Previous Land Use Affects the Recovery of Soil Hydraulic Properties after Forest Restoration

Autor(es)

Lozano-Baez, Sergio E. ^[1] ; Cooper, Miguel ^[2] ; Ferraz, Silvio F. B. ^[3] ; Rodrigues, Ricardo Ribeiro ^[4] ; Pirastru, Mario ^[5] ; Di Prima, Simone ^[5]

Afiliação do(s) autor(es)

^[1] Univ Sao Paulo, Luiz de Queiroz Coll Agr, Dept Forest Sci, Lab Ecol & Forest Restorat LERF, Av Padua Dias 11, BR-13418900 Piracicaba, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Sao Paulo, Luiz de Queiroz Coll Agr, Dept Soil Sci, BR-13418900 Piracicaba, SP - Brazil

^[3] Univ Sao Paulo, Luiz de Queiroz Coll Agr, Forest Hydrol Lab, BR-13418900 Piracicaba, SP - Brazil

^[4] Univ Sao Paulo, Luiz de Queiroz Coll Agr, Dept Biol Sci, BR-13418900 Piracicaba, SP - Brazil

^[5] Univ Sassari, Agr Dept, Viale Italia 39, I-07100 Sassari - Italy

• Tipo de documento: Artigo Científico
• Fonte: WATER; v. 10, n. 4 APR 2018.
• Citações Web of Science: 8

Resumo

Knowledge of soil hydraulic properties after forest restoration is essential for understanding the recovery of hydrological processes, such as water infiltration. An increase of forest cover may improve water infiltration and soil hydraulic properties, but little is known about the response and extent to which forest restoration can affect these properties. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of forest restoration on surface-saturated soil hydraulic conductivity (K-s), and to verify the K-s recovery to the pre-disturbance soil conditions. We sampled field K-s at the surface in Campinas municipality, Sao Paulo State, Brazil, at 18 plots under three land-cover types: (i) a pasture; (ii) a restored forest using a high-diversity mix of plantings (85 regional native species) of 9 years of age; and (iii) a remnant forest patch. We used the Beerkan method for soil hydraulic characterization. Bulk density (rho(b)), soil organic carbon content (OC), soil porosity and particle size data were also sampled. We found considerable differences in soil hydraulic properties between land-cover classes. The highest K-s were observed in remnant forest sites and the lowest K-s were associated with pasture sites. The K-s recovery differs markedly between restored forests. Our results strongly suggest that soil attributes and K-s recovery are influenced by the duration and intensity of land use prior to forest restoration. Attention needs to be given to management activities before, during and after forest restoration, especially where the soil is still compacted and K-s is low. (AU)

• Processo FAPESP: 13/50718-5 - Restauração ecológica de florestas ciliares, de florestas nativas de produção econômica e de fragmentos florestais degradados (em APP e RL), com base na ecologia de restauração de ecossistemas de referência, visando testar cientificamente os preceitos do Novo Código Florestal Brasileiro
• Beneficiário: Ricardo Ribeiro Rodrigues
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Temático
• Processo FAPESP: 99/09635-0 - Diversidade, dinâmica e conservação de árvores em florestas do estado de São Paulo: estudos em parcelas permanentes
• Beneficiário: Ricardo Ribeiro Rodrigues
• Modalidade de apoio: Auxílio à Pesquisa - Programa BIOTA - Temático