Spatiotemporal patterns and driving factors of soil protection in the wind-water erosion area of Chinese Loess Plateau

As one of typical areas in the world,northern Chinese Loess Plateau experiences serious wind-water erosion,which leads to widespread land degradation.During the past decades,an ecological engineering was implemented to reduce soil erosion and improve soil protection in this area.Thus,it is necessary to recognize the basic characteristics of soil protection for sustainable prevention and wind-water erosion control in the later stage.In this study,national wind erosion survey model and revised universal soil loss equation were used to analyze the spatiotemporal evolution and driving forces of soil protection in the wind-water erosion area of Chinese Loess Plateau during 2000–2020.Results revealed that:(1)during 2000–2020,total amount of soil protection reached up to 15.47×10^(8) t,which was realized mainly through water and soil conservation,accounting for 63.20%of the total;(2)soil protection was improved,with increases in both soil protection amount and soil retention rate.The amounts of wind erosion reduction showed a decrease trend,whereas the retention rate of wind erosion reduction showed an increase trend.Both water erosion reduction amount and retention rate showed increasing trends;and(3)the combined effects of climate change and human activities were responsible for the improvement of soil protection in the wind-water erosion area of Chinese Loess Plateau.The findings revealed the spatiotemporal patterns and driving forces of soil protection,and proposed strategies for future soil protection planning in Chinese Loess Plateau,which might provide valuable references for soil erosion control in other wind-water erosion areas of the world.

Fuzzy Synthetic Evaluation of Wetland Soil Quality Degradation:A Case Study on the Sanjiang Plain,Northeast China

Wetland soil quality degradation caused by large-scale agricultural reclamation on the Sanjiang Plain of Northeast China has been widely reported. A relative soil quality evaluation (RSQE) model and a projection pursuit evaluation (PPE) model based on real-coded accelerating genetic algorithm were introduced to evaluate quality variations in top layers of the main wetland soils on the Sanjiang Plain in 1999 and 2003, respectively. As soil quality degradation boundaries were vague, this study established two fuzzy synthetic evaluation (FSE) models based on the original data and criteria used in the RSQE and PPE models. The outputs of the two FSE models were obtained by choosing two fuzzy composite operators M(∧, ∨) and M(·, ⊕). Statistical analysis showed that the results of the FSE, RSQE, and PPE models were correlated. In particular, outputs of the FSE model using M(·, ⊕) were significantly correlated with those of the RSQE model with r = 0.989 at P < 0.01. Compared with RSQE and PPE models, the FSE model may be more objective in showing soil quality variations and was closer to the natural situation, showing the feasibility and applicability of the FSE model in evaluating soil quality degradation. However, the choice of composite operator was of critical importance. The study of wetland soil quality degradation on the Sanjiang Plain was of scientific and practical significance for protection and management of soils and for sustainable development of agriculture in this area in the future.

Interaction of glassy fertilizers and Cd^(2+) ions in terms of soil pollution neutralization

Immobilization of cadmium contamination in soils by precipitation of nonassimilable for plants Cd-phosphates was considered. Glassy fertilizer of controlled release rate of the nutrients for plants as a source of phosphate anions was applied. The negative role of Cd complexing citric acid solution simulating the natural soil conditions, which inhibits the Cd-phos-phates formation, was stated.

Zeolites for the environment

Zeolites are characterized by their microporous,crystalline structures with a four-connected framework with variable compositions,predominantly aluminosilicates.They are extensively utilized as adsorbents,catalysts,and ion exchangers across domestic and industrial sectors.With the ongoing energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources and the pursuit of environmentally sustainable development,zeolites are increasingly being explored beyond their traditional application fields.They are investigated for their adsorption and catalytic capabilities in the protection and restoration of air,water,and soil quality,as well as in the environmentally friendly“green”production of chemicals.This review article details these novel and potential applications of zeolites,emphasizing the unique properties that render them suitable for each specific use case and discussing how these properties can be fine-tuned through material selection or tailored synthesis methods.

Contribution of phytoecological data to spatialize soil erosion:Application of the RUSLE model in the Algerian atlas

Among the models used to assess water erosion,the RUSLE model is commonly used.Policy makers can act on cover(C-factor)and conservation practice(P-factor)to reduce erosion,with less costly action on soil surface characteristics.However,the widespread use of vegetation indices such as NDVI does not allow for a proper assessment of the C-factor in drylands where stones,crusted surfaces and litter strongly influence soil protection.Two sub-factors of C,canopy cover(CC)and soil cover(SC),can be assessed from phytoecological measurements that include gravel-pebbles cover,physical mulch,annual and perennial vegetation.This paper introduces a method to calculate the C-factor from phytoecological data and,in combination with remote sensing and a geographic information system(GIS),to map it over large areas.A supervised classification,based on field phytoecological data,is applied to radiometric data from Landsat-8/OLI satellite images.Then,a C-factor value,whose SC and CC subfactors are directly derived from the phytoecological measurements,is assigned to each land cover unit.This method and RUSLE are implemented on a pilot region of 3828 km^(2) of the Saharan Atlas,composed of rangelands and steppe formations,and intended to become an observatory.The protective effect against erosion by gravel-pebbles(50%)is more than twice that of vegetation(23%).The C-factor derived from NDVI(0.67)is higher and more evenly distributed than that combining these two contributions(0.37 on average).Finally,priorities are proposed to decision-makers by crossing the synthetic map of erosion sensitivity and a decision matrix of management priorities.