Effect of Biochar Treatment on Change of Soil Moisture in Damaged Forest Fire Area

This study examined the change in soil moisture through the treatment of biochar during a restoration project from forest fire damage, and aimed to discover the relationship between precipitation and quantitative soil moisturizing effect of the biochar treatment. The study site was Okgye, Gangneung-si, Gangwon-do, where a forest fire occurred in 2019. Biochar was mixed to increase soil, and therefore, changes were observed. The soil moisture content was about 21% higher in the biochar treatment plot than in the control plot, and the arrival time was about 3 hours longer. It was observed that the retention time of moisture infiltrated into the soil is increased in plot treated with soil moisturizer. The change in soil moisture was also affected by rainfall characteristics. Higher precipitation and longer non-rain period led to higher soil moisture in the treatment plot compared to the control plot. When the days without rainfall was within 7days, there was a significant difference in soil moisture between the control plot and treatment plot. Through the application of biochar, the characteristics of dry soil were reduced and wet condition were well maintained, confirming the effect of biochar treatment.