Rangeland Management Effects on Soil Organic Carbon Content and Soil Aggregates in Four Sites in Kermanshah Province, Iran

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Scientific Members, Agriculture and Natural Resources Research Center, Kermanshah, Iran

2 Assistant professor, Agriculture and Natural Resources Research Center, Kermanshah, Iran

Abstract

Improper rangeland management and land-use change affect global warming through increase in greenhouse gasses and, therefore, current land-use should be improved. This research was carried out in Kermanshah province, Iran, for exploring the effects of five different managements and utility of rangeland including protected rangeland (PR), over grazing (OR), fired rangeland (FR), rangeland conversion to orchard (CO) and conversion to rain-fed (CR) on soil organic carbon (SOC) content and, consequently, soil aggregate size distribution (ASD). Soil samples were taken from 0-20 cm depth for routine soil analysis including texture, calcium carbonate, pH, EC, and SOC as well as ASD. The results showed that both SOC and ASD were significantly affected by rangeland management. The respective SOC content in PR, OR, FR, CO and CR were 3.12%, 1.16%, 1.61%, 2.13%, and 1.22 %. However, the respective large aggregates (> 1 mm) in soil from PR, OR, FR, CO and CR were 54.85%, 29.68%, 34.72%, 43.71%, and 26.09 %, which were significantly higher in the PR and CO due to higher level of SOC. In contrast, lower values of SOC in OR and FR resulted in higher amount of small aggregate size in these rangelands, thereby increasing soil erosion vulnerability.

Keywords

References

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Iranian Journal of Soil Research
Volume 27, Issue 3
November 2013
Pages 349-357

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