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Carbon, iron, and aluminum responses to controlled water table fluctuations in sandy soil material

  • Soils, Sec 4 • Ecotoxicology • Research Article
  • Published:
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Abstract

Purpose

Seasonal fluctuating water tables are common in sandy coastal plain soils, but their role in soil organic carbon dynamics is uncertain. Seasonal saturation influences biogeochemical processes that affect fate of organic matter and metals. A column study was conducted to test hypotheses that shallow water table (SWT) fluctuations reduce CO2 loss (H1), increase leaching of dissolved organic C (DOC) and metals (Al and Fe) (H2), and result in greater net soil C storage (H3).

Materials and methods

The A- and E-horizon material of moderately well-drained sandy soils from five sites was collected for the study. Ten columns (two per site) of 90-cm height were packed to a thickness of 60 cm with E-horizon material, above which was packed 15 cm of A-horizon material from the same soil. Five columns were subjected to SWT treatments and five to deep water table (DWT) treatments. Upward CO2 flux was measured using a NaOH (1 M) trap. Metal and DOC-C concentrations in leachates and in water sampled at the surface of columns were measured. Soil samples from the columns were collected by depth at 5–6-cm increments and tested for total and organic C, metals, and <50-μm material distribution by WT treatment.

Results and discussion

Upward flux of CO2 was significantly less for SWT treatment. Higher DOC (for all events) and Fe concentrations (for first 18 days) were measured in SWT leachates as compared to DWT. Metal- and C concentrations were correlated (P < 0.0001) for surface pore water samples of SWT but not for DWT. Net loss of C was significantly less under SWT condition. Results indicate significant water-table effects on magnitude and direction of C flux (solution or gaseous) and <50-μm particle distribution for sandy coastal plain soils materials.

Conclusions

Changes in water table depth can potentially alter not only net soil C storage but also the proportion of C converted to CO2 versus DOC. Differences in the proportion would have consequences for C dynamics in ecosystems dominated by soils with fluctuating water tables such as occur extensively in the coastal plain of the SE USA and elsewhere.

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Abbreviations

DWT:

Deep water table

DOC:

Dissolved organic carbon

SWT:

Shallow water table

WT:

Water table

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Acknowledgments

We thank Mr. Kafui Awuma for his help in sampling and column preparation, and Drs. Santanu Bakshi, Kathryn V. Curtis, and Jason H. Curtis for their help with lab equipment issues. The senior author acknowledges her Ph.D. committee member, Dr. M.J. Cohen, for his guidance in this project. We appreciate Dr. Gill Brubaker’s guidance in performing metal analysis at the University of Florida Particle Engineering Research Center. This research was partially supported by US McIntire-Stennis Formula Funds (FLA-SWS-004867), issued through University of Florida Soil and Water Science Department.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Soil and Water Sciences Department, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, 2181 McCarty Hall, P.O. Box 110290, Gainesville, FL, 32611-0290, USA

    Chumki Banik, Willie G. Harris, Andrew V. Ogram & Vimala D. Nair

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  1. Chumki Banik
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  2. Willie G. Harris
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  3. Andrew V. Ogram
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  4. Vimala D. Nair
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Correspondence to Willie G. Harris.

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Responsible editor: Dong-Mei Zhou

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Banik, C., Harris, W.G., Ogram, A.V. et al. Carbon, iron, and aluminum responses to controlled water table fluctuations in sandy soil material. J Soils Sediments 16, 2449–2457 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-016-1444-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-016-1444-z

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