Short-term effects of olive mill wastewater application on the hydrological and physico-chemical properties of a loamy soil

Demetrio Antonio Zema, Manuel Esteban Lucas-Borja, Serafina Andiloro, Vincenzo Tamburino and Santo Marcello Zimbone

Agricultural Water Management, 2019, vol. 221, issue C, 312-321

Abstract: Wastewater from the olive oil industry is often spread on soils, but this practice requires caution because of the possible harmful hydrological and physico-chemical effects on soils treated. While research has mainly focussed on the long-term changes in soil properties, very few studies refer to short-term effects, which appear a few weeks or months after Olive Mill Wastewater (OMW) application. Mediterranean areas are particularly prone to runoff and soil erosion risks, and the evaluation of the short-term effects of OMW on hydraulic conductivity and other physico-chemical properties of soils in this area are scarce. To fill this gap, this study has evaluated the effects of OMW spreading on the hydrology of a loamy soil at one and three weeks after application. More specifically, irrigation tests with OMW were carried out in olive field plots in Calabria, Southern Italy; the infiltrability and physico-chemical properties of treated soils were compared with unirrigated soils and soils irrigated with clean water, such as groundwater.

Keywords: Infiltration rate; Organic matter; Soil physico-chemical changes; Wastewater irrigation; Soil aggregate stability; Runoff and erosion risk (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:221:y:2019:i:c:p:312-321

DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2019.04.011

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