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AGU: Journal of Geophysical Research, Biogeosciences

 

Keywords

  • wind erosion
  • soil texture
  • ecosystem change
  • soil carbon
  • soil nitrogen
  • carbon/nitrogen ratio
  • Jornada Basin LTER

Index Terms

  • Biogeosciences
  • Biogeosciences: Biogeochemical cycles, processes, and modeling
  • Biogeosciences: Ecosystems, structure and dynamics
  • Biogeosciences: Soils/pedology
Abstract
Cited By (1)
 

Abstract

JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH, VOL. 114, G02003, 8 PP., 2009
doi:10.1029/2008JG000903

Effects of enhanced wind erosion on surface soil texture and characteristics of windblown sediments

Junran Li

Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering, Soil and Water Laboratory, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA

Gregory S. Okin

Department of Geography, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA

Howard E. Epstein

Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA

It is well documented that wind redistributes and transports soil resources in semiarid ecosystems. However, fewer studies have quantitatively linked wind erosion to detailed grain‐size fractions and associated nutrient content in surface soil and windblown sediment. In this study, we examined (1) the effects of enhanced wind erosion on surface soil particle‐size distribution and (2) carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) characteristics of windblown sediments in a typical desert grassland of southern New Mexico. Our results show that surface soil has become noticeably coarser over a 2‐year period. In particular, content of soil particles in the category of 250–500 μm increased significantly, but soil particles in the fractions of 50–125 μm and <50 μm were significantly depleted. In addition to the enrichment of C and N in the windblown sediments, our results reveal that fine particles (e.g., D < 50 μm) were enriched to a much higher degree at height than C and N. Significantly, our results reveal that nearly 12% of total organic carbon (TOC) and 9% of total nitrogen (TN) were found in the particles with diameter <50 μm, which account for only 1–2% of the mass of windblown sediments. In this wind susceptible environment, our findings suggest that (1) significant soil texture change (e.g., the loss of soil fines) driven by wind erosion could happen rapidly and soil fine particles (e.g., silt and clay) may be depleted within a few years and (2) the loss of even a small fraction of fine particles may indicate a substantial depletion of soil C and N.

Received 25 November 2008; accepted 10 February 2009; published 10 April 2009.

Citation: Li, J., G. S. Okin, and H. E. Epstein (2009), Effects of enhanced wind erosion on surface soil texture and characteristics of windblown sediments, J. Geophys. Res., 114, G02003, doi:10.1029/2008JG000903.

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