland to forest affects soil microbial activity and stratification ratios of the rhizosphere soil microbial index (RSMI), as well as to clarify the relationship between the stratification ratios of RSMI and soil microbial activity. Soils beneath

Prolonged and intensive agricultural exploitation in the European territory of Russia has resulted in extensive soil erosion, which has led to anthropogenically induced degradation of arable land. The extensive agricultural development of the region stems from the presence of plains suitable for plowing, which feature fertile chernozem (Luvic Chernozems) and grey forest (Luvisols) soils. The majority

Riparian buffers are important features that help to mitigate suspended sediment loads within rivers running through agricultural landscapes. Evaluating their effectiveness for sediment control by different modelling approaches can help direct beneficial management practices. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model and the Adapted Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) based model were used for

Volcanic oceanic islands host soils that may hold important paleo-environmental proxies, based on vegetation and faunal evidences coupled with pedological and geomorphological indicators. In this regard, the main Brazilian oceanic island of Fernando de Noronha (FNI) still lacks a deeper and more complete analysis of its climatic history and soil evolution. We select and collect representative FNI soils

Some soil bacteria and fungi are known to solubilize phosphates and play an important role in supplying phosphorus (P) to plants. In this study, we characterized the phosphate-solubilizing bacteria and fungi as well as P availability in latosols from southern China under different land use practices. Three different latosols (i.e., red soil, lateritic red soil and laterite red soil), each with four

In temperate forests, changes in snow depth associated with global climate change could affect soil biogeochemical cycles; however, the seasonal effects of snow depth on soil microbial biomass and enzyme activity and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Hence, a snow depth manipulation experiment that included three treatments was performed from October 2014 to October 2015 in a temperate forest

The effect of soil organic matter (SOM) on the spectral characteristics of soil differs among soil samples of different soil types with various mineral contents or mechanical compositions. SOM prediction models with visible and near-infrared and shortwave infrared (Vis-SWIR) spectral variables for grouping soil samples are more accurate than global modeling methods. However, the optimal grouping method

This study traces the geomorphological development in the environs of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic site Göbekli Tepe by means of radiocarbon dated sediment profiles from its close vicinity. Based on facies interpretation we identify different depositional environments and discuss the involved process dynamics. Our results show that the sediments from the foot slopes are characterized by soil creep and

Crop residue is an important factor influencing wind erosion of cultivated soils. Establishing soil surface protection afforded by standing crop residue is critical for land managers seeking to reduce or prevent soil loss by wind erosion and the impacts of blowing dust from agricultural lands. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effect of standing residue on soil wind erosion in the inland

Extensive areas of arable land have been abandoned in many countries around the world, especially in the Mediterranean region. The overall goal of this study is to assess the effects of agricultural land abandonment on soil organic carbon (SOC) concentrations and stocks in a Mediterranean mountain environment. The specific objectives are (i) to quantify differences in SOC concentrations in top 25-cm

The Tibetan Plateau is among the most ecologically important and sensitive regions worldwide, which has undergone severe desertification in recent decades, particularly in the Zoige region. In an effort to stem the progression of desertification, shrubs such as Salix cupularis have been planted in some localities in this region. However, the mechanisms whereby the interspecific relationships between

Sandy soils, as a group of soils, are unique soils. They have a specific set of physical and chemical soil properties that include rapid infiltration and conductivity, susceptibility to drought and erosion by wind, and low ability to hold water and nutrients. Sandy soils have a sandy or loamy sand texture in the fine-earth (<2 mm) fraction. They occur extensively in Florida, Nebraska, Michigan, Texas

Land-use change (LUC) in the tropics, such as the exponential rate of conversion of natural habitats into intense monocultures focusing on cash-crop cultivation, is a major causal factor of global environmental change. To understand the effects of LUC on soil organic matter (SOM) stability and the dynamics of C and N within SOM fractions, we measured the C and N content and δ13C and δ15N in fractions

Gully bank is an important part of the eroded gully and is an ecologically fragile zone. Vegetation and soil water play critical roles for regulating the hydrological process of gully banks and preventing the soil collapse of gully edge in arid and semi-arid areas. However, the effects of different vegetation on the distribution of soil water in the gully edge are still unknown in semi-arid areas.

Landslide susceptibility zonation (LSZ) has generally been regarded as the appropriate stride to begin scientific studies in mountainous terrains to alleviate the socio-economic consequences of landslides. Application of machine learning (ML) with geographic information system (GIS) is a promising fusion of technologies, for spatial prediction of landslide susceptibility with high precision, and has

This study was performed to investigate whether visible properties of trees species (leaf shape and deciduous property) exhibit strong effects on soil microbial community (SMC). Herein, forest soil and leaves were collected from six pure planted forests of City Forestry Demonstration Base at Harbin, northeast China. These forest stands included Pinus tabuliformis Carr. var. mukdensis Uyeki, P. sylvestris

A key problem in explaining the mountain landscapes of the Mediterranean region is the relationship between the development of transhumance (seasonal movement of livestock over long distances) and deforestation of the subalpine and upper montane belts at 1350–2200 m above sea level (m a.s.l.). We examined this relationship in the Central Southern Pyrenees using information from multiple proxies—archaeology

CLIGEN is a stochastic weather generator that has been used as input to WEPP. Normally, USLE based models predict erosion using parameter values that are long-term averages but RUSLE2 has a facility to predict erosion for single storms through user entered data. This enables CLIGEN to be used as a weather generator for RUSLE2 when EI30 values for CLIGEN generated rainfall are determined separately

Improved understanding of the impact of vegetation on soil erosion is critical for identifying effective strategies to use in soil and water conservation. Recently, although the concept of functional identity and diversity has been applied extensively in ecology, few studies have attempted to explore the effects of functional identity and diversity on soil erosion. In this study, the plant functional

Rock-glacier sediment transfer and ice melting can impact surface waters located downstream. However, there is a lack of knowledge on the influence of rock-glacier dynamics on the geochemical, hydrochemical, and ecological characteristics of adjacent impounded surface waters. In the Col d'Olen area (Long-Term Ecological Research site, NW Italian Alps), an intact rock glacier terminates into a pond

The emission of CO2 from the soil in agricultural areas is the result of the interaction of several factors, including soil and crop management practices and local edaphoclimatic conditions. The dynamics of organic carbon (OC), in the midst of reform processes in agricultural areas, can be used as an indicator of chemical soil quality because carbon loss is directly related to its lability, quality

Careful nutrient management to increase soil organic carbon (SOC) content is important in increasing agricultural productivity and maintaining ecosystem health. A field experiment was conducted for nine years to investigate the effects of manure (M) and inorganic fertilizer (NPK) on SOC and its labile fractions within the bulk soil and in soil aggregates in a wheat-maize rotation on the North China

Drylands are exposed to gully erosion expressed by an incised channel surrounded by affected landforms. Although each relevant landform has unique patterns, their connectivity with the gully creates geomorphological interrelations that affect the ecological functioning of the entire area. The Wadi Attir area in the northern semiarid Negev of Israel was chosen to analyze these processes. This area is

Precipitation intensity is an important meteorological input for water erosion and runoff applications. A commonly used intensity factor is maximum 30-min intensity (I30), which represents the sustained intensity of a storm. Determining I30 is challenging for two reasons. First, intensity can vary significantly over time, even within very short durations of 5 min or less. Second, the majority of precipitation

In forestry, stand conversion influences soil physicochemical and biological properties, yet the effects of conversion of pure plantation to uneven-aged mixed plantation on soil aggregate distribution and stability, C/N/P stoichiometry and enzyme activity remain unclear. We studied the distribution of water-stable aggregate fractions, mean weight diameter (MWD), stoichiometric ratios (C/N, C/P, and

Soil loss estimation and flood hazard mapping cannot be overemphasized due to their environmental, economic and societal concern. Thus, the main objective of this study was to assess the potential soil erosion and flood hazards zones using Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) and Hand Above Nearest Drainage (HAND) models, respectively for appropriate conservation and prevention measures in

Freeze-thaw cycle promotes the decomposition of soil organic matter in cold regions, causing carbon and nitrogen to be emitted in the forms of CO2, CH4 and N2O, resulting in positive feedback to climate warming. To effectively regulate greenhouse gas emissions, four different regulation modes, namely, biochar addition (BA), straw addition (SA), combined biochar and straw (CBS) and a natural control

The effects of wetting-drying (W-D) cycles on the desiccation-induced cracking of a fat clay (CH) as well as the role of soil suction in the evolution of soil strength, were investigated. Cylindrical block soil samples (50 mm in diameter and 100 mm in height) compacted to a dry density of 1.3 Mg/m3, were subjected to 3 stages of drying at a temperature of 22 ± 2 °C, the first of which had an initial

Soil carbon sequestration and potential sequestration are key issues in global carbon research, as the size of the soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks and their changes over time are important for understanding their role in climate change. In northern China’s agro-pastoral ecotone, we compared SOC data derived from 238 sampling sites during China’s National Soil Inventory in the 1980s with the results

Vegetation-restored hillslopes not only reduce erosion but also trap sediment from uphill silt-laden inflow. To investigate the sediment trapping mechanism of grass strips, a series of crossed experiments with various factors, including slope (5–20°), sediment concentration (40–160 g L−1), and unit flow rate (7.5–45.0 L min−1 m−1) were conducted using a 10-m-long and slope adjustable soil plot. The

Flow velocity is one of the most significant hydraulic parameters directly connected to sediment transport-deposition processes. Four soils were collected from north to south of the Loess Plateau, namely Sandy Loess (SL), Loessial Soil (LS), Heilu Soil (HS) and Anthrosol Soil (AS), to examine the impacts of soil property on mean flow velocity in both interrill and rill flows under different simulated

Vegetation is at the nexus of water, soil, and the atmosphere, making it a significant indicator of climatic variability and shifts in human activity. The spatial attribution analysis of vegetation changes may help us to identify and estimate the relationship between variation in vegetation and different erosion types, and their correspondence may be in the antecedents and consequences of vegetation

The present study was conducted to determine the responses of sand dunes, using different restorative measures on different decadal time-scales in desert lands of southwest Iran. The study was carried out using a factorial experiment with a completely randomized design which was replicated three times. Factors consisted of restoration measures (PM-BF: petroleum mulching-biological fixation, PM: petroleum

With ongoing global climate change and human activities, increasing desertification plays a predominant role in increasing soil nutrient losses. Soil nitrogen (N) is the essential limiting nutrient supporting plant growth and evaluating soil nutrient content, especially in desert ecosystems. N microbial processes will ultimately restore and maintain the balance in the soil N cycle, but the damage caused

Alpine meadow degradation induced by human trampling decreases plant biomass and species diversity, potentially altering soil chemistry and microbial community composition. We studied soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) plus soil bacterial and fungal community structure in alpine meadows, along a degradation gradient induced by human trampling at Wugong Mountain, China. As degradation

Forested areas are assumed not to be influenced by erosion processes. However, forest soils of Northern Germany in a hummocky ground moraine landscape can sometimes exhibit a very shallow thickness on crest positions and buried soils on slope positions. The question consequently is: Are these on-going or ancient erosional and depositional processes? Plutonium isotopes act as soil erosion/deposition

Lateritic weathering of Miocene volcanic rocks from western Cameroon highlands formed duricrusted bauxitic profiles. Two weathering profiles on ca. 14 Ma basalt and ca. 16 Ma trachyte were studied using geochemical mass balance functions. Less mobile elements Ti and Zr were used as references to quantify volumetric change (strain, ε), element transfer rate (τ) and geochemical mass transfers during

The study aims to identify regional vegetational changes during the late Holocene from the Dzukou valley in north-eastern (NE) India and the potential relationship of these vegetation dynamics with climatic shifts. The investigations utilize a combination of δ13Corg of organic matter, lipid biomarker (n-alkane) as well as pollen data derived from ~1.4 m sedimentary profile spanning the last ~3150 cal

Knowledge of the spatial variation of soil infiltration is necessary for managing water conservation, salinity, and precision agriculture in drylands. In this study, the spatial variation of soil infiltration was investigated using digital soil mapping methods in the Sistan plain, an arid, low-relief flood plain in eastern Iran where a large irrigation project is being implemented to irrigate lands

Various 137Cs conversion models have been used to predict soil erosion. A knowledge of the initial distribution of 137Cs is vital to improve soil loss prediction. The objectives were to (1) characterize the dynamic distributions of 133Cs near the soil surfaces in multiple rains spiked with 133Cs using a rainfall simulator, and (2) further estimate the relaxation mass depth (H) for use in an improved

Microbial communities and enzyme activity in soil are the functional link through which the vegetation type occupying a site, may alter soil processes fundamental to nutrient cycling. Roots are known to regulate soil carbon (C) input, but the impacts of different classes of roots on soil microbial community (as indexed by PLFAs) and enzyme activity are uncertain. Thus, the aim of this study was to

Collapsing gullies involve considerable erosion and extreme landform changes and frequently occur in South China. The amount of rainfall infiltration has a direct influence on the occurrence of collapsing gullies. However, the mechanistic effect of infiltration or rainfall on the development of collapsing gullies still needs to be explored, as it is difficult to spatially describe infiltration amounts