The effect of conservation practices on soil resistance and resilience indices under the influence of copper pollution stress

Articles in Press

Document Type : Complete scientific research article

Authors

1 Ph.D. Candidate, Dept. of Soil Science and Engineering, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran.

2 Associate Prof., Dept. of Soil Science, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan

3 Associate Prof., Dept. of Soil Science, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran.

4 Assistant Prof., Dept. of Soil Science and Engineering, Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, Gorgan, Iran.

10.22069/ejsms.2026.23392.2182

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Conservation measures can have different effects on the stability and resilience of the soil to various stresses due to different soil and vegetation characteristics. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of different conservation measures in the Gorganrood basin in Golestan Province on soil resilience to pollution stress and to conduct a case study on copper metal.

Materials and Methods: This study was conducted as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design with two recovery time factors (7 and 28 days) and in 8 land management types (forest, terraced, planted, pasture, agriculture, burned forest, protected agricultural land and conventional agriculture). The soil samples were taken from a depth of 0 to 20 cm. To achieve copper loading, a concentration of 200 mg copper per kg dry soil from the salt source copper(II) sulfate pentahydrate was used. Soil resistance and loading indices were assessed using the Orwin and Wardel model by chemical properties (pH, EC, organic carbon, total nitrogen and cation-exchange capacity) and biological indices (microbial respiration and microbial biomass carbon).

Results: The results showed that soil properties achieved different rates of reversibility during the studied periods after pollution stress. This rate was significantly affected by the type of conservation practices and the duration of the stress. Natural land uses such as forests and pastures were more resistant and resilient to this stress, while degraded land uses such as burned forests and terracing showed greater vulnerability. The conversion of forest lands to agriculture has caused a significant decrease in soil resistance and resilience indices. In the resistance index, the amount of organic carbon decreased from 0.92 in the forest to 0.46 in the agricultural area of the Chardeh region and 0.48 in the agricultural area of the Chehel-chai basin, which represents a decrease of 50 and 48%, respectively. Also, the soil microbial biomass, which was 0.70 in the forest, reached 0.48 in the agricultural area of the Chehel-chai basin, which is equivalent to a decrease of 31%. Microbial respiration also decreased from 0.74 in the forest to 0.50 in the agricultural area of Chehel-chai basin, a decrease of 32%. However, with the application of conservation agriculture, the amount of organic carbon increased to 0.82, soil microbial biomass to 0.54, and microbial respiration to 0.53, which shows an improvement of 78, 12.5, and 6%, respectively, compared to the agricultural area of Chehel-chai basin. In the resilience index, on the seventh day after pollution stress, organic carbon decreased from 0.272 in the forest to 0.179 in the agricultural area of Chehel-chai basin, which is equivalent to a decrease of 34%. Total nitrogen also decreased from 0.402 in the forest to 0.116 in the agricultural area of Chehel-chai basin, which shows a decrease of 72%. However, on day 28, conservation agriculture practices increased cation exchange capacity from 0.133 in the fourteenth agricultural area to 0.583 and microbial biomass from 0.114 to 0.661, representing an increase of 338 and 480%, respectively.

Conclusion: Based on the findings of the paper, degraded land uses such as burnt forests and traditional agriculture are more vulnerable due to reduced organic matter, weaker biological activity, and lower capacity to retain nutrients. Over time (day 28), resilience indices in some land uses have improved, but conservation agriculture and terracing still perform better than traditional agriculture. Therefore, implementing conservation management, biological restoration, and using organic amendments are essential to increase soil resilience in degraded areas.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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Available Online from 15 February 2026

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