Soil is a key element in the Earth system, and changes in land management can affect soil organic carbon (SOC) dynamics and the provision of ecosystem services related to soil. The content and stock of SOC has been adopted as the measure to be used for land degradation assessment. Nevertheless, SOC dynamics linked to land use and land cover changes after land abandonment is still a controversial issue. From the mid-20^th century, Mediterranean mountains have undergone intense transformations due to climate change and severe socio-economic marginalisation, linked to depopulation and cropland and pasture abandonment. These processes led to a very different landscape, with a massive invasion of shrubs, secondary succession to forest and afforested areas. The objective of this study is to analyse the effects of post-land abandonment management practices on soil organic carbon dynamics (stocks and fractions). We selected three land abandonment scenarios in the Central Pyrenees: (i) natural revegetation with broadleaf vegetation; (ii) natural revegetation versus afforestation with coniferous forest; and (iii) abandonment of grasslands and woody encroachment. The total SOC stocks and fractions (through density fractionation) were analysed: Free light Fraction (FLF), Occluded Light Fraction (OLF), and Heavy Fraction (HF). Results showed that: (i) revegetation resulted in a constant and slow SOC accumulation processes; (ii) grassland enhanced accumulation of SOC, and the woody encroachment of these areas produced a significant loss of SOC during the first revegetation stages; (iii) density fractions were significantly affected by land use and land cover changes; (iv) the labile fractions (FLF and OLF) were significantly higher under coniferous forest than under grassland and shrubland; and (v) differences were also observed between coniferous and broadleaf forest, suggesting that broadleaf litter is incorporated faster in the mineral soil. The present study showed that land abandonment in Mediterranean mountains does not only affect SOC stocks, but also triggers the addition of labile carbon into the soil. It also changes the dynamics and sequestration of stable SOC, making this information essential in the design of future post-land abandonment strategies.

Acknowledgements: This research project was supported by the MANMOUNT (PID2019-105983RB-100/AEI/ 10.13039/501100011033) project funded by the MICINN-FEDER and the PRX21/00375 project funded by the Ministry of Universities of Spain from the “Salvador de Madariaga” programme. Melani Cortijos-López is working with an FPI contract (PRE2020-094509) from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness associated to the MANMOUNT project. Manel Llena has a “Juan de la Cierva Formación” postdoctoral contract (FJC2020-043890-I/AEI/ 10.13039/501100011033) from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation.

How to cite: Nadal Romero, E., Cortijos-López, M., Llena, M., Cammeraat, E., and Lasanta, T.: Labile and Stable Soil Organic Carbon in abandoned lands with different management, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-5191, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-5191, 2023.

The immediate watershed of the Long Island Sound (LIS) is largely composed of car-centric suburban landscapes, with extensive areas of altered, sealed, and even some polluted soils. In such suburban contexts, the lawn represents a particular kind of widespread landscape regime with considerable ecologic influence. Though varying in both size and degree of landscaping, suburban homes generally have yards, often with areas of maintained turfgrass lawn. With concern for eutrophication and hypoxic conditions within the LIS due to excess nutrient input possibly from yards, residents within the LIS watershed were surveyed regarding yard and LIS related practices and perspectives. Eighty-nine of these respondents were randomly selected to collect ecological data from their yards during spring, summer, and fall of 2021. Soil cores were collected in spring and summer, with two random 10 cm depth soil samples from both front and back yards when possible. Soil moisture, pH, nitrate, and ammonium content were determined at the Advanced Science Research Center in New York, NY. Survey data was combined with the collected biophysical data for further interdisciplinary analysis.

Average soil ammonium content was found to notably decrease with even one application of fertilizer per year (3.4 g N/kg dry soil to 1.01 kg N/kg dry soil). Average soil nitrate was found to increase with each repeated fertilization event per year (36.56 g N/kg dry soil with zero reported annual applications on one end to 66.22 g N/kg dry soil with five annual applications on the other end). Respondents who said they had increased their fertilizer compared with five years ago had the highest average soil nitrate content (59.43 g N/kg dry soil) and lowest average soil ammonium content (0.45 g N/kg dry soil) amongst all respondents. People who didn’t report using fertilizer had the lowest average soil nitrate content (36.16 g N/kg dry soil) and the highest average soil ammonium content (4.05 g N/kg dry soil). People that reported hiring a professional to fertilize their yard (but not fertilizing it themselves) had the highest average soil moisture content (19.97%), soil nitrate content (56.5 g N/kg dry soil), and pH among respondents (6.21). People that identified as highly aware about recommendations on the use of fertilizer had the highest average soil nitrate content (48.16 g N/kg dry soil), and also the lowest average soil ammonium content among respondents (1.32 g N/kg dry soil).

These results demonstrate the impact that yard fertilization practice has on soil chemistry. Most significantly, reported increases in fertilization show increases soil nitrate content, but with corresponding decreases in soil ammonium content. Furthermore, increasing education and outreach around yard fertilization may not inherently decrease yard fertilization, as perhaps individuals who engage with materials related to fertilization recommendations are more likely to even apply fertilizer. Both reported awareness of recommended practices and utilizing a professional for fertilization were associated with higher soil nitrate content. Homeowner yard contexts remain significant with direct influence on the nutrient content of the soils of the LIS watershed.

How to cite: Ryan, C. D., Groffman, P. M., Johnston, R. J., Newburn, D., Polsky, C., Ndebele, T., and Wang, H.: Homeowner Survey Responses and Yard Soil Biogeochemistry within the Long Island Sound Watershed, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-12142, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-12142, 2023.

Future long-term space exploration beyond Low Earth Orbit and long permanence of human colonies on solar system planets will depend on the development of specific technologies able to regenerate resources, while minimizing the waste production, and to exploit the resources available in-situ. Bioregenerative Life Support Systems (BLSSs) are artificial ecosystems in which appropriately selected organisms are assembled by combining their metabolic routes in consecutive steps of recycling, to reconvert the crew wastes (carbon dioxide, faeces and urine) into edible biomass, oxygen and potable water. Higher plants represent an optimal tool to renew air through photosynthesis, to purify water through transpiration, and to recover waste products through mineral nutrition, while providing fresh food and health benefits to the astronauts. However, the configuration of fertile substrates for plant cultivation based on extra-terrestrial resources is still a challenge.

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is a candidate crop for space cultivation, based on technical and dietary criteria, including productivity and nutrient composition (content of carbohydrates and proteins). We evaluated the adaptability of potato cv. ‘Colomba’ to the growth on six substrates: the MMS-1 Mars regolith simulant, alone (R100) and in mixture with 30% in vol. of green compost (R70C30), a fluvial sand, alone or mixed with 30% of compost (S100 and S70C30), a red soil from Sicily (RS), and a volcanic soil from Campania (VS). We assessed the physicochemical properties of the substrates, the physiological and biometric parameters, and the nutritional quality of tubers in potato plants grown in pot on in cold glasshouse.

Both R100 and S100 were alkaline (pH ≥8.6) and coarse-textured, lacking organic matter and pivotal macronutrients. The amendment with compost significantly lowered their alkaline pH and improved the chemical fertility. The sandy-loam textured VS was sub-alkaline, slightly calcareous, with higher organic C and nutrient availability than RS. This latter was neutral-to-sub-alkaline, clay textured, poorly calcareous, with significantly higher CEC than VS.

Leaf photosynthesis was higher in plants grown in terrestrial soils and S100. Plant growth was greater in VS, R70C30 and S70C30, while it was reduced on R100. Plants produced healthy tubers on all the substrates.

MMS-1 regolith simulant was found poor in nutrients and unsuitable to sustain adequately the plant growth. Amendment with organic compost improved MMS-1 physiochemical properties and fertility and plant performance.

Keywords: Solanum tuberosum L., controlled environment, Bioregenerative Life Support Systems (BLSSs), in situ resource utilization (ISRU), MMS-1

How to cite: Paradiso, R., Caporale, A., Liuzzi, G., Palladino, M., De Pascale, S., and Adamo, P.: Mars regolith simulant as substrate for cultivation of higher plants in Space colonies: the need for organic amendment for potato as a case study, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-14954, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-14954, 2023.

Agronomic management is known to affect critical ecosystem services such as soil health, the quality of runoff water and crop production. However, few studies have been able to evaluate all the ecosystem services at the small catchment scale (1-10 ha) through long-term studies. As a part of the Long-Term Agroecosystem Research (LTAR) Network in the US, work at the Riesel Watersheds in Texas has been able to evaluate the role of managing fields with a focus on soil health practices (e.g., no-tillage, cover crops, reduced fertilizer inputs) compared to traditional practices. This presentation will provide the results of five years of study on the management practices related to soil health, water quality, and crop production. In the US, many producers make decision based on economics, so profitability of the practices will also be presented. In brief, reduced fertility inputs coupled with no-tillage and cover crops resulted in gross losses for most years; however, in the fifth year of study these practices resulted in a gross profit of $836 USD/ha, despite a severe drought and high variable costs associate with production. Further, event mean concentrations for dissolved reactive phosphorus were roughly half (0.06 vs 0.13 mg/L) for the field managed for soil health compared to the traditionally managed field. In light of expected high input costs and climate variability, agronomic management to promote soil health and water quality may provide additional benefits to producers.

How to cite: Smith, D., Adhikari, K., and Hajda, C.: Optimizing agronomic management for soil health, water quality, crop production and profitability in the Texas Blackland Prairie, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-16713, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-16713, 2023.

Ecosystem carbon sequestration service (ECSS) is the benefits humans derive from the ecosystem carbon sequestration process, which is key to regulating climate, stabilising the natural foundation for development, and supporting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) achievement. However, how ECSS contributes to the SDGs still needs to be discovered. Here, based on downscaling localisation SDG indicators, regression methods, and mechanism analysis, we identified the contribution of ECSS to the SDGs, taking China’s Loess Plateau (LP) region as an example. The results showed that the LP made higher progress on resource and environmental SDGs, such as SDGs 13, 12, 6, and 7 (climate, consumption and production, water, and energy) in the last two decades. As for the relationships between ECSS and SDGs, the progress of SDGs 6, 7, 13 and 15 (water, energy, climate, and ecosystems) showed positive linear responses to ECSS. The response of SDGs 1, 4, 8, and 12 (poverty reduction, education, economic growth, and consumption and production) to ECSS showed a threshold when the standardised ECSS value was 0.11. To improve ECSS for a more sustainable ecological foundation underpinning the SDGs, ECSS management should be improved to protect the ecosystem carbon pool and improve carbon sequestration function, as well as to promote the social-ecological co-benefits. This work links carbon sequestration service to sustainable development and can help in leveraging nature’s contributions towards carbon neutrality and the 2030 Agenda.

How to cite: Yin, C., Zhao, W., and Pereira, P.: Ecosystem carbon sequestration service supports the Sustainable Development Goals progress, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-13244, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-13244, 2023.

Protected areas (PAs) are the critical societal tool to conserve biodiversity, while rapid climate change potentially threatens the ecological outcomes of PAs. Therefore, targeting conservation and adaptation efforts necessitate a well-understand of the relationship between PAs and climate refugia. it is defined as buffer regions for species against exposure to climate change. Previous studies to identify climate refugia mainly relied on terrain-based metrics or climatic velocity, which ignore the ecosystem’s internal processes. To promote more biologically meaningful climate adaptation solutions, efforts need to be made to incorporate internal and external ecological processes to improve climate refugia identification. This work identified climate refugia in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP), based on environmental diversity, phenology stability, and climatic velocity. It highlights the capacity to cope with extreme weather events, synchronization with plant growth cycles, and future climate adaptation, respectively. The results show that the climate refugia identified by environmental diversity, climatic velocity, and phenology stability indicators differed substantially, indicating the possible absence of functional complementarity of climate adaptation. Furthermore, existing PAs have notable conservation gaps for these refugia identified, particularly in the southeastern part of QTP. It highlighted the urgency of strengthening PAs for climate refugia in the QTP. Our work provides a comprehensive understanding of climate refugia, which can support better climate-driven conservation policies in the face of global warming.

How to cite: Hua, T., Zhao, W., Cherubini, F., Hu, X., and Pereira, P.: Enhancing protected areas for climate refugia in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-4022, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-4022, 2023.

Annually, millions of hectares of land are affected by wildfires worldwide, disrupting ecosystems functioning by affecting on-site vegetation, soil, and above- and belowground biodiversity, but also triggering erosive off-site impacts such as water-bodies contamination or mudflows. Wildfires consist in an environmental problem with a global dimension, and its occurrence at EU scale is well documented.

However, the estimation of the indirect impacts of wildfires, such as increased soil erosion at wider scales, are still lacking. In this study, we present a soil erosion assessment following the 2017's wildfires at the European scale with the RUSLE model, including an analysis of vegetation recovery and soil erosion mitigation potential (Vieira et al., 2023).

Results indicate a sharp increase in soil losses with 19.4 million Mg additional erosion in the first year following the wildfire when compared to unburned conditions. Over five years, 44 million Mg additional soil losses were estimated, and 46% of the burned area presented no signs of full recovery. Post-fire mitigation with mulching could attenuate these impacts by 63–77%, reducing soil erosion to background levels by the 4th post-fire year. Soil erosion risk based mitigation strategies revealed near optimal mitigation potential when compared with thoses based on burn severity alone.

Our insights may help identifying target policies to reduce land degradation, as identified in the European Union Soil, Forest, and Biodiversity strategies.

Vieira, D.C.S., Borrelli, P., Jahanianfard, D., Benali, A., Scarpa, S., Panagos, P., 2023. Wildfires in Europe: Burned soils require attention. Environmental Research, 2023, 217, 114936. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2022.114936 

How to cite: Vieira, D., Borrelli, P., Jahanianfard, D., Benali, A., Scarpa, S., and Panagos, P.: Burned soils in Europe require attention: post fire soil erosion is long lasting, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-13341, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-13341, 2023.

Connectivity has emerged as a useful concept for exploring the movement of water and sediments between landscape locations and across spatial scales. Studies on the influences of extreme precipitation events on sediment connectivity of slope-gully systems in a small watershed can provide a theoretical basis for comprehensive watershed management. Taking the farmland watershed in Caijiachuan watershed in Ji County of the Loess plateau as the research area, UAV and remote sensing images were used to carry out field investigations on a slope and gully system before and after the extreme precipitation event occurred in October 2021. The landscape patterns before and after extreme rainstorm were analyzed, the sediment connectivity of the slope-gully system was quantified, and the spatial distribution and topographic features of landslide points were identified, the responses of typical engineering measures to extreme precipitation was evaluated. The results showed that: (1) the rainfall event lasts 84 hours, with a cumulative rainfall of 160.4 mm, a rainfall intensity of 1.9 mm/h and a rainfall frequency of 0.16%. It was an extreme rainstorm that comes once in a hundred years. (2) After the rainstorm, the number of patches increased, the landscape shape index increased, the Contag index decreased, and the Shannon diversity index decreased. (3) Sediment connectivity was unevenly distributed in the watershed before the rainstorm, but it increased after the rainstorm. (4) After the rainstorm, the sediment connectivity of the landslide site decreased, and the landslide mainly occurred at 0-10°and 40-50°, accounting for 29.11% and 17.74%, respectively. After the occurrence of extreme rainfall, landscape pattern fragmentation and richness of the slope-gully system decreased. Landslides induced by extreme rainfall events affect sediment connectivity, and the sediment connectivity index could be used to identify landslide sites and assess the response of typical soil and water conservation engineering measures to extreme rainfall. The results of the study could provide support for integrated watershed management and ecological restoration after extreme precipitation events.

Keywords: Extreme precipitation; Check dam; Sediment connectivity; Integrated watershed management

How to cite: Feng, J. and Yu, Y.: Effects of extreme precipitation on sediment connectivity in a farmland watershed of the gully region, the Loess Plateau of China, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-3012, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-3012, 2023.

The assessment of preferences of cultural ecosystem services (CES) in urban areas is crucial for decision-making regarding the management of urban green spaces (UGS), which are expected to suffer intense and increasing pressure worldwide, due to urban population growth and climate warming. In this study, we assessed the perceived relevance of five groups of CES (social activities, inspirational activities, cultural activities, spiritual activities, and physical activities), in Vilnius city, Lithuania (n=1.114), through participatory mapping and preference-based questions (5-point Likert scale). Our results identify Physical and Social activities as the most important CES for the respondents, while Spiritual activities were the less prevalent. Exploratory factor analysis showed that the respondent's recreation experience preferences mostly influenced all CES activity groups except for the Social activities group. Regarding Cultural activities, preferences for understanding things & learn about history are the most relevant. For Inspirational activities, developing knowledge & to learn were the most important aspects. Enjoying nature's quietness & frequency were the most relevant aspects of Physical activities. For Spiritual activities, the most relevant variables are related to the development of spiritual activities and the reflection on personal religious values. Finally, Social activities were mainly influenced by socio-demographic variables, namely Education level, Gender and Age group. Regarding the spatial distribution of activities, different CES activity groups showed different spatial distributions. Inspirational activities showed the highest dispersion, and Spiritual activities the highest concentration. The results are of particular relevance to municipal managers, allowing for a better understanding of users’ interactions with the territory, and its multifunctionality, and also for the identification of potential areas of conflict between conservation and recreation.

How to cite: Valença Pinto, L., Inácio, M., Kalinauskas, M., Bogdzevič, K., Gomes, E., and Pereira, P.: Factors influencing CES use in Vilnius, Lithuania, EGU General Assembly 2023, Vienna, Austria, 23–28 Apr 2023, EGU23-16969, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu23-16969, 2023.