Abstract
Nitrogen loss in karst sloping farmland will lead to declining land productivity and environmental pollution, in which the nitrogen loss through underground pore fissures will directly lead to groundwater pollution. The characteristics of total nitrogen (TN) production were studied by simulating the “dual structure” microenvironment of sloping farmland in a karst region using an artificial rainfall simulation method. The results show that rainfall was the main driving factor of TN loss in karst sloping farmland. TN was mainly lost through underground pore fissures when the rainfall intensity was ≤ 30 mm · h−1. TN was lost at the surface and underground when the rainfall intensity was ≥ 50 mm · h−1, TN loss on the surface accounted for a large proportion, and the surface flow was the main carrier of TN loss. The TN loss underground is easily ignored because it is hidden underground. Therefore, TN loss belowground in karst sloping farmland should receive increased attention. It would be interesting to explore the influences of connectivity and type of underground pore fissure system on TN loss in karst sloping farmland. The prevention and control of TN loss in karst sloping farmland should be considered both at the surface and underground. Reducing the formation of slope flows and slowing rainwater filtration by increasing slope vegetation coverage can be considered to reduce TN loss. The results of this study provide a theoretical reference for agricultural non-point source pollution control in a karst region.
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Funding
This work was funded by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China [no. 41671275] and the National Key Research and Development Plan [no. 2016YFC0502604]. In addition, we appreciate the project support by the High-level Innovative Talents in Guizhou Province of Guizhou Province [Qian Ke He Platform Talents [2018]5641], the Major Project of Guizhou Province [Qian Ke He Major Project [2016]3022], and the science and technology projects of Guizhou Province [Qian Ke He Platform Talents [2017]5788].
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Gao, R., Dai, Q., Gan, Y. et al. The production processes and characteristics of nitrogen pollution in bare sloping farmland in a karst region. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26, 26900–26911 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-05838-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-05838-z