The paper focuses on conservation agriculture (CA), defined as minimal soil disturbance (no-till, NT) and permanent soil cover (mulch) combined with rotations, as a more sustainable cultivation system for the future. Cultivation and tillage play an important role in agriculture. The benefits of tillage in agriculture are explored before introducing conservation tillage (CT), a practice that was borne out of the American dust bowl of the 1930s. The paper then describes the benefits of CA, a suggested improvement on CT, where NT, mulch and rotations significantly improve soil properties and other biotic factors. The paper concludes that CA is a more sustainable and environmentally friendly management system for cultivating crops. Case studies from the rice-wheat areas of the Indo-Gangetic Plains of South Asia and the irrigated maize-wheat systems of Northwest Mexico are used to describe how CA practices have been used in these two environments to raise production sustainably and profitably. Benefits in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and their effect on global warming are also discussed. The paper concludes that agriculture in the next decade will have to sustainably produce more food from less land through more efficient use of natural resources and with minimal impact on the environment in order to meet growing population demands. Promoting and adopting CA management systems can help meet this goal.

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8A geoelectrical investigation of a slow moving earth slide-earth flow in Lower Jurassic Lias Group 9 rocks of the Cleveland basin, UK, is described. These mudrock slopes are particularly prone to failure 10 and are a major source of lowland landslides in the UK, but few attempts have been made to 11 spatially or volumetrically characterise the subsurface form of these slides. The primary aim of this 12 study was to consider the efficacy of fully three-dimensional geoelectrical imaging for landslide 13 investigation with reference to a geological setting typical of Lias Group escarpments. The approach 14 described here included a reconnaissance survey phase using two-dimensional electrical resistivity 15 tomography (ERT), resistivity mapping, self-potential (SP) profiling and mapping, followed by a 16 detailed investigation of an area of the landslide using three-dimensional (3D) ERT and self-potential 17 tomography (SPT). Interpretation of the geophysical data sets was supported by surface 18 observations (aerial LiDAR and differential GPS geomorphological surveys) and intrusive 19 investigations (boreholes and auger holes). The initial phase of the study revealed the existence of a 20 strong SP signature at the site consistent with a streaming potential source and established the 21 relationships between the main geological units, the geomorphologic expression of the landslide, 22 and the resistivity of the materials in and around the study area. The 3D SPT model generated during 23 the second phase of the study indicated drainage patterns across the landslide and preferential flow 24 from the low permeability mud rocks into the underlying more permeable sandstone formation. 25 Manuscript Click here to view linked References

This paper represents the result of the IAEG C35 Commission "Monitoring methods and approaches in engineering geology applications" workgroup aimed to describe a general overview of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and their potentiality in several engineering geology applications. The use of UAV has progressively increased in the last decade and nowadays started to be considered a standard research instrument for the acquisition of images and other information on demand over an area of interest. UAV represents a cheap and fast solution for the on-demand acquisition of detailed images of an area of interest and the creation of detailed 3D models and orthophoto. The use of these systems required a good background of data processing and a good drone pilot ability for the management of the flight mission in particular in a complex environment.

This study compared the interaction of seed moisture and imbibition temperature of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] to (i) optimum survival and seedling growth, (ii) soaking injury to seeds, (iii) quantity of organic leachates from germinating seeds, and (iv) growth and yield under field conditions.Thirteen to 14% seed moisture (dry weight basis) was the lowest moisture content resulting in optimum protection against chilling temperatures during imbibition in both ‘Chippewa 64’ and ‘Acme’ soybean varieties. With seed moisture at 5%, exposure to chilling during imbibition or during seed soaking resulted in decreased survival and seedling vigor. The combination of anaerobically soaking 5%‐moisture seeds at 5 C was nearly fatal. Transverse cracks and yellowing and browning of cotyledons were observed after cold or warm imbibition of 5 but not 13% moisture seeds. Soaking of 5% moisture seeds increased the visible injury to cotyledons. The loss of survival after soaking low‐moisture seeds at 5 C was greater than the additive effects of chilling and soaking. Loss of sugars and ninhydrin positive materials as leachate was primarily a function of cold temperature during imbibition, but 13% initial seed moisture gave little protection against loss of leachates. After a severe reduction in survival from imbibitional chilling of 5% moisture seeds, surviving plants of the Acme variety were shorter, produced fewer fruits and seeds, and yielded less grain and stover under field conditions. Losses were avoided by equilibrating seeds to 13% moisture before imbibition.

Conservation agriculture (CA), defined as minimal soil disturbance (no-till) and permanent soil cover (mulch) combined with rotations, is a more sustainable cultivation system for the future than those presently practised. The present paper first introduces the reasons for tillage in agriculture and discusses how this age-old agricultural practice is responsible for the degradation of natural resources and soils. The paper goes on to introduce conservation tillage (CT), a minimum tillage and surface mulch practice that was developed in response to the severe wind erosion caused by mouldboard tillage of grasslands and referred to as the American dust bowl of the 1930s. CT is then compared with CA, a suggested improvement on CT, where no-till, mulch, and rotations significantly improve soil properties (physical, biological, and chemical) and other biotic factors, enabling more efficient use of natural resources. CA can improve agriculture through improvement in water infiltration and reducing erosion, improving soil surface aggregates, reducing compaction through promotion of biological tillage, increasing surface soil organic matter and carbon content, moderating soil temperatures, and suppressing weeds. CA also helps reduce costs of production, saves time, increases yield through more timely planting, reduces diseases and pests through stimulation of biological diversity, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Availability of suitable equipment is a major constraint to successful CA, but advances in design and manufacture of seed drills by local manufacturers are enabling farmers to experiment and accept this technology in many parts of the world. Estimates of farmer adoption of CA are close to 100 million ha in 2005, indicating that farmers are convinced of the benefits of this technology. The paper concludes that agriculture in the next decade will have to produce more food, sustainably, from less land through more efficient use of natural resources and with minimal impact on the environment in order to meet growing population demands. This will be a significant challenge for agricultural scientists, extension personnel, and farmers. Promoting and adopting CA management systems can help meet this complex goal.

Declining yields and soil nutrient balance in a long-term rice-rice-wheat study suggest depletion of soil potassium (K) and inadequate K fertilization seem to be primary reasons for limited and declining crop yields.