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Made available in DSpace on 2019-10-04T12:37:11Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2019-05-20 Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) United States Institute of Peace Studies regarding the residual effects of sewage sludge in soil several years after the first and only application are still scarce, especially for tropical areas under forestry management. In these soils, the residual effects can represent a neglected phenomenon, since silvicultural management experiences a longer crop rotation cycle compared to most common agricultural cycles. Consequently, under forestry management, sewage sludge applications can represent an event occurring just once over cycles of several years. This study aimed to evaluate the long-term effects of residual sewage sludge application in infertile tropical soils under Eucalyptus plantations in terms of both the main chemical features (pH, soil organic matter, N, P, S, K, Ca, Mg, and cation-exchange capacity) and the potentially toxic elements (As, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mo, Ni, Pb, Se, and Zn) concentrations/behaviors of soil. Residual effects were evaluated in four areas (Sao Paulo State, Brazil) after 10.0, 12.2, 12.4, and 17.2 years from the first and only application, respectively. Differences in terms of treatments were evaluated by analysis of variance: correlations and similarity analyzed by principal component and cluster analysis, respectively. The results showed that soil organic matter, main macronutrients (N and P), and cation-exchange capacity contents were generally higher in sewage sludge-treated soils while potentially toxic element contents tended to increase at increasing sewage sludge doses. In most of the investigated treatments, the potentially toxic element concentrations were usually below both the soil natural background concentrations and quality reference values. Principal component and cluster analysis revealed that differences among areas were primary due to differences in applied sewage sludge type and amount. The effects of residual sewage sludge application on soil, in terms of both the pros and cons, can be detected even many years after the first and only application. Studies on the long-term effects of sewage sludge should be mandatory for both monitoring the pedoenvironment and for guiding policymakers and producers on the best practices for their reuse and management. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Forest Sci, Coll Agr Luiz de Queiroz, Av Padua Dias 11, BR-13418900 Piracicaba, SP, Brazil Univ Sao Paulo, Ctr Nucl Energy Agr, Av Centenario 303, BR-73416000 Piracicaba, SP, Brazil Inst Forest Sci & Res IPEF, Private Bag 530, BR-13400970 Piracicaba, SP, Brazil Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Soil Sci, Coll Agr Luiz de Queiroz, Av Padua Dias 11, BR-13418900 Piracicaba, SP, Brazil Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Exact Sci, Coll Agr Luiz de Queiroz, Av Padua Dias 11, BR-13418900 Piracicaba, SP, Brazil Sao Paulo State Univ, Dept Plant Protect, Rural Engn & Soils, Sch Engn, BR-15385000 Ilha Solteira, SP, Brazil Univ Sassari, Dipartimento Architettura Design & Urbanist, Via Colombo 1, I-08100 Nuoro, Italy Univ Sassari, Desertificat Res Ctr, Viale Italia 39, I-07100 Sassari, Italy Sao Paulo State Univ, Dept Plant Protect, Rural Engn & Soils, Sch Engn, BR-15385000 Ilha Solteira, SP, Brazil FAPESP: 2004/15097-0 FAPESP: 2018//13152-7 CNPq: 485205/2012-2 CNPq: 312728/2017-4 CAPES: 001

Sardinia (Italy), the second largest island of the Mediterranean Sea, is a fire-prone land. Most Sardinian environments over time were shaped by fire, but some of them are too intrinsically fragile to withstand the currently increasing fire frequency. Calcareous pedoenvironments represent a significant part of Mediterranean areas, and require important efforts to prevent long-lasting degradation from fire. The aim of this study was to assess through an integrated multiple approach the impact of a single and highly severe wildland fire on limestone-derived soils. For this purpose, we selected two recently burned sites, Sant'Antioco and Laconi. Soil was sampled from 80 points on a 100 × 100 m grid – 40 in the burned area and 40 in unburned one – and analyzed for particle size fractions, pH, electrical conductivity, organic carbon, total N, total P, and water repellency (WR). Fire behavior (surface rate of spread (ROS), fireline intensity (FLI), flame length (FL)) was simulated by BehavePlus 5.0.5 software. Comparisons between burned and unburned areas were done through ANOVA as well as deterministic and stochastic interpolation techniques; multiple correlations among parameters were evaluated by principal factor analysis (PFA) and differences/similarities between areas by principal component analysis (PCA). In both sites, fires were characterized by high severity and determined significant changes to some soil properties. The PFA confirmed the key ecological role played by fire in both sites, with the variability of a four-modeled components mainly explained by fire parameters, although the induced changes on soils were mainly site-specific. The PCA revealed the presence of two main “driving factors”: slope (in Sant'Antioco), which increased the magnitude of ROS and FLI; and soil properties (in Laconi), which mostly affected FL. In both sites, such factors played a direct role in differentiating fire behavior and sites, while they played an indirect role in determining some effects on soil.

The omitted reclamation of quarrying sites in the Campania region (Italy), especially in Caserta province, represents a dramatic source of territory instability, landscape deterioration and social-cultural apprehension. The main problems arise from the systematic failure to comply with the Environmental Reclamation laws in force, the weakness of judicial supervisions and the lack of specific sanctions to be applied in the event of non-compliance. Additionally, the environmental reclamation still represents a prohibitive cost for the quarrying entrepreneurs, just because it is not considered as a possible investment for the company’s conversion to new lines of production. On these bases, we considered the chance to turn the closing down of quarrying into other sustainable business activities, able to guarantee not only the environmental safeguarding according to the law, but also the social-economic progress. The present paper describes a study-case intervention of pedotechnologies as a reference protocol – within the whole of reclamation activities – to ad hoc designing and building Technosols, suitable for an environmental reclamation addressed to the agricultural reuse of abandoned limestone quarries.

Made available in DSpace on 2018-11-26T17:41:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2017-12-01 Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) Suzano Pulp and Paper Company S.A. Fertilization of Eucalyptus plantations using sewage sludge on unfertile tropical soils represents an alternative to using mineral N and P fertilizers. A 44-month field experiment was conducted to study the effects of increasing application of sludge, and its interactions with mineral N and P fertilizers, on wood volume. Four rates of sludge (0, 8,15 and 23 Mg ha(-1), dry base), N (0, 47, 95 and 142 kg ha(-1)) and P (0, 28, 56 and 84 kg ha(-1) of P2O5) were combined in a 4 x 4 x 4 factorial scheme in a totally randomized block design. Response surface and age-shift modeling was used to establish an initial recommendation for mineral fertilization of the Eucalyptus plantations treated with sludge and to analyze the implications of increased growth on the duration of the forest cycle in a tropical climate. The results showed that from 8 to 44 months after planting, the sludge application (with or without N and P) yielded a statistically larger wood volume (P < 0.05), compared to application of N and P fertilizers only. The response surface modeling showed the following outcomes: i) application of sludge based on N criterion reduced the need for N and P fertilizers by 100%; and ii) an increase in wood volume by 7% could be achieved, compared to NPK fertilizers only, if 2/3 of the recommended P was applied. The cultivation time to produce 150 m(3) ha(-1) of wood volume was 45 months for the control and was reduced by two, three, four, or five months, respectively, through application of recommended P, sludge dose, sludge plus one third of P, and sludge plus two thirds of P. On the whole, sewage sludge could represent an excellent unconventional N and P fertilizer source for wood production on unfertile tropical soils. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Univ Sao Paulo, Dept Plant Nutr, Ctr Nucl Energy Agr, BR-13400970 Piracicaba, SP, Brazil Fed Univ Grande Dourados, Sch Engn, BR-79804070 Dourados, MS, Brazil EMBRAPA Cerrado, BR-73310970 Planaltina, DF, Brazil Univ Sao Paulo, Luiz de Queiroz Coll Agr, BR-13418900 Piracicaba, SP, Brazil Suzano Papel & Celulose SA, BR-18200000 Itapetininga, SP, Brazil Univ Florida, Inst Food & Agr Sci, Indian River Res & Educ Ctr, Ft Pierce, FL 34945 USA Sao Paulo State Univ, Sch Engn, Dept Plant Protect Rural Engn & Soils, BR-15385000 Ilha Solteira, SP, Brazil Univ Sassari, Dipartimento Architettura Design & Urbanist, Via Colombo 1, I-08100 Nuoro, Italy Univ Sassari, Desertificat Res Ctr, Viale Italia 39, I-07100 Sassari, Italy Sao Paulo State Univ, Sch Engn, Dept Plant Protect Rural Engn & Soils, BR-15385000 Ilha Solteira, SP, Brazil FAPESP: 2004/15097-0 FAPESP: 2015/09690-5 CNPq: 313374/2014-7

This study aimed to assess the impacts of composted sewage sludge and steel mill slag on urban soil fertility and tree growth. The research was conducted in an urban area (Botucatu, State of Sao Paulo, Brazil) characterised by extremely unfertile urban soils and with high production of these wastes. Plant growth, soil physico-chemical properties, and chemical composition of leafs were analysed during a 12-month field experiment. Principal factor analysis (PFA) and canonical correspondence analysis (CCA) were applied in the evaluation of the investigated soil-plant system. The results showed that soil fertility was increased by the combination of applied waste materials, which provided good conditions for full plant development and maintenance. PFA showed that the variability of the investigated model was mainly due to the role of soil organic matter as source/sink of soil heavy metals. CCA showed that the investigated soil-plant system was characterised by time-dependent evolution, with an equilibrium reached during the final stages, suggesting that the obtained results may be realistic from a long-term perspective. This study provides evidence that composted sewage sludge and steel mill slag are acceptable alternatives for improving urban soil quality and tree growth. The reuse of these wastes could provide a low-cost alternative for their complex and expensive management and disposal with, additionally, the possibility of turning currently bulky refuse material into a commodity.

Local knowledge refers to the understandings, skills, and philosophies developed by societies with long histories of interaction with their environment. Place names (toponyms) can be considered an important mirror of the local knowledge and perceptions about the surrounding living space. The aim of this research has been to investigate, through an integrated ethnopedological approach, the meaning and distribution of toponyms, with particular (but not sole) reference to pedonyms (toponyms connected to soil resources) used in the traditional and recent cartography of Sardinia (southern Italy). As a paradigmatic case study, the toponyms belonging to an important sub-region of Sardinia, the Gulf of Oristano (central-western Sardinia), have been investigated. To draw appropriate comparisons between local and scientific knowledge, the research was conducted through the following approach: i) toponymy research and collection from different sources; ii) database creation and toponym translation; iii) categorization of toponyms; iv) soil field investigation and analysis of several physical–chemical parameters; and v) graphical, statistical (including multivariate analysis), and cartographic data processing. Generally speaking, the research shows that toponymy cannot be intended merely as a contextual geographic practice aiming to attribute a specific place name to a predefined geographical space. It rather represents a complex and articulated dynamic objectivation (in terms of the conversion of a concept or abstraction into an object) of a geographic entity. This process is the consequence of a strong, deep, and often conflicting interaction among humans, culture, and the surrounding environment. During the Anthropocene period, the influence of human activities on toponymy has been so intensive that many place names are now coined to mainly indicate the “artificial” man-made features of an intensively anthropized environment. Such “technogenic toponyms” could represent the “written witness” of the Anthropocene during subsequent eras.

A study was carried out in the Volturno River’s lower basin (Campania, south Italy), an area of significant agronomic, economic, and cultural value but which is characterised by extensive environmental concerns. The area is a part of the “Litorale Domizio-Flegreo e Agro Aversano” Site of Regional Interest (SRI), due to the presence of several “potentially polluted” sites and illegal landfills, some containing toxic/harmful pellet foundry slag. Taking into account the relevance of potential environmental risks, linked to dangerous waste dispersion, and their serious socio-economic implications, research began with the general aim to assess whether or not the pollution hazard really had jeopardised the agricultural soils of Volturno River’s lower basin. Specifically, this study was concerned with the distribution and concentration of selected potentially toxic elements (Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn), in soil samples and representative profiles, with reference to different pedological features and physical–chemical characteristics. The main aim was to clarify the natural and anthropic factors influencing their occurrence. Hence, a detailed survey was carried out by collecting 64 core samples at fixed depths (0–20, 20–40 cm) and examining seven different soil profiles through the identification of 39 genetic horizons. Univariate and multivariate statistics were used for the interpretation of the data sets. As consequence of the intrinsic heterogeneity of the investigated Pedons, which are influenced by the variable flooding regime, PTEs distribution usually fails to show a sharp, linear concentration gradient with depth. On the opposite, evident fluctuations along profiles were systematically observed. For those concerned core drill samples, the raw data sets (median ± 2MAD) for Cu (12.93–48.33 mg kg − 1 ), Pb (1.70–50.10 mg kg − 1 ), and Zn (32.13–129.13 mg kg − 1 ) appear to conform to the background population. On the opposite, an element specific situation appears to exist for Cd (0.01–11.89 mg kg − 1 ) characterised by values exceeding the geogenic background concentration (0.43 mg kg − 1 ) as well as the threshold values (2 mg kg − 1 ) ruled by the Italian legislation. However, according to current laws, the investigated area cannot be defined as “contaminated site” sensu strictu , since some anomalous PTEs concentration is erratic and inconsistent with others. Principal factor analysis (PFA) shows that soil organic matter (SOM) is the most important sink for the investigated PTEs, suggesting that their occurrence and distribution have a mainly pedogenic control. From this point of view, SOM acts as a sink of PTE by secondary accumulation processes, most probably favoured by the formation of organo-metal complexes. This suggests that PTEs linked to SOM can substantially arise from the weathering of the geogenic PTE forms, as well as unintentional or illegal “anthropogenic” factors may influence the whole soil PTEs pool. Indeed, such findings do not exclude that some PTE accumulation in the investigated soils may also have been due to anthropogenic sources. As a matter of fact, given the long-standing human impact on the investigated area, an anthropogenic influence on PTE background concentrations cannot be a priori excluded. From this point of view, the agricultural soils of Volturno River’s lower basin require strict control and protection from the illegal deposition of waste materials, in order to prevent the widespread diffusion of pollution.

This paper assesses the distribution of soil phenolic matter (SPM) in soil environments from a pedological perspective, with particular emphasis on soil horizonation and its involvement in pedogenic processes. The study was conducted on 15 soil profiles (Andosols, Calcisols, Cambisols, Lixisols, Phaeozems, Podzols, Umbrisols) covering five distinct ecosystems. Although the ecosystems were virtually homogeneous in and of themselves, they represented strongly contrasting climates, geolithology and morphology, land use and vegetation cover (intensive agriculture, chestnut grove, alpine pasture, woody reforestations, and natural woods). Three main SPM fractions were categorised: (i) “total” (SPMt), (ii) “soluble” and/or “labile” (SPMs), and (iii) the fraction with a “high” (SPMh) affinity for the soil body. The SPMh and SPMs contents varied significantly, averaging 2.84 ± 0.52 g kg − 1 and 0.07 ± 0.02 g kg − 1 , respectively. Thus, these fractions appear to belong to different soil organic matter (SOM) pools. Indeed, the SPMs fraction was characterised by transitional, ephemeral low-weight molecules, which continuously reached the soil through both plant metabolism/decay and SOM degradation and were subsequently transformed into larger materials (humic matter, organo-mineral complexes) and/or lost by leaching and mineralisation. The SPMh fraction is likely involved in pedogenic processes that are primarily driven by the transport/translocation of colloidal phases under the following conditions: (i) in the early stages of horizon differentiation or, more specifically, in transport processes from the overlying A horizons and (ii) in cheluviation phenomena leading to the formation of spodic horizons. Moreover, SPMh also appears to be involved in early “in situ” alteration of cambic horizons. This involvement may result from the strong etching/complexing activity of soluble polyphenols from the overlying horizon, which promotes “in situ” weathering of the parent material. The total amount of SPM in a given environment greatly depended on the environmental conditions, which ranged from 0.02 g kg − 1 in an intensively cultivated Haplic Cambisol to 13.14 g kg − 1 in an Andic Cambisol under natural downy oak cover. Additionally, the SPMh/SPMs and SPMt/SOM% ratios decreased significantly from natural woods to intensive agriculture systems and may therefore indicate the extent of different anthropic impacts, such as soil cover/land use, in different ecosystems.

We studied the effects of amendment with zeolitized tuffs (ZT) in recovering nitrogen and phosphorus as potential plant nutrients in soils treated with wastewater (WW). The surface horizon of two contrasting soils (a sandy, alkaline Entisol, and a sandy-loam, sub-acidic Alfisol), was pedotechnically managed with different ratios of Neapolitan Yellow Tuff (NYT) and a clinoptilolite bearing tuff (ZCL). It was then exposed to repeated treatments with ‘dirty’ municipal wastewater (DMW). Results showed that the presence of ZTs had several favorable effects. As concerns the aspect connected with the investigation into the supernatant/soil solution, total N and total P decreased sharply in the supernatant as ZT content in soil/zeolite samples increased. Large quantities of nitrate were removed from the solution, most probably via bio-chemical reaction. Investigation of the soil/zeolite samples after twelve consecutive treatment cycles showed that the concentration of the essential plant macronutrients N and P increased as ZT content increased. Overall, the ZTs added directly to the poorly-resilient soils appeared to be a useful amendment in reducing the pollutants load caused by irrigation with untreated wastewater. It also played a positive role in pedotechnique strategies, improving both the natural intrinsic soil resilience and soil functionality.

The properties of a non-andic, allophanic Inceptisol (POM1) and two andic, non-allophanic Inceptisols (FLM5 and SPM8), representative of a toposequence on basanite rocks of Mt. St. Antonio (central-western Sardinia, Marghine sub-region), were analyzed to better elucidate factors and processes that lead to a different expression of andic properties and allophane formation in xeric Mediterranean environment. A series of laboratory techniques including physical, chemical, micromorphological, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analyses were used. All soils are usually rich in organic carbon, dystric at the Great Group level, with saturation base from 72 to 10%, and with pH from subalcaline to acidic. Allophanic Inceptisol appears more intensely weathered than non-allophanic Inceptisols. Volcanic glass content is, in any case, negligible. POM1, formed on the plateau, shows a shallow solum (45 cm) with A 2 horizon that meets all the criteria for andic soil properties; the amounts acid oxalate-extractable Al o and Si o , together with pyrophosphate-extractable Al p , typifies such a pedon as allophanic Inceptisol (0.19 p /Al o 2 ). The allophanic Inceptisol (POM1) is located at the plateau of the toposequence, where lower surface runoff, greater water infiltration rate, the absence of significant erosion and colluvial movement may have increased the degree of weathering processes. In these conditions, the prolonged soil moistness prevents the transformation of short-order components. On the whole, the results emphasize the role of topography and the importance of Al-, Fe-amorphous compounds in expressing soil andic properties and allophane content versus the volcanic origin of parent material and the insufficiency of volcanic glass. The results also suggest that the occurrence of soil with andic properties and significant allophane content in hot and dry environments, like the Mediterranean climate in Sardinia, may be more widespread than expected.

In 55 patients with alcoholic cirrhosis and in 47 healthy individuals we assayed the concentration of selenium in serum (S-Se) by proton induced X-ray emission, the aminoterminal peptide of type III procollagen (NPIIIP) by RIA and the plasma fibronectin (FN) by immuno-nephelometry, together with routine biochemical tests. S-Se was lower in cirrhosis than in controls (0.57, SD 0.20 vs 0.92, SD 0.16 mumol/l; p less than 0.001) and was more reduced in ascitic than in compensated patients (0.50, SD 0.19 vs 0.66, SD 0.17 mumol/l; p less than 0.001). Regression analysis showed a positive correlation of S-Se with serum albumin and FN, whereas necrotic or inflammatory activity seems unrelated to S-Se; a negative correlation was found between S-Se and NPIIIP, suggesting a protective role of selenium against fibrosis.