Assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities

<p>Land degradation negatively impacts water, food, and nutrition security and is leading to increased competition for resources. While landscape restoration has the potential to restore ecosystem function, understanding the drivers of degradation is critical for prioritizing and tracking inte...

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Autores principales:	L. A. Winowiecki, A. Bargués-Tobella, A. Mukuralinda, P. Mujawamariya, E. B. Ntawuhiganayo, A. B. Mugayi, S. Chomba, T.-G. Vågen
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Copernicus Publications 2021
Materias:	Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/47d15a1040fb4fd78f3e884a33d34e3f
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:47d15a1040fb4fd78f3e884a33d34e3f2021-11-25T07:24:18ZAssessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities10.5194/soil-7-767-20212199-39712199-398Xhttps://doaj.org/article/47d15a1040fb4fd78f3e884a33d34e3f2021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://soil.copernicus.org/articles/7/767/2021/soil-7-767-2021.pdfhttps://doaj.org/toc/2199-3971https://doaj.org/toc/2199-398X<p>Land degradation negatively impacts water, food, and nutrition security and is leading to increased competition for resources. While landscape restoration has the potential to restore ecosystem function, understanding the drivers of degradation is critical for prioritizing and tracking interventions. We sampled 300–1000 m<span class="inline-formula"><sup>2</sup></span> plots using the Land Degradation Surveillance Framework across Nyagatare and Kayonza districts in Rwanda to assess key soil and land health indicators, including soil organic carbon (SOC), erosion prevalence, vegetation structure and infiltration capacity, and their interactions. SOC content decreased with increasing sand content across both sites and sampling depths and was lowest in croplands and grasslands compared to shrublands and woodlands. Stable carbon isotope values (<span class="inline-formula"><i>δ</i><sup>13</sup></span>C) ranged from <span class="inline-formula">−</span>15.35 ‰ to <span class="inline-formula">−</span>21.34 ‰, indicating a wide range of historic and current plant communities with both C3 and C4 photosynthetic pathways. Field-saturated hydraulic conductivity (<span class="inline-formula"><i>K</i><sub>fs</sub></span>) was modeled, with a median of 76 mm h<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span> in Kayonza and 62 mm h<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span> in Nyagatare, respectively. Topsoil OC had a positive effect on <span class="inline-formula"><i>K</i><sub>fs</sub></span>, whereas pH, sand, and erosion had negative effects. Soil erosion was highest in plots classified as woodland and shrubland. Maps of soil erosion and SOC at 30 m resolution were produced with high accuracy and showed strong variability across the study landscapes. These data demonstrate the importance of assessing multiple biophysical properties in order to assess land degradation, including the spatial patterns of soil and land health indicators across the landscape. By understanding the dynamics of land degradation and interactions between biophysical indicators, we can better prioritize interventions that result in multiple benefits as well as assess the impacts of restoration options.</p>L. A. WinowieckiA. Bargués-TobellaA. MukuralindaP. MujawamariyaE. B. NtawuhiganayoA. B. MugayiS. ChombaT.-G. VågenCopernicus PublicationsarticleEnvironmental sciencesGE1-350GeologyQE1-996.5ENSOIL, Vol 7, Pp 767-783 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5
spellingShingle	Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 L. A. Winowiecki A. Bargués-Tobella A. Mukuralinda P. Mujawamariya E. B. Ntawuhiganayo A. B. Mugayi S. Chomba T.-G. Vågen Assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities
description	<p>Land degradation negatively impacts water, food, and nutrition security and is leading to increased competition for resources. While landscape restoration has the potential to restore ecosystem function, understanding the drivers of degradation is critical for prioritizing and tracking interventions. We sampled 300–1000 m<span class="inline-formula"><sup>2</sup></span> plots using the Land Degradation Surveillance Framework across Nyagatare and Kayonza districts in Rwanda to assess key soil and land health indicators, including soil organic carbon (SOC), erosion prevalence, vegetation structure and infiltration capacity, and their interactions. SOC content decreased with increasing sand content across both sites and sampling depths and was lowest in croplands and grasslands compared to shrublands and woodlands. Stable carbon isotope values (<span class="inline-formula"><i>δ</i><sup>13</sup></span>C) ranged from <span class="inline-formula">−</span>15.35 ‰ to <span class="inline-formula">−</span>21.34 ‰, indicating a wide range of historic and current plant communities with both C3 and C4 photosynthetic pathways. Field-saturated hydraulic conductivity (<span class="inline-formula"><i>K</i><sub>fs</sub></span>) was modeled, with a median of 76 mm h<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span> in Kayonza and 62 mm h<span class="inline-formula"><sup>−1</sup></span> in Nyagatare, respectively. Topsoil OC had a positive effect on <span class="inline-formula"><i>K</i><sub>fs</sub></span>, whereas pH, sand, and erosion had negative effects. Soil erosion was highest in plots classified as woodland and shrubland. Maps of soil erosion and SOC at 30 m resolution were produced with high accuracy and showed strong variability across the study landscapes. These data demonstrate the importance of assessing multiple biophysical properties in order to assess land degradation, including the spatial patterns of soil and land health indicators across the landscape. By understanding the dynamics of land degradation and interactions between biophysical indicators, we can better prioritize interventions that result in multiple benefits as well as assess the impacts of restoration options.</p>
format	article
author	L. A. Winowiecki A. Bargués-Tobella A. Mukuralinda P. Mujawamariya E. B. Ntawuhiganayo A. B. Mugayi S. Chomba T.-G. Vågen
author_facet	L. A. Winowiecki A. Bargués-Tobella A. Mukuralinda P. Mujawamariya E. B. Ntawuhiganayo A. B. Mugayi S. Chomba T.-G. Vågen
author_sort	L. A. Winowiecki
title	Assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities
title_short	Assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities
title_full	Assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities
title_fullStr	Assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities
title_full_unstemmed	Assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities
title_sort	assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern rwanda to inform restoration activities
publisher	Copernicus Publications
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/47d15a1040fb4fd78f3e884a33d34e3f
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Assessing soil and land health across two landscapes in eastern Rwanda to inform restoration activities

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