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Title: Soil erosion and organic matter variations for central Great Plains cropping systems under residue removal

Author
item NELSON, RICHARD - Enersol Resources, Inc
item Tatarko, John
item Ascough Ii, James

Submitted to: Transactions of the ASABE
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/9/2015
Publication Date: 4/16/2015
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/61116
Citation: Nelson, R., Tatarko, J., Ascough II, J.C. 2015. Soil erosion and organic matter variations for central Great Plains cropping systems under residue removal. Transactions of the ASABE. 58(2):415-427. DOI:10.13031/trans.58.10981.

Interpretive Summary: The diversity of land uses and potential crop residues for biofuels within the United States Central Great Plains (CGP) requires sustainable production that provides optimal resource use while maintaining or enhancing local soil and environmental quality as much as possible. This study examined average annual changes in soil erosion from rainfall and wind forces and trends in soil organic carbon (SOC) as a function of commodity and/or bioenergy-based crop rotations, yield variations, and different field management practices, including removal of residue, across all land capability class (LCC i.e., land productivity classes) soils in select areas of the CGP. Specifically, comparisons were made between crop rotations of corn, winter wheat, sorghum, cotton, fallow, and canola, subject to reduced tillage and no-till systems. The purpose was to assess cropping options, field management practices, and soil sustainability to provide an assessment across the region for use in soil conservation planning and possible bioenergy resource assessments in the CGP. Soil erosion and SOC were analyzed on all individual soils using water and wind erosion prediction models. Results were grouped by individual LCC and organized with respect to three different spatial resolutions: field-scale (individual soil type), field-scale summarized at a county level, and field-scale summarized at a regional level. Analyses indicate variation in soil erosion and SOC trends as a function of crop type, rotation, and field management practices across different soil types within a single county and at the regional level. Considerable variation in removable residue amounts also occurred across different rotations, especially with respect to crop type, rotation, soil type, and tillage. Results obtained in this study help advance the overall knowledge base of both commodity and bioenergy crop production agriculture and soil sustainability by providing high-resolution (i.e., individual soil type) informational data on soil erosion and soil carbon trends that could have a pronounced effect on producer economics and long-term land sustainability. Output from this project should be useful in guiding conservation and natural resource planning and assessing soil sustainability associated with supplying crop biomass for alternate energy development and production.

Technical Abstract: The diversity of geo-climatic land bases and potential feedstocks within the United States Central Great Plains (CGP) requires sustainable production that provides optimal resource utilization while maintaining or enhancing localized soil and environmental quality as much as possible. This study examined average annual changes in soil erosion from rainfall and wind forces and trends in soil organic carbon (SOC) as a function of commodity and/or bioenergy-based crop rotations, yield variations, and different field management practices, including residue removal across all land capability class (LCC) I-VIII soils in select areas of the CGP. Specifically, comparisons were made between rotations of corn, winter wheat, sorghum, cotton, fallow, and canola, subject to reduced tillage and no-till. The purpose was to assess cropping options, field management practices, and soil sustainability to provide a geo-spatial assessment for use in soil conservation planning and possible bioenergy resource assessments in the CGP. Soil erosion and SOC (proxied by a soil conditioning index, or SCI) were analyzed on individual soil map unit components using the RUSLE2 and WEPS models. Results were grouped by individual LCC and organized with respect to three different spatial resolutions: field-scale (individual soil type), field-scale aggregated to a county level, and field-scale aggregated to a regional level. Analyses indicate variation in soil erosion and SCI trends as a function of crop type, rotation, and field management practices across different soil types within a single county and at the regional level. Considerable variation in removable residue amounts also occurred across different rotations, especially with respect to crop type, rotation, soil type, and tillage. Results obtained in this study help advance the overall knowledge base of both commodity and bioenergy crop production agriculture and soil sustainability by providing high-resolution (i.e., individual soil type) informational data on soil erosion and soil health trends that could have a pronounced effect on producer economics and long-term land sustainability. Output from this project should be useful in guiding conservation and natural resource planning and assessing portions of the sustainability associated with supplying bioenergy feedstocks for alternate energy development and production.