Impacts of Land Use Change in Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Stocks (Case Study Shahmirzad Lands, Semnan Province, Iran)

Document Type : Research and Full Length Article

Authors

1 The University of Shahrood

2 Faculty of Desert studies, Semnan university

3 Agriculture Research and Education Organization - Natural Resources Research Center of Semnan Province, Iran.

Abstract

Soil carbon and nitrogen contents play an important role in sustaining soil physical and chemical quality and help to have healthy environments. The continues conversion of rangelands to arable lands has the potential to change carbon and nitrogen sequestration. In this study to evaluate the effects of land use change on soil organic carbon and nitrogen stock, forty samples collected from northwest of Shahmirzad town in Semnan province of Iran. Samples collected from two types of rangelands (Astragalus parrowianus and Acantholimon erinaceum) and Walnut garden in four depth of soil. The values of soils gravel percentage, particle size distribution, bulk density, organic carbon and total nitrogen have been measured and analyzed. Results showed that there is no significant difference in soil organic carbon (SOC) stock values among garden and rangelands but nitrogen stock in garden showed the higher values and had significant difference with rangelands. The C/N ratio in rangelands was similar unlike garden that showed significant decrease. Moreover, the values of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen (TN) stock and C/N ratio have been decreased in subsurface layer of soils. The results of correlation matrix indicated that the values of SOC and TN stock and C/N ratio had the high correlated with soils particle size distribution. Clay percentage indicated high positive correlation while silt and sand demonstrated negative correlation. Overall, in opposite of SOC stock, land use change from rangeland to garden had significant effect on soil nitrogen stock and increased it dramatically while decreased C/N ratio, considerably.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

Acosta-Martinez, V., Klose, S. and Zobeck, T. M., 2003. Enzime activities in semiarid soils under conservation reserve program, native rangeland, and cropland. Jour. Plant Nutrition and Soil Science,166: 699–707.
Bauer, A. and Black, A. L., 1994.Quantification of the effect of soil organic matter content on soil productivity. Soil Science Society of America Jour. 58: 185-193.
Bengtston, G., Bengtson, P. and Mansson, K. F. 2003.Gross Nitrogen Mineralization, Immobilization and Nitrification Rates as a Function of Soil C/N Ratio and Microbial Activity. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 35: 143-154.
Blake, G. R. and Hartge, K. H., 1986. Methods of Soil Analysis: Part 1, Physical and Mineralogical Methods, edited by: Klute, A., 2Edn. American Society of Agronomy, Madison, WI.
Blanco-Canqui, H. and Lal, R., 2008. No-tillage and soil-profile carbon sequestration: an on farm assessment. Soil Science Society of America Jour., 72: 693–701.
Bouyoucos, G. J., 1962. Hydrometer method improved for making particle size analysis of soils. Agronomy Jour., 54:464-465.
Brady, C. and Weil R. R., 2008. The nature and properties of soils, 14 Edn., Pearson Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey Columbus, Ohia, USA.
Bremner, J. M., 1996. Methods of soil analysis: chemical methods, soil science society of America, edited by: Sparks, D. L., Madison, WI, 1085–1086.
Burke, I. C., Yonker, C. M., Parton, W. J., Cole, C. V., Flach, K. and Schimel, D. S., 1989. Texture, climate, and cultivation effects on soil organic matter content in U.S. grassland soils. Soil Science Society of America Jour., 53: 800–805.
Diekow, J., Mielniczuk, J., Knicker, H., Bayer, C., Dick, D. P. and Kogel-Knabner, I., 2005. Soil C and N stocks as affected by cropping systems and nitrogen fertilization in a southern Brazil Acrisol managed under no-tillage for 17 years. Soil and Tillage Research, 81: 87–95.
 
Duxbury, J. M., 1994. The significance of agricultural sources of greenhouse gases. Fertilizer Research, 38:151-163.
Eaton, J. M., McGoff, N. M., Byrne, K. A., Leahy, P. and Kiely, G., 2008. Land cover change and soil organic C stocks in the Republic of Ireland 1851–2000. Climatic Change, 91: 317–334.
Eliasson, P., 2007. Impacts of climate change on carbon and nitrogen cycles in Boreal Forest Ecosystems. Doctoral thesis, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.
Eswaren, H., Vandenberg, E. and Reich, P., 1993. Organic carbon in soils of the world. Soil Science Society of America Jour. 57: 192–194.
FAO, Food and Agriculture Organization, 2011. FAO achievements in Iran, FAO representation in Iran.
FAO, 1997. Land quality indicators and Their Use in Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development. Land and Water Bulletin 5. FAO, Rome.
Fu, X., Shao, M., Wei, X. and Horton, R., 2010.Soil organic carbon and total nitrogen as affected by vegetation types in Northern Loess Plateau of China. Geoderma, 155:31–35.
Gruneberg, E., Schoning, I., Kalko, E. K. V. and Weisser, W.W., 2010. Regional organic carbon stock variability: A comparison between depth increments and soil horizons. Geoderma, 155: 426–433.
Guo, L. B., Gifford R. M., 2002. Soil carbon stocks and land use change: A Meta-analysis. Global Change Biology, 8:345-360.
Houghton, R. A., 2003. Why are estimates of the terrestrial carbon balance so different. Global Change Biology, 9: 500–509.
Jafarian, Z., Kargar, M. and Ghorbani, J. 2013.Comparison of Soil Physical and Chemical Properties in Grassland and Shrub Land Communities, Iran. Communication in soil science and plant analysis, 44:331-338.
Jiao, Y., Zhu, X. U., Jiaohong, Z., Wenzhu, Y., 2012. Changes in soil carbon stocks and related soil properties along a 50 year grassland to cropland conversion chronosequence in an agro-pastoral ecotone of Inner Mongolia, China. Jour. Arid Land, 4: 420-430.
Jobbagy, E.G. and Jackson, R.B., 2001. The distribution of soil nutrients with depth: Global patterns and the imprint of plants. Biogeochemistry, 53:51-77.
Kirkegaard, J., Kirkby, C. and Gupta, V., 2007. Management practices for building soil carbon. Proceedings of the Healthy Soils Symposium, Twin Waters Resort, Sunshine Coast Qld 3-5 July. 74-78. (Land & Water Australia: Canberra).
Krull, E. S., Baldock, J. A. and Skjemstad, J. O., 2003. Importance of mechanisms and processes of the stabilization of soil organic matter for modeling carbon turnover. Functional Plant Biology, 30: 207–222.
Lal, R. and Follett, R. F., 2009. Introduction: Soils and climate change. Soil carbon sequestration and the greenhouse effect, Second edition. (eds. R Lal, R Follett), Soil Science Society of America: Madison WI.
Lal, R., 2003. Soil erosion and the global carbon budget. Environment International, 29: 437–450.
Lou, Y., Xu, M., Chen, X., He, X. and Zhao, K., 2012.Stratification of soil organic C, N and C/N ratio as affected by conservation tillage in two maize fields of China. Catena, 95:124–130.
Mahdavi, M., 2007.Applied hydrology. Tehran University Publications, Vol. 2, 7th edition, pp 401. (In Persian).
Miller, A. J., Amundson, R., Burke, I. C. and Yonker, C., 2004.The effect of climate and cultivation on soil organic C and N. Biogeochemistry, 67: 57–72.
Munoz-Rojas, M., Jordan, A., Zavala, L. M., De la Rosa, D., Abd- Elmabod, S. K., and Anaya-Romero, M., 2012. Organic carbon stocks in Mediterranean soil types under different land uses (Southern Spain). Solid Earth, 3: 375–386.
Murty, D., Kirschbaum, M. U. F., Mcmurtrie, R. E. and Mcgilvary, H., 2002.Does conversion of forest to agricultural land change soil carbon and nitrogen. A review of the literature. Global Change Biology, 8:105-123.
Neill, C., Melillo, J. M., Steudler, P. A., Cerri, C. C., De Moraes, J.F.L., Piccolo, M.C. and Brito, M., 1997. Soil carbon and Nitrogen stocks following forest clearing for pasture in the southwestern Brazilian Amazon. Ecological Applications, 7: 1216-1225.
Nosetto, M. D., Jobbagy, E. G. and Paruelo, J. M., 2006. Carbon sequestration in semi-arid rangelands: Comparison of Pinus ponderosa plantations and grazing exclusion in NW Patagonia. Jour. Arid Environments, 67: 142-156.
Ouedraogo, E., Mando, A. and Stroosnijder, L., 2006. Effects of tillage, organic resources and nitrogen fertiliser on soil carbon dynamics and crop nitrogen uptake in semi-arid West Africa. Soil Tillage Research, 91: 57–67.
Parras-Alcantara, L., Martin-Carrillo, M. and Lozano-Garcia, B., 2013. Impacts of land use change in soil carbon and nitrogen in a Mediterranean agricultural area (Southern Spain). Solid Earth, 4:167-177.
Plante, A. F., Conant, R. T., Stewart, C. E., Paustian, K. and Six, J., 2006. Impact of soil texture on the distribution of soil organic matter in physical and chemical fractions. Soil Science Society American Jour. 70: 287–296.
Post, W. M. and Kwon, K.C., 2000. Soil carbon sequestration and land-use change: processes and potential. Global Change Biology, 6: 317–327.
Prather, M., Derwent, R. and Ehhait, D., 1995. Other trace gases and atmospheric chemistry. In: Climate change 1994: radioactive forcing of climate change and the IPCC IS92 emission scenarios (Houghton J.T. et al. ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 73-126.
Puget, P. and Lal, R., 2005. Soil organic carbon and nitrogen in a Mollisol in central Ohio as affected by tillage and land use. Soil Tillage. Research, 80: 201–213.
Ruiz, J. D., Pariente, S., Romero, A., and Martinez, J. F., 2012. Variability of relationships between soil organic carbon and some soil properties in Mediterranean rangelands under different climatic conditions (South of Spain). Catena, 94: 17–25.
Sa, J. C. M., Cerri, C. C., Dick, W. A., Lal, R., Venske-Filho, S.P., Piccolo, M. C., and Feigl, B. E., 2001. Organic matter dynamics and carbon sequestration rates for a tillage chronosequence in a Brazilian Oxisol. Soil Science Society of America Jour., 65: 1486–1499.
Schlesinger, W. H., 1997. Biogeochemistry, an analysis of global change, 2nd ed. Academic Press, New York.
Smith, P., 2008. Land use change and soil organic carbon dynamics. Nutrient Cycling Agroecosystems, 81: 169–178.
Soil Survey Staff, 1996. Keys to Soil Taxonomy. Natural Resources Conservation Service. Seventh Edition.
SPSS Inc. 2004. SPSS for windows, Version 13.0. Chicago, SPSS Inc.
Van Minnen, J. G., 2008. The terrestrial carbon cycle on the regional and global scale. Modeling, uncertainties and policy relevance. Doctoral thesis, Wageningen University.
Van Oost, K., Govers, G., Quine, T. A., Heckrath, G., Olesen, J. E., De Gryze, S. and Merckx, R., 2005. Landscape-scale modeling of carbon cycling under the impact of soil redistribution: the role of tillage erosion. Global Biogeochemical Cycles, 19, GB4014, doi:10.1029/2005GB002471.
Walkley, A. and Black, I. A., 1934. An examination of the Degtjareff method for determining soil O.M. and a proposed modification of the chromic acid titration method. Soil Science, 37: 29–38.
Wang, W. J. and Dalal, R. C., 2006.Carbon inventory for a cereal cropping system under contrasting tillage. Nitrogen fertilization and stubble management practices. Soil Tillage Research, 91: 68–74.
Watson, R. T., Noble, I. R., Bolin, B., Ravindramath, N. H., Verardo, D. J. and Dokken, D. J., 2000. Land use, land use change and forestry (a Special report of the IPCC). Cambridge University Press: Cambridge.
Yang, J.C., Huang, J.H., Pan, Q.M., Tang, J.W. and Han, X.G., 2004. Long term impacts of land use change on dynamics of tropical soil carbon and nitrogen pools. Jour. Environmental Sciences, 16: 256-261.
Yang, Y. H., Fang, J. Y., Guo, D. L., Ji, C. J. and Ma, W. H., 2010. Vertical patterns of soil carbon, nitrogen and carbon: nitrogen stoichiometry in Tibetan grasslands. Biogeosciences Discussions, 7: 1-24.
Yano, Y., Mcdowell, W. H. and Aber, J. D., 2000. Biodegradable dissolved organic carbon in forest soil solution and effects of chronic nitrogen deposition. Soil Biology and Biochemistry,32: 1743-1751.
Zhang, T., Wang, Y., Wang, X., Wang, Q. and Han, J., 2009. Organic carbon and nitrogen stocks in reed meadow soils converted to alfalfa fields. Soil Tillage Research, 105: 143–148.
 
 
Journal of Rangeland Science
Volume 6, Issue 2 - Serial Number 2
Spring 2016
Pages 156-167

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 16 October 2015
  • Accept Date: 07 March 2016

Share

How to cite

Statistics