Evaluation of Agricultural Measures to Safeguard the Vulnerable Karst Groundwater Habitat of the Black Olm ( Proteus anguinus parkelj ) from Nitrate Pollution

Matjaž Glavan () and Rozalija Cvejić
Additional contact information
Matjaž Glavan: Agronomy Department, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Rozalija Cvejić: Agronomy Department, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Jamnikarjeva 101, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

Sustainability, 2024, vol. 16, issue 24, 1-26

Abstract: The black olm ( Proteus anguinus parkelj Sket & Arntzen) is an endemic species found exclusively in the Dobličica River subterranean water systems of the Dinaric karst in southern Slovenia. These unique habitats are vulnerable to contamination due to rapid water flow, primarily from nitrates from agricultural fertilisers and untreated urban wastewater. The safe limit of nitrate concentration for olms is 9.2 mg NO 3 − /L, yet measurements in karst springs have shown levels ranging from 3 mg to over 20 mg NO 3 − /L. The SWAT modelling tool assessed agri-environmental and land use scenarios for their impact on nitrate leaching. Using the model, we identified hotspots with high nitrogen leaching potential that require immediate attention and implementation of better agricultural practices for fertiliser use. For these hotspots, the most effective approach combines scenarios of cover crops (R2), reduced fertilisation (R3), crop rotation (R4), and conversion of cropland to grassland (E2, E4, E5), potentially decreasing nitrate leaching by up to 60%. Implementing the best scenarios is expected to reduce nitrogen levels below the limit value of 9.2 mg NO 3 − /L, essential for maintaining the black olm habitat.

Keywords: black olm; karst; groundwater; habitat; agriculture; measures; nitrate; SWAT model (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/24/11309/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/16/24/11309/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:24:p:11309-:d:1550957

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().