Anthropogenic soils: general aspects and features

In recent decades man's role in soil formation has become a matter of great concern among soil scientists. Man is now considered a soil-forming factor and anthrosolization is recognised as a soil-forming process that consists of a collection of geomorphic and pedological processes resulting from human activities. These human activities include deep working, intensive fertilization, the addition of extraneous materials, irrigation with sediment-rich waters and wet cultivation. In this paper we review the influence of man as a soil forming factor stressing also some peculiar aspects linked to their classification

Soil genetic erosion: New conceptual developments in soil security

In the last decades, in some Mediterranean areas, pedodiversity decreased mainly due to pedotechnique application in large-scale farming that transformed original soils into Anthrosols. Supporting the consideration that soils can be considered as living systems, the original concept of 'soil genetic erosion' is re-proposed. Data, extrapolated and modeled from a Soil Information System in a study case representative of a Mediterranean landscape, predicted that most of the soil types would disappear in few years leading to a decrease of the soil diversity and originating soil genetic erosion. This circumstance is intentionally here told in form of a story where the fairy tale characters are some soils facing extinction in the landscape. Soil genetic erosion could result in a negative impact on the environment because it reduces the soil's security through a drastic reduction of the soil ecosystem services with a decrease of the immaterial benefit for the environment. The conviction that soils, as well as animals and plants, are living bodies, and pedodiversity is equally important as biodiversity in maintaining sustainability and ecosystem services, might truly attract the attention of the public opinion. Besides, focussing more on the soil economic dimension and strengthening the assignation of 'economic value' to the soil ecosystem services, also politicians and administrators could increase their interest in soil security. (C) 2019 International Research and Training Center on Erosion and Sedimentation and China Water and Power Press. Production and Hosting by Elsevier B.V

A new definition of soil to promote soil awareness, sustainability, security and governance

In these last decades, the awareness that soil is a very important resource for humans has noticeably increased. Many actions and initiatives to promote soil governance, aiming at sustainable soil management and soil security have been undertaken by several national and international institutions and in many countries. Analysis of the changes of soil perception over the centuries allows highlighting a perfect harmony between the evolution of soil awareness and the level of knowledge and technology achieved by humans during their history and evolution. Notwithstanding these many achievements, soils continue to be scarcely considered in politics and society. We suggest some thoughts and reflections that could lead to an up-to-date and effective definition of soil that directly focuses the public attention on its economic value. In our opinion, soil economic value could be the only aspect that truly attracts the attention of politicians and administrators, which could increase soil awareness and encourage soil sustainability, security and Sustainable Development Goals and finally promote soil governance

Enzymatic activity of anthropogenic proto-organic soils in soilless farming

In soilless agriculture and horticulture coir is the more used substratum to grow plants because it is widely available and more environmentally friendly than sphagnum or peat. In Italy, soilless agriculture concerns an area of about 1,000 hectares, particularly concentrated in Sicily. The southern coastal belt of this region is the area interested by the most significant experiences in the application of techniques of soilless cultivation that, recently, has been used also for growing table grapes. Starting from the above consideration we suppose that the features of the coconut fiber underlay an evident transformation and that even after few years of table grape cultivation, such organic material undergone to a transformation that allows for the formation of a proto-organic soil (a proto-Histosol, we supposed). If this is true, we believe that, in this case, to speak about soilless cultivation is for sure misleading for the common people, as we should define this cultivation \u201con anthropogenic soils\u201d instead. To fit the aims of this survey we used a big greenhouse devoted to soilless cultivation of table grape in a farm in the Southern SicilyWe have considered the enzymatic activity that characterized the coconut fiber after 3 cycles of cultivation of table grapes. We used as a control the coconut fiber that the farmer used to prepare pots for soilless cultivation and coconut fiber of: 6 pots at the end of the first productive cycle 6 pots at the end of the second cycle and 3 pots at the end of the third cycle. On these organic samples we investigated three enzymes, belonging to oxydoreductase (catalase and dehydrogenase) and hydrolase (urease) classes. Statistical analysis of the investigated enzymes was developed using IBM Statistic SPSS v20 by ANOVA, Tukey test HSD for p 0.01 and Multivariate Statistical Analysis. Results have shown significant differences in enzymes content and quality among coir tests. The use of the coco fiber, as nutritive substratum under fertigation, has positively influenced the growing and proliferation of soil microbes and thus enzymatic activity. In merely 3 productive cycles the stage of decomposition of the organic residues changed highlighting a substantial evolution of such organic material

Education in Soil Science: the Italian approach

The Italian Society of Soil Science (SISS) was founded in Florence on February 18th, 1952. It is an association legally acknowledged by Decree of the President of the Italian Republic in February 1957. The Society is member of the International Union of Soil Sciences (IUSS) of the European Confederation of Soil Science Societies (ECSSS) and collaborates with several companies, institutions and organizations having similar objectives or policy aspects. SISS promotes progress, coordination and dissemination of soil science and its applications encouraging relationships and collaborations among soil lovers. Within the SISS there are Working Groups and Technical Committees for specific issues of interest. In particular: \u2022 the Working Group on Pedotechniques; \u2022 the Working Group on Hydromorphic and Subaqueous Soils and \u2022 the Technical Committee for Soil Education and Public Awareness. In this communication we wish to stress the activities developed since its foundation by SISS to spread soil awareness and education in Italy through this last Technical Committee, focusing also the aspect concerning grants for young graduates and PhD graduates to stimulate the involvement of young people in the field of soil science

Distribution patterns of fungi and bacteria in saline soils

Saline soils are environments characterized by uneven temporal and spatial water distribution and localized high concentrations of salts. Spatial distribution patterns of fungi and bacteria in saline soils, and the link between microbial community dynamics and salts accumulation are critical issues throughout the world (Ettema, Wardle 2002). This study was focused on spatial distribution patterns of soil fungi and bacteria in a saline soil located in Piana del Signore (Gela, Italy) where some ecological variables acted as shaping factors in aboveground and belowground communities distribution. Bacterial, archaeal, and fungal communities diversity and distribution in ten soil sites (A horizons, 0-10cm), were characterized by 16S rDNA genes with T-RFLP method. Pyrosequencing-based analysis of the V2-V3 16S rRNA gene region was performed to characterize the sites on the basis of bacterial groups distribution, diversity and assemblage. To better investigate the ecological niches of some of the main culturable species of this environment, it was carried out the isolation and identification of the fungal flora from soil, using Warcup plating within two different salt concentrations (NaCl 5% and 15%), combined with a metabolic screening of some representative isolates (Di Lonardo et al., 2013). A natural gradient of soil salinity shaped the distribution of microbial species in the environment. The different concentration of salt (NaCl), and calcium sulfate (Ca2SO4) in soil influenced the structure and distribution of the microbial communities even when comparing neighboring areas within a 50 m scale. Some bacterial phyla, together with some fungal species, appeared spread in the whole area, independently of the salinity gradient, thus highlighting the presence of organisms with a very different survival strategy in such an extreme environment. In conclusion, the organization and diversity of microbial taxa at a spatial scale reflected the scales of heterogeneity of physical and chemical properties of the habitat under investigation

Salinity and Bacterial Diversity: To What Extent Does the Concentration of Salt Affect the Bacterial Community in a Saline Soil?

In this study, the evaluation of soil characteristics was coupled with a pyrosequencing analysis of the V2-V3 16S rRNA gene region in order to investigate the bacterial community structure and diversity in the A horizon of a natural saline soil located in Sicily (Italy). The main aim of the research was to assess the organisation and diversity of microbial taxa using a spatial scale that revealed physical and chemical heterogeneity of the habitat under investigation. The results provided information on the type of distribution of different bacterial groups as a function of spatial gradients of soil salinity and pH. The analysis of bacterial 16S rRNA showed differences in bacterial composition and diversity due to a variable salt oncentration in the soil. The bacterial community showed a statistically significant spatial variability. Some bacterial phyla appeared spread in the whole area, whatever the salinity gradient. It emerged therefore that a patchy saline soil can not contain just a single microbial community selected to withstand extreme osmotic phenomena, but many communities that can be variously correlated to one or more environmental parameters. Sequences have been deposited to the SRA database and can be accessed on ID Project PRJNA241061

In situ remediation of polluted Spolic Technosols using Ca(OH)2 and smectitic marlstone

Technosols are soils developed on non-traditional substrates and containing large quantities of materials mostly due to intensive human industrial activity, such as artefacts. The increasing number of sites affected by Technosols and their impact on the environment as growing media for plants or as source of pollutants require an understanding of their functioning and evolution, above all the knowledge on the transport of toxic substances from contaminated technogenic soils to groundwater. A case study on properties, remediation and evaluation of Technosols made up by vitrified fly ash and glass\u2013ceramics in Italy was carried out. Original technogenic soils, classified as Spolic Technosols (ecotoxic),were pedotechnically in situ remediated by adding smectitic marlstone and Ca(OH)2. Chemical analysis on samples from piezometers showed the presence of harmful heavy metals in groundwater. By means of boreholes and soil profiles the newsoils generated, after remediation, were physically and chemically characterized and classified as Spolic Technosols (calcaric). Analysis on soil toxicity and leaching tests showed the effectiveness of the remediation and the mobility reduction of some potentially harmful elements according to the environmental Italian regulation

Spatial microbial community structure and biodiversity analysis in "extreme" hypersaline soils of a semiarid Mediterranean area

In recent years specific attention has been paid on the biotechnological potential of microorganisms in extreme soils, in particular in saline soils. Salinity is one of the most widespread soil degradation processes on the Earth, and saline soils can be defined as extreme soils or border line habitats in which several factors, as high salt content, may limit the growth of organisms. In this study, the physical, chemical and microbiological soil properties were investigated in the shallower horizon of natural salt-affected soils in Sicily (Italy). The main aim of the research was to evaluate the structure and diversity of bacterial and archaeal communities by terminal-restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) according to arbitrary different classes of vegetation and salt crust cover in soils. Furthermore, the structure of microbial communities was assessed considering the heterogeneity of physical-chemical properties of the habitat under investigation, as a function of vegetation, crust cover, and salinity classes. The results provided information on the type of distribution of different microbial community composition and diversity as a function of both vegetation and crust cover as well as salinity classes. In particular, the archaeal community showed a richness and diversity significantly affected by the spatial gradients of soil salinity, conversely, the bacterial one showed a decreasing trend with increasing gradient of soil salinity. The T-RFLP cluster analysis showed the formation of two groups for both bacterial and archaeal community, significantly (. p<. 0.05) influenced by sand and silt content, electrical conductivity (EC. e), vegetation cover percentage, salt crust and for by texture composition. In particular, the discriminant analysis obtained for the different salt crust classes for archaeal community stressed the membership of one of the two clusters to the class with the lower salt crust percentage (0-40%)

Local soil classification and crop suitability: Implications for the historical land use and soil management in Monti di Trapani (Sicily)

In the past, the lack of technologies (e.g. synthetic fertilizers) to overcome biophysical limitations has played a central role in land use planning. Thus, landscape management and agronomic practices are reactions to local knowledge and perceptions on natural resources, particularly soil. In the framework of the European research project MEMOLA (FP7), the role of local farmers knowledge and perceptions on soil for the historical land use through the spatial distribution of crops and the various management practices have been assessed in three different areas of Monti di Trapani region (Sicily). The identification of the soil classification systems of farmers and the criteria on which it is based, linked to the evaluation of the farmers\u2019 ability to identify and map the different soil types, was a key step. Nevertheless, beyond the comparison of the ethnopedological classification approach versus standard soil classification systems, the study also aims at understanding local soil management and land use decisions. The applied methodology was based on an interdisciplinary approach, combining soil science methods and participatory appraisal tools, particularly: i) semi-structured interviews; ii) soil sampling and analysis; iii) discussion groups; and iv) a workshop with local edafologists and agronomists. A rich local glossary of terms associated with the soil conditions and an own soil classification system have been identified in the region. Also, a detailed soil map, including process of soil degradation and soil capability, has been generated. This traditional soil knowledge has conditioned the management and the spatial distribution of the crops, and therefore the configuration of the landscape, until the 1990s