PROPOSAL TO STUDY ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS OF REDUCING SOIL EROSION IN ALBANIA

Soil erosion and associated nonpoint pollution are critical problems affecting the economic welfare, food security, and public health of Albania. Nearly 60 million tons of sediment are deposited by Albanian rivers into the Adriatic Sea each year. This translates into a national average soil erosion rate of 27.2 tons per hectare per year, which is more than twice the level of "tolerable" erosion established by many countries. This also means that an average of 2.3 mm of valuable topsoil are lost to the ocean each year. Accompanying the topsoil are agrochemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers as well as industrial pollutants, which are transported to reservoirs, rivers, lakes, and the ocean, thereby causing a degradation in water quality. The objectives of the proposed study include: to quantify the magnitude of soil erosion and its effects on water quality at three levels of intensity: site-specific, watershed, and the nation as a whole; to identify high-risk areas for immediate soil erosion control using a geographic information system; to create a public awareness program that uses soil erosion control as an example of land protection in Albania; to monitor the effectiveness of soil erosion control on discharge of sediments into the Adriatic Sea using remote sensing; and to determine the economic benefits of soil erosion control.Soil conservation--Environmental aspects--Albania, Soil conservation--Economic aspects--Albania, Environmental Economics and Policy, Land Economics/Use,

PREPARATION OF ACTION PLAN FOR PROTECTION OF LAND IN ALBANIA

The degradation of Albania's land resources is a serious impediment to the welfare of the people of Albania as well as that of future generations. Resolving land degradation requires the concerted action of governmental and nongovernmental agencies. The purpose of this paper is to describe how a Land Protection Action Plan could be developed. There are three general types of land degradation which this Land Protection Action Plan would attempt to solve: excessive soil erosion, contamination of surface and ground water, and unguided urbanization on high-quality agricultural land. The paper goes on to describe the steps to be taken to prepare the action plan, including documenting problems, identifying high-risk areas, identifying and carrying out needed research, designing educational programs, reviewing and preparing legislation, developing an investment program for land protection, and monitoring the evolution of different types of land degradation. The paper also describes the implementation of such an action plan.Agricultural conservation -- Albania, Land use -- Albania -- Planning, Land degradation -- Albania -- Prevention, Land Economics/Use,

Soils of western Wright Valley, Antarctica

Western Wright Valley, from Wright Upper Glacier to the western end of the Dais, can be divided into three broad geomorphic regions: the elevated Labyrinth, the narrow Dais which is connected to the Labyrinth, and the North and South forks which are bifurcated by the Dais. Soil associations of Typic Haplorthels/Haploturbels with ice-cemented permafrost at 70 cm. They are developed in situ in strongly weathered drift with very low surface boulder frequency and occur on the upper erosion surface of the Labyrinth and on the Dais. Typic Anhyorthels also occur at lower elevation on sinuous and patchy Wright Upper III drift within the forks. Salic Aquorthels exist only in the South Fork marginal to Don Juan Pond, whereas Salic Haplorthels occur in low areas of both South and North forks where any water table is> 50 cm. Most soils within the study area have an alkaline pH dominated by Na+ and Cl- ions. The low salt accumulation within Haplorthels/Haploturbels may be due to limited depth of soil development and possibly leaching

Characteristics and Significance of the Transition Zone in Drained Thaw-Lake Basins of the Arctic Coastal Plain, Alaska

In the three-component conceptual model of arctic soils, the transition zone is recognized as a layer intermediate between the seasonally thawed active layer above and the stable permafrost below. Although typically frozen and therefore part of the near-surface permafrost, the transition zone episodically thaws over a time period ranging from sub-decadal to multicentennial. From an analysis of 138 pedons from the Arctic Coastal Plain near Barrow, Alaska, we were able to delineate the upper boundary of the transition zone in 78% and the lower boundary in 70% of the pedons. The transition zone exhibits the effects of cryoturbation, contains abundant redistributed organic carbon, is enriched by ice in the forms of lenses, veins, and nets (reticulate vein ice) and has abundant soil moisture. The surface (upper boundary) of the transition zone is found at an average depth of 34 ± 7 cm below the ground surface and has an average thickness of 23 ± 8 cm. We observed no significant differences in the thickness of the transition zone or the depth of its boundaries in drained thaw-lake basins ranging in age from 300 to 5500 years BP, suggesting that the processes leading to the development of this zone occur rapidly in Arctic Alaska. Recognition of the transition zone has implications for understanding pedogenic processes in permafrost-affected soils and for determining the response of near-surface permafrost to climate warming.Dans le modèle conceptuel à trois composantes des sols arctiques, la zone de transition est reconnue comme une couche intermédiaire entre la couche active supérieure qui dégèle selon les saisons et le permafrost stable au-dessous. Bien qu’elle soit généralement gelée et que par conséquent, elle fasse partie du permafrost près de la surface, la zone de transition dégèle de manière épisodique sur une période allant de moins d’une décennie à plusieurs centaines d’années. D’après l’analyse de 138 pédons provenant de la plaine côtière de l’Arctique près de Barrow, en Alaska, on a pu délimiter la borne supérieure de la zone de transition dans 78 % des pédons et la borne inférieure dans 70 % d’entre eux. La zone de transition affiche les effets de la cryoturbation, puis elle contient du carbone organique distribué en abondance, elle est enrichie par la glace sous la forme de lentilles, de veines et de réseaux (glace de veine réticulée) et son sol renferme une humidité abondante. La surface (borne supérieure) de la zone de transition se trouve à une profondeur moyenne de 34 ± 7 cm sous la surface du sol et son épaisseur moyenne est de 23 ± 8 cm. Aucune différence considérable n’a été observée quant à l’épaisseur de la zone de transition ou à la profondeur de ses bornes dans les bassins de lacs de dégel allant de 300 à 5 500 ans BP, ce qui laisse croire que les processus ayant mené au développement de cette zone se produisent rapidement dans l’Alaska arctique. La reconnaissance de la zone de transition a des incidences sur la compréhension des processus pédogénisés dans les sols affectés par le permafrost ainsi que sur la détermination de la réaction du permafrost situé près de la surface au réchauffement du climat

TB35: Alpine Soils on Saddleback Mountain, Maine

Alpine regions do exist in the Northeast, but are less extensive than in western United States and Alaska. Although the areal extent of alpine soils is not known in Maine, nearly 1.4 million acres of land are classified by the Soil Conservation Service as mountainous. In Maine several mountains with subsidiary peaks greater than 4,000 ft in elevation support alpine zones, including Katahdin, Sugarloaf, Bigelow, North Brother, Saddleback, and Abraham.https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/aes_techbulletin/1152/thumbnail.jp

Genesis of active sand-filled polygons in lower and central Beacon Valley, Antarctica

Author Posting. © The Author(s), 2009. This is the author's version of the work. It is posted here by permission of John Wiley & Sons for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Permafrost and Periglacial Processes 20 (2009): 295-308, doi:10.1002/ppp.661.Nonsorted polygons with sand-filled wedges were investigated in lower and central Beacon Valley, Antarctica (77.82ºS, 160.67ºE) using field observations coupled with a 2-m resolution Digital Elevation Model and a high-resolution aerial photograph. A gasoline-powered concrete breaker was employed to expose the sediments of four representative polygon centers and six wedges from geomorphic surfaces containing tills of two different ages. The excavated polygons ranged from 9 to 16 m in diameter (average = 12 m); the sand-filled wedges ranged from 0.2 m to 2.5 m in width (average = 0.9 m). The top of ice-bonded permafrost ranged from 12 to 62 cm in depth (average = 33 cm) in the polygon centers and from 64 to >90 cm (average = >75 cm) in wedges. One active thermal contraction fissure generally was apparent at the surface, but excavations revealed numerous inactive fissures. The wedges contain sand laminations averaging 3 mm in width when viewed in cross section. Although most of the polygons were of the sandwedge type, some contained ice veins up to 1 cm in width and could be classed as composite wedges. Three stages of polygon development were observed, including strongly developed polygons on Taylor II surfaces (ca. 117 ka), moderately developed polygons on Taylor III surfaces (ca. 200 ka), and poorly developed polygons on Taylor IVa and older (ca. >1.1 Ma) surfaces. This retrogressive development may be due to sublimation of ice-bonded bonded permafrost following thermal cracking. With the drop in ice content, the thermal coefficient of expansion is lowered, which causes a reduction in tensile stresses.This research was supported by NSF grant OPP06336629 to MK

Element redistribution along hydraulic and redox gradients of low-centered polygons, Lena Delta, northern Siberia

Wetland soils affected by permafrost are extensive in subarctic and arctic tundra. However, this fact does not imply these soils have been sufficiently investigated. In particular, studies of element translocation processes are scarce. This study was conducted (i) to determine the relationship between water and redox regimes in wetland soils in the Siberian tundra, and (ii) to investigate their influence on the distribution of redox sensitive and associate elements (Mn, Fe, P). Major geomorphic units were chosen (microhigh, polygon rim and slope; microlow, polygon center) from two low-centered polygons in the Lena Delta. Within polygons, redox potential, permafrost, and water level were measured during summer in 1999 and 2000 and (related) compared with element distribution. Manganese, Fe, and P accumulations were preferentially observed in aerobic microhighs. Anaerobic conditions in the microlows lead to a mobilization of Mn, Fe, and P. The elements migrate via water and are immobilized at the microhigh, which acts as an oxidative barrier. The element pattern, indicating an upward flux via water along redox gradients, is explained by higher evapotranspiration from soils and vegetation of the microhighs (Typic Aquiturbel) compared with soils and vegetation of the microlows (Typic Historthel). However, in further research this upward transport should be validated using labeled elements

Coastal Erosion of Permafrost Soils Along the Yukon Coastal Plain and Fluxes of Organic Carbon to the Canadian Beaufort Sea

Reducing uncertainties about carbon cycling is important in the Arctic where rapid environmental changes contribute to enhanced mobilization of carbon. Here we quantify soil organic carbon (SOC) contents of permafrost soils along the Yukon Coastal Plain and determine the annual fluxes from coastal erosion. Different terrain units were assessed based on surficial geology, morphology, and ground ice conditions. To account for the volume of wedge ice and massive ice in a unit, SOC contents were reduced by 19% and sediment contents by 16%. The SOC content in a 1 m² column of soil varied according to the height of the bluff, ranging from 30 to 662 kg, with a mean value of 183 kg. Forty‐four per cent of the SOC was within the top 1 m of soil and values varied based on surficial materials, ranging from 30 to 53 kg C/m³, with a mean of 41 kg. Eighty per cent of the shoreline was erosive with a mean annual rate of change of −0.7 m/yr. This resulted in a SOC flux per meter of shoreline of 132 kg C/m/yr, and a total flux for the entire 282 km of the Yukon coast of 35.5 × 10^6 kg C/yr (0.036 Tg C/yr). The mean flux of sediment per meter of shoreline was 5.3 × 103 kg/m/yr, with a total flux of 1,832 × 10^6 kg/yr (1.832 Tg/yr). Sedimentation rates indicate that approximately 13% of the eroded carbon was sequestered in nearshore sediments, where the overwhelming majority of organic carbon was of terrestrial origin

Microbial community composition of transiently wetted Antarctic Dry Valley soils

During the summer months, wet (hyporheic) soils associated with ephemeral streams and lake edges in the Antarctic Dry Valleys (DVs) become hotspots of biological activity and are hypothesized to be an important source of carbon and nitrogen for arid DV soils. Recent research in the DV has focused on the geochemistry and microbial ecology of lakes and arid soils, with substantially less information being available on hyporheic soils. Here, we determined the unique properties of hyporheic microbial communities, resolved their relationship to environmental parameters and compared them to archetypal arid DV soils. Generally, pH increased and chlorophyll a concentrations decreased along transects from wet to arid soils (9.0 to ~7.0 for pH and ~0.8 to ~5 μg/cm3 for chlorophyll a, respectively). Soil water content decreased to below ~3% in the arid soils. Community fingerprinting-based principle component analyses revealed that bacterial communities formed distinct clusters specific to arid and wet soils; however, eukaryotic communities that clustered together did not have similar soil moisture content nor did they group together based on sampling location. Collectively, rRNA pyrosequencing indicated a considerably higher abundance of Cyanobacteria in wet soils and a higher abundance of Acidobacterial, Actinobacterial, Deinococcus/Thermus, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes, Gemmatimonadetes, Nitrospira, and Planctomycetes in arid soils. The two most significant differences at the genus level were Gillisia signatures present in arid soils and chloroplast signatures related to Streptophyta that were common in wet soils. Fungal dominance was observed in arid soils and Viridiplantae were more common in wet soils. This research represents an in-depth characterization of microbial communities inhabiting wet DV soils. Results indicate that the repeated wetting of hyporheic zones has a profound impact on the bacterial and eukaryotic communities inhabiting in these areas

Soils and parent materials of Findley Lake, Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington

Findley Lake watershed is located in the Snoqualmie National Forest and has a surface area of 259 ha (1 Mi²). The lake is at an elevation of 1128 m (3701 ft) but the ridges attain elevations of 1450 m (4750 ft). The Cougar Mountain Formation, consisting of lava flows, conglomerate, and volcanic sandstone, underlies the basin. The area has been glaciated and covered by a number of volcanic ash layers. Carbon 14 dating of stratified charcoal has shown that tephra are present among the ashes of Mt. St. Helens-W, Mt. St. Helens-Y, and Mazama (300, 3200, and 6700 yr B.P., respectively). An extensive fire occurred 200 years ago. Abies amabilis and Tsuga heterophylla are the most common tree species of the area. Soils were mapped into groups depending upon parent material and vegetation. The following groups were recognized. Soils of talus (16.2% of total); soils of mixed materials: (1) forested (56.2%), (2) semiforested (4.3%), (3) unforested (1.6%); residual soils of the ridges: (1) forested (17.5%), (2) unforested (4.2%). The soils Include the Haplumbrept, yorthod, and Haplaquept, andic and humic