IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ecomod/v322y2016icp19-30.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Modelling N mineralisation from sludge-amended soils across agro-ecological zones: A case study from South Africa

Author

Listed:
  • Ogbazghi, Z.M.
  • Tesfamariam, E.H.
  • Annandale, J.G.

Abstract

The expected rate of nitrogen (N) mineralisation is key to sludge recommendation rates for agricultural lands. The presence of a combination of factors (biotic and abiotic) that contribute to the variation in N release at different sites is the main obstacle to sludge application rate recommendations. Nonetheless, the use of a single annual N mineralisation rate across sites and agro-ecological zones is a common practice around the world. The aim of this study was to investigate whether a single annual N release rate could be used for sludge recommendation across sites within an agro-ecological zone. To achieve the stated aim, the following hypotheses were tested using the SWB-Sci computer model: Under dryland cropping, cumulative annual N mineralisation from sludge-amended soils (1) will remain unchanged across agro-ecological zones and between sites within an agro-ecological zone, (2) will not vary between and within seasons at a specific site and (3) will not vary across soil textures within a site. Model simulations showed that annual N mineralisation rates varied significantly (P>0.05) across agro-ecological zones, ranging from 61kgha−1 in arid to 103.6kgha−1 in super-humid zones. Similarly, annual N mineralisation rates varied significantly between sites within an agro-ecological zone (98.6kgha−1 in Durban vs. 81.4kgha−1 in Cape Town in the humid zone). Annual N mineralisation rates did not differ significantly (P<0.05) between seasons within a site, but varied significantly within a season in the humid and super-humid agro-ecological zones. Nitrogen mineralisation varied significantly between soil textures, ranging from 97.8kgha−1 (clay soil) to 106.3kgha−1 (clay loam) in the super-humid agro-ecological zone. Therefore, sludge recommendation rates for use in agricultural lands should be site specific and soil specific for sustainable ecosystem services and functions. Further model validation on N mineralisation using field data is recommended.

Suggested Citation

  • Ogbazghi, Z.M. & Tesfamariam, E.H. & Annandale, J.G., 2016. "Modelling N mineralisation from sludge-amended soils across agro-ecological zones: A case study from South Africa," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 322(C), pages 19-30.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:322:y:2016:i:c:p:19-30
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2015.11.019
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304380015005517
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2015.11.019?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tesfamariam, Eyob H. & Annandale, John G. & Steyn, Joachim M. & Stirzaker, Richard J. & Mbakwe, Ikenna, 2015. "Use of the SWB-Sci model for nitrogen management in sludge-amended land," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 152(C), pages 262-276.
    2. Zhang, C.F. & Meng, F.-R. & Bhatti, J.S. & Trofymow, J.A. & Arp, Paul A., 2008. "Modeling forest leaf-litter decomposition and N mineralization in litterbags, placed across Canada: A 5-model comparison," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 219(3), pages 342-360.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Musazura, W. & Odindo, A.O. & Tesfamariam, E.H. & Hughes, J.C. & Buckley, C.A., 2019. "Nitrogen and phosphorus dynamics in plants and soil fertigated with decentralised wastewater treatment effluent," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 215(C), pages 55-62.
    2. Valencia Torres, Angélica & Tiwari, Chetan & Atkinson, Samuel F., 2021. "Progress in ecosystem services research: A guide for scholars and practitioners," Ecosystem Services, Elsevier, vol. 49(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Balland, Vincent & Pollacco, Joseph A.P. & Arp, Paul A., 2008. "Modeling soil hydraulic properties for a wide range of soil conditions," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 219(3), pages 300-316.
    2. Videla-Mensegue, H. & Caviglia, O.P. & Sadras, V.O., 2022. "Functional crop types are more important than diversity for the productivity, profit and risk of crop sequences in the inner Argentinean Pampas," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    3. Larocque, Guy R. & Bhatti, Jagtar S. & Boutin, Robert & Chertov, Oleg, 2008. "Uncertainty analysis in carbon cycle models of forest ecosystems: Research needs and development of a theoretical framework to estimate error propagation," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 219(3), pages 400-412.
    4. Smith, Amanda C. & Bhatti, Jagtar S. & Chen, Hua & Harmon, Mark E. & Arp, Paul A., 2011. "Modelling above- and below-ground mass loss and N dynamics in wooden dowels (LIDET) placed across North and Central America biomes at the decadal time scale," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 222(14), pages 2276-2290.
    5. Eyob Habte Tesfamariam & Zekarias Mihreteab Ogbazghi & John George Annandale & Yemane Gebrehiwot, 2020. "Cost–Benefit Analysis of Municipal Sludge as a Low-Grade Nutrient Source: A Case Study from South Africa," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-13, November.
    6. Smyth, C.E. & Kurz, W.A. & Trofymow, J.A., 2011. "Including the effects of water stress on decomposition in the Carbon Budget Model of the Canadian Forest Sector CBM-CFS3," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 222(5), pages 1080-1091.
    7. Zhang, Chengfu & Jamieson, Rob C. & Meng, Fan-Rui & Gordon, Robert J. & Bourque, Charles P.-A., 2013. "Simulation of monthly dissolved organic carbon concentrations in small forested watersheds," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 250(C), pages 205-213.
    8. Li, Xia & Cui, Baoshan & Yang, Qichun & Lan, Yan & Wang, Tingting & Han, Zhen, 2013. "Effects of plant species on macrophyte decomposition under three nutrient conditions in a eutrophic shallow lake, North China," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 252(C), pages 121-128.
    9. Murphy, Paul N.C. & Ogilvie, Jae & Meng, Fan-Rui & White, Barry & Bhatti, Jagtar S. & Arp, Paul A., 2011. "Modelling and mapping topographic variations in forest soils at high resolution: A case study," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 222(14), pages 2314-2332.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ecomod:v:322:y:2016:i:c:p:19-30. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/ecological-modelling .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.