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Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition

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A special issue of Soil Systems (ISSN 2571-8789).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 May 2020) | Viewed by 21785

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Gregory B. Lawrence

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Guest Editor

United States Geological Survey, New York Water Science Center, 425 Jordan Road, Troy, NY 12052, USA
Interests: monitoring chemical changes in forest soils; role of soil in controlling stream chemistry

Dr. Scott W. Bailey

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Guest Editor

Northern Research Station, United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service, 234 Mirror Lake Road, North Woodstock, NH 03262, USA
Interests: mineral weathering; hydropedology; metal cation cycling in forests; headwater streams

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In past decades, landscapes with low acid-buffering capacity, common in much of eastern North America, northern Europe, and parts of Asia, have received high levels of acidifying sulfur and nitrogen deposition that have substantially lowered the availability of calcium and other mineral nutrients through acid leaching. In addition to inducing potential nutrient deficiencies and imbalances, sulfur and nitrogen deposition has led to the mobilization of harmful forms of aluminum in soils that have impaired the growth and regeneration of sensitive tree and herb species. Movement of these forms of aluminum into surface waters, facilitated by elevated solution concentrations of SO₄^2- and NO₃^-, has also resulted in harm to many types of aquatic biota.

In many areas where soils had previously been impacted, several decades of lowered pollutant emissions have led to decreases in the deposition of sulfur, and to a lesser extent nitrogen, although the magnitude and duration of the deposition decreases has varied by locale. Evidence of soils adjusting to this new chemical climate is emerging, but the degree to which responding processes reflect a reversal to pre-acid rain conditions rather than something new is not clear. Because soils change through a complex set of interacting factors that include the internal generation of organic acidity, the way in which reduced deposition levels fit into this system poses intriguing and important questions regarding the future condition of acid-sensitive soils.

To help advance our understanding of how the increase and subsequent decrease of acidic deposition levels has affected weakly-buffered soils, we are planning a Special Issue in the journal Soil Systems. We are seeking papers that will address this issue through new experimental results, long-term monitoring, new analyses of existing literature, or a combination of these or other relevant sources.

Dr. Gregory B. Lawrence
Dr. Scott W. Bailey
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Soil Systems is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

acidic deposition recovery
soil calcium depletion
forest nitrogen cycling
soil aluminum
soil carbon dynamics

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research

4 pages, 180 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition

by Gregory B. Lawrence and Scott W. Bailey

Soil Syst. 2021, 5(2), 36; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soilsystems5020036 - 21 Jun 2021

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1704

Abstract

Reductions in acidic deposition rates through legislative actions in North America and Europe have stemmed further environmental degradation and shifted the focus to potential recovery [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

17 pages, 2226 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Forest Soil Cation Dynamics and Increases in Carbon on the Allegheny Plateau, PA, USA Following a Period of Strongly Declining Acid Deposition

by Scott W. Bailey, Robert P. Long and Stephen B. Horsley

Soil Syst. 2021, 5(1), 16; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soilsystems5010016 - 12 Mar 2021

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2480

Abstract

Reductions in exchangeable calcium and magnesium and increase in exchangeable aluminum concentrations have been shown in soils impacted by acid deposition, including at four sites on the Allegheny Plateau, PA, USA, sampled in 1967 and 1997 during a period of peak deposition. We repeated sampling at these sites in 2017 to evaluate changes in soils during the more recent period when there has been a strong decline in acid deposition. The uppermost horizons, including the Oa and A horizons where humified organic matter transitions to mineral soil, were thicker, had higher concentrations of organic carbon and exchangeable calcium and magnesium, and lower concentrations of exchangeable aluminum in 2017 compared to 1997, approximating values measured in 1967. Below the Oa/A horizons, 2017 soil chemistry was more similar to the 1997 results, with some reduction of Ca in the recent measurements. These results suggest recovery of base cation–aluminum balance in surface horizons and may indicate a reduction of aluminum mobilization and increased efficiency of vegetation recycling of nutrients with decreased acid anion concentrations. These changes are consistent with a partial recovery from acid deposition. However, the increase in humified soil organic matter may also be affected by coincident increases in temperature and soil moisture. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition)

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23 pages, 1996 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Have Sustained Acidic Deposition Decreases Led to Increased Calcium Availability in Recovering Watersheds of the Adirondack Region of New York, USA?

by Gregory Lawrence, Jason Siemion, Michael Antidormi, Donald Bonville and Michael McHale

Soil Syst. 2021, 5(1), 6; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soilsystems5010006 - 23 Jan 2021

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 3225

Abstract

Soil calcium depletion has been strongly linked to acidic deposition in eastern North America and recent studies have begun to document the recovery of soils in response to large decreases in acidic deposition. However, increased calcium availability has not yet been seen in the B horizon, where calcium depletion has been most acute, but mineral weathering is critically important for resupplying ecosystem calcium. This study provides new data in seven watersheds in the Adirondack region (New York, USA), where acidic deposition impacts on soils and surface waters have been substantial and recovery remains slow. Initial sampling in 1997–1998 and 2003–2004 was repeated in 2009–2010, 2014, 2016 and 2017. Exchangeable calcium concentrations increased by an average of 43% in the Oe horizon of three watersheds where this horizon was sampled (10.7–15.3 cmol_c kg⁻¹). Changes in calcium were not seen in the individual watersheds of the Oa and B horizons, but as a group, a significant increase in calcium was measured in the upper B horizon. Liming of a calcium-depleted watershed also tripled calcium concentration in the upper B horizon in 5 years. However, stream calcium in unlimed watersheds decreased over the study period. Small increases in B-horizon calcium may be underway. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition)

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23 pages, 4360 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Reversal of Forest Soil Acidification in the Northeastern United States and Eastern Canada: Site and Soil Factors Contributing to Recovery

by Paul Hazlett, Caroline Emilson, Greg Lawrence, Ivan Fernandez, Rock Ouimet and Scott Bailey

Soil Syst. 2020, 4(3), 54; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soilsystems4030054 - 27 Aug 2020

Cited by 30 | Viewed by 4044

Abstract

As acidic deposition has decreased across Eastern North America, forest soils at some sites are beginning to show reversal of soil acidification. However, the degree of recovery appears to vary and is not fully explained by deposition declines alone. To assess if other site and soil factors can help to explain degree of recovery from acid deposition, soil resampling chemistry data (8- to 24-year time interval) from 23 sites in the United States and Canada, located across 25° longitude from Eastern Maine to Western Ontario, were explored. Site and soil factors included recovery years, sulfate (SO₄²⁻) deposition history, SO₄²⁻ reduction rate, C horizon pH and exchangeable calcium (Ca), O and B horizon pH, base saturation, and exchangeable Ca and aluminum (Al) at the time of the initial sampling. We found that O and B horizons that were initially acidified to a greater degree showed greater recovery and B horizon recovery was further associated with an increase in recovery years and lower initial SO₄²⁻ deposition. Forest soils that seemingly have low buffering capacity and a reduced potential for recovery have the resilience to recover from the effects of previous high levels of acidic deposition. This suggests, that predictions of where forest soils acidification reversal will occur across the landscape should be refined to acknowledge the importance of upper soil profile horizon chemistry rather than the more traditional approach using only parent material characteristics. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition)

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16 pages, 2198 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Landscape Influence on the Browning of a Lake Watershed in the Adirondack Region of New York, USA

by Nicholas A. LoRusso, Marykate McHale, Patrick McHale, Mario Montesdeoca, Teng Zeng and Charles T. Driscoll

Soil Syst. 2020, 4(3), 50; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soilsystems4030050 - 12 Aug 2020

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 3065

Abstract

Watershed recovery from long-term acidification in the northeastern U.S. has been characterized by an increase in the influx of dissolved organic matter (DOM) into surface waters. Increases in carbon quantity and shifts to more aromatic and “colored” OM has impacted downstream lakes by altering thermal stratification, nutrient cycling and food web dynamics. Here, we used fluorescence spectroscopy coupled with parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) to model predominant carbon quality fractions and their seasonal changes within surface waters along landscape positions of Arbutus Lake watershed in the Adirondack region of NY, USA. All DOM components were terrestrial in origin, however their relative fractions varied throughout the watershed. DOM in headwater streams contained high fractions of recalcitrant (~43%) and microbial reprocessed humic-like OM (~33%), sourced from upland forest soils. Wetlands above the lake inlet contributed higher fractions of high molecular weight, plant-like organic matter (~30%), increasing dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentrations observed at the lake inlet (492.5 mg L⁻¹). At the lake outlet, these terrestrial fractions decreased significantly during summer months leading to a subsequent increase in reprocessed OM likely through increased microbial metabolism and photolysis. Comparisons of specific ultraviolet absorbance between this study and previous studies at Arbutus Lake show that OM draining upland streams (3.1 L·mg C⁻¹ m⁻¹) and wetland (4.1 L·mg C⁻¹ m⁻¹) is now more aromatic and thus more highly colored than conditions a decade ago. These findings provide insight into the emerging role that watersheds recovering from acidification play on downstream water quality. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition)

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35 pages, 4349 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Natural Recovery and Liming Effects in Acidified Forest Soils in SW-Germany

by Lelde Jansone, Klaus von Wilpert and Peter Hartmann

Soil Syst. 2020, 4(3), 38; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soilsystems4030038 - 30 Jun 2020

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 3674

Abstract

In the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Southwest-Germany, a large-scale forest liming trial was government-funded in 1983 and a lime treatment was carried out in autumn 1983 until early winter 1984. Repeated liming was applied in 2003. The limed sites and adjacent control plots were surveyed repeatedly: in 2003 before the second lime application and again in 2010 and 2015. Research of this scope presents a rare opportunity to evaluate firstly the long-term development of acidified soils with their potential for natural recovery on established control plots, and secondly the long-term effects of repeated lime application—at a collective of study sites of various growth regions and soil properties. A natural recovery in soil pH was observed since 2003, on average limited to an increase of 0.2–0.4 pH units in the forest floor and 0.1–0.3 pH units in the mineral soil until 2015. The majority of the organic layers still show very strong or extreme acidity with a pH value 3.9 on average and in the mineral soil with pH values between 3.8 and 4.6 on average. The exchangeable cations calcium and magnesium slightly increased also, although the base saturation remained <20% by 2015. The exchangeable acid cation concentrations indicated no significant changes and thus no recovery. The lime treatment greatly accelerated the rise in pH by 1.2–1.3 units and base saturation by 40–70% in the organic layer, as well as 0.3–1.2 pH units and base saturation by 7–50% in mineral soil. These effects were decreasing (yet still significant) with depth in the measured soil profile as well as with time since last treatment. Changes in soil cation exchange capacity after liming were significant in 0–5 cm mineral soil, below that they were negligible as the significant increase in base cations were accompanied by decreasing acid cations aluminum and iron (III) especially in the upper soil profile. Additionally, a decrease of forest floor and an enrichment of organic carbon and nitrogen in the mineral topsoil tended to follow liming at some sites. Overall the liming effects had a high variability among the study sites, and were more pronounced in the more acidic and coarser textured sites. Liming of acidified forest soils significantly adds to natural recovery and therefore helps to establish greater buffering capacities and stabilize forest nutrition for the future. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition)

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12 pages, 2143 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Rapid Recent Recovery from Acidic Deposition in Central Ontario Lakes

by Shaun A. Watmough and M. Catherine Eimers

Soil Syst. 2020, 4(1), 10; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/soilsystems4010010 - 07 Feb 2020

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2769

Abstract

In many regions, chemical recovery in lakes from acidic deposition has been generally slower than expected due to a variety of factors, including continued soil acidification, climate-induced sulphate (SO₄) loading to lakes and increases in organic acidity. In central Ontario, Canada, atmospheric sulphur (S) deposition decreased by approximately two-thirds between 1982 and 2015, with half of this reduction occurring between 2005 and 2015. Chemical recovery in the seven lakes was limited prior to 2005, with only small increases in pH, Gran alkalinity and charge-balance ANC (acid-neutralizing capacity). This was because lake SO₄ concentrations closely followed changes in S deposition, and decreases in base cation concentration closely matched declines in SO₄. However, decreases in S deposition and lake SO₄ were more pronounced post-2005, and much smaller decreases in lake base cation concentrations relative to SO₄ resulted in large and rapid increases in pH, alkalinity and ANC. Dissolved organic carbon concentrations in lakes increased over the study period, but had a limited effect on lake recovery. Clear chemical recovery of these lakes only occurred after 2005, coinciding with a period of dramatic declines in S deposition. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recovery Processes of Acidic Soils Experiencing Decreased Acidic Deposition)

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