Straw mulching is not always a useful post-fire stabilization technique for reducing soil erosion

Fernández‐Fernández, María; Vieites-Blanco, Cristina; Gómez-Rey, M.X.; González-Prieto, S.J.

doi:10.1016/j.geoderma.2016.09.001

Cited by 21 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…According to previous studies, 61−63 the application of fire retardant can have long-term effects on the P concentrations in the affected ecosystem. For example, Fernandez et al 63 found that 10 years after the application of fire retardant, the soil-available P concentration was 3 times higher than that in burned soils with no fire retardant application.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Oxygen Isotope Signatures of Phosphate in Wildfire Ash

Bigio

Angert

2019

ACS Earth Space Chem.

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Atmospheric aerosol deposition is a significant source of phosphorus (P) in many terrestrial and marine ecosystems worldwide, influencing their biogeochemistry and primary production. Particles emitted from wildfires (hereafter, ash) are the second most important source of atmospheric P after airborne dust. In this study, we aim to identify the signature of ash oxygen isotopes in phosphate. This will enable the use of this signature for the separation of ash from other atmospheric P sources. We measured P concentrations and δ18OP in ash from natural and experimental fires and also from ash heated at different temperatures. The HCl and resin P concentrations (average ± SE) were 3.15 ± 0.35 and 1 ± 0.1 mg g–1, respectively. The HCl and resin δ18OP were 15.5 ± 0.4 and 14.7 ± 0.4‰ (average ± SE), respectively. Based on previous studies, we suggest possible isotope exchange reactions during the combustion process, between oxygen in phosphate and oxygen from other probable sources (i.e., the atmosphere, and CaCO3 and CaO formed in the ash). The unique isotopic signature in the ash, ranging from 11.5 to 19.4‰ in the HCl and resin P fractions, is different from that of other atmospheric P sources such as airborne tree pollen, which has δ18OP values between 19.2‰ and 29.6‰, and Saharan-dust samples collected in Israel, which have δ18OP values ranging from 20.7‰ to 22.6‰. Thus, the δ18OP can be used as a marker for identifying atmospheric P from wildfires and for estimating its importance to the global P cycle.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Oxygen Isotope Signatures of Phosphate in Wildfire Ash

Bigio

Angert

2019

ACS Earth Space Chem.

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“…In this case, they attributed the low efficiency as a consequence of the low soil erodibility, low rainfall erosivity, and because the mulch strips were located on the top half of the field plots. Curiously, applying very high application rates in the range of 46 to 17 Mg ha -1 with logging slash mulch (Fernández et al, 2007;Prats et al, 2012;Shakesby et al, 1996), did not show a significant effect and the reasons were also linked to the low erodibility of burnt soils, as it was suggested by Fernández-Fernández et al (2016). A priori, under circumstances of low soil erosion rehabilitation treatments are not needed.…”

Section: Soil Erosion Mitigation With Low Mulch Application Ratesmentioning

confidence: 93%

Post‐fire soil erosion mitigation at the scale of swales using forest logging residues at a reduced application rate

Prats

González-Pelayo

Silva

et al. 2019

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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Mulching with forest residues has proved to be highly effective in reducing post‐fire soil losses at the plot scale. However, its effectiveness has not been quantified at the application rates that are typically used in operational post‐fire land management (2–3 Mg ha‐1 using straw), as well as at scales larger than 100 m2. The present study compared post‐fire erosion rates for six convergent hillslopes or swales of 500 to 800 m2, three of which were left untreated while the other three were mulched immediately after the fire with shredded eucalypt bark at a rate of 2.4 Mg ha‐1. Erosion rates were monitored at irregular intervals during the first three post‐fire years, whilst ground cover was assessed yearly. Selected topsoil properties (0–2 cm) such as organic matter content and aggregate stability were determined at a single occasion – two years after the wildfire, for three micro‐environments separately: bare soil, and under mulch/litter and vegetation. Soil losses on the untreated swales decreased with post‐fire year from 2.2 to 0.4 and 0.11 Mg ha‐1 yr‐1 (respectively for the first, second and third post‐fire years), while the mulched swales produced 84%, 77% and 38% less soil losses than the untreated swales. Soil losses also depended on slope aspect, with the north‐facing swales producing less erosion than the west‐facing ones. This could be linked to their significant differences in bare soil, vegetation and stone cover, or a combination thereof. The type of micro‐environment also played a significant role in topsoil properties (stone content, bulk density, resistance to penetration/shear stress, porosity and organic matter content). The present results add to the increasing evidence that forest residues should be duly considered for operational post‐fire land management. Forest residues were highly effective in reducing erosion from swales at application rates as low as the typical 2 Mg ha‐1 of post‐fire straw mulch. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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“…For instance, in pine forests of Central Eastern Spain, Lucas-Borja et al ( 2018) measured lower infiltration rates when soil is not saturated compared to unburned and untreated forest areas, especially in the dry seasons. Fernández-Fernández et al (2016) stated that mulching is not effective in reducing soil erosion and subsequent loss of nutrients; in an experiment carried out in North-Western Spain, these authors showed that the reduction in soil erosion was due to moderate precipitation rather than mulching, and the concentration of some elements in sediments led to problems for vegetation growth and soil health. Moreover, the use of straw, which is commonly used as mulch material, is not always suitable in forest areas, since biomass transport from agricultural sites may be expensive; moreover, these vegetal residues often contain agro-chemicals and parasites, and thus development of non-native vegetation and diseases to forest plants are possible (Bento-Gonçalves et al 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%