Is it efficient to co-compost and co-vermicompost green waste with biochar and/or clay to reduce CO2 emissions? A short-term laboratory experiment on (vermi)composts with additives.

Is it efficient to co-compost and co-vermicompost green waste with biochar and/or clay to reduce CO2 emissions? A short-term laboratory experiment on (vermi)composts with additives.. EGU, European Geosciences Union General Assembly 201

Abundance and composition of free and aggregate-occluded carbohydrates and lignin in two forest soils as affected by wildfires of different severity

International audienceOrganic matter is the soil component most affected by wildfires, both in terms of abundance and composition. Fire-induced alteration of soil organic matter (SOM) depends on heating intensity and duration, oxygen availability and other factors related to topography, climate, soil and vegetation features. Particularly affected by fire is the litter layer, but SOM from the uppermost mineral soil can also experience some major changes. In this study, we investigated the direct impact of fire on molecular SOM parameters in density fractions isolated from the top 2.5 cm of mineral soil in two forests that recently experienced wildfires of different severity. One, located in Tuscany, Central Italy, is a mixed forest of Downy oak and Maritime pine, developed on Acrisols formed on sandy lacustrine deposits, affected by a moderately severe fire. The other, located in Victoria, South-East Australia, is a mixed-species eucalypt forest, developed on a Cambisol formed on sandy Devonian sediments, affected by an extremely severe fire (the infamous 'Black Saturday' fire). The purpose of this study was the assessment of fire-induced changes on amount and composition of the bulk SOM and SOM associated to soil fractions having different densities. We used 1.8 Mg m(-3) as density cut-off and distinguished between free and aggregate-occluded SOM. In particular, the analyses focused on abundance and composition of two major SOM components, proposed as molecular indicators of fire severity: the non-cellulosic neutral sugars, digested by trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), and the lignin-derived phenolic monomers, released by cupric oxide (CuO) oxidation. The chemical structure of both bulk SOM and SOM fractions were analysed by solid-state C-13 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. In contrast to the moderately severe fire affecting the Italian site, the extremely severe fire at the Australian site caused substantial loss of SOM from the top mineral soil. Both fires had major effects on SOM composition. In spite of the evident impact they experienced, neither hydrolysable sugars nor lignin phenols resulted to be reliable indicators of fire severity. Moreover, both fires apparently broke up soil aggregates, hence promoting the release of some occluded organic matter. The fire-induced changes of SOM observed have implications for the C cycle, so highlighting the critical role of wildfire occurrence and severity in climate change

How are deep soils responding to warming?

Scientists aim to integrate observations from deep-soil-warming experiments worldwide to better understand how ecosystems vital to food security and environmental health will react to climate change

Effect of in-situ aged and fresh biochar on soil hydraulic conditions and microbial C use under drought conditions

Biochar (BC) amendments may be suitable to increase the ecosystems resistance to drought due to their positive effects on soil water retention and availability. We investigated the effect of BC in situ ageing on water availability and microbial parameters of a grassland soil. We used soil containing 13C labeled BC and determined its water holding capacity, microbial biomass and activity during a 3 months incubation under optimum and drought conditions. Our incubation experiment comprised three treatments: soil without BC (Control), soil containing aged BC (BCaged) and soil containing fresh BC (BCfresh), under optimum soil water (pF 1.8) and drought conditions (pF 3.5). Under optimum water as well as drought conditions, soils containing BC showed higher soil organic carbon (SOC) mineralization as compared to control soil. Moreover, BC effects on the soil water regime increase upon in situ aging. Native SOC mineralization increased most for soils containing BCaged. The BCaged led to improved C use under drought as compared to the other treatments. We conclude that BC addition to soils can ameliorate their water regime, especially under drought conditions. This beneficial effect of BC increases upon its aging, which also improved native substrate availability

Влияние комбинированного применения гипоксическо-гиперкапнического стимула и методов аппаратной физиотерапии на иммунную систему больных хроническим обструктивным заболеванием легких

Изучено влияние на иммунную систему больных хроническим обструктивным заболеванием легких комбинации гипоксическо−гиперкапнического стимула и разных методов аппаратной физиотерапии. Установлено, что в целом комбинированное применение разработанной методики уменьшает дефицит Т−звена и частично восстанавливает работу гуморального компонента иммунитета.The influence of combined use of hypoxic−hypercapnic stimulus and different methods of apparatus physiotherapy on the immune system of the patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease was investigated. Combined application of the developed technique was established to diminish T−link deficiency and to restore partially the work of humoral immunity

Organic matter composition and the protist and nematode communities around anecic earthworm burrows

By living in permanent burrows and incorporating organic detritus from the soil surface, anecic earthworms contribute to soil heterogeneity, but their impact is still under-studied in natural field conditions. We investigated the effects of the anecic earthworm Lumbricus centralis on fresh carbon (C) incorporation, soil organic matter composition, protists, and nematodes of a Cambisol under grassland. We used plant material labelled with stable isotope tracers to detect fresh C input around earthworm-occupied burrows or around burrows from which the earthworm had been removed. After 50 days, we sampled soil (0–10 cm depth) in concentric layers around the burrows, distinguishing between drilosphere (0–8 mm) and bulk soil (50–75 mm). L. centralis effectively incorporated fresh C into the drilosphere, and this shifted soil organic matter amount and chemistry: total soil sugar content was increased compared to unoccupied drilosphere and bulk soil, and the contribution of plant-derived sugars to soil organic matter was enhanced. Earthworms also shifted the spatial distribution of soil C towards the drilosphere. The total abundance of protists and nematodes was only slightly higher in earthworm-occupied drilosphere, but strong positive effects were found for some protist clades (e.g. Stenamoeba spp.). Additional data for the co-occurring anecic earthworm species Aporrectodea longa showed that it incorporated fresh C less than L. centralis, suggesting that the two species may have different effects on soil C distribution and organic matter quality

Smart fertilizers as a strategy for sustainable agriculture

In the coming decades there will be increasing pressure on global food systems, and agriculture will have the challenge to provide food security for a growing world population without impacting environmental security. Accordingly, it will be necessary to use modern technologies in agroecosystems in order to supply sufficient food and decrease the negative impacts on the environment induced by chemical fertilization and by inadequate disposal or reuse of agricultural wastes. A combination of biotechnology and nanotechnology has the potential to revolutionize agricultural systems and provide solutions for current and future problems. These include the development and use of smart fertilizers with controlled nutrient release, together with bioformulations based on bacteria or enzymes. This study was designed to provide a critical review of information related to current food security issues and the role of smart fertilizer development in future food production. We concentrate on advances in the development of controlled-release biofertilizers and the use of harvesting residues as coating and carrier materials