Amazon plinthosols: carbon stocks and physical properties under different land uses

The realization of soil management, without considering the limitations and potential of space, has contributed to the degradation of these environments, in different degrees, depending on the impact promoted on the soil attributes. This work investigated the levels of carbon (C), chemical, and oxidizable fractions of soil organic matter, in pasture areas with different recovery times, compared to a secondary forest. We evaluated the following forms of management: Secondary Forest (SF), Perennial pasture (PP), Perennial pasture recovered five years ago by the corn consortium + Brachiaria brizantha cv. Marandu (P5) and Perennial pasture recovered eight years ago by intercropping corn + Brachiaria brizantha cv. Marandu (P8). We determined the C contents of the oxidizable fractions (F1, F2, F3, and F4) and the contents and stocks of humic substances of organic matter in the layers of 0.00-0.10, 0.10-0.20, 0.20-0.30, and 0.30-0.40 m. We observed the highest levels of C in humic substances in areas SF, P8, and P5. Regarding the oxidizable fractions, we found in the P8 area the highest levels of C within the F1 and F3 fractions. Through the multivariate analysis employed, it was possible to evidence the following increasing order P8 > SF > P5 > PP of the impact on soil quality. The recovery of the pasture area, eight years ago, provided improvements regarding the accumulation of carbon in the soil in the oxidizable fractions and humic substances.

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Modeling the Impacts of Soil Management on Avoided Deforestation and REDD+ Payments in the Brazilian Amazon: A Systems Approach

Brasil

Ângelo

Almeida

et al. 2023

Sustainability

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An Integrated Assessment Model (IAM) was employed to develop a Narrative Policy Framework (NPF) and a quantitative model to investigate the changes in land use within the Brazilian Amazon. The process began by creating a theoretical NPF using a ‘systems thinking’ approach. Subsequently, a ‘system dynamic model’ was built based on an extensive review of the literature and on multiple quantitative datasets to simulate the impacts of the NPF, specifically focusing on the conversion of forests into open land for ranching and the implementation of soil management practices as a macro-level policy aimed at preserving soil quality and ranching yields. Various fallow scenarios were tested to simulate their effects on deforestation patterns. The results indicate that implementing fallow practices as a policy measure could reduce deforestation rates while simultaneously ensuring sustainable long-term agricultural productivity, thus diminishing the necessity to clear new forest land. Moreover, when combined with payments for avoided deforestation, such as REDD+ carbon offsets, the opportunity costs associated with ranching land can be utilized to compensate for the loss of gross income resulting from the policy. A sensitivity analysis was conducted to assess the significance of different model variables, revealing that lower cattle prices require resources for REDD+ payments, and vice-versa. The findings indicate that, at the macro level, payments between USD 2.5 and USD 5.0 per MgC ha−1 have the potential to compensate the foregone cattle production from not converting forest into ranching land. This study demonstrates that employing an IAM with a systems approach facilitates the participation of various stakeholders, including farmers and landowners, in policy discussions. It also enables the establishment of effective land use and management policies that mitigate deforestation and soil degradation, making it a robust initiative to address environmental, climate change, and economic sustainability issues.

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Amazon plinthosols: carbon stocks and physical properties under different land uses

Cited by 5 publications

References 17 publications

Global review and state-of-the-art of biomass and carbon stock in the Amazon

Global review and state-of-the-art of biomass and carbon stock in the Amazon

Humic substances and oxidable fractions of organic matter in different environments in Amazônia Maranhense

Modeling the Impacts of Soil Management on Avoided Deforestation and REDD+ Payments in the Brazilian Amazon: A Systems Approach

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