Effects of Agricultural Reclamation on Soil Physicochemical Properties in the Mid-Eastern Coastal Area of China

Yan Xu, Lijie Pu, Runsen Zhang, Ming Zhu, Meng Zhang, Xinguo Bu, Xuefeng Xie and Yuan Wang
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Yan Xu: School of Geography Science and Geomatics Engineering, Suzhou University of Science and Technology, Suzhou 215009, China
Lijie Pu: The Key Laboratory of the Coastal Zone Exploitation and Protection, Ministry of Natural Resources, Nanjing 210024, China
Runsen Zhang: Graduate School of Advanced Science and Engineering, Hiroshima University, Higashihiroshima 7398529, Japan
Ming Zhu: The Key Laboratory of the Coastal Zone Exploitation and Protection, Ministry of Natural Resources, Nanjing 210024, China
Meng Zhang: Jiangsu Land Surveying and Planning Institute, Nanjing 210024, China
Xinguo Bu: The Key Laboratory of the Coastal Zone Exploitation and Protection, Ministry of Natural Resources, Nanjing 210024, China
Xuefeng Xie: College of Geography and Environmental Sciences, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua 321004, China
Yuan Wang: School of Geography and Ocean Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China

Land, 2021, vol. 10, issue 2, 1-11

Abstract: Agricultural reclamation in coastal zones is effective for mitigating population pressure on the food supply. Soil properties are important factors influencing crop production in reclaimed coastal lands. This study aims to investigate the impacts of time and land use trajectories on soil physicochemical properties after reclamation. We sampled soils in areas that were reclaimed in 1999, 1998, 1991, 1989, 1986, 1981, and 1979 and determined some soil physicochemical properties such as electrical conductivity with a 1:5 soil:water ratio (EC1:5), exchange sodium percentage (ESP), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), pH, organic matter (OM), total nitrogen (TN), alkaline hydrolyzable nitrogen (AN), cation exchange capacity (CEC), total phosphorus (TP), available phosphorus (TP) and soil particle size ratio. We analyzed their correlation with land use and the time since reclamation using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and principal component analysis (PCA). The results showed that soil physicochemical properties changed significantly after agricultural reclamation. Soil EC1:5, ESP, and SAR declined rapidly, and OM, TN, and AN increased rapidly during the 29 years after reclamation. The soil particle size ratio was not significantly correlated with reclamation time. The land-use trajectories identified after reclamation had obvious effects on soil physicochemical properties. Aquaculture ponds were superior to cultivated land in terms of decreasing soil salinity but were inferior in terms of soil nutrient accumulation. In the future, more attention should be given to the environmental effects of agricultural reclaimed soils.

Keywords: soil quality; land-use changes; agricultural reclamation; saline soils; coastal area (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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