The Influence of Management on Microbial Biomass and Soil Organic Carbon in Reclaimed Surface Coal Mines of Wyoming

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine the long-term influence (>11 years) of a number of reclamation management practices on the concentration microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and the concentration and mass of soil organic carbon (SOC) in reclaimed soils from a number of surface coal mines located in Wyoming. We compared a number of commonly used reclamation management practices (grazed vs. un-grazed; stockpiled topsoil vs. direct hauled topsoil; hay-crimp mulch vs. stubble mulch; grass seed mixture vs. shrub seed mixture) at five surface coal-mines. In addition, a native, undisturbed prairie soil was also sampled at each of the five coal-mines native sites. Reclamation management practices compared in this study, with the exception of stubble mulching, did not have significantly different long-term effects on SOC concentrations. Microbial biomass C was more influenced than SOC by the compared practices in the soils examined. In more than half of the sites analyzed, reclaimed soils had SOC concentrations similar to undisturbed soil reflecting the potential to accumulate C in reclaimed coal-mine soils.