IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i1p308-d1559647.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Effects of Reclaimed Water Irrigation on Soil Properties and the Composition and Diversity of Microbial Communities in Northwest China

Author

Listed:
  • Wenmin Wang

    (Agricultural College, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832003, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Zhen Wang

    (Agricultural College, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832003, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Hongbo Ling

    (Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China)

  • Xu Zheng

    (Agricultural College, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832003, China)

  • Chaoqun Chen

    (Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps Survey and Design Institute Co., Ltd., Urumqi 830011, China)

  • Jiaping Wang

    (Agricultural College, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832003, China)

  • Zhibo Cheng

    (Agricultural College, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832003, China)

Abstract

Reasonably using reclaimed water (RW) for irrigation can help to alleviate water scarcity, while also providing both environmental and economic benefits. However, there is limited information regarding the potential impact of RW irrigation on the nutrients of saline–alkali soils and their microbial communities. This study investigates the effects of RW irrigation on saline–alkali soil properties and microbial communities using a 16S rRNA sequence analysis. The results show that the pH and electrical conductivity (EC) are significantly lower in RW treatment ( p < 0.05). Compared to the saline–alkali soil that was not irrigated with RW (CK), the EC value decreased by 42.15–45.76%, in both 0–20 cm and 40–60 cm depth. RW exhibited a significant increase in the abundance of Actinobacteria (32.32–33.42%), Chloroflexi (7.63–15.79%), Firmicutes (9.27–10.42%), and Ascomycota (89.85–95.95%). Bacterial richness and diversity were significantly enhanced after RW irrigation ( p < 0.05). At the genus level, the dominant bacterial genera included Bacillus , Penicillium , Aspergillus , and Talaromyces . Differences in the microbial community were observed between the two treatments and among soil depths within each treatment ( p < 0.05). A network analysis indicated that the internal relationships among bacterial communities become more complex following RW irrigation, whereas the internal connections within fungal communities tend to become more simplified. A redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that soil microbial communities were directly influenced by EC, total nitrogen (TN), and available potassium (AK). Partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM) results indicated that soil salinity and available nutrients were the most significant factors influencing the microbial community structure. Together, these results indicate that RW irrigation has a positive impact on ameliorating soil salinity and enhancing microbial community diversity in saline–alkali soils. These findings provide valuable insights for the future agricultural utilization of saline–alkali land.

Suggested Citation

  • Wenmin Wang & Zhen Wang & Hongbo Ling & Xu Zheng & Chaoqun Chen & Jiaping Wang & Zhibo Cheng, 2025. "Effects of Reclaimed Water Irrigation on Soil Properties and the Composition and Diversity of Microbial Communities in Northwest China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(1), pages 1-16, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:1:p:308-:d:1559647
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/1/308/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/1/308/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mengting Maggie Yuan & Xue Guo & Linwei Wu & Ya Zhang & Naijia Xiao & Daliang Ning & Zhou Shi & Xishu Zhou & Liyou Wu & Yunfeng Yang & James M. Tiedje & Jizhong Zhou, 2021. "Climate warming enhances microbial network complexity and stability," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 11(4), pages 343-348, April.
    2. Ben Hassena, Ameni & Zouari, Mohamed & Trabelsi, Lina & Khabou, Wahid & Zouari, Nacim, 2018. "Physiological improvements of young olive tree (Olea europaea L. cv. Chetoui) under short term irrigation with treated wastewater," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 207(C), pages 53-58.
    3. Elfanssi, Saloua & Ouazzani, Naaila & Mandi, Laila, 2018. "Soil properties and agro-physiological responses of alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) irrigated by treated domestic wastewater," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 231-240.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Ben Hassena, Ameni & Zouari, Mohamed & Trabelsi, Lina & Decou, Raphaël & Ben Amar, Fathi & Chaari, Anissa & Soua, Nabil & Labrousse, Pascal & Khabou, Wahid & Zouari, Nacim, 2021. "Potential effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in mitigating the salinity of treated wastewater in young olive plants (Olea europaea L. cv. Chetoui)," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 245(C).
    2. Konstantina Fotia & George Nanos & Pantelis Barouchas & Markos Giannelos & Aikaterini Linardi & Aikaterini Vallianatou & Paraskevi Mpeza & Ioannis Tsirogiannis, 2022. "Growth Development, Physiological Status and Water Footprint Assessment of Nursery Young Olive Trees ( Olea europaea L. ‘Konservolea’) Irrigated with Urban Treated Wastewater," Resources, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-14, April.
    3. Phogat, V. & Mallants, Dirk & Cox, J.W. & Šimůnek, J. & Oliver, D.P. & Pitt, T. & Petrie, P.R., 2020. "Impact of long-term recycled water irrigation on crop yield and soil chemical properties," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 237(C).
    4. Santos, Berta de los & Medina, Eduardo & Brenes, Manuel & Aguado, Ana & García, Pedro & Romero, Concepción, 2020. "Chemical composition of table olive wastewater and its relationship with the bio-fortifying capacity of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) plants," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 227(C).
    5. Dongnan Huang & Han Zheng & Jing Cheng & Guanxiong Wu & Lei Zheng & En Xie, 2023. "Nitrogen and Phosphorus Discriminate the Assembly Processes of Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Algae in an Agricultural Drainage Receiving Lake," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(3), pages 1-18, January.
    6. Qingshui Yu & Chenqi He & Mark A. Anthony & Bernhard Schmid & Arthur Gessler & Chen Yang & Danhua Zhang & Xiaofeng Ni & Yuhao Feng & Jiangling Zhu & Biao Zhu & Shaopeng Wang & Chengjun Ji & Zhiyao Tan, 2024. "Decoupled responses of plants and soil biota to global change across the world’s land ecosystems," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-12, December.
    7. Feder, Frédéric, 2021. "Irrigation with treated wastewater in humid regions: Effects on Nitisols, sugarcane yield and quality," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 247(C).
    8. Jemal Fito & Stijn W. H. Hulle, 2021. "Wastewater reclamation and reuse potentials in agriculture: towards environmental sustainability," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 2949-2972, March.
    9. Yuxiang Zhao & Zishu Liu & Baofeng Zhang & Jingjie Cai & Xiangwu Yao & Meng Zhang & Ye Deng & Baolan Hu, 2023. "Inter-bacterial mutualism promoted by public goods in a system characterized by deterministic temperature variation," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-12, December.
    10. Hashmat, Sherjeel & Shahid, Muhammad & Tanwir, Kashif & Abbas, Saghir & Ali, Qasim & Niazi, Nabeel Khan & Akram, Muhammad Sohail & Saleem, Muhammad Hamzah & Javed, Muhammad Tariq, 2021. "Elucidating distinct oxidative stress management, nutrient acquisition and yield responses of Pisum sativum L. fertigated with diluted and treated wastewater," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 247(C).
    11. Ma, Changjian & Li, Mengyao & Hou, Peng & Wang, Xuejun & Sun, Zeqiang & Li, Yan & Xiao, Yang & Li, Yunkai, 2024. "Biofilm dynamic changes in drip irrigation emitter flow channels using reclaimed water," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 291(C).
    12. Xuanyu Tao & Zhifeng Yang & Jiajie Feng & Siyang Jian & Yunfeng Yang & Colin T. Bates & Gangsheng Wang & Xue Guo & Daliang Ning & Megan L. Kempher & Xiao Jun A. Liu & Yang Ouyang & Shun Han & Linwei W, 2024. "Experimental warming accelerates positive soil priming in a temperate grassland ecosystem," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-18, December.
    13. Zeyu Xing & Li Wang & Debin Fang, 2023. "Unraveling the dynamics and identifying the “superstars” of R&D alliances in IUR collaboration: a two-mode network analysis in China," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-19, December.
    14. Mingxing Wang & An-Hui Ge & Xingzhu Ma & Xiaolin Wang & Qiujin Xie & Like Wang & Xianwei Song & Mengchen Jiang & Weibing Yang & Jeremy D. Murray & Yayu Wang & Huan Liu & Xiaofeng Cao & Ertao Wang, 2024. "Dynamic root microbiome sustains soybean productivity under unbalanced fertilization," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-15, December.
    15. Pang, Haifang & Lian, Yanhao & Zhao, Zhibo & Guo, Hui & Li, Zongzhen & Hu, Junjie & Ren, Yongzhe & Lin, Tongbao & Wang, Zhiqiang, 2024. "Compensatory effect of supplementary irrigation on winter wheat under warming conditions," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 295(C).
    16. Taotao Chen & Erping Cui & Yanbo Zhang & Ge Gao & Hao You & Yurun Tian & Chao Hu & Yuan Liu & Tao Fan & Xiangyang Fan, 2024. "Microbial Network Complexity Helps to Reduce the Deep Migration of Chemical Fertilizer Nitrogen Under the Combined Application of Varying Irrigation Amounts and Multiple Nitrogen Sources," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-18, December.
    17. Yue Pan & Zhaolong An & Jianpu Li & Gangmin Weng & Lingyan Li, 2023. "Spatiotemporal Characteristics and Determinants of Tourism Cooperation Network in Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-20, February.
    18. Shuqi Qin & Dianye Zhang & Bin Wei & Yuanhe Yang, 2024. "Dual roles of microbes in mediating soil carbon dynamics in response to warming," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-11, December.
    19. Maria A. Lilli & Nikolaos V. Paranychianakis & Konstantinos Lionoudakis & Anna Kritikaki & Styliani Voutsadaki & Maria L. Saru & Konstantinos Komnitsas & Nikolaos P. Nikolaidis, 2023. "The Impact of Sewage-Sludge- and Olive-Mill-Waste-Derived Biochar Amendments to Tomato Cultivation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-15, February.
    20. Vivaldi, Gaetano Alessandro & Camposeo, Salvatore & Romero-Trigueros, Cristina & Pedrero, Francisco & Caponio, Gabriele & Lopriore, Giuseppe & Álvarez, Sara, 2021. "Physiological responses of almond trees under regulated deficit irrigation using saline and desalinated reclaimed water," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 258(C).

    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:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:1:p:308-:d:1559647. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    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.