Effects of supplemental poultry manure applications on soil erosion and runoff water quality from a loam soil under potato production in northwestern New Brunswick

2011 ◽  
Vol 91 (4) ◽  
pp. 595-613 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. W. Rees ◽  
T. L. Chow ◽  
B. J. Zebarth ◽  
Z. Xing ◽  
P. Toner ◽  
...  

Rees, H. W., Chow, T. L., Zebarth, B. J., Xing, Z., Toner, P., Lavoie, J. and Daigle, J.-L. 2011. Effects of supplemental poultry manure applications on soil erosion and runoff water quality from a loam soil under potato production in northwestern New Brunswick. Can. J. Soil Sci. 91: 595–613. Soil erosion is a major threat to the economic viability of potato production in northwestern New Brunswick. One option for growers to increase soil organic matter and improve soil quality in potato fields is through poultry manure application. While poultry manure may be beneficial for soil quality, there are also potential risks to surface water quality associated with manure application. This study evaluated the effects of time of poultry manure application on potato fields in northwestern New Brunswick on soil erosion and runoff water quality. Seven permanent Wischmeier-like erosion plots, established in 1982, were used. Treatments consisted of a control (Ctrl) with no manure applied, and applications of 4 Mg ha−1 of fresh poultry broiler manure in late fall (F), pre-planting (PP) and pre-hilling (PH) on 11% slope plots and a Ctrl, F and PH treatments on 8% slope plots. All poultry manured treatments increased potato total yield with a general trend of Ctrl<F<PH<PP, but only the 8% PH increase was significant (P<0.10). Potato yield of fall-applied poultry manure did not result in a significant reduction in yield compared with other treatments. May to October runoff was significantly reduced on the 11% PH, but increased on the 8% F treatment. May to October soil loss was significantly reduced on the 11% PH and 11% PP. The soil loss:runoff ratio was reduced by up to 15% with PP and PP<PH<F<Ctrl. Fall applications generally resulted in the greatest mean annual flow-weighted nutrient runoff concentrations and runoff nutrient loadings whereas PH resulted in some of the lowest nutrient concentrations and loadings. While high background concentrations of Escherichia coli were found in runoff, E. coli concentrations in runoff were increased 20–230% by manure application. Escherichia coli colonies survived the winters in northwestern New Brunswick and populations were cyclical being highest in summer and lowest in winter. Escherichia coli concentrations in runoff were significantly (P<0.10) correlated with air and soil temperature and soil loss. The PH appeared to provide the best balance between crop production and surface water protection. Further replicated research is required to support these results.

Soil Research ◽  
1983 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 109 ◽  
Author(s):  
MJ Singer ◽  
PH Walker

The 20-100 mm portion of a yellow podzolic soil (Albaqualf) from the Ginninderra Experiment Station (A.C.T.) was used in a rainfall simulator and flume facility to elucidate the interactions between raindrop impact, overland water flow and straw cover as they affect soil erosion. A replicated factorial design compared soil loss in splash and runoff from 50 and 100 mm h-1 rainfall, the equivalent of 100 mm h-1 overland flow, and 50 and 100 mm h-1 rainfall plus the equivalent of 100 mm h-' overland flow, all at 0, 40 and 80% straw cover on a 9% slope. As rainfall intensity increased, soil loss in splash and runoff increased. Within cover levels, the effect of added overland flow was to decrease splash but to increase total soil loss. This is due to an interaction between raindrops and runoff which produces a powerful detaching and transporting mechanism within the flow known as rain-flow transportation. Airsplash is reduced, in part, because of the changes in splash characteristics which accompany changes in depths of runoff water. Rain-flow transportation accounted for at least 64% of soil transport in the experiment and airsplash accounted for no more than 25% of soil transport The effects of rainfall, overland flow and cover treatments, rather than being additive, were found to correlate with a natural log transform of the soil loss data.


1991 ◽  
Vol 71 (3) ◽  
pp. 305-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. Bomke ◽  
L. E. Lowe

Field experiments evaluated yield response to deep-pit poultry manure application to barley on a clay soil near Prince George and a grass-legume forage on a silty clay loam soil near Chilliwack, B.C. Substantial dry matter yield increases were measured at manure applications up to 20 t ha−1. Subsamples of both crops and the poultry manure were analyzed for Cu, Zn, Mn, Ba, Pb, Ni, Cr, Cd, B and Co. Selenium analyses were made on selected crop samples. There were no indications of toxicity problems even at 40 t ha−1, the highest application. Copper and Zn concentrations in forages were increased by the poultry manure and the Mn/Cu ratio tended to decrease with manure application. Key words: Orchardgrass, ladino clover, barley, micronutrients


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katy Wiltshire ◽  
Toby Waine ◽  
Bob Grabowski ◽  
Miriam Glendell ◽  
Steve Addy ◽  
...  

&lt;p&gt;Although fine-grained sediment (FGS) is a natural component of river systems, increased fluxes can impact FGS levels to such an extent they cause detrimental, irreversible changes in the way rivers function intensifying flood risk and negatively affecting water quality.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;Previous catchment scale studies indicate there is no simple link between areas of sediment loss and the organic carbon (OC) load in waterways; areas with a high soil loss rate may not contribute most sediment to the rivers and areas that contribute the most sediment may not contribute the most OC. Anthropogenic and climate changes can accelerate soil erosion and the role of soil OC transported by erosional processes in the fluxes of C between land, water and atmosphere is still debated. Tracing sediment pathways, likely depositional areas and connections to streams leads to better assumptions about control processes and better estimation of OC fluxes.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this innovative study OC fingerprinting of sediment reaching a catchment&amp;#8217;s waterbodies is combined with OC stock and erosion modelling of the terrestrial catchment. Initial results show disconnect between catchment OC loss erosion modelling and fingerprinting results, which could be due to failure to model connectivity between the land and river channel. The current soil erosion model RUSLE (Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation) calculates only the spatial pattern of mean annual soil erosion rates. Using the WaTEM SEDEM model, which in includes routing (and possible en route deposition) of eroded sediments to river channels, we aim to determine the dominant source of OC within catchment streams by identification of both the land-use specific areas with the highest OC loss and the transport pathways between the sources and river channel.&lt;/p&gt;


2011 ◽  
Vol 91 (2) ◽  
pp. 279-290 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zisheng Xing ◽  
Lien Chow ◽  
Herb W. Rees ◽  
Fanrui Meng ◽  
John Monteith ◽  
...  

Xing, Z., Chow, L., Rees, H. W., Meng, F., Monteith, J. and Stevens, L. 2011. A comparison of effects of one-pass and conventional potato hilling on water runoff and soil erosion under simulated rainfall. Can. J. Soil Sci. 91: 279–290. Hilling plays an important role in potato production, but is found to be inducing soil loss. An artificial rainfall simulation system was used to evaluate the differences between one-pass hilling (OPH, hilling performed when planting, or shortly after planting) and conventional hilling (CH, hilling performed approximately 35–45 d after planting) as well as their combination with a cover crop (ryegrass; _R) on runoff and soil loss. A three-replicate randomized block experimental design with constant rainfall intensity (120 mm h−1) was used in this study. No significant differences in runoff were found between different hilling methods. The soil losses, however, showed significant differences both among treatments, among canopy cover classes, and among their interaction terms (all P<0.001). The mean soil loss for CH was significantly higher than that for OPH, by 40%, and the mean soil loss for CH_R was higher than that for OPH_R by 57%. On average, the CH treatments (CH and CH_R) induced greater soil loss than the OPH treatments (OPH and OPH_R) by 47%. Further, the effects can vary with different canopy cover percentages. The OPH treatments (OPH and OPH_R) induced more soil loss than CH treatments (CH and CH_R), by 4.4 to 12.8%, in the <30% canopy cover group, while soil loss in the CH treatments was greater than that in OPH treatments for both the 30–70% and >70% canopy cover groups by 21–94%. Irrespective of treatment, soil loss before canopy forming was 2.4 to 8.9 times higher than the soil loss for the partial to full canopy period. With a cover crop, the CH and OPH treatments can reduce soil loss by 37–55%. One-pass hilling initiated runoff earlier than CH. The water runoff and soil loss with respect to the elapsed time since initialization of water runoff and soil loss could be modeled by a three-parameter Sigmoid function with r 2≥0.94. The information generated from this study could be used in landscape modeling to study the impacts of potato production on soil and stream water quality.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 694
Author(s):  
Micael De Souza Fraga ◽  
Laura Thebit de Almeida ◽  
Marcel Carvalho Abreu ◽  
Felipe Bernardes Silva ◽  
Guilherme Barbosa Reis ◽  
...  

No estado de Minas Gerais, as campanhas de coleta e análise da qualidade da água nos corpos hídricos contemplam até 51 variáveis, o que dificulta a análise e interpretação desse conjunto de dados e a identificação das variáveis determinantes para a qualidade da água. Diante disso, o objetivo deste trabalho foi identificar as principais fontes de poluição, bem como o comportamento da qualidade da água ao longo do tempo de monitoramento, por meio de diferentes análises estatísticas na circunscrição hidrográfica do rio Piranga. Pelos resultados obtidos, a análise fatorial/análise de componentes principais apontou a alta susceptibilidade que a bacia apresenta à erosão do solo, a contaminação pelo lançamento de efluentes domésticos e a variabilidade da qualidade das águas em virtude dos metais pesados. As variáveis Escherichia coli, ferro dissolvido, fósforo total e manganês total apresentaram os valores de violação da classe de enquadramento mais críticos. A análise de tendência mostrou padrões diferentes para o índice de qualidade da água e para as variáveis mais relevantes para a qualidade da água. Dentre as variáveis que compõe o índice, destacam-se as tendências de aumento de nitrato em todas as estações analisadas. De maneira geral, os resultados mostraram que a qualidade da água na área de estudo varia em função da erosão do solo, do alto grau de contaminação por efluentes domésticos, da poluição difusa advinda das áreas agrícolas e dos metais pesados, sendo as variáveis de qualidade da água vinculadas a estes fatores as mais importantes. Surface water quality assessment in the hydrographic region of the Piranga River using multivariate and non-parametric statistical analysis ABSTRACTIn the state of Minas Gerais, campaigns to collect and analyze water quality in water bodies include up to 51 variables, which makes it difficult to analyze and interpret this data set and to identify the determining variables for water quality. Therefore, the objective of this work was to identify the main sources of pollution, as well as the behavior of water quality over the monitoring time, through different statistical analyzes in the hydrographic region of the Piranga River. Based on the results obtained, the factor analysis/principal component analysis out the high susceptibility that the hydrographic region presents to soil erosion, contamination by the release of domestic effluents and the variability of water quality due to heavy metals. The variables Escherichia coli, dissolved iron, total phosphorus and total manganese presented the most critical values of violation of the framework class. The trend analysis showed different patterns for the water quality index and for the most relevant variables for water quality. Among the variables that make up the index, the trends of nitrate increase in all analyzed stations stand out. In general, the results showed that the water quality in the unit varies depending on soil erosion, the high degree of contamination by domestic effluents, the diffuse pollution from agricultural areas and heavy metals, with water quality variables being linked to these factors the most important.Keywords: environmental analysis, Minas Gerais, water pollution, water resources.


2002 ◽  
Vol 82 (2) ◽  
pp. 249-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
H W Rees ◽  
T L Chow ◽  
P J Loro ◽  
J. Lavoie ◽  
J O Monteith ◽  
...  

Soil erosion by water associated with potato production in northwestern New Brunswick has been identified as one of the most severe soil degradation problems affecting soil quality in Canada. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the effectiveness of applying various rates of hay mulch following potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) harvest in reducing runoff and soil loss rates under northwestern New Brunswick climatic and soil conditions and to determine the impact of the various hay mulch application rates on potato yield. Wischmeier-like runoff-erosion plots (10 m wide by 30 m long) on a Holmesville gravelly loam soil were used. Annual hay mulch application rates of 0.00, 2.25, 4.50 and 9.00 t ha-1 wet mass were evaluated under continuous up-and-down-slope potato production on 8 and 11% slopes between October 1995 and October 1999. During the study period, annual precipitation was lower than normal. Calculated rainfall erosivities were 102, 66, 73 and 133% of the value typically used for conservation planning in this region (1276 MJ mm ha-1h-1). Seventy-three percent of the average annual erosivity for the 4-yr period was associated with storms occurring in June, July, August and September. Hay mulching at rates of 2.25, 4.50 and 9.00 t ha-1 conserved on average 13, 18 and 28 mm of June to September precipitation, respectively. Mean annual soil losses were reduced to 14, 7 and 2% of the control (5.6 t ha-1) by the 2.25, 4.50 and 9.00 t ha-1 treatments, respectively, on the 11% slope and to 43 and 24% of the control (2.0 t ha-1) on the 2.25 and 4.50 t ha-1 treatments, respectively, on the 8% slope. Eroded sediment silt, clay and organic matter (OM) contents were 1.6, 1.9 and 2.3 times the content of the surface soil at the experimental site. Mulching at rates as low as 2.25 t ha-1 reduced nutrient losses of NO3-N and available P, K, Ca and Mg to 26, 18, 28, 20 and 24% of control, respectively, on the 11% slope, and to 81, 50, 82, 66 and 77% of control, respectively, on the 8% slope. However, levels of nutrient losses from the controls were low to begin with (2.0, 0.4, 2.8, 10.9 and 1.6 kg ha-1 of NO3-N, and available P, K, Ca and Mg, respectively). Both total and marketable potato crop yields from all 2.25 and 4.50 t ha-1 treatments were in excess of 5% greater than their controls; however, only the increases in total yields from the 2.25 and 4.50 t ha-1 treatments and marketable yield from the 4.50 t ha-1 treatment on the 8% slope were significantly greater at P< 0.05. Yield of potato on the 9.00 t ha-1 treatment showed a consistent increase in total yield over the 4-yr period, going from 80% of control in 1996 to 127% of control in 1999, indicating a possible improvement in soil productivity. Hay mulching at rates up to 9.00 t ha-1 did not increase the incidence of disease or other defects. Hay mulching was found to be an effective tool for reducing soil loss while maintaining, and in some cases enhancing, potato yield. Key words: Hay mulching, soil loss, water erosion, organic residues, sediment composition, nutrient loss, erosivity


1995 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 227-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. L. Chow ◽  
H. W. Rees

Farmers have long considered coarse fragments a hindrance in potato production. Rock picking or crushing has become a routine operation. Using simulated rainfall events and runoff-erosion plots (1 m × 1 m), the effects of coarse-fragment content (0, 7, 15 and 25% by volume) and size (1.0–1.9, 1.9–5.1 and 5.1–7.6-cm diam) on runoff, infiltration and soil loss were evaluated on an Orthic Dystric Brunisol. Study objectives were to quantify the influence of coarse fragments on soil erosion and to convert these relationships into mathematical equations for use with existing models to predict soil loss. Although there were only marginal increases in infiltration and reductions in runoff attributable to increasing content and size of coarse fragments, the rate of soil loss from the control was higher than that from all other treatments. In general, the rate of soil loss decreased with increasing content and size of coarse fragments. The effects of content and size of coarse fragments on soil-loss reduction, either individually or in combination, were expressed mathematically with correlation coefficients greater than 0.82. The study also revealed that for a given volumetric coarse-fragment content, the percentage surface cover increased with increasing coarse-fragment size. This finding has important practical implications because most reporting of coarse fragments is done on the basis of volume rather than percentage surface cover. Key words: Rock content, rock size, rainfall simulator, infiltration, soil loss


2008 ◽  
Vol 88 (3) ◽  
pp. 409-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
H W Rees ◽  
T L Chow ◽  
E G Gregorich

Concerns about deteriorating soil quality led to Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada establishing a network of 23 soil quality monitoring benchmark sites with the objective of providing a baseline data set for assessing change in soil quality and biological productivity of representative Canadian farming systems. A site (22-NB) was established in 1990 in northwestern New Brunswick to monitor changes in Podzolic and Brunisolic soils developed on coarse loamy till on a rolling landscape under intensive potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) production [potato-potato-barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) rotation] that was cultivated along the contour with variable grade diversions and a grassed waterway. Soil samples were collected in 1990 and again in 2000. Field saturated hydraulic conductivity (Kfs) at 10–20, 26–36 and 50–60 cm, earthworm counts and crop yield measurements were conducted annually. 137Cs data were collected in 1990 to estimate soil displacement at the site. Runoff and soil loss between May 01 and Nov. 30 were measured annually. The soil conservation system at site 22-NB has resulted in annual runoff and soil loss of only 9 mm and 311 kg ha-1, respectively. Measured values of 137Cs averaged 2114 Bq m-2 (70% of baseline). Changes in the Ap horizon properties between 1990 and 2000 included significant (P < 0.05) increases in available P (+ 86.7 mg kg-1) and K (+ 13.4 mg kg-1) and significant reductions in available Mg (−45.8 mg kg-1) and SOC (−0.51 g kg-1). The Kfs of 10- to 20-cm, 26- to 36-cm and 50- to 60-cm depths were 1.3, 1.0 and 1.0 cm h-1, respectively. Very few earthworms were present (0.05 worms m-2). The upper terrace was consistently the highest yielding in both potato and barley, while the lowest terrace was consistently the lowest yielding in both crops. Crop yields may have been affected by micro-climate and other soil differences as a result of site position.While the system of contour tillage with variable grade diversions and grassed waterway conserved both soil and water, the potato-potato-grain rotation did not maintain SOC levels or sustain earthworm populations. Associated heavy rates of fertilization also lead to increased levels of soil K and P. Key words: Soil quality, soil organic carbon, hydraulic conductivity, earthworms, runoff, water erosion


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