Land-use systems regulate carbon geochemistry in the temperate Himalayas, India

Shamal Shasang Kumar; Shakeel Ahmad Mir; Owais Ali Wani; Subhash Babu; Md Yeasin; M A Bhat; Nazir Hussain; Anas Ibni Ali Wani; Rajesh Kumar; Devideen Yadav; S R Dar

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115811

Land-use systems regulate carbon geochemistry in the temperate Himalayas, India

J Environ Manage. 2022 Oct 15:320:115811. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115811. Epub 2022 Aug 11.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Division of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, 193201, India.
² Division of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, 193201, India; Division of Agronomy, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, 110 012, India. Electronic address: owaisaliwani@skuastkashmir.ac.in.
³ Division of Agronomy, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, 110 012, India. Electronic address: subhiari@gmail.com.
⁴ ICAR-Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute, New Delhi, 110 012, India.
⁵ Division of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, 193201, India.
⁶ School of Architecture, SMDVU, Katra, 182 320, India.
⁷ Division of Agronomy, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, 110 012, India.
⁸ ICAR- Indian Institute of Soil & Water Conservation, Dehradun, UK, 248 195, India.
⁹ RCRQA, Directorate of Research, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Kashmir, 190 025, India.

PMID: 36056479
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115811

Abstract

The Himalayan ecosystem is critical for ecological security and environmental sustainability. However, continuous deforestation is posing a serious threat to Himalayan sustainability. Changing land-use systems exert a tenacious impact on soil carbon (C) dynamics and regulate C emissions from Himalayan ecosystem. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the changes in different C pools and associated soil properties under diverse land-use systems, viz. natural forest, natural grassland, maize field converted from the forest, plantation, and paddy field of temperate Himalaya in the surface (0-20 cm) and subsurface (20-40 cm) soils. The highest total organic carbon (24.24 g kg^-1) and Walkley-black carbon contents (18.23 g kg^-1), total organic carbon (45.88 Mg ha^-1), and Walkley-black carbon stocks (34.50 Mg ha^-1) were recorded in natural forest in surface soil (0-20 cm depth), while soil under paddy field had least total organic carbon (36.45 Mg ha^-1) and Walkley-black carbon stocks (27.40 Mg ha^-1) in surface soil (0-20 cm depth). The conversion of natural forest into paddy land results in 47.36% C losses. Among the cultivated land-use system, minimum C losses (29.0%) from different pools over natural forest system were reported under maize-filed converted from forest system. Land conversion causes more C losses (21.0%) in surface soil (0-20 cm depth) as compared to subsurface soil. Furthermore, conversion of forest land into paddy fields increased soil pH by 5.9% and reduced total nitrogen contents and microbial population by 28.0% and 7.0%, respectively. However, the intensity of total nitrogen and microbial population reduction was the lowest under maize fields converted from the forest system. The study suggested that the conversion of natural forest to agricultural land must be discouraged in the temperate Himalayan region. However, to feed the growing population, converted forest land can be brought under conservation effective maize-based systems to reduce C loss from the intensive land use and contribute to soil quality improvements and climate change mitigation.

Keywords: Carbon fractions; Climate change; Conversion; Microbial dynamics; Total organic carbon.

MeSH terms

Agriculture
Carbon* / analysis
Ecosystem*
Forests
India
Nitrogen / analysis
Soil / chemistry
Zea mays

Substances

Soil
Carbon
Nitrogen