Farmer-Based Assessment of Soil Quality: A Soil Health Scorecard

2015 ◽  
pp. 39-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas E. Romig ◽  
M. Jason Garlynd ◽  
Robin F. Harris
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Soil Health

scholarly journals Changes in Soil Properties after Soil Washing of Metal-contaminated Soil near the former Janghang Smelter

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (10) ◽  
pp. 482-492
Author(s):  
Keong-Hyeon An ◽  
Songhee Kim ◽  
Seung-Woo Jeong
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Soil Texture ◽  
Contaminated Soil ◽  
Soil Property ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Soil Washing ◽  
Fine Soil ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Chemical Washing ◽  
Changes In Soil Properties

Objectives : Changes in soil properties after washing of metal-contaminated soil near the former Janghang Smelter were investigated in this study. Contaminated input soils and remediated output soils were sampled from three different soil washing plants and analyzed for soil physical and chemical properties. Soil quality was evaluated by the soil fertilization guideline suggested by the Korea Rural Development Administration (KRDA). This study revealed the necessity of soil quality management for the remediated soil as an ecosystem member.Methods : Three soil washing plants (1OU, 2OU, 3OU) were commonly divided into the five steps: 1) the particle separation (crushing and grinding etc.) → 2) soil particle classification (big stone, fine soil, minimal fine soil) → 3) chemical washing (fine soil) → 4) neutralization of washed soil (lime) → 5) return-back to the original position. The separating minimum particle diameters of the 1OU, 2OU, and 3OU washing processes were 5 µm, 20 µm, and 10 µm, respectively, and the chemical washing solutions used were respectively 0.1 M H2SO4, 0.5 M H2SO4/0.5 M H3PO4, and 0.1 N NaOH-Na2CO3 (alkali reduction). Soils were collected before and after washing, air-dried, sieved with < 2 mm and analyzed for soil texture, bulk density, aggregate stability (AS), water holding capacity (WHC), pH, electrical conductivity (EC), organic matter content (OM), total nitrogen (TN), available phosphate (AvP), cation exchange capacity (CEC), exchangeable cations (potassium, calcium, magnesium, sodium).Results and Discussion : Sandy soil showed a big change in soil texture before and after soil washing, while there was no change in soil texture for fine soil. Sandy soil showed an increase in bulk density, a decrease in WHC, and a decrease in AS. The pH of remediated soil was affected by the type of washing chemical. The acidic washing processes (1OU, 2OU) resulted in low pH soils, while an alkali reduction process (3OU) showed high pH soil. The soil OM, TN, AvP and CEC decreased after soil washing. In the case of silty paddy soil, OM and TN were significantly reduced by washing. The most important change in soil property after washing was EC. After soil washing, the soil electrical conductivity increased sharply in all OUs : 1OU 0.51 → 6.21 ds/m, 2OU 1.09 → 3.73 ds/m, 3OU 0.99 → 9.30 ds/m. The EC values of the contaminated soil before washing were all less than 2 ds/m, which is an appropriate agricultural level. However, EC was significantly increased after washing, implying a strong salty soil level. The soil quality evaluation results before and after washing showed that the soil quality of heavy-metal contaminated soil was apparently degraded by washing. The number of soil property in the optimal range before washing (contaminated soil) was 10, but the number decreased to 5 after washing (remediated soil).Conclusions : Soil quality may be significantly changed after soil washing. The most noticeable change was the significant increase in the EC of soil and the soil health should be restored first to recycle the remediated soil. The important causes of changes in the soil quality were the separation of fine soil particles containing relatively high heavy metals from the bulk soil, soil disturbance by chemical washing solution and addition of high salts such as coagulants and pH adjust. Soil management schemes considering soil health should be soon prepared to restore the remediated soil back as an ecosystem member.

scholarly journals Assessment of Soil Health and Soil Quality of Kandhamal District, Odisha

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (01) ◽  
pp. 2501-2510
Author(s):  
Sushri Shainee Singh ◽  
Narendra Swaroop ◽  
Tarence Thomas
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Soil Health

scholarly journals Refining physical aspects of soil quality and soil health when exploring the effects of soil degradation and climate change on biomass production: an Italian case study

SOIL ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonello Bonfante ◽  
Fabio Terribile ◽  
Johan Bouma
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Soil Properties ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Biomass Production ◽  
Soil Type ◽  
Soil Degradation ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Biological Indicators ◽  
Communication Process ◽  
Physical Chemical

Abstract. This study focuses on soil physical aspects of soil quality and health with the objective to define procedures with worldwide rather than only regional applicability, reflecting modern developments in soil physical and agronomic research and addressing important questions regarding possible effects of soil degradation and climate change. In contrast to water and air, soils cannot, even after much research, be characterized by a universally accepted quality definition and this hampers the internal and external communication process. Soil quality expresses the capacity of the soil to function. Biomass production is a primary function, next to filtering and organic matter accumulation, and can be modeled with soil–water–atmosphere–plant (SWAP) simulation models, as used in the agronomic yield-gap program that defines potential yields (Yp) for any location on earth determined by radiation, temperature and standardized crop characteristics, assuming adequate water and nutrient supply and lack of pests and diseases. The water-limited yield (Yw) reflects, in addition, the often limited water availability at a particular location. Actual yields (Ya) can be considered in relation to Yw to indicate yield gaps, to be expressed in terms of the indicator (Ya/Yw)×100. Soil data to calculate Yw for a given soil type (the genoform) should consist of a range of soil properties as a function of past management (various phenoforms) rather than as a single representative dataset. This way a Yw-based characteristic soil quality range for every soil type is defined, based on semipermanent soil properties. In this study effects of subsoil compaction, overland flow following surface compaction and erosion were simulated for six soil series in the Destra Sele area in Italy, including effects of climate change. Recent proposals consider soil health, which appeals more to people than soil quality and is now defined by separate soil physical, chemical and biological indicators. Focusing on the soil function biomass production, physical soil health at a given time of a given type of soil can be expressed as a point (defined by a measured Ya) on the defined soil quality range for that particular type of soil, thereby defining the seriousness of the problem and the scope for improvement. The six soils showed different behavior following the three types of land degradation and projected climate change up to the year 2100. Effects are expected to be major as reductions of biomass production of up to 50 % appear likely under the scenarios. Rather than consider soil physical, chemical and biological indicators separately, as proposed now elsewhere for soil health, a sequential procedure is discussed, logically linking the separate procedures.

scholarly journals A Soil Health Card (SHC) for soil quality monitoring of agricultural lands in south-eastern coastal region of Bangladesh

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
S. M. Didar-Ul Islam ◽  
Mohammad Amir Hossain Bhuiyan ◽  
Mohammad Mohinuzzaman ◽  
Md. Hassan Ali ◽  
Shaila Rahman Moon
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Coastal Region ◽  
Quality Monitoring ◽  
Agricultural Lands ◽  
Health Card ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Soil Quality Monitoring

scholarly journals Crop response to soils amended with biochar: expected benefits and unintended risks

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raghunath Subedi ◽  
Chiara Bertora ◽  
Laura Zavattaro ◽  
Carlo Grignani
Keyword(s):  
Soil Quality ◽  
Crop Yield ◽  
Crop Yields ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Crop Growth ◽  
Plant Diseases ◽  
Growth And Yield ◽  
Yield Response ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Positive Effects

Biochar (BC) from biomass waste pyrolysis has been widely studied due to its ability to increase carbon (C) sequestration, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and enhance both crop growth and soil quality. This review summarizes the current knowledge of BC production, characterization, and types, with a focus on its positive effects on crop yield and soil properties versus the unintended risks associated with these effects. Biochar-amended soils enhance crop growth and yield via several mechanisms: expanded plant nutrient and water availability through increased use efficiencies, improved soil quality, and suppression of soil and plant diseases. Yield response to BC has been shown to be more evident in acidic and sandy soils than in alkaline and fine-textured soils. Biochar composition and properties vary considerably with feedstock and pyrolysis conditions so much that its concentrations of toxic compounds and heavy metals can negatively impact crop and soil health. Consequently, more small-scale and greenhouse-sited studies are in process to investigate the role of BC/soil/crop types on crop growth, and the mechanisms by which they influence crop yield. Similarly, a need exists for long-term, field-scale studies on the effects (beneficial and harmful) of BC amendment on soil health and crop yields, so that production guidelines and quality standards may be developed for BCs derived from a range of feedstocks.

scholarly journals Targeting the soil quality and soil health concepts when aiming for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and the EU Green Deal

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonello Bonfante ◽  
Angelo Basile ◽  
Johan Bouma
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Soil Conditions ◽  
Soil Series ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Health Concepts ◽  
The Eu

Abstract. The soil quality and soil health concepts are widely used as soils receive more attention in the worldwide policy arena. So far, however, the distinction between the two concepts is unclear and operational procedures for measurement are still being developed. A proposal is made to focus soil health on actual soil conditions, as determined by a limited set of indicators that reflect favourable rooting conditions. In addition, soil quality can express inherent soil conditions in a given soil type (genoform) reflecting the effects of past and present soil management (expressed by various phenoforms). Soils contribute to ecosystem services that, in turn, contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and, more recently, to the EU Green Deal. Relevant soil ecosystem services are biomass production (SDG2: zero hunger), providing clean water (SDG6); climate mitigation by carbon capture and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (SDG13: climate action) and biodiversity preservation (SDG15: life on land). The use of simulation models for the soil-water-atmosphere-plant system is proposed as a quantitative and reproducible procedure to derive single values for soil health and soil quality for current and future climate conditions. Crop production parameters from the international: yield-gap program are used combined with soil-specific parameters expressing the effects of phenoforms. These procedures focus on the ecosystem service: biomass production Other ecosystem services are determined by soil-specific management to be based on experiences obtained in similar soils elsewhere or by new research. A case study, covering three Italian soil series, illustrates the application of the proposed concepts, showing that soil types (soil series) acted significantly different to effects of management also in their reaction to climate change.

scholarly journals Importance of Soil Health and It’s Estimation by Remote Sensing and GIS

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (VII) ◽  
pp. 1262-1266
Author(s):  
Ashish Kumar Singh
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Renewable Resources ◽  
Soil Health ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Uttar Pradesh ◽  
Remote Sensing And Gis ◽  
Soil Functions ◽  
Waste Land ◽  
Sentinel 2

The soil quality is defined as the measurements of an essential organic and moving composition. To conserve the environment boundary with human health as well as to maintain the soils productivity are the main objective. In order to understand, it is important to differentiate between the soil heath and soil quality. The soil functions are generally related to soil quality however the living and organic stocks are of a non renewable resources, reutilizing the nutrients is presented by the soil health. Among this the Soil Organic Carbon is most important factor. In the soil SOC plays an important role in the productivity of the soil. In this research we conducted a study on the District of Farrukhabad, Uttar Pradesh by using Remote Sensing. A Sentinel-2 data has used for the analysis of Land Use and Land Cover purposes. The result concluded the highest and minimum measurement of SOC in Agricultural and waste land respectively. The main objective of this research, to describe the quality and characteristic of the soil and consider the reasons by which the soil quality get disturb, to discover the agricultural practices which directly affects the soil quality.

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