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Recently, incentives have been provided in many countries, including Canada and Denmark, to produce biochar for construction usage. This is done because biochar is carbon negative and can help achieve the emission reduction goal of 2030. This technical note aims to analyse the efficiency of biochar in soils with varying grain size distributions for enhancing soil–water characteristic curve (SWCC). The combinations of biochar content and grain size distributions corresponding to the maximum and minimum efficiencies were explored. Artificial neural network-based model for predicting SWCC as a function of soil suction and grain size distribution was developed. A new factor (the ratio of fine (silt + clay) and coarse (sand) content) was proposed for the interpretation of the efficiency of biochar in soils. The newly developed model is able to predict SWCC reasonably well. Biochar amendment is found to influence both dry and wet sides of soils with a clay content lower than threshold content (6–8%). Beyond threshold content, the influence of biochar appears to reduce. However, in the case of high sand content soils (90%), the normalized water content value on the drier side is generally higher as compared to soils with lower sand content. Based on the sensitivity analysis, it was found that the ratio of fine to sand content is the most influential, while biochar content is the least influential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Soil acidification rates and dissolved organic C fluxes were quantified on permafrost. • Fluxes of dissolved organic C were higher in clayey soils with shallow active layer. • Nitrate-N fluxes were higher at lower slope position even in arctic soils. • Cation uptake by lichen and moss as well as higher plants leads to soil acidification. • Climate warming has potential to increase active layer thickness and soil acidification. Climate warming is predicted to change the fluxes of dissolved organic matter and nitrate by increasing active layer thickness, plant productivity, and organic matter decomposition. These changes are hypothesized to increase mineral weathering and soil acidification rates. We investigated whether acidification rates and solute leaching fluxes are variable between permafrost-affected soils with different active layer thicknesses. We compared the fluxes of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and total dissolved N and the ion fluxes associated with solute leaching and plant uptake to calculate proton budgets in the soils that differed in slope positions (upper slope and lower slope) and soil texture (clayey and sandy soils) in NW Canada. We found the wide variation in DOC and nitrate-N fluxes, depending on slope positions and soil texture. The nitrate-N fluxes were higher at the lower slope position of the sandy soil, compared to the upper slope position. Compared to sandy soils, the DOC fluxes from the organic horizons were higher in the clayey soils on shallower permafrost table. Organic acids were major proton sources in the organic horizons at all sites, but acidity was also contributed by nitrate (sandy and clayey soils at lower slope position) and carbonic acid (clayey soil at upper slope position). The weathering by carbonic acid lead to accumulation of short-range-order minerals in the clayey soils, while incipient podzolization of the sandy soils included the weathering of illite to vermiculite and the dissolution of short-range-order minerals. The shallower active layer thickness at the lower slope position resulted in lower plant productivity and acidification rates. In the permafrost-affected soils, the active layer thickness, the DOC and nitrate-N fluxes, and their contribution to acidification are dependent on the local variation in slope position and soil texture, as well as climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Knowledge is lacking on the factors controlling the structure and spatial distribution of earthworm communities within agroecosystems. We first hypothesized that forested riparian buffer strips (FRBS) within agricultural landscapes would be a refuge for earthworms, as we predicted higher soil moisture and organic matter inputs in FRBS than in adjacent agricultural fields (treatments = FRBS vs. Field). We further hypothesized that earthworms would be most abundant where the chemical quality of above- and belowground plant litter is high, or where soil disturbance is low. We conducted a field survey to quantify earthworm species abundances in FRBS and adjacent agricultural fields in two bioregions, namely Eastern Canada and Central Europe. At each of 77 sites, we collected and identified earthworms from three plots within FRBS and within adjacent agricultural fields. In each plot, we identified the tree species, understory vegetation, soil drainage class, agricultural crop as well as five soil physicochemical properties. In each bioregion and treatment, we found proportionately more endogeic than anecic or epigeic earthworm species. In Eastern Canada, there were proportionately fewer anecic and more epigeic individuals in FRBS than in fields; in Central Europe there were fewer endogeic and more anecic earthworms in FRBS than in fields. We found significant bioregion × treatment interactions on earthworm abundance and soil moisture. More specifically, in Eastern Canada we found higher earthworm abundance and soil moisture in FRBS, whereas in Central Europe we found higher earthworm abundance in fields and no treatment effect on soil moisture. In both bioregions, we found higher organic matter in FRBS than in fields. In Eastern Canada, earthworm abundance in deciduous and mixedwood stands were higher than in coniferous stands; in Central Europe, earthworm abundance was highest in deciduous stands only. Within FRBS in Eastern Canada, the abundance of the prominent endogeic species, Apporectodea rosea , was correlated with herbaceous plants, notably ferns and graminoids. Conditional regression tree analysis revealed positive relationships between earthworms and soil clay content, pH, moisture and organic matter. Our results suggest that local and landscape patterns in earthworm diversity can be predicted by soil and vegetation attributes, however the relative importance of these factors changes across continental scales due to differences in precipitation patterns and soil moisture availability. Comparing the distributions of earthworms across different scales provides insights into the potential of different species to spread into new habitats with climate change. • In Canada, earthworms were more abundant in forested riparian strips than in fields • In Central Europe, the opposite pattern was observed • Differences across continents were ascribed to precipitation patterns • Earthworms were more abundant under deciduous tree canopies • Endogeic species were more abundant with herbaceous plants [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerical analyses have been performed to study the evolution of the factor of safety following the excavation of a cut in clay. The analyses consider variable thickness of the clayey soil deposit under the excavation. The results show that, for a given clayey soil, there is a relation between the time for full dissipation of excess pore-water pressure from the soil mass following the excavation and the geometry of the cut (Htot/Hexc). The analytical results agree reasonably well with pore pressure measurements made in excavations in clay deposits from eastern Canada. This suggests that time to reach full pore pressure equilibration following the excavation of a cut in homogenous clayey soil deposits can be predicted when knowledge of the coefficient of swelling-consolidation is available. Lastly, results obtained in the present study show that 50% of the difference between the short- and long-term factors of safety may be lost at values as low as about 8% of the time to reach equilibration of pore pressures. This means that the time during which one can rely on the short-term strength of the clayey soil following the excavation may be relatively short, especially for soft clays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A validation of an extended critical state model was conducted using a heavy agricultural clay soil from Quebec Province, eastern Canada. The numerical model used for this purpose simulated the behaviour of Sainte-Rosalie clay under triaxial compression and one-dimensional compression loading paths. Under triaxial compression, simulations were done for three soil suctions: 0, 300, and 500 kPa. Under one-dimensional compression, simulations were done for suctions 0 and 300 kPa. The model used five parameters while simulating soil mechanical behaviour under saturated condition. Three additional parameters were required for simulating soil mechanical behaviour under unsaturated condition. Results of simulations were then compared to those of laboratory tests. Experimental data compared well with simulation results. It was found that the model reasonably predicted soil behaviour under both saturated and unsaturated conditions. However, some discrepancies arose in both soil conditions: the model predicted an earlier rupture in each case of triaxial compression and it failed to reach the smallest void ratio obtained during one-dimensional compression. These small divergences were attributed to the fact that numerical development of the tested model was based on densified sand behaviour. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Presents information on a study which analyzed the factors affecting the adoption of conservation tillage on clay soils among farmers in Lambton County, Ontario. Methodology; Results and discussion.

• Reduced tillage increased growing season N 2 O emissions on fine textured soils. • Fertilization with dairy and pig slurry resulted in similar N 2 O emissions. • Nitrous oxide emissions were lower from the coarse compared to fine textured soil. Reduced tillage is often promoted as a method to sequester carbon (C) in soils and thus mitigate climate change. However, in certain conditions reduced tillage may increase soil nitrous oxide (N 2 O) fluxes, which may negate any climate gains from the potential storage of C in soil. To investigate how long-term applications of different manures interact with tillage effects on N 2 O fluxes during the crop rotation, we established a long-term trial in 2009 in eastern Canada, using two tillage (inversion tillage [IT]; and reduced tillage [RT],) and three fertilizer types (pig slurry, dairy slurry and a 0-N control) arranged in a split-plot design with 3 replications. The experiment was reproduced on two contrasting soil textures (silty clay and sandy loam) located approximately 900 m apart in a wheat-corn-soybean rotation. During 2016 (wheat), 2017 (corn), and 2018 (soybean) we estimated the N 2 O fluxes from each plot using manual static chambers for the growing season (April to November). Mean cumulative fluxes for the growing season ranged from 0.8 kg N 2 O-N ha−1 for the corn/control/IT to 7.6 kg N 2 O-N ha−1 for the wheat/dairy slurry/RT in the silty clay soils and from 0.4 kg N 2 O-N ha−1 for the corn/control/IT to 3.0 kg N 2 O-N ha−1 in the corn/pig slurry/RT in the sandy loam soils. The RT increased soil N 2 O fluxes for both slurry types and the control in the clay soil (mean flux for all fertilizer treatments over both seasons were 5.5 and 2.4 kg N 2 O-N ha−1 season−1 for the RT and IT, respectively), likely because the higher water content in the RT caused greater denitrification; while on the sandy loam the N 2 O flux was similar between the two tillage systems. Manure type had no measurable effect on the growing season N 2 O fluxes in either soil type as both provided sufficient labile N. Application of both slurries however, resulted in greater emissions than the control (P = 0.002). These findings suggest that RT on fine-textured soils in this region may not be an effective strategy to reduce GHG emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While it is generally understood that conservation tillage in heavy soils under a cool, wet climate increases N2O fluxes compared with inversion tillage, the interaction between tillage and manure type on soil N2O fluxes in different textured soils is not well understood. To investigate how long-term applications of different manures interact with tillage effects on N2O fluxes, we established a long-term trial in 2009 in eastern Canada, using two tillage (conventional: inversion at 25 cm in autumn; conservation: harrow at 5 cm in spring) and three fertilizer types (liquid swine manure, liquid dairy manure and a 0-N control) arranged in a split-plot design with 3 replications. The experiment is reproduced on two contrasting soil textures (silty clay and sandy loam) located approximately 800m apart in a wheat-maize-soybean rotation. During 2016 (wheat – Triticum aestivum), 2017 (maize – Zea mays) and 2018 (soybean – Glycine max), we measured the N2O fluxes from each plot using standard non-flow through, non-steady state, manual chambers for the snow-free period (1 April through 30 November). Cumulative fluxes for the snow free periods ranged from 0.4 kg N2O-N ha-1 for the inversion tillage on the sandy loam soil during the third year when soybean was grown without fertilizer, to 7.6 kg N2O-N ha-1 for the cattle manure/conservation tillage on the silty clay soil. Conservation tillage increased soil N2O fluxes for both manure types and the 0-N control in the clay soil (mean flux for all fertilizer treatments over all three seasons were 4.7 and 2.3 kg N2O-N ha-1 season-1 for the conservation and inversion tillage, respectively); while on the sandy loam the N2O flux was similar between the conservation and inversion tillage systems (mean flux for all fertilizer treatments over both seasons were 1.1 kg N2O-N ha-1 season-1 for both the conservation and inversion tillage). Considering that soil organic C may not increase in fine-textured soils under conservation tillage in temperate, humid areas such as eastern Canada, our findings suggest that conservation tillage in fine-textured soils in the region may lead to a net decrease in the GHG balance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]