Monitoring of Finnish arable land: changes in soil quality between 1987 and 1998

This study is part of the long-term monitoring of Finnish arable land and it is based on soil analyses of 705 monitoring sites sampled in 1998. The same sites were sampled twice previously,in 1974 and 1987. We describe here the state of the Finnish cultivated soils in 1998 and changes in soil quality since 1987. The samples were analysed for organic C, volume weight, pH, P, K, Ca, S, Mg, Al, B, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Se and Zn.Macronutrients were extracted with 0.5 M ammonium acetate + 0.5 M acetic acid (pH 4.65) and most micronutrients, Al and heavy metals with the same solution + 0.02 M Na 2 EDTA. Hot water was used to extract B and Se. From 1987 to 1998, soil P, Ca, Mg, S, Cr, Cu, Zn, volume weight and electrical conductivity increased and soil K, B, pH and organic C decreased. There was no change in soil Al, Cd, Mn and Ni. Between 1987 and 1998,the use of P,K,B and Cu in mineral fertilisers declined whereas that of Ca in liming agents and Zn in mineral fertilisers increased. With the exception of P and Cu,these changes affected the concentrations of easily soluble macro- and micronutrients in the soil accordingly. The slight decrease in soil pH might be due to the increase in the use of fertliser N. The finding that soil Cd and Ni ceased to increase and that soil Cr increased only slightly was attributed to the dramatic reduction in national emissions and bulk depositions of heavy metals

Sustainable recycling of compost products in plant production

The project aims at improving the quality of composts made of municipal biowaste and sewage sludge and at developing the quality control of composts. The most important objective is to study and verify the effects of the use of biowaste and sewage sludge composts in plant production under Finnish conditions

Monitoring programme of Finnish arable land : agua regia extractable trace elements in cultivated soils in 1998

The main aim of this study was to produce internationally comparable knowledge on the status of cultivated soils in Finland. From the soil material collected during the latest sampling process under the national monitoring programme in 1998, 338 samples were selected for this investigation. The sampling sites were situated evenly over the whole cultivated area in Finland. Samples taken as four sub-samples from the plough layer were analysed for arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), nickel (Ni), selenium (Se), vanadium (V) and zinc (Zn) using aqua regia extraction according to an international standard method (ISO 11466). General statistical indicators of the analytical results of trace element concentrations are presented by soil type groups and by plant cultivation zones. Distributions of the results into the concentration classes are shown graphically and geographical distributions of the trace element concentrations are presented on the thematic maps

Raskasmetallikuormituksia ja –taseita suomalaisilla maatiloilla

ei saatavill

Tutkimusasemien viljelymaiden ravinne- ja raskasmetallipitoisuuksien seuranta : Muutokset aikavälillä 1992-1997

Viljelymaiden ravinne- ja raskasmetallipitoisuuksien seurantaa varten kerättiin syksyllä 1997 maanäytteet Maatalouden tutkimuskeskuksen (nykyisin Maa- ja elintarviketalouden tutkimuskeskus, MTT) ja Sokerijuurikkaan tutkimuskeskuksen tutkimusasemien peltolohkoilta. Seurantaan kuului 16 tutkimusasemaa eli 16 maatilaa. Seurattavia näytealoja oli yhteensä 122 ja ne olivat samat kuin vuonna 1992. Myös kerätyistä näytteistä tehtiin kaikki samat määritykset kuin aiemminkin lukuunottamatta lajitekoostumusta. Koko aineistoa tarkasteltaessa viljavuusluvuista muuttuivat pH, kalium ja rikki. Tosin pH:n mediaanin alenema oli vähäinen. Sen sijaan kaliumin vähentyminen ja rikin lisääntyminen olivat selvempiä, 13 ja 15 %. Viljavuuslukujen maatilakohtaisissa keskiarvoissa oli muutoksia lukuunottamatta kalsiumia. Maan fosforipitoisuus suureni yhdellä ja rikkipitoisuus kolmella tilalla. Magnesiumpitoisuus pieneni kahdella ja pH-luku neljällä tilalla. Kuitenkin eniten muutoksia oli yksittäisillä lohkoilla johtuen erilaisista viljelytoimenpiteistä. Esimerkiksi pH-luvun sekä kalsium- ja magnesiumpitoisuuksien suurentuminen johtuivat kalkituksesta. Voimaperäinen viljely suurine typpimäärineen taas johti hyvinkin huomattavaan pH:n ja ravinnepitoisuuksien alentumiseen. Hivenravinteista boori, rauta ja mangaani lisääntyivät kyseisellä aikavälillä, kun koko aineistoa tarkasteltiin. Kupari ja molybdeeni hieman vähentyivät. Tilakohtaisina keskiarvoina tarkasteltuna boori lisääntyi neljällä ja sinkki yhdellä tilalla. Kupari väheni yhdellä ja molybdeeni neljällä tilalla. Maan booripitoisuuden selvä lisääntyminen johtui lannoitteiden mukana tulleesta boorista ja sinkkipitoisuuden nousu sinkkiä sisältäneiden puutarhan Y-lannoksien käytöstä. Raskasmetalleista kadmiumin vähentyminen oli selkeä yleinen ilmiö. Pitoisuus aleni yhdellätoista tutkimusasemalla kuudestatoista ja muillakin tutkimusasemilla, yhtä lukuunottamatta, kehittymisen suunta oli aleneva. Useilla asemilla myös kromin ja nikkelin pitoisuus pieneni. Sen sijaan lyijyn pitoisuus lisääntyi kolmella tutkimusasemalla ja useilla muillakin suunta oli kohoava niin, että koko aineiston mediaani suureni. Tämä siitä huolimatta, että lyijypäästöt Suomessa alenivat 90-luvulla merkittävästi. Vanadiinin pitoisuus lisääntyi johtuen siitä, että terästeollisuuden kuonia oli käytetty kalkitusaineina.vokTiivistelm

Laboratorioiden ja analyysimenetelmien välinen vertailututkimus viljelymaan raskasmetalleista

vKirjasto Aj-

Teollisuuden jätevesilietteet ja niiden hyötykäyttö maataloudessa : Loppuraportti tutkimushankkeesta "Teollisuuden jätevesilietteet ja niiden mahdollinen hyötykäyttö maataloudessa"

VokKirjasto Aj-

Macro- and microelement concentrations of Finnish timothy in 1974 and 1987

Macro- and microelement concentrations of timothy (Phleum pratense L.) in 1974 and 1987 were compared. Timothy samples were collected from the same Finnish fields in 1987 as in 1974 and analyzed for seventeen elements. The biogenic element concentrations of timothy were mostly unchanged or slightly decreased. The decreases were most probably due to differences in the weather conditions between the years and in the stage of development of the plants at the time of sampling. The decrease in timothy Zn was apparently caused by the decrease in soil Zn. In 1987, the mineral nutritive value of timothy as animal feed was nearly the same as in 1974, but lower than the recommendations valid today. In both years, the concentrations of harmful elements in timothy were low. A drastic decrease in Pb from 1974 to 1987 was due to a remarkable decrease in the Pb emissions from traffic into the atmosphere. Timothy grown on fine mineral soils was rich in K, AI, Cd, Cu and Ni, while timothy from organic soils was rich in P, Mg, Fe and Mo. The only clear regional difference was in the Pb concentration; it was higher in the south than up north

Trace elements in top- and subsoil on selected crop and dairy farms in Finland in 2004

The main aim of this investigation was to study trace element contents in the Finnish arable land on crop and dairy farms. The crop farms were located on clay soils and the dairy farms on finesand soils. The agua regia extractable trace elements in the top- and subsoil of the clay soils at the crop farms were two to three times those of the finesand soils at the dairy farms. Most of the elements were significantly correlated with the clay content. Quantitatively more Cd, Pb and Hg enriched in the clay soils on the crop farms in southwestern Finland than in the finesand soils on the dairy farms in Ostrobothnia. However, dairy farming seemed to enrich the topsoil with more Cr, Cu, Se, V and Zn than crop farming, on average

Cadmium in Fertilizers. Risk to human health and the environment

The aim of this report was to estimate impacts of cadmium in phosphorus fertilizers on a cadmium content and cadmium balance of the cultivated soil, and to assess related human health and environmental risks under Finnish conditions. The assessment was performed by applying, as appropriate, the EU principles on risk assessment of New and Existing Substances, and the guidance document prepared by Environmental Resources Management Limited for the risk assessment of cadmium in fertilizers. The work was carried out on the basis of the available literature and other information relating to the occurrence of cadmium in the environment in Finland, harmful environmental influences of cadmium, as well as its adverse health effects. Based on the cadmium mass balances hundred-year scenarios were calculated at three different cadmium levels in P-fertilizers: 1) the present Finnish average cadmium level in fertilizers (i.e. 2.5 mg Cd/kg P), 2) the cadmium level corresponding to the national limit (i.e. 50 mg Cd/kg P), and 3) the cadmium level corresponding to an average European value (138 mg Cd/kg P). At present, cadmium concentrations in the Finnish cultivated soils pose a risk to soil organisms. Also, the leaching of cadmium from the arable land is causing a risk to the aquatic environment. However, if the use of the low cadmium P-fertilizers will be continued in Finland, it will result in a balance between cadmium inputs and outputs or even in a gradual decrease in the cadmium concentrations of soil, crops and leachates. The use of P-fertilizers containing cadmium at a level of the Finnish national limit value and, especially at a level of the average European content, would increase the risk to the environment. At present, a part of the elderly population in Finland is at risk from adverse health effects caused by cadmium. These risk groups consist of people whose dietary intake of cadmium has increased by using much of kidneys, liver, mushrooms, or molluscs in their diet, people whose gastrointestinal absorption of cadmium has increased because of deficiency of iron and heavy smokers. In these risk groups, the estimated urinary level of cadmium can be associated with high risk of kidney dysfunction and bone effects. An increase in the cadmium content of P-fertilizers would increase the size of the risk groups considerably