Journal of Ecology and Environment

The Ecological Society of Korea (한국생태학회)
권호 표지
DOI QR코드

DOI QR Code

Soil organic carbon variation in relation to land use changes: the case of Birr watershed, upper Blue Nile River Basin, Ethiopia

  • Amanuel, Wondimagegn (Hawassa Environment and Forest Research Center (HEFRC)) ;
  • Yimer, Fantaw (Wondo Genet College of Forestry and Natural Resources (WGCF-NR), School of Forestry, Hawassa University) ;
  • Karltun, Erik (Department of Soil and Environment, Sweden University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU))
  • Received : 2018.01.10
  • Accepted : 2018.07.09
  • Published : 2018.09.30
Download PDF
⟨ Previous Next ⟩

Abstract

Background: This study investigated the variation of soil organic carbon in four land cover types: natural and mixed forest, cultivated land, Eucalyptus plantation and open bush land. The study was conducted in the Birr watershed of the upper Blue Nile ('Abbay') river basin. Methods: The data was subjected to a two-way of ANOVA analysis using the general linear model (GLM) procedures of SAS. Pairwise comparison method was also used to assess the mean difference of the land uses and depth levels depending on soil properties. Total of 148 soil samples were collected from two depth layers: 0-10 and 10-20 cm. Results: The results showed that overall mean soil organic carbon stock was higher under natural and mixed forest land use compared with other land use types and at all depths ($29.62{\pm}1.95Mg\;C\;ha^{-1}$), which was 36.14, 28.36, and 27.63% more than in cultivated land, open bush land, and Eucalyptus plantation, respectively. This could be due to greater inputs of vegetation and reduced decomposition of organic matter. On the other hand, the lowest soil organic carbon stock under cultivated land could be due to reduced inputs of organic matter and frequent tillage which encouraged oxidation of organic matter. Conclusions: Hence, carbon concentrations and stocks under natural and mixed forest and Eucalyptus plantation were higher than other land use types suggesting that two management strategies for improving soil conditions in the watershed: to maintain and preserve the forest in order to maintain carbon storage in the future and to recover abandoned crop land and degraded lands by establishing tree plantations to avoid overharvesting in natural forests.

Keywords

References

  1. Abera, Y., & Belachew, T. (2011). Effects of land use on soil carbon and nitrogen in soils of bale, southeastern Ethiopia. Tropical & Sub Tropical Agro Ecosystems, 14(14), 229-235.
  2. Alemayehu, L., Hager, H., & Sieghardt, M. (2010). Effect of land use types on soil chemical properties in smallholder farmers of central highland Ethiopia. Ekologia (Bratislava), 29(1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.4149/ekol_2010_01_1
  3. Askin T and Ozdemir N, (2003). Soil bulk density as related to soil particle size distribution and organic matter content. Karadeniz Technical University, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Soil Science, Turkey. ISSN 1330-7142.
  4. Blake, G. R., & Hartge, K. H. (1986). Bulk density. Chapter 13. Page 363-375. In A. Klute (Ed.), Methods of soil analysis: part 1 physical and mineralogical methods (2nd ed., p. 1188). Madison: American Society of Agronomy-Soil Society of America.
  5. Bouyoucos, G. J. (1962). Hydrometer method improved for making particle size analysis of soil. Journal of American Society of Agronomy, 54, 464-465. https://doi.org/10.2134/agronj1962.00021962005400050028x
  6. Carter, M. R. (Ed.). (1993). Soil sampling and methods of analysis. Boca Raton: Lewis Publishers.
  7. Chen, C. R., Xu, Z. H., & Mathers, N. J. (2004). Soil carbon pools in adjacent natural and plantation forests of subtropical Australia. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 68, 282-291. https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2004.2820
  8. Djukic, I., Zehetner, F., Tatzber, M., & Gerzabek, M. H. (2010). Soil organic-matter stocks and characteristics along an alpine elevation gradient. Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science, 173, 30-38. https://doi.org/10.1002/jpln.200900027
  9. Don, A., Schumacher, J., & Freibauer, A. (2011). Impact of tropical land-use change on soil organic carbon stocks-a meta-analysis. Global Change Biology, 17, 1658-1670. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2486.2010.02336.x
  10. Don, A., Schumacher, J., Scherer-Lorenzen, M., Scholten, T., & Schulze, E. D. (2007). Spatial and vertical variation of soil carbon at two grassland sites-implications for measuring soil carbon stocks. Geoderma, 141, 272-282. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2007.06.003
  11. Egli, M., Sartori, G., Mirabella, A., Favilli, F., Giaccai, D., & Delbos, E. (2009). Effect of north and south exposure on organic matter in high alpine soils. Geoderma, 149, 124-136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2008.11.027
  12. Eshete A., Sterck F., & Bongers F. (2011) Diversity and production of Ethiopian dry woodlands explained by climate- and soil-stress gradients. Forest Ecology and Management 261 (9):1499-1509. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2011.01.021
  13. Eshetu, Z., Giesler, R., & Hogberg, P. (2004). Historical land use pattern affects the chemistry of forest soils in the Ethiopian highlands. Geoderma, 118, 149-165. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0016-7061(03)00190-3
  14. Fantaw, Y., & Abdu, A. (2011). Soil property change following conversion of acacia woodland into grazing and farmlands in the Rift Valley Area of Ethiopia. Land Degradation and Development, 22, 425-431. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.1022
  15. FAO. (2005). Global Forest resources assessment 2005: progress towards sustainable forest management. Rome: FAO.
  16. Fermont, A. M., van Asten, P. J. A. ., & Giller, K. E. (2008). Increasing land pressure in East Africa: the changing role of cassava and consequences for sustainability of farming systems. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 128, 239-250. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2008.06.009
  17. Gebrehiwot, S. G., Bewket, W., Gardenas, A. I., & Bishop, K. (2013). Forest cover change over four decades in the Blue Nile Basin, Ethiopia: comparison of three watersheds. Regional Environmental Change, 14, 253-266.
  18. Gebrekidan, H., & Negassa, W. (2006). Impact of land use and management practices on chemical properties of some soils of Bako area, western Ethiopia. Ethiopian Journal of Natural Resources, 8(2), 177-197.
  19. Guo, L., & Gifford, R. (2002). Soil carbon stocks and land use change. A metaanalysis. Global Change Biology, 8, 345-360. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1354-1013.2002.00486.x
  20. Haileslassie, A., Priess, J., Veldkamp, E., Teketay, D., & Lesschen, J. P. (2005). Assessment of soil nutrient depletion and its spatial variability on smallholders' mixed farming systems in Ethiopia using partial versus full nutrient balances. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 108, 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2004.12.010
  21. Homann, P. S., Remillard, S. M., Harmon, M. E., & Bormann, B. T. (2004). Carbon Storage in Coarse and Fine Fractions of Pacific Northwest Old-Growth Forest Soils. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 68, (6):2023. https://doi.org/10.2136/sssaj2004.2023
  22. Hooker, D. T., & Stark, M. J. (2008). Soil carbon and nitrogen cycling in three semiarid vegetation types: response to an in situ pulse of plant detritus. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 40, 2678-2685. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2008.07.015
  23. ICARDA. (2013). Methods of soil, plants, and water analysis: A manual for west Asia and North Africa regions. International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Beirut, Lebanon.
  24. IPCC. (2007). Climate change impacts, adaptation and vulnerability, Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, M.L., Parry, O.F., Canziani, J.P., Palutikof, P.J., vander Linden and Hanson C.E., Eds. (p. 976). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  25. Islam, K.R., & Weil, R.R. (2000). Land use effects on soil quality in a tropical forest ecosystem of Bangladesh. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 79, (1):9-16. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0167-8809(99)00145-0
  26. Jaramillo, V. J., Kauffman, J. B., Renteria-Rodriguez, L., Cummings, D. L., & Ellingson, L. J. (2003). Biomass, carbon, and nitrogen pools in Mexican tropical dry forest landscapes. Ecosystems, 6, 609-629. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-002-0195-4
  27. Jaiyeoba, I. A. (1998). Changes in soil properties related to conversion of savannah woodland into pine and eucalyptus plantations, Northern Nigeria. Land Degradation & Development, 9, (3):207-215. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-145X(199805/06)9:3<207::AID-LDR258>3.0.CO;2-M
  28. Karaoz, O. (1989). Analyze methods of some chemical soil properties (pH, carbonates, salinity, organic matter, total nitrogen, and available phosphorus). Review of the Faculty of Forestry, University of Istanbul, 39(B3), 64-82 Istanbul, Turkish.
  29. Kidanemariam, A., Gebrekidan, H., Mamo, T., & Kibret, K. (2012). Impact of Altitude and Land Use Type on Some Physical and Chemical Properties of Acidic Soils in Tsegede Highlands, Northern Ethiopia. Open Journal of Soil Science, 02, 223-233. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2012.23027.
  30. Kidanu, S., & Mamo, T. (2003). Land use changes and erosion on some highland soils of Ethiopia. Ethiopian Journal of Natural Resources, 5(2), 215-231.
  31. Kizilkaya, R., & Dengiz, O. (2010). Variation of land use and land cover effects on soil some physicochemical characteristics and soil enzyme activity. Zemdirbyste-Agriculture, 97, 15-24.
  32. Korner, C. (2003). Alpine plant life: functional plant ecology of high mountain ecosystems (2nd ed.). Heidelberg: Springer Berlin.
  33. Leifeld, J., Bassin, S., & Fuhrer, J. (2005). Carbon stocks in Swiss agricultural soils predicted by land-use, soil characteristics, and altitude. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 105, 255-266. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2004.03.006
  34. Lemenih, M., Olsson, M., & Karltun, E. (2004). Comparison of soil attributes under Cupressus lusitanica and Eucalyptus saligna established on abandoned farmlands with continuously cropped farmlands and natural forest in Ethiopia. Forest Ecology and Management, 195, (1-2):57-67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2004.02.055
  35. Lemma, B., Kleja, D. B., Nilsson, I., & Olsson, M. (2006). Soil carbon sequestration under different exotic tree species in south-western highlands of Ethiopia. Geoderma, 136, 886-898. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2006.06.008
  36. Luyssaert, S., Schulze, E.-D., Borner, A., Knohl, A., Hessenmoller, D., Law, B. E., Ciais, P., & Grace, J. (2008). Old-growth forests as global carbon sinks. Nature, 455, 213-215. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature07276
  37. Murage, W. E., Karanja, K. N., Smithson, C. P., & Woomer, L. P. (2000). Diagnostic indicators of soil quality in productive and non-productive smallholders' fields of Kenya's central highlands. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 79, 1-8.
  38. Reicosky, D. C., & Forcella, F. (1998). Cover crop and soil quality interactions in agro-ecosystems. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 53(3), 224-229.
  39. Sanchez, F. G., Tiarks, A. E., Kranabetter, J. M., Page-Dumroese, D. S., Powers, R. F., Sanborn, P. T., & Chapman, W. K. (2006). Effects of organic matter removal and soil compaction on fifth-year mineral soil carbon and nitrogen contents for sites across the United States and Canada. Canadian Journal of Forest Research, 36, 565-576. https://doi.org/10.1139/x05-259
  40. SAS Institute, (2002). The SAS system for Microsoft Windows. Release 9.0, Cary, NC, USA.
  41. Sasikumar, K., Vijayalakshmi, C., & Parthiban, K.T. (2002). Alleopathic effects of Eucalyptus on blackgram (Phaseolus mungo L.). Allelopathy Journal, 9, 205-14.
  42. Shisanya, C.A., Mucheru, M.W., Mugendi, D.N., & Kung’u, J.B. (2009). Effect of organic and inorganic nutrient sources on soil mineral nitrogen and maize yields in central highlands of Kenya. Soil and Tillage Research, 103, 239-246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2008.05.016
  43. Simo, I., Herrero, C., Boixadera, J., Poch, R.M., (2010). Accuracy of soil organic carbon inventories in Mediterranean mountain areas, world congress of soil science.
  44. Singh, B. R. and Lal, R. 2001. The potential of Norwegian soils to sequester carbon through land use conversion and improved management practices. Ohio State University, USA.
  45. Singh, P. (1995). Land degradation: A global menace and its improvement through Agroforestry. In: Singh, P. Pathak, P.S. and Roy, M.M. (eds). Agroforestry Systems for Sustainable Land Use. Science publishers, Inc. USA, 4-20.
  46. Slaymaker, O., Spencer, T., Embleton-Hamann, C., (2009). Geomorphology and global environmental change, Cambridge University Press.
  47. Sohngen, B., & Brown, S. (2006). The influence of conversion of forest types on carbon sequestration and other ecosystem services in the South Central United States. Ecological Economics, 57, 698-708. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolecon.2005.06.001
  48. Takele, L., Chimdi, A., & Mengistie, A. (2015). Impacts of Land use on Selected Physicochemical Properties of Soils of Gindeberet Area, Western Oromia, Ethiopia. Science, Technology and Arts Research Journal 3. 36. https://doi.org/10.4314/star.v3i4.5.
  49. Tan, B., Hu, J., Huang, D., Yang, W., Zhang, P., Shabanov, N.V., Knyazikhin, Y., Nemani, R.R., & Myneni, R.B. (2005). Assessment of the broadleaf crops leaf area index product from the Terra MODIS instrument. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, 135, (1-4):124-134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2005.10.008
  50. Theurillat, J.-P., Felber, F., Geissler, P., Gobat, J.-M., Fierz, M., Fischlin, A., Kupfer, P., Schlussel, A., Velluti, C., Zhao, G.-F., & Williams, J. (1998). Sensitivity of plant and soil ecosystems of the Alps to climate change. In P. D. Cebon, U. Dalrinden, H. C. Davies, D. Imboden, & C. C. Jaeger (Eds.), Views from the Alps. Regional perspectives on climate change. Massachusetts: MIT Press.
  51. Trujilo, W., Amezquita, E., Fisher, M. J., & LaI, R. (1997). Soil organic carbon dynamics and land use in the Colombian Savannas: aggregate size distribution. In R. Lal, M. Kimble, R. F. Follett, & B. A. Stewart (Eds.), Soil processes and the carbon cycle (pp. 267-280). Boca Raton: CRC Press.
  52. Van der Werf, G.R., Morton, D., Defries, R., Olivier, G.J.J., Kasibhatla, P.S., Jackson, R. B., Collatz, G.J., & Randerson, J.T., (2009). CO2 emissions from forests. Nature Geoscience, 2. https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo671.
  53. Van Miegroet, H., Boettinger, J. L., Baker, M. A., Nielsen, J., Evans, D., & Stum, A. (2005). Soil carbon distribution and quality in a montane rangeland-forest mosaic in northern Utah. Forest Ecology and Management, 220, 284-299. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2005.08.017
  54. Van Miegroet, H., Moore, P. T., Tewksbury, C. E., & Nicholas, N. S. (2007). Carbon sources and sinks in high-elevation sprucer forests of the southeastern US. Forest Ecology and Management, 238, 249-260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2006.10.020
  55. Vance, E. D. (2000). Agricultural site productivity: principles derived from longterm experiments and their implications for intensively managed forests. Forest Ecology and Management, 138, 369-396. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0378-1127(00)00425-4
  56. Walkley, A., & Black, C. A. (1934). An examination of the Degtjareff method for determining soil organic matter and proposed modification of the chromic acid titration method. Soil Science, 37, 29-38. https://doi.org/10.1097/00010694-193401000-00003
  57. Wild, A. (2003). Soils, land and food: managing the land during the twenty-first century. Cambridge University Press (p. 246).
  58. Wu, L. Z., & Cai, Z. C. (2006). The relationship between spatial scale and the variation of soil organic matter in China. Advances in Earth Science, 21, 965-971.
  59. Yimer F., Ledin, S., & Abdu, A. (2006). Soil property variations in relation to topographic aspect and vegetation community in the south-eastern highlands of Ethiopia. Forest Ecology and Management, 232, 90-99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2006.05.055
  60. Yimer, F., Stig, L., & Abdukadir, A. (2007). Changes in soil organic carbon and total nitrogen contents in three adjacent land use types in the Bale Mountains, south-eastern highlands of Ethiopia. Journal of Forest Ecology & Management, 242(2-3), 337-342. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2007.01.087
  61. Yuksek, T., Ceyhun, G., Filiz, Y., & Esin, E. Y. (2009). The effects of land use changes on soil properties: the conversion of Alder coppice to tea plantations in the humid northern Black Sea region. African Journal of Agricultural Research, 4(7), 665674.
  62. Zhou, G., Liu, S., Li, Z., Zhang, D., Tang, X., Zhou, C., Yan, J., & Mo, J. (2006). Oldgrowth forests can accumulate carbon in soils. Science, 314, 14-17.

Cited by

  1. The extent of soil organic carbon and total nitrogen in forest fragments of the central highlands of Ethiopia vol.42, pp.4, 2018, https://doi.org/10.1186/s41610-018-0081-4
  2. Effects of Land Use Types on Selected Soil Properties in Central Highlands of Ethiopia vol.2020, pp.None, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1155/2020/7026929
  3. Do different land use changes in a deciduous forest ecosystem result in alterations in soil organic C and total N stocks? vol.457, pp.1, 2018, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04724-9
  4. Effect of land use, season, and soil depth on soil microbial biomass carbon of Eastern Himalayas vol.9, pp.1, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1186/s13717-020-00269-y
  5. Land management effects on wet aggregate stability and carbon content vol.85, pp.6, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1002/saj2.20333
  6. Organic carbon stored in soils under different land uses and soil textures in southeast Argentinean Mesopotamia vol.27, pp.None, 2018, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geodrs.2021.e00435