1 / 47

Classifying Human-altered and –transported Soils

Classifying Human-altered and –transported Soils. Dr. John M. Galbraith, Crop & Soil Environmental Science Department Chair, ICOMANTH updated 8/23/11. Table of Contents. Approved Changes Horizon naming Properties Proposed Changes Buried Soils Diagnostics New Family Class

renate
Download Presentation

Classifying Human-altered and –transported Soils

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Classifying Human-altered and –transported Soils Dr. John M. Galbraith, Crop & Soil Environmental Science Department Chair, ICOMANTH updated 8/23/11

  2. Table of Contents • Approved Changes • Horizon naming • Properties • Proposed Changes • Buried Soils • Diagnostics • New Family Class • Higher Taxa • The Far Future • Other Changes in Soil Description and Taxonomy

  3. Horizon Naming - New Prefix • The caret ^ is used as a prefix to identify horizons and layers that form in or are made out of human-transported materials (HTM). • HTM – Materials intentionally transported by direct human activity and tools and placed on top of an existing soil. A set of identifying characteristics has been developed. • The caret is used independently of #2 parent material prefix.

  4. New Master Horizon • M (manufactured subsurface impervious layer) is used to identify layers manufactured to impeded subsurface flow of gas, liquids, or solids. • Examples: Plastic pond liners, covered asphalt pavements, covered concrete, covered geotextiles. • These are different than intentionally compacted earthen material (Cd) liners such as in created wetlands or in urban or mine landscapes.

  5. Subordinate Letters • The letter u is used to indicate the presence of artifacts (materials made by or intentionally modified by humans). • A set of identifying characteristics are defined for artifacts to distinguish them from features. • Examples: Bricks are artifacts, backhoe scrape marks are features • Feature presence have no letter designation but are used as proof of existence of HTM.

  6. Properties – Artifacts • Size – follows conventions used for rock fragments • Shape – none assigned • Content - follows conventions used for rock fragments • Type {Temporary} – Until new names and categories are defined, the actual materials are described and content of each noted • Example: 5% broken glass of channer size; and 2% cobble-size plastic bottles

  7. Properties (cont.) • Artifact content classes: • 15-35% Artifactuous; • 35-60% Very Artifactuous; • 60-90% Extremely Artifactuous; • > 90% Artifactual (similar to Fragmental) • Described separately from rock fragments • Artifact Hardness (Rupture Resistance) follows the conventions used for other fragments. • Ex: slightly cemented

  8. Proposed Changes - Buried Soils • Move the definition of buried soils to the beginning of the key to Soil Orders. • Define three materials that can cover a buried soil: mantle, plaggen epipedon, HTM. • Standardize the depth of the mantle to 50 cm minimum for all three types of cover.

  9. Epipedons • Mollic and Umbric Epipedon – no P limits, artifacts are used to keep it from qualifying, place it in Anthropic instead • Anthropic Epipedon – not limited to arid moisture regimes anymore, more evidence listed, no P limits

  10. Diagnostics – Added to Ch. 3 • Mantle defined • HTM (will refer to USDA National Soil Survey Handbook for landforms and features) • Human-modified material (HMM) • Artifacts • Manufactured Layer contact • Lithic material contact • Paralithic material contact • Densic contact

  11. Higher Taxa all moved to subgroup levels • Anthrepts – Plagganthrepts; Haplanthrepts • will be used where needed as Plaggic and Anthropic subgroups instead • Anthrocambids • will be moved to subgroup as Anthropic Haplocambids • Arents – Udarents; Ustarents • will be moved to an appropriate subgroup level, such as Anthroportic Udorthents; • Xerarents; Torriarents • will be moved to an appropriate subgroup level, such as Anthraltic Xerorthents

  12. Other changes proposed • Place exclusionary statements at beginning of the Key to Soil Orders. “~Soils that pose a human health or safety hazard to describe, collect, sample, or analyze are not included in this Key.” • Modify the definition of “Fluvent__” and “Cumulic ” subgroups to exclude irregular decrease in OC with depth due to burial of soil material by planned human activity.

  13. Other changes proposed (cont.) • A list of properties for HTM and HMM given, use “preponderance of evidence” (best professional judgment) for identification. • Allow identification of “Anthropogenic Features” in National Soil Survey Handbook (NSSH) for class placement. In otherwords, location on one of the landforms is part of the proof of human alteration or transportation.

  14. NSSH – Part 629 – Anthropogenic Landform Types Expanded

  15. NSSH – Part 629 – Anthropogenic Landform Types Expanded • Anthropogenic landscapes, landforms, microfeatures; broken down further into: • constructional and destructional • buried and non-buried

  16. Choice list for Subgroup Modifiers:Used alone or in combinations • Anthraltic (deep plowed, HMM). • Anthraquic (clearly defined anthraquic conditions). • Anthropic Humic (have an anthropic epipedon and meets the color and carbon requirements of the mollic epipedon throughout). • Anthropic (have an anthropic epipedon). • Anthroportic (HTM). • Plaggic (have an plaggen epipedon) • Plagghaplic (have 25 cm of material that qualifies for plaggen epipedon but not the required 50 cm). • Other examples: Use an existing subgroup modifier with one of the above. Sulfidic Anthroportic …; Aquic Anthraltic …; Anthropic Oxyaquic … • Consider adding “Anthrodensic” to the list.

  17. New Family Classes - Human-trans- ported and human-altered material class • A new family modifier to identify extreme conditions or properties of HTM and HMM that profoundly affect use and management. • Control section: • Whole soil to bedrock(not densic) if bedrock < 50 cm deep; or • Whole soil to bedrock(not densic) if bedrock 50-100 cm deep or to 100 if no bedrock < 100 cm deep. • Placed between Particle-size and Mineralogy • 18 classes so far. • EX: Methanogenic, Subsidic, Concretic, Asphaltic, Dredgic, Spoliwastic (landfill), Hypodensic (densic at 50 – 100 cm depth)

  18. Human-trans- ported material class examples Methanogenic Subsidic Bituminic Concretic Spoliwastic Asphaltic Gypsifactic Ashifactic Combustic Megaartifactic Medioartifactic Pauciartifactic Aquadensic Metalic Dredgic Spolic

  19. Side-by-Side New A horizon A horizon Cola can Buried layers of fill B horizon Old A horizon Old B horizon C horizon

  20. Far Future • Artifacts will be described by material they are made of (in progress, working with NYC and SUITMA), emphasis on pollution, safety. • Add more classes of HTM (For example: heavy metals classes?)

  21. Discussion?

  22. Uncompacted versus Compacted Soils Uncompacted Compacted Should we identify subsoil restrictions to downward water flow, or identify piping through macropores on maps?

  23. Urban Horticulture • Soil quality issues are related to gardening, tree and turf growth • There is an inverse relationship between soil quality and suitability for growing plants

  24. Estimating Dietary Risk From Soils In Urban Gardens Scheyer, Joyce Mack. 2000. Estimating Dietary Risk from Soils in Urban Gardens. p. 479-484 In W.Burghardt and C. Dornauf (ed) Proceedings of the First International Conference on Soils of Urban, Industrial, Traffic, and Mining Areas. Essen, Germany, July 12-19, 2000. Problem: Soil contamination is a public health concern in many countries, but methods to assess dietary risk from soil metal toxicity have not been standardized worldwide. Laboratory data on urban soils is limited and does not adequately link metal content to associated food plant uptake. Cadmium accumulates in lettuce leaves and may be consumed at dangerous levels by childbearing women. Results: Cadmium and zinc levels were generally higher in the soil samples from the USA than in samples from the Moscow area. Correlation between the Cd/Zn ratio and the Lakanen-Ervio bioavailability factor was positive and statistically significant for samples from an urban garden in the USA. Conclusions: Further studies are needed to relate different metals such as Lead, Nickel, Copperand organic toxins (PCBs, dioxins, etc.) to uptake in common urban garden plants.

  25. What’s in Your Garden? • Arsenic? • Nickel? • Zinc? • Dioxin? • Lead? • Chromium? • Mercury?

  26. Erosion and Runoff in Urban Areas Because of impervious surfaces, an urban block generates 9x as much runoff as a woodland of the same size? (http://www.epa.gov/nps/facts/point7.htm)

  27. Roadsides

  28. Erosion and Runoff

  29. Erosion in Streambanks

  30. The Fate of Urban Runoff http://geoscape.nrcan.gc.ca/h2o/okanagan/outdoors_e.php

  31. Acid-Sulfate Soils

  32. Urban Landscapes Original soil surface

  33. Human Affected Physiography Rockland Co., New York Bergen Co., New Jersey

  34. And the Impact on the Ecosystem is Enormous and Permanent • The Van Wyck Expressway was once a stream valley

  35. Urban Landscapes- Before and After Humans tend to flatten the landscape in geometric patterns

  36. Urban soils show up well at night. Are our urban soils so contaminated that they are glowing in the dark?

  37. Urban ClimatesMoreover,Climatic dynamics within the corridor are different than dynamics at play outside the corridor. It is uniquely affected by the proximity to the ocean and the trappings of humanity. • Heat island affect (1-2oC higher temp) • Increased precipitation (5-30%) • Decreased wind, except in wind tunnels • Increased ground level ozone, dust, pollen • Increased cloud cover (5-10%)

  38. Human-altered and -transported Soils Fortress Soils developed in Dredge materials. FreshKills Soils occur on Landfills.

  39. Landfill Soils – Bad to Good

  40. Trees in Urban Settings

  41. Water Source?

  42. NYC 2009 Million Trees Campaign

  43. Understanding Soil Risks and Hazards • http://soils.usda.gov/use/risks.html

  44. The sub-aqueous soils within estuaries are fundamental to the health of the global ecosystem, however their location within this region places their health under continual onslaught. The urban-estuary relationship binds this region. Sub-aqueous Soils

  45. Manganese Reduction • The wetland MnRIS displayed oxide paint removal within four days, whereas the IrRIS installed at the same location for six weeks (recommended installation interval for IRIS) displayed <10% oxide removal in four of the five locations and experienced concentration of the iron (Fe) oxide on the upper 10 cm of the tube. 

  46. Manganese Precipitation • If a 4 to 42 day anaerobic event causes Mn but not Fe reduction, and • if the clod interiors wet, the soil would become anaerobic there more quickly than in macropores between large aggregates, and • if the macropores empty and dry first, then • the pore water is pulled to the clod exteriors and with it comes reduced Mn but maybe not Fe, so • this could explain Mn coatings on vertical macropores but no reducedFe colors or Fe concentrations either.

More Related