Plastic gauzes have been widely used in the BTH region against haze events and for agricultural practices. The breakage of plastic gauzes would lead to the release of microplastics into soils, but it ...is difficult to estimate the inputs due to their wide implementation. In this study, we have conducted an estimation model based on the remote sensing technology for plastic gauze identification and the data from field experiments and literature. This model first managed to interpret the distribution of plastic gauzes from the Landsat8 images with the average overall accuracy at 0.92 and the average kappa at 0.77. By deeming the implementation duration of plastic gauzes from their distribution and using the breakage rates of plastic materials in soils reported in the literature, the model estimated that on average 1629.68 tons of microplastics have been released to soils from plastic gauze annually in the BTH region. Comparing with the microplastics released from other sources (e.g., personal care products, household dusts, laundry, and tire wear), plastic gauze could be a considerable contributor to soil microplastics.
Display omitted
•A plastic gauze classification model was developed based on GEE.•The MPs input from plastic gauze in the BTH region is 1629.68 tons yr−1.•Plastic gauze is a considerable contributor to MPs in non-agricultural land.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
In the literature on how urbanization affects agricultural landscapes, little attention has been focused on differentiating and comparing the changes in irrigated agricultural landscapes to ...non-irrigated agricultural landscapes. Additionally, there have been few applications of landscape metrics for understanding agricultural landscape changes. The objectives of this study were to: (1) analyze and compare the changes of both irrigated and non-irrigated agricultural lands in a rapidly growing region; (2) identify the spatial patterns and hotspots of these changes; and, (3) examine the spatial relationships between changes in agricultural landscapes and urban development. We adopted landscape metrics and gradient analysis to assess where and how agricultural landscape changes occurred in northern Utah over the past 30 years. A revised urban gradient was also developed to detect the changes of agricultural landscapes in relation to new urban development. We found that irrigated agricultural lands were more affected by urban development than non-irrigated agricultural lands, with evidence of more patches, more irregular patch shapes, and less connectivity among patches. This study contributes not only to the existing literature on the dynamics of both irrigated and non-irrigated agricultural lands in relation to urban development, but also helps fill the gap of scant applications of landscape metrics and urban gradient analysis in agricultural areas. Most importantly, such a comprehensive examination of Utah's agricultural landscapes will serve as part of the scientific foundation for informing land use policy in the region, as well as provide lessons for other places that are facing similar agricultural land conversion challenges.
•Using landscape metrics detecting agricultural landscape changes.•Differentiating landscape changes of irrigated and non-irrigated agricultural lands.•Irrigated agricultural landscape fragmentation under urbanization.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Field‐scale surface soil moisture (SSM, 0–10 cm), which is closely linked with land surface temperature (LST), is particularly important to agricultural water resource management. Active and passive ...microwave remote sensing‐based SSM retrievals on the order of kilometer squared resolutions are difficult to apply to heterogeneous agricultural land surfaces that may need SSM data at a resolution of 30 m. In this study, the High‐resolution Urban Thermal Sharpener and Enhanced Spatial and Temporal Adaptive Reflectance Fusion Model were applied to downscale optical and thermal remote sensing data simultaneously by blending Landsat and MODIS red‐near infrared‐LST data, with the ultimate goal to generate field‐scale SSM values from the trapezoidal approach. To evaluate the performance of the downscaled LSTE (based on the Enhanced Spatial and Temporal Adaptive Reflectance Fusion Model method) and SSM, an irrigation district (Area 1) in Inner Mongolia and an irrigation district in the North China Plain (Area 2) with varying spatial heterogeneity were selected as the testbeds. Results indicated that the downscaled LSTE was highly consistent with synchronous Landsat LSTH and in situ LST measurements in Area 1, with the root‐mean‐square error ranging from 0.73 to 2.75 K. Compared with the MODIS SSM, the average root‐mean‐square error of the downscaled SSM improved from 0.048 to 0.038 cm3/cm3 for both areas. The downscaled LSTE and SSM developed in this study enhance the spatiotemporal resolutions of the SSM estimates, maximizing the potential of remotely sensed information for agricultural water resource management.
Plain Language Summary
Field‐scale (30 m) surface soil moisture (SSM), closely linked with land surface temperature (LST), is particularly important for agricultural water resource management, such as for assessment of agricultural droughts, optimization of irrigation schedules and improvement of water use efficiency, particularly in the heterogeneous agricultural land. Here, the High resolution Urban Thermal Sharpener (HUTS) and Enhanced Spatial and Temporal Adaptive Reflectance Fusion Model (ESTARFM) were jointly adopted to downscale optical and thermal remote sensing data simultaneously by blending Landsat and MODIS Red‐Near infrared‐LST data, with the ultimate goal to generate field‐scale SSM values from the downscaled Red‐Near infrared‐LST remote sensing data using the theoretical trapezoidal approach. The field‐scale LST and SSM developed in this study maximize the potential of remotely sensed information, improve both the spatial and temporal resolutions of SSM, and provide more valuable information on heterogeneous land surfaces for agricultural water resource management.
Key Points
Downscaled LSTE (30 m), closely linked with SSM, can be acquired jointly using HUTS and ESTARFM methods
Downscaled field‐scale SSM (30 m) well represents the actual soil moisture than MODIS SSM in heterogeneous land
Downscaled Red‐Near infrared‐LSTE improves both the spatial and temporal resolution of SSM
Full text
Available for:
BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
•Abandoned agricultural lands (AAL) are potential targets for afforestation plans.•We used CBM-CFS3 to compare C sink of afforested vs. naturally regenerated AAL.•Planted species and natural ...regeneration (NR) scenario strongly impact the results.•Afforestation may store an additional 41–56 Mg C/ha by 2050 relative to NR.
Agricultural land abandonment is a widespread phenomenon that generally results in C accumulation due to natural establishment of woody vegetation. However, whether afforestation of abandoned agricultural lands (AAL) can sequester more C than AAL naturally reverting to woodlands is unclear. In this study, we used the CBM-CFS3 model to compare the additional C sequestration potential of afforested AAL (AR) with a reference scenario where AAL naturally returns to forest (NR). Simulations were performed for stands located in Quebec’s boreal zone (Canada) on podzolic soils. The AR scenario corresponded to stands afforested at a density of 2000 trees ha−1 with one of five commonly planted species in the region, namely black spruce (BS), white spruce (WS), eastern white pine (EWP), jack pine (JP) and tamarack (TK). The NR scenario corresponded to stands naturally reverting to natural forests of one of five species naturally occurring in the region, namely BS, WS, balsam fir (BF), trembling aspen (TA) and white birch (WB). The yield tables used for NR were phased out by 5, 10, 15 and 20 years to simulate various dynamics of colonization by woody plants following agricultural abandonment. Net C accumulation in AR stands varies depending on the planted species, from 127 to 255 Mg C ha−1 after 100 years with TK and WS, respectively. Net C accumulation in NR stands after 100 years ranges from 82 to 145 Mg C ha−1 for BS and TA, respectively, but these values are sensitive to both tree density and colonization time following abandonment. In both scenarios, the soil C pool shrinks by 6 to 12 Mg C ha−1 over the first 80–85 years, but the following soil C stock replenishment is faster in AR than in NR stands due to higher litter production (up to 50 Mg C ha−1). The additional C sequestration potential of AAL afforestation, i.e. the difference in net C accumulation between AR and NR stands, is the highest in stands afforested with WS and reaches a peak of 121–175 Mg C ha−1 80–87 years after afforestation depending on the NR scenario. Afterwards, additional C sequestration decreases due to a reduction in plantation growth combined with increasing natural regeneration growth. This modelling approach helps predict AAL additional C sequestration potential and suggests that AAL afforestation yields a more rapid C sequestration than natural regeneration, which could contribute to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Display omitted
•Pyrethroid were widely detected in Southeast China.•Pyrethroid residues in dry season were higher than those in wet season.•Pyrethroid residues were significantly associated with ...season and crop type.•Distribution and partitioning of pyrethroids is dominated by crop difference.
Pyrethroid insecticides are widely applied due to the broad spectrum and high efficiency in pest control and detected in various environmental media, but the key factor affecting their occurrence and distribution in agricultural lands is still not clear. Here, we measured pyrethroid residues in 644 surface soil and 630 surface water samples and quantified the impacts of various factors on the distribution and partition of pyrethroids through a large-scale field study in Southeast China during 2015–2017. The pyrethroid residues were widely detected in the studied areas, and the mean concentration of seven individual pyrethroids in surface soil and water ranged from 0.10 (cyfluthrin, (CYF)) to 12.14 ng/g (bifenthrin, (BIF)) and 0.18 (CYF) to 3.36 µg/L (BIF) respectively, which were higher than other regions in China and some other countries. Using a generalized linear model coupled with dominance analysis, we found that the crop type and season were significantly associated with pyrethroid residues in surface soil and water (p < 0.05). The crop difference dominated the variances of the distribution of pyrethroid residues in the surface soil and water with a contribution of more than 55% and followed by the factor of season difference. The findings provide new insight into the distribution and partitioning of pyrethroids in agricultural lands and insecticide control on ecological safety and public health.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Safe land use of agricultural territories implies the mandatory preservation of the state's land resources, which are its crucial strategic resources. The relevance of this study is conditioned upon ...the abundance of issues of safe land use in Ukraine, specifically in the agricultural sector of Ukraine, not least due to the difficulties of exercising the citizens' right to safe use of agricultural land. The main purpose of this study is the theoretical investigation of the possibilities of ensuring the right to a safe environment upon using agricultural land in Ukraine, with an assessment of the real possibilities of its practical implementation in modern economic conditions. The basis of the methodological approach in this paper is a combination of methods of systematic analysis of key aspects of safe land use applicable to agricultural land, with the method of abstract-logical research of the main aspects of the exercise of the citizens' right to a safe environment upon using agricultural land in Ukraine. The main results obtained in this paper should be considered the definition of the main priority areas for the development of the available legislative system in Ukraine in the context of ensuring the safety of agricultural activities and the assessment of the role of the state in ensuring the proper level of environmental safety of agricultural land use in terms of the prospects for the preservation of the agricultural land available in the country. The results that were obtained in this study, as well as the conclusions formulated on their basis, have substantial practical significance for agricultural workers concerned about the qualitative solution of problematic issues concerning the ensuring and practical implementation of their legitimate right to a safe environment upon using lands that belong to the agricultural sector of the national economy
Among the soil conservation practices that are used, mulching has been successfully applied to reduce soil and water losses in different contexts, such as agricultural lands, fire-affected areas, ...rangelands and anthropic sites. In these contexts, soil erosion by water is a serious problem, especially in semi-arid and semi-humid areas of the world. Although the beneficial effects of mulching are known, further research is needed to quantify them, especially in areas where soil erosion by water represents a severe threat. In the literature, there are still some uncertainties about how to maximize the effectiveness of mulching to reduce the soil and water loss rates. Given the seriousness of soil erosion by water and the uncertainties that are still associated with the correct use of mulching, this study review aims to (i) develop a documented and global database on the use of mulching with vegetative residues; (ii) quantify the effects of mulching on soil and water losses based on different measurement methods and, consequently, different spatial scales; (iii) evaluate the effects of different types of mulches on soil and water losses based on different measurement methods; and (iv) provide suggestions for more sustainable soil management. The data published in the literature have been collected. The results showed the beneficial effects of mulching in combating soil erosion by water in all of the environments considered here, with reduction rates in the average sediment concentration, soil loss and runoff volume that, in some cases, exceeded 90%. However, the economic feasibility of mulching application was not readily available in the literature. Therefore, more research should be performed to help both farmers and land managers by providing them with evidence-based means for implementing more sustainable soil management practices.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZRSKP
The assessment of the current state and dynamics of heavy metal (HM) soil pollution in Russia is compiled based on the data published in open scientific journals and reporting documents of the ...environmental agencies using a number of indicators (background concentration, maximum permissible concentrations (MPC), tentative permissible concentrations (TPC) and total pollution index Z). The main attention is paid to the situation with punctual pollution of the heavily contaminated sites, and to the diffuse pollution of urban soils and agricultural lands. In impact zones of large industrial centres, because of the decrease in HM emissions, no additional soil pollution was registered since 2007. However, despite a sharp decline in HM input into soils, the level of pollutants in soils next to industrial enterprises remains high, because soils accumulate metals in the bound species. For urban soils and suburbs, a decrease in Pb content was documented in sites, where soil remediation measures have been implemented. The results of the survey compiled in 2008–2017, for settlements located in different regions of the Russia, showed that according to state regulations, the 1.7% of investigated lands can be considered as “dangerous”, 9.1% as “moderately dangerous” and 89.2% as “permissible”, in respect to soil HM pollution. For agricultural lands, it was showed that the average content of mobile species of Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, Ni, Cr and Hg are below the permissible limits and tend to decrease. The agricultural soils with the HM concentrations above the critical limits constitute a few percent of the total area of the surveyed arable lands. For a better assessment of soil pollution of Russia, it is necessary to increase the area of surveys, to unify approaches to select the pollution indicators and to develop regulatory standards dependent on land use.
Display omitted
•In the last 30 years industrial emissions of heavy metals drastically decreased.•In soils of impact zones contents of heavy metals still exceed permissible levels.•During 1990–2016 content of mobile heavy metals in agricultural soils decreased.
The soil pollution with heavy metals has not been occurring in impact zones of large industrial centres since 2007. Although there is a tendency of decrease of the mobile species in soils, the total level of pollutants in soils remains high.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Natural resources such as land and mountains and seas are one of the God-given riches of societies protect and utilize it is one of the major tasks of governments. One of the most important natural ...resources is national land; it may be forest or grassland or desert. It is extremely important to distinguish national lands that belong to all people from agricultural lands that belong to a private owner. The that law gives the rangers the right to identify these two types of lands based on certain legal rules and criteria. Since there is always the possibility of rangers mistake in this diagnosis, in case of objection of the interested party, special legal authorities to deal with the objection and invalidation of ranger theory are provided in the law, which in some cases a special commission and in some other cases It is legal. In addition, according to the general principles of law, such as the principle of compensation for all illegitimate damages, and also according to the jurisprudential rule, it should be said that if the warlord has committed a mistake in identifying lands, the owner of the land, who has already suffered damage due to this misdiagnosis, can file a lawsuit against the warlord in the General Court of Legal Law in accordance with the general rules of civil liability and claim the damages.
•The area of irrigated lands in Urmia Lake Basin has increased by 437% over the past decades.•The salinization and desertification progresses are not limited to just the dried bottom of Urmia ...Lake.•Salinization and desertification have spread across all parts of Urmia Lake Basin.•Both anthropogenic and climatic factors have played a positive role in Urmia Lake restoration after 2014.•The role of anthropogenic factors in the drying up of Urmia Lake and its recovery is more than climatic factors.
Urmia Lake (UL) located in the northwest of Iran, is one of the largest hypersaline lakes in the world. In recent years, most of the lake has been rendered to unusable lands. Drought and rapid increase in agricultural activities are the most important reasons behind the shrinkage of the lake. In this study, hydro-climatic data, Landsat satellite images and image processing techniques were used to detect the spatio-temporal land cover changes and salinization progress in Urmia Lake Basin (ULB) between 1975 and 2019. Increasing the area of irrigated lands from 1265 km2 in 1975 to 5525 km2 in 2011 in contrast to decreasing the water surface area of UL from 5982 km2 in 1995 to 586 km2 in 2014 and extension of salinization in the basin are the most important and thoughtful results of this study. Even the agricultural lands in the regions close to the lake have been affected by this environmental problem. The climatic conditions have gradually improved after 2014 and the government has released more water from dams to the lake. On the other hand, the area of irrigated lands has gradually decreased by 12% in the same period. As a result of these positive changes, the water surface area of the lake has gradually increased over 1000 km2. Based on the results of this study, both anthropogenic and climatic factors have played a positive role in UL restoration. Improvement of agricultural methods and providing a sustainable agricultural water management system under a changing climate can play the most effective role in the lake rehabilitation.
Full text
Available for:
GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
PDF
