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Full-Text Articles in Soil Science

Column Tests Of Nitrate Breakthrough Behavior In Subsurface Sediments To Understand Transport In The Root-Zone, Rebecca Sally Haworth, Emma Rose Goodwin Jun 2018

Column Tests Of Nitrate Breakthrough Behavior In Subsurface Sediments To Understand Transport In The Root-Zone, Rebecca Sally Haworth, Emma Rose Goodwin

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

Nitrate has become an increasingly ubiquitous pollutant in surface and groundwater, posing a threat to hu- man health and ecosystems. Nitrogen is a necessary nutrient for plant growth and is limiting in many soils. As a result, farmers often add nitrogen to soil in a usable form such as nitrate, nitrite, or ammonia through the addition of fertilizer.


Soil Science Lesson Plan For The Cal Poly Learn By Doing Lab, Kelsey Ormonde May 2017

Soil Science Lesson Plan For The Cal Poly Learn By Doing Lab, Kelsey Ormonde

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

To increase interest in soil science and other related sciences, educational materials need to be tailored to appeal to younger students. The purpose of this project was to create a soil science lesson plan that could be utilized by the Cal Poly Learn By Doing Lab. Information from several articles, textbooks, lesson plans, and websites was reviewed to create a soil science lesson plan for students in 5-8th grade. The lesson plan focused on the three sub-disciplines of soil science; physical, chemical, and biological. Activities were created to correspond to the three sub-disciplines. Alternate activities were created to allow …


Investigating Meter Scale Topographic Variation As A Factor Of Monterey Pine (Pinus Radiata) Growing Conditions At Kenneth Norris Rancho Marino Reserve, Cambria, Ca, William J. Meyst Jun 2014

Investigating Meter Scale Topographic Variation As A Factor Of Monterey Pine (Pinus Radiata) Growing Conditions At Kenneth Norris Rancho Marino Reserve, Cambria, Ca, William J. Meyst

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

Endemic Monterey pine (Pinus radiata) is limited to three locations in California due to its unique ecological requirements. This project was conducted to investigate spatial growth patterns ofMonterey pine over complex ground surfaces. The coastal hills of Rancho Marino Reserve, Cambria, were surveyed using four 150-m transects to quantify and record ground surface features and growing conditions ofMonterey pine. Changes in elevation of each transect were measured using an Abney level. Linear ground surfaces were found at 86% (344 of 400) of survey nodes. Convex ground surfaces were found at 10.5% of survey nodes (42 of 400). Of …


Geoelectrical Detection Of Water Table Depth At Two Locations In The Los Osos Groundwater Basin, Hallie A. Douglas Dec 2013

Geoelectrical Detection Of Water Table Depth At Two Locations In The Los Osos Groundwater Basin, Hallie A. Douglas

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

The city of Los Osos sits on top of a coastal groundwater aquifer which is the sole supplier of all its residential, agricultural, and industrial water needs. Lacking a sewer system, the upper aquifer became progressively contaminated with nitrates over several decades. Groundwater pumping eventually shifted to the lower aquifer, however seawater intrusion of the lower aquifer caused by over-pumping has further degraded water quality. The Los Osos groundwater basin provides an excellent field region to examine the utility of geophysical methods for characterizing aquifer structure. In this study shallow (<20 >m) electrical resistivity imaging methods were performed at two …


The Effects Of Biochar Age And Concentration On Soil Retention Of Phosphorus And Infiltration Rate, Emilie Schneider Jun 2012

The Effects Of Biochar Age And Concentration On Soil Retention Of Phosphorus And Infiltration Rate, Emilie Schneider

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

Changes in land use and land management practices are regarded as one of the main factors in altering the hydrogeological system, causing changes in runoff, surface supply yields, and the quality of receiving water (Tong and Chen, 2002). Phosphorus is a significant contributor to accelerated eutrophication of fresh water and is largely sourced from agricultural runoff (Sharpley et al., 1994). The dominant processes controlling solution composition in agricultural soils are primarily ‘chemical’ for P (i.e. adsorption/desorption and dissolution/precipitation) (Edwards and Withers, 1998). Biochar has chemical characteristics that have the potential to adsorb P or influence precipitation of P insoluble pools …


A Study Of Enhanced De-Chlorination And Bio-Remediation: Molasses Injections Into Groundwater, Brent Anderson Jun 2012

A Study Of Enhanced De-Chlorination And Bio-Remediation: Molasses Injections Into Groundwater, Brent Anderson

Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences

No abstract provided.