Soil and Water Research, 2016 (vol. 11), issue 3
Investigation of the effect of soil mineral composition on soil organic matter stabilityOriginal Paper
Nóra CZIRBUS, Tünde NYILAS, Béla RAUCSIK, Magdolna HETÉNYI
Soil & Water Res., 2016, 11(3):147-154 | DOI: 10.17221/47/2015-SWR 
The soil organic matter (SOM) pools with different stability play different roles in the agricultural and environmental processes, e.g. in the global carbon cycle. In this work Rock-Eval (RE) pyrolysis measurements and mathematical deconvolution of RE pyrograms were used for determining the abundance, quality, and main biological sources of SOM, as well as for evaluating the relative proportion of the labile (fresh plant and litter) and resistant (lignin and cellulose) bio-macromolecules, immature (humic substances) and mature refractory (naturally stable biological compounds, organic matter stabilized by physico-chemical processes and black carbon)...
Estimation of land loss in the Czech Republic in the near futureOriginal Paper
Jaroslava JANKŮ, Ondřej JAKŠÍK, Josef KOZÁK, Adéla Marie MARHOUL
Soil & Water Res., 2016, 11(3):155-162 | DOI: 10.17221/40/2016-SWR
The study presents an estimate of how many hectares of soil will be removed from the farmland fund in the coming years around the biggest towns for non-agricultural use, such as for residential purposes and industrial zones. To estimate suburban area spreading, so called "buffers", i.e. packing zones around towns, were established. For the capital city of Prague the buffer width was set at 3 km, for regional towns at 2 km, and for district towns at 1 km. In this area, as well as on the territory (intravilan) of towns, the estimate of the future acreage removal of farmland for building purposes was calculated. The study also quantifies the changes in...
Linking selected soil properties to land use and hillslope - A watershed case study in the Ethiopian HighlandsOriginal Paper
Hailu ADDIS, Andreas KLIK, Theib OWEIS, Stefan STROHMEIER
Soil & Water Res., 2016, 11(3):163-171 | DOI: 10.17221/117/2015-SWR
Deforestation of native forests for crop production in the Gumara-Maksegnit watershed, located in the Lake Tana basin, Ethiopia, dramatically increases the vulnerability of the soil for rainfall driven erosion. Hence, the central task of the study is to investigate general links of land-use and topography related to selected soil properties. The 53.7 km2 watershed was divided into a 500 × 500 m square grid to sample bulk density (ρd), pH, soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), available phosphorus (AP), and texture of topsoil. Such properties were investigated with respect to the two main land-uses, forest and agriculture, and...
Environmental implications of animal wastes pollution on agricultural soil and water qualityOriginal Paper
Christopher O. AKINBILE, Andrew E. ERAZUA, Toju E. BABALOLA, Fidelis O. AJIBADE
Soil & Water Res., 2016, 11(3):172-180 | DOI: 10.17221/29/2015-SWR
An attempt was made to ascertain the environmental effects of animal wastes pollution on agricultural soil and water quality at the oldest teaching and research farm, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria. Physical, chemical, and bacteriological analyses of water (shallow well) and soil samples were carried out to determine the present quality status. Fifteen soil samples collected at the centre of the animal wastes dump and at a distance of 5 and 10 m, and three different samplings done on the water source were analyzed. The parameters determined using APHA standard procedures included: turbidity, temperature, pH, alkalinity, sulphide,...
Leaching effect of rainfall on soil under four-year saline water irrigationOriginal Paper
Giovanna CUCCI, Giovanni LACOLLA, Mario A. MASTRO, Gianraffaele CARANFA
Soil & Water Res., 2016, 11(3):181-189 | DOI: 10.17221/20/2015-SWR
In the context of the overall competition for water resources it is important to understand the complex dynamics of crop water management including evapotranspiration, water quality, and leaching requirement, each of them depending on the site-specific conditions. The research started with grain maize and continued with sunflower, grain maize, and wheat, at the experimental field. On both grain maize and sunflower, 10 irrigation treatments were compared that resulted from the factorial combination of two types of water (fresh and brackish water) with five irrigation regimes; the scheduled treatments were applied by furrow irrigation. The amount of...
Effects of tractor bias-ply tyre inflation pressure on stress distribution in silty loam soilOriginal Paper
Dubravko FILIPOVIC, Igor KOVACEV, Kresimir COPEC, Goran FABIJANIC, Silvio KOSUTIC, Stjepan HUSNJAK
Soil & Water Res., 2016, 11(3):190-195 | DOI: 10.17221/124/2015-SWR
The aim of this paper was to quantify vertical stress distribution in silty loam soil by applying three combinations of tyre inflation pressures of front and rear wheels of a four-wheel drive tractor weighing 3560 kg. The tyres on the tractor were bias-ply, front 11.2-24 and rear 16.9-30, and inflation pressures were 67, 100, and 150% of the recommended pressure. Soil stresses were measured at 10, 30, and 50 cm depths using a stress transducer consisting of ten sensors with a 10 cm distance between sensor centres. Decrease in tyre inflation pressure resulted in a decrease of maximum soil stress at all measured depths. Tyre inflation pressures greatly...
Estimated contribution of selected non-point pollution sources to the phosphorus and nitrogen loads in water bodies of the Vltava river basinOriginal Paper
Pavel ROSENDORF, Petr VYSKOČ, Hana PRCHALOVÁ, Daniel FIALA
Soil & Water Res., 2016, 11(3):196-204 | DOI: 10.17221/15/2015-SWR
Eutrophication of inland waters by phosphorus as well as loads of coastal and marine waters by nitrogen is a major problem that impedes water bodies to meet the status defined by the Water Framework Directive. In order to reduce the nutrient load on the aquatic environment, first the significance of various pollution types should be thoroughly analyzed. The analysis of phosphorus runoff from agricultural land under normal rainfall-runoff conditions, and of nitrogen runoff associated with the application of manure on farmland shows their different impact on water body status in the Vltava river basin. The assessment of phosphorus indicates that annual...
Hindcast of wind driven wave heights in water reservoirsOriginal Paper
Petr PELIKÁN, Ladislav KOUTNÝ
Soil & Water Res., 2016, 11(3):205-211 | DOI: 10.17221/105/2015-SWR
The paper is focused on the problems of water level motion in water reservoirs. Dimensions of wind driven waves are closely related to the parameters of occurring wind. Due to the complexity of the physical phenomena, most methods for wave prediction are based on semi-empirical relations. The theories for approximation of waves follow two approaches. The first one, called regular waves, is based on mathematical description of water surface. The second one, called irregular waves, results from statistical processing of collected data. The methods have been modified as wind and wave data were accumulated over time, resulting in better predictions. The...