Abstract
Due to widespread and fast-growing urban developments, large amounts of industrial, agricultural, and municipal wastewaters are produced which can change ecosystem functions after being released into rivers and lakes. The distributions of organic carbon (OC) and total phosphorus (TP) of soil were studied in the salt affected soils in the Meyghan Playa, Iran, to show the impacts of human activities on these soils and sediment properties in this arid region of the world. Samples were taken from 250 points and were analyzed geostatistically for electrical conductivity (EC), pH, TP, and OC. Although EC had the highest coefficient of variation (CV = 2.4) compared to CVs of the other soil properties, the sill/nugget ratio for EC in the geostatistical analysis was the highest one. Therefore, EC had the strongest spatial dependence compared to OC, TP, and pH with lower sill/nugget ratios and moderate spatial dependence. The maximum amount of OC was more than 2% which was observed near the entrance of municipal wastewater to the Meyghan Lake, and the highest soil TP was more than 400 kg mg<sup>-1</sup> near the entrance of municipal wastewater and also at river mouths, which can be attributed to leaching and runoff fertilizers from farmlands. Enrichment of OC in the entrance of municipal wastewater toward the lake is related to eutrophication and higher plant production.
Highlights
Protection of soil quality in different ecosystems is necessary for sustainable developments, conservation of ecosystems, and diversity of species
Since research about soil properties distribution in soil and sediment is helpful and provides valuable information about their contamination and potential environmental risks, the purpose of this study was to achieve an overview of some quality properties of present soil and sediment in the Meyghan Playa based on the spatial distribution of organic carbon (OC), total phosphorus (TP), pH, and electrical conductivity (EC) using geostatistical methods for investigating their possible origins and changes by geogenic and/or anthropogenic impacts
The results showed that soil OC, pH, and EC data matched to the spherical model, and TP matched to the exponential model
Summary
Protection of soil quality in different ecosystems is necessary for sustainable developments, conservation of ecosystems, and diversity of species. They are more sensitive to anthropogenic impacts and pollution agents such as wastewater inputs from urban, industrial, and adjacent agricultural lands (Bennett et al 2001; Ghadimi and Ghomi 2013). The study of soil variable and responsive parameters like organic carbon (OC), phosphorus (P), pH and electrical conductivity (EC) may show the impact of wastewater release on soil and water quality. Organic carbon has many positive impacts on soil fertility and greenhouse gas emission reduction (Post and Kwon 2000). The original source of soil and water OC is mainly natural (i.e. plant material), anthropogenic activities such as agricultural activities and waste disposal are other additional sources
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