{"title":"Sugarcane cultivation reduces charcoal C and Al/Fe-bound OC in selected Ferralsols","authors":"Nontokozo Pertunia Mkhonza, Pardon Muchaonyerwa","doi":"10.1007/s10661-025-13924-8","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Long-term sugarcane cultivation, with pre-harvest burning, may add recalcitrant charcoal carbon (C) to soil organic carbon (OC) in Ferralsols, whereas aluminium/iron-organic matter (Al/Fe-OM) complexes may dominate the mineral-associated OC in these soils. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the effect of sugarcane cultivation relative to wattle forest on soil OC in charcoal C form and Al/Fe-OM complexes on two selected Ferralsols. Total C, charcoal C, and Al/Fe-OC were analysed in samples collected from the two sites under forest and sugarcane cultivation to a depth of 100 cm, and the data were subjected to a two-way analysis of variance. At both sites, sugarcane cultivation reduced charcoal C and Al/Fe-bound OC when compared to forest. The Al/Fe-bound OC in sugarcane soils accounted for 48.7 and 72.2% of the total OC at Eston and Wartburg sites, respectively. In forest soils, the Al/Fe-bound OC accounted for 45.6 and 44.4% of the total OC at Eston and Wartburg, respectively. Charcoal C accounted for 8.42 and 4.07% of the total OC in sugarcane soils, at Eston and Wartburg, respectively. Overall, charcoal C concentration decreased with increase in soil depth, while its stocks only decreased with depth in soil under sugarcane. The Al/Fe-bound OC decreased with an increase in soil depth for both land uses, while Alp and Alp + Fep concentrations were not affected by sampling depth. These findings demonstrate that OC in Al/Fe-OC complexes and charcoal C contribute to the high OC concentrations, with Al/Fe-bound OC fraction being the primary mechanism of OC stabilisation in these Ferralsols, while sugarcane cultivation reduces these concentrations.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":544,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Monitoring and Assessment","volume":"197 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.9000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s10661-025-13924-8.pdf","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Environmental Monitoring and Assessment","FirstCategoryId":"93","ListUrlMain":"https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10661-025-13924-8","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Long-term sugarcane cultivation, with pre-harvest burning, may add recalcitrant charcoal carbon (C) to soil organic carbon (OC) in Ferralsols, whereas aluminium/iron-organic matter (Al/Fe-OM) complexes may dominate the mineral-associated OC in these soils. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the effect of sugarcane cultivation relative to wattle forest on soil OC in charcoal C form and Al/Fe-OM complexes on two selected Ferralsols. Total C, charcoal C, and Al/Fe-OC were analysed in samples collected from the two sites under forest and sugarcane cultivation to a depth of 100 cm, and the data were subjected to a two-way analysis of variance. At both sites, sugarcane cultivation reduced charcoal C and Al/Fe-bound OC when compared to forest. The Al/Fe-bound OC in sugarcane soils accounted for 48.7 and 72.2% of the total OC at Eston and Wartburg sites, respectively. In forest soils, the Al/Fe-bound OC accounted for 45.6 and 44.4% of the total OC at Eston and Wartburg, respectively. Charcoal C accounted for 8.42 and 4.07% of the total OC in sugarcane soils, at Eston and Wartburg, respectively. Overall, charcoal C concentration decreased with increase in soil depth, while its stocks only decreased with depth in soil under sugarcane. The Al/Fe-bound OC decreased with an increase in soil depth for both land uses, while Alp and Alp + Fep concentrations were not affected by sampling depth. These findings demonstrate that OC in Al/Fe-OC complexes and charcoal C contribute to the high OC concentrations, with Al/Fe-bound OC fraction being the primary mechanism of OC stabilisation in these Ferralsols, while sugarcane cultivation reduces these concentrations.
期刊介绍：
Environmental Monitoring and Assessment emphasizes technical developments and data arising from environmental monitoring and assessment, the use of scientific principles in the design of monitoring systems at the local, regional and global scales, and the use of monitoring data in assessing the consequences of natural resource management actions and pollution risks to man and the environment.
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