Effects of soil heating changes on soil hydraulic properties in Central Chile

Abstract

Wildfires are natural phenomena for most ecosystems on Earth. Many soil properties are impacted by fire, including soil hydraulic properties. We used a laboratory experiment to replicate the temperatures reached by a natural wildfire and documented the effects on soil hydraulic properties. This study hypothesizes that the impact of heating on soil hydrological properties can be explained by the interaction of a number of variables especially organic matter content (OM), cation exchange capacity (CEC), texture, pH, and electrical conductivity (EC). The main objective of this study is to explore the interconnections between soil hydraulic, chemical, and physical properties, focusing on understanding how these relationships change across different ecoregions and temperatures. Sixteen soils were collected across 16 sites susceptible to forest fires in the Central Zone of Chile and heated to 100 °C and 300 °C for two hours. These sites were representative of two distinct ecoregions: the Chilean Matorral (CM) and the Valdivian Temperate Forests (VTF). Chemical, physical, and hydraulic soil properties were measured before and after heating. At 100 °C, there were no significant changes in chemical, physical, or hydraulic soil properties. At 300 °C, significant changes were observed in most soil properties in soils from both ecoregions. The OM content and CEC decreased, whereas pH and electrical conductivity increased. In addition, clay content and water aggregate stability (WSA) decreased, while all hydraulic properties increased their values. The aforementioned results demonstrate that infiltration increased after the soil was heated. This can be attributed primarily to decreases in clay content. At the same time, the water repellency (R) index decreased, allowing water to more easily wet the soil particles. Correlations revealed that CEC and clay are the main factors ruling soil hydraulic properties at all temperatures. Clay mineralogy also contributes to the soil hydraulic behavior observed. Nonlinear models were developed to estimate hydraulic properties at 100 °C and 300 °C, using the main soil properties. The models illustrated that the soils of the CM ecoregion, which are characterized by lower OM and influence of clay/CEC ratio, would be less affected by fire compared to the soils of VTF. The water holding capacity would decrease in both ecoregions. However, due to the greater changes in OM and clay in VTF, the impact would be greater than in CM.¹