1
|
Smenderovac E, Emilson C, Porter T, Morris D, Hazlett P, Diochon A, Basiliko N, Bélanger N, Markham J, Rutherford PM, van Rees K, Jones T, Venier L. Forest soil biotic communities show few responses to wood ash applications at multiple sites across Canada. Sci Rep 2022; 12:4171. [PMID: 35264620 PMCID: PMC8907164 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-07670-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2021] [Accepted: 02/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
There is interest in utilizing wood ash as an amendment in forestry operations as a mechanism to return nutrients to soils that are removed during harvesting, with the added benefit of diverting this bioenergy waste material from landfill sites. Existing studies have not arrived at a consensus on what the effects of wood ash amendments are on soil biota. We collected forest soil samples from studies in managed forests across Canada that were amended with wood ash to evaluate the effects on arthropod, bacterial and fungal communities using metabarcoding of F230, 16S, 18S and ITS2 sequences as well as enzyme analyses to assess its effects on soil biotic function. Ash amendment did not result in consistent effects across sites, and those effects that were detected were small. Overall, this study suggests that ash amendment applied to managed forest systems in amounts (up to 20 Mg ha-1) applied across the 8 study sties had little to no detectable effects on soil biotic community structure or function. When effects were detected, they were small, and site-specific. These non-results support the application of wood ash to harvested forest sites to replace macronutrients (e.g., calcium) removed by logging operations, thereby diverting it from landfill sites, and potentially increasing stand productivity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Emily Smenderovac
- Great Lakes Forestry Centre, Sault Ste. Marie, Natural Resources Canada, P6A 2E5, Canada.
| | - Caroline Emilson
- Great Lakes Forestry Centre, Sault Ste. Marie, Natural Resources Canada, P6A 2E5, Canada
| | - Teresita Porter
- Great Lakes Forestry Centre, Sault Ste. Marie, Natural Resources Canada, P6A 2E5, Canada
| | - Dave Morris
- Centre for Northern Forest Ecosystem Research, Ontario Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry, Thunder Bay, P7E 2V6, Canada
| | - Paul Hazlett
- Great Lakes Forestry Centre, Sault Ste. Marie, Natural Resources Canada, P6A 2E5, Canada
| | | | | | | | - John Markham
- University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, R3T 2N2, Canada
| | | | - Ken van Rees
- University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, S7N 5B5, Canada
| | - Trevor Jones
- Great Lakes Forestry Centre, Sault Ste. Marie, Natural Resources Canada, P6A 2E5, Canada
| | - Lisa Venier
- Great Lakes Forestry Centre, Sault Ste. Marie, Natural Resources Canada, P6A 2E5, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Effects of Non-Industrial Wood Ash (NIWA) Applications on Soil Chemistry and Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum, Marsh.) Seedling Growth in an Acidic Sugar Bush in Central Ontario. FORESTS 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/f11060693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Research Highlights: In central Ontario, large quantities of non-industrial wood ash (NIWA) are generated and could be used as a forest soil amendment to counteract soil acidification and base cation depletion caused by decades of acid deposition. Background and Objectives: The properties and biogeochemical responses of NIWA have not been thoroughly explored, and field experiments must be conducted before NIWA can be regulated as a forest soil amendment in Ontario. Materials and Methods: In this study, soil chemistry and sugar maple (Acer saccharum, Marsh.) seedling growth and chemistry were measured in an acidic sugar bush over twelve months following a NIWA field experiment. Plots (2 m by 2 m) were established with sugar maple, white pine (Pinus strobus L.), and yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis Britt.) NIWA treatments applied at rates of 6 Mg ha−1 along with untreated control plots. Results: Ash chemistry varied significantly among species and yellow birch ash generally had much higher metal concentrations compared with other species. Following ash application, significant increases in soil pH and calcium and magnesium concentrations were observed, however the level of response varied by treatment. Foliar concentrations of base cations in sugar maple seedlings significantly increased in ash treatments and there was no significant treatment effect on foliar metal concentrations or seedling growth. In roots and shoots, concentrations of several metals (manganese, aluminum, iron, boron, arsenic, cadmium, zinc, copper, lead, chromium, and nickel) increased after ash application, however response was most pronounced in yellow birch ash. Conclusions: These results suggest that application of NIWA can counteract the lasting effects of acid rain by increasing soil pH and base cation concentrations, as well as increasing sugar maple seedling foliar nutrient concentrations, but ashes from species with high metal contents may also increase metal availability to vegetation, at least in the short-term.
Collapse
|
3
|
Smol JP. Under the radar: long-term perspectives on ecological changes in lakes. Proc Biol Sci 2019; 286:20190834. [PMID: 31288704 PMCID: PMC6650715 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2019.0834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2019] [Accepted: 06/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Aquatic ecosystems are constantly changing due to natural and anthropogenic stressors. When dealing with such 'moving targets', one of the greatest challenges faced by scientists, managers and policy makers is to use appropriate time scales for environmental assessments. However, most aquatic systems lack monitoring data, and if a programme does exist, rarely have data been collected for more than a few years. Hence, it is often difficult or impossible to determine the nature and timing of ecosystem changes based on these short-term datasets. Furthermore, as environmental assessments are typically performed after a problem is identified, critical data regarding pre-disturbance (or reference) conditions are rarely available. Here, I summarize some recent studies employing lake sediment analyses (i.e. palaeolimnology) that have provided retrospective assessments of ecosystem changes that have been emerging slowly and often innocuously 'under the radar'. My examples include the identification of legacy effects of acid rain and logging, namely long-term declines in calcium concentrations in softwater lakes, which have led to significant repercussions for ecosystem services. I then show that past trajectories of aerial pollution from the burgeoning oil sands operations of western Canada can be tracked using environmental proxies preserved in dated sediment cores, and how these data can be used to determine the relative contributions of natural versus industrial sources of pollutants. I conclude by reviewing how palaeolimnological analyses have linked climate change with the proliferation of harmful blue-green algal (cyanobacterial) blooms, even without the addition of limiting nutrients. Collectively, these studies show that effective ecosystem management, particularly for incremental environmental stressors, requires temporal sampling windows that are not readily available with standard monitoring, but can be supplemented with high-resolution lake sediment analyses.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- John P. Smol
- Paleoecological Environmental Assessment and Research Lab (PEARL), Department of Biology, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, CanadaK7L 3N6
| |
Collapse
|