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In order to integrate necessary interdisciplinary complexity, sustainability, defined targets and endpoints for reclamation progress, the objective of this research is to advance reclamation knowledge on (i) international scale and (ii) national scale, taking Nigeria as an example. On the international scale (i), a systematic reclamation threshold scale for assessing, evaluating, documenting, and monitoring reclamation progress was developed. The threshold stages begin from the initial state I0 down to degraded state D0 (depending on the type of mining). Reclamation starts with soil reconstruction R-2 up to revegetation R-1 (red zones) to reach minimum threshold R0 (amber zone). Beyond R0 are the green zones R1, R2, and R3 representing soil/abiotic condition, biological and improved threshold respectively. Adaptation of the threshold model to degraded ecosystems in national and international laws is recommended. On the national scale with Nigeria (ii), endowed with over 34 solid minerals and abundant crude oil, findings show that almost all mine sites are below the minimum threshold scale R0. The sites are adversely affected by Artisanal and Small Scale Mining (ASM), whereby, contamination and soil lithology disturbances are the state-of-the-art discussions. However, bioremediation (phytoremediation) is the most feasible remediation technique. Therefore, for the crude oil contaminated sites, this study highlights typical cogitation for large in-situ implementation and potential species for remediation. For the mineral resources, gold mining was the typical example. As a practical approach, experimental areas on an abandoned mining site (Site 1), an active mining site (Site 2) and an undisturbed vegetation site (Control) in southwestern Nigeria were mapped out to represent its mining and farming activities. On the sites, (a) the impacts of the ASM activities on the floristic association were assessed. (b) the potential of 2D Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) was explored to characterize the horizontal and vertical landscape homogeneity of the mine sites, and lastly, (c) the study identified native high-accumulating plants growing on the sites that can be employed for phytoremediation. Thus, the results show that (a) the floristic association of the mine sites have been stressed and disturbed. (b) the resistivity structure of the sites shows that ASM has greatly impaired the lithological status of the sites. (c) out of the 9 considered species, Crinum jagus has the highest accumulation factor of 8.71, 37.47, 1.08 and 29.38 for Pb, Cd, Fe and Cu respectively. It is a recommendable novel plant in the tropics. However, future studies must verify its hyperaccumulator potentials, identify other high accumulating species and develop effective approaches and policies to curb ASM activities and enhance remediation in Nigeria.
With regard to the depletion of global phosphorus reserves and with the aim of ensuring sustainable soil fertility on agricultural soils, a fundamental understanding of mechanisms of fixation and mobilization of inorganic phosphorus in soils is required. Amongst others, phosphorus availability is affected by ad- and desorption reactions on pedogenic Fe- and Al-hydroxide surfaces. The characterization of phosphate binding on those contrasting mineral surfaces can help to find solutions for enhancing the mobilization of fertilized but not available soil inorganic phosphate. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopic experiments were carried out during phosphorus adsorption on crystalline gibbsite, poorly crystalline 2-line-ferrihydrite and amorphous Fe:Al-hydroxide mixtures. Desorption experiments with CaCl₂, CaSO₄, citric acid (C₆H₈O₇), and humic acid (C₉H₉NO₆) were conducted to determine the capacity of phosphate fixation and mobilization in short- and long-term. Additionally, phosphorus release from the Fe- and Ca-phosphates vivianite and hydroxyapatite were analyzed.
For gibbsite, the formation of AlHPO₄ and Al₂HPO₄ can be assumed, while for ferrihydrite, a FeHPO₄ or Fe₂PO₄ complex and the precipitation of FePO₄ with longer equilibration time were observed. Fe₂HPO₄ or a Fe₂PO₄ surface complex was deduced for amorphous Fe-hydroxides, an AlH₂PO₄ surface complex was identified for Al-hydroxides. The weakly associated amorphous FeO(OH) molecules enhance the precipitation of FePO₄. With high Al content, a weaker phosphate binding of both inner- and outer-sphere complexes and either no or minor quantities of precipitate were formed. Ferrihydrite showed a more rigid structure and a lower extent of precipitation compared to amorphous Fe-hydroxide. The cumulative phosphorus desorption followed the order CaCl₂ < CaSO₄ < humic acid < citric acid for crystalline and amorphous Fe- and Al-hydroxides as well for vivianite and hydroxyapatite. While inorganic anion exchange took part at easily available binding sites and fast exchangeable phosphorus, organic acids additionally affect the more heavily available binding sites and slow exchangeable phosphorus. For humic acid, the accumulation of metal-organic complexes in the desorption solution was suggested, whereas for citric acid the dissolution of the minerals was maintained. The cumulative release rates of the Flow-Through-Reactor setup were higher compared to batch due to a short residence time and a continuous concentration gradient. This could lead either to an over- or underestimation of the available phosphorus pools and influenced the comparability of both methods.
An empirical and simulation-based assessment of tree growth in temperate alley-cropping systems
(2020)
The potential of biomass generated from dedicated energy crops, used in short-rotation coppices (SRC), progressively grows recognition as a flexible primary source for the generation of energy, heat, fuel, and bio-based materials and chemicals. The alley-cropping systems (ACSs), which can integrate tree strips managed as SRC into agriculturally managed fields, are often regarded as an adaptable multi-crop land-use strategy that can provide ecological and economic benefits. The research aim of the present dissertation has focused on investigating the prospective implications of different site-specific conditions and scenarios on tree growth in ACSs with SRC, thus incorporating several experimental and simulation-based studies. For this, the ability of a process-oriented, eco-physiological tree growth model was investigated in order to (i) impute missing empirical data, thus securing a reliable repository of tree growth characteristics, (ii) simulate the tree growth in terms of woody biomass production in strong relation to the interactions with adjacent crops and their respective resource capture, (iii) predict and evaluate the tree growth sensitivity to prospective climate changes, thus performing risk assessments for the near and distant future, and (iv) derive and assess the land equivalent ratio (LER) and gross energy yield for different climatic, soil, and management scenarios. The findings have corroborated the potential tree growth vulnerability to prospective climatic changes, particularly to changes in water availability, and have underlined the importance of coping management strategies in SRC for forthcoming risk assessments and adaptation scenarios. Both LER and gross energy yields had resulted in a convex curve where the maximum values were achieved when either the tree or crop component was dominant (>75% of the land area) and minimum when these components shared similar proportions of land area. Collectively, the implications of different site-specific conditions and scenarios on tree growth in ACSs with SRC have been investigated in order to improve the decision-making, optimization, and adaptation of such systems. Last but not least, this dissertation has emphasized the considerable potential of modelling approaches in ACSs, as they can impute missing data from scarce available data and simulate tree and crop yields for specific site-conditions in a non-intrusive, inexpensive, and prompt way while supporting early site-setup planning.
Designing and implementing comprehensive reclamation programme during mine operations can minimize environmental damage and decrease potential legal liability. Although Regulation (23) of the Ghana Environmental Assessment Regulation (1999) requires mine proponents to have plans for reclamation, it has been revealed most degraded mine-sites have not been reclaimed. Even in cases where some mining companies made reclamation attempts, such efforts could not produce any favourable outcome due to the failure in adopting such best reclamation management practices as slope stabilization and substrate amendment to promote vegetation establishment. Subsequently, this study was undertaken to (a) investigate the role of biological geotextiles in erosion control and (b) examine effects of organic amendments with stockpiled subsoil on tree growth and on ground vegetation cover. A waste-rock dump was graded to 33% slope and covered with a 70 cm layer of subsoil at the Amoma Pit of Newmont Ghana Gold Limited Ahafo-South project. To achieve the first objective, two kinds of biological geotextiles; Elephant-grass mat and “York” mat, were used with bare ground as control, in a randomized block design with two replications each. Mat performance against erosion was expressed as a percentage from the total sediment yield. Results showed both the Elephant-grass mat and the York mat significantly (p < 0.05) reduced soil loss by 56.6% and 97.3%, respectively, compared to the control. The mats acted as cover and protected the graded mine-slope against erosion and allowed vegetation to establish and grow through them.
Two experimental plots (24 × 15 m) were established on a different portion of the waste-rock dump for the second objective. The treatments, manure (23 t ha-1) and control (no manure), were applied, followed by seeding of Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) and planting of potted-seedlings of five forest-tree species. The Laser-point-quadrat method was used to estimate ground vegetation cover, whereas erosion was visually observed. Diameter and height data of the planted trees were collected. The results indicated the manure had significant positive influence on tree growth and on ground vegetation cover which facilitated superior soil stabilization, compared to the control. Manure supplied sufficient N to overcome N deficiency of the subsoil and additionally increased soil organic matter that boosted microbial activity and mineralization. The findings of the study highlight the urgent need of implementing best reclamation management practices in protecting the environment and securing successful reclamation during mine operations in Ghana. The achievement of this will promote responsible mining and further contribute to Ghanaians’ acceptability of mining as a sustainable developmental land use activity, rather than as a curse.
Multidimensional visualization of preferential flow pathways using neutron and x-ray radiation
(2016)
The occurrence of preferential flow of water in soils is rather the rule than the exception particularly in heterogeneous structured soils. The quantitative prediction is difficult because of the spatial as well as temporal variability. One aim of the dissertation was to visualize the soil structure and flow patterns in mine soils using a combination of neutron radiography, neutron tomography and x-ray computed tomography experiments. Both radiation techniques were used to describe preferential pathways as a soil structure with CT and the process of preferential flow of water with NT. For the first time neutron radiation was applied on undisturbed soil cores to visualize water distributions in natural soils on three examples for heterogeneities of different origin.
In a first investigation we used neutron radiography to analyze the moisture distribution in undisturbed slab-type and cylindrical samples of mine soils containing lignitic fragments and inclined soil layers. 2D radiography sequences indicated that flow pathways are highly dependent on the shape, distribution, and internal structure of the lignitic fragments. For 3D experiments, the quantitative analysis of water contents failed due to a pronounced beam hardening effect. The tensiometer data indicated the existence of local non-equilibrium in pressure heads between fragments and matric pore regions.
The objective of the second study was to analyze and visualize the effects of initial soil structure formation at the surface of bare soils in an artificial hydrological catchment that has been left to undirected ecological succession for three years. The three-dimensional (3D) micro-morphology was described using the X-ray computed tomography (CT); two-dimensional (2D) infiltration patterns were obtained from drip infiltration experiments using time-resolved neutron radiography (NT). The analyses of CT data indicate the existence of (i) structural crusts on soil consisting of sandy to loamy sediments and (ii) depositional crusts on sandy sediments. The results of combined observations using CT and NT suggest that the initial soil surface structure alterations of young sandy sediment modify moisture patterns of infiltrating water only slightly.
The aim of the 3rd experiment was to study effect of two ‘ecological engineers’, moss vegetation and beetle larvae on pore structure and infiltration. The soil pore structure was characterized by micro-computed tomography analyses of bare soil, sparse and dense moss-vegetated samples containing a single burrow. Flow patterns of infiltration experiments were visualized using the neutron radiography technique. The results of this study suggest that moss vegetation and burrowing activity of ground beetles strongly control the initial soil development by modification of pore structure and surface water infiltration.
In this study the mycorrhizal community of the Ericaceae Comarostaphylis arbutoides was investigated to reveal further ectomycorrhizal fungal species that are associated with this tropical plant. Mycorrhizal systems of selected genera were investigated in more detail regarding their phylogeny, morphology, and anatomy as well as the genetic confirmation of the associated host tree.
The genetic investigation of mycorrhizal systems collected at the Cerro de la Muerte (Costa Rica) detected a diverse fungal community. Most common were species of the genera Russula, Cortinarius, and Cenococcum, as well as not further determined members of the Cantharellaceae and Helotiales. The genera Cenococcum, Clavaria/Clavulina, Phellodon, Piloderma, Sebacina, Tomentella/Thelephora, as well as Xerocomus could be proven genetically for the first time from Costa Rica based on mycorrhizal systems.
Comarostaphylis arbutoides was proven to be mycorrhizal with Leotia cf. lubrica, Sebacina sp., and diverse species of the genus Cortinarius. Species of other genera are also assumed, but their confirmation is still to be made.
On the basis of genetics and the investigation of its mycorrhizal systems, the collected Costa Rican Sebacina sp. may constitute a hitherto not described species. However, to confirm this assumption fruit body investigations are necessary. Sebacina sp. was proven in this study to be also mycorrhizal with Quercus sp.
The ascomycete Leotia lubrica was proven to be mycorrhizal for the first time. However, mycorrhizal findings of this species are still rare in literature and further studies are necessary to underpin its new status. As Leotia lubrica occurs worldwide, other host plants, beside the proven Comarostaphylis arbutoides, are assumed for this species as well.
The mycorrhizal samples of the genus Cortinarius could comprise approximately 15 species. Their final determination is still outstanding, but it is assumed that also hitherto not known species were detected in this study. A host preference is indicated as species of Cortinarius are found to be associated either with Comarostaphylis arbutoides or Quercus sp., but needs to be confirmed by including mycorrhizal samples of Quercus trees.
One third of the sequenced mycorrhizal systems still remain unidentified. Therefore, repeated comparison with sequence databases is recommended. The phylogenetic and morphological/anatomical investigation of already identified as well as unidentified mycorrhizal systems is advised to deliver additional descriptions of Costa Rican ectomycorrhizal fungi and therefore contribute to the knowledge of tropical fungal species.
Objective of the Transregional Collaborative Research Centre (CRC/TR) 38 was the study of structures and processes of the initial ecosystem development. It was assumed that the initial phase is characterized by less structured and therefore less heterogeneous ecosystems. Thus, analysis of young ecosystems in their initial stages should provide better insights into ecosystem functioning. Following this basic concept, the idea of the CRC/TR 38 was to analyze the establishment of new structures and processes which lead to a growing structuring and in consequence to a growing complexity and heterogeneity in an artificially created watershed. Further, with the help of this step-by-step development of the ecosystem it was aimed to learn from occurring feedbacks, which appear between old and newly emerging structures and patterns in order to better understand also the behavior of more mature systems. Special emphasis was placed on the spatial and temporal dynamics of both evolving structures and related processes and their interactions. In summary, the CRC/TR 38 was able to identify a number of structures and processes that are considered to be relevant and specific for young systems.
This thesis analyses the extent of host specialisation in ectomycorrhizas, a mutualistic symbiosis between hyphae of certain fungal species and roots of forest trees. In the mycological literature it has been debated for long time, whether ectomycorrhizal communities in mixed stands are dominated by generalist or host specific fungi. In this thesis the concept of specificity guilds is introduced and applied to the evaluation of host specificity among the ectomycorrhizal fungal at the study site Kahlenberg near Eberswalde-Finow, 100 km northeast of Berlin. The study site comprised two mixed stands of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris, L.) and beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) that were supplemented by one pure stand of Scots pine and one pure stand of beech. Ectomycorrhizal fungi were distinguished by morphotyping, anatomotyping and the molecular method of ITS rDNA sequencing directly at the mycorrhized root tips. Out of 40 fungal sequence types, 31 could be determined to species level by online data base comparisons and phylogenetic analysis. Among the 18 most frequent fungal species three specificity guilds were assigned: generalist guild, pine specific gild and beech specific gild. These assignments were based on the relative association with the roots of the two hosts in the mixed stands. In summarizing the occurrences in all four stands, the majority of fungal species, i.e. 67%, belonged to host specific guilds (five pine specific species, seven beech specific species), 33% were generalists (six species). Most fungi of the host specific guilds expressed preferences, i.e. in the mixed stands they also colonized non-target roots while these host preferring fungi were absent from the pure stand of the non-target host. This interesting behaviour may indicate improved competitiveness of host specific fungi when associated with their preferential hosts. Only four out of the 18 species associated exclusively with either pine or beech roots, i.e. they are specialists. The most notable beech specialist is Laccaria cf. laccata, although L. laccata s.l. is traditionally considered a generalist. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that the L. laccata complex consists of cryptic species that could belong to different host specific guilds. This demonstrates the importance of in depth delineation of fungal species by phylograms for assigning specificity guilds. The high percentage of host specific fungal species at the Kahlenberg site suggests that host specificity may play a role in role explaining ectomycorrhizal biodiversity in mixed stands. Different host species could provide niches for coexistence of ectomycorrhizal fungi. In pure stands high numbers of ectomycorrhizal fungi are more difficult to explain, because the number of possible niches decreases. Therefore, the pure beech stand was analyzed in depth, to test the hypothesis that roots of different individual beech genotypes may provide niches that explain the ectomycorrhizal biodiversity at the small spatial scale of a soil core. Fourteen ectomycorrhizal species, as determined by ITS sequencing and phylograms were patchily distributed along an 81 m long transect with ten transect points. All root segments in the three species richest soil cores (four, five and six fungal species) and the surrounding beech trees were genotyped by microsatellite PCR. In each of the three soil cores, roots of two host genotypes were present that corresponded to the two closest mature trees. However, different root genotypes did not carry different sets of ectomycorrhizal fungal species. Therefore, the hypothesis of tree genotypes contributing to ectomycorrhizal biodiversity has to be rejected for the analyzed beech stand. In the absence of other niche based explanations (soil parameters were homogenously distributed among transect points, no vertical compartmentalization), it is proposed that stochastic processes, such as spore dispersal might have contributed to the biodiversity in the analyzed soil cores of the pure beech stand.
This volume summarizes the monitoring activities and results at the ‘Chicken Creek’ catchment for the period 2005 to 2010. The development in all ecosystem compartments is assessed, classified, and compared to more mature systems with regard to functional relevance and succession stage. In a final synopsis, the whole catchment is evaluated with regard to ecosystem development and an outlook is given on the expected trends both in the short and the medium term.
Soils deposited can undergo a sudden change in the structure when they are inundated with water resulting decrease in the volume. This process is known as water induced compaction. The decrease in volume occurs without any change in external loads and is only caused by the water, which results in the settlement of soil surface having a resultant potential to damage the structures. The water induced compaction process is characterized by sudden change in the voids or pores of the soil that are loaded at their natural water content and flooded. The objective of this thesis work was to understand the water induced consolidation process at agriculturally used reclaimed soils. The approach was to reproduce the situation occurring when the soil was subjected to water induced compaction at defined loads typical in the top soil (0 kPa to 20 kPa). The glacial till used for the experiments was sampled in the Lusatian lignite-mining district located about 100 km southeast of Berlin, Germany. Sediment samples for different investigations were taken from the pre-cut section at 1500 m west of the eastern end from 3 m depth till 10 m depth. The glacial till used for the experiments derived from the sediment layer of Warthe sub-stage of the saalian glaciation. To characterize the soil properties at the pre-cut section, parameters like grain size distribution, soil bulk density, calcium carbonate content (CaCo3) and water retention characteristics were measured. The stability of the glacial till was evaluated using parameter pre-consolidation load. This was done in three sub-steps. The first step was determination of the stress-strain behaviour under natural conditions. In the second step the stress-strain behaviour of disturbed dry samples was simulated, which would be the situation in summer when the glacial till dries during transport. In the third step we saturated the disturbed dry samples which were subjected to different preloads to simulate the effect of saturation and re-compaction by precipitation. This work was exemplarily done for undisturbed samples and also for disturbed dry samples from 4 depths (4 m, 6 m, 8 m, and 10 m). Disturbed dry and saturated conditions were tested for samples from depths 4 m and 8 m. i) It was found from the grain size distribution that the soil profile is uniformly distributed with different particle sizes. High soil bulk density was recorded, which were in the range of 1.9 g cm-3 to 2.0 g cm-3. We observed that the carbonate content increased with the depths, in our observation it increased up to 5.4 %. From the water retention characteristics we observe that the samples from 4 m and 10 m depth do not have coarse pores where as 6 m and 8 m depth samples have coarse pores. ii) We observed that the undisturbed samples showed a flat curve having the initial void ratio and final void ratio values within a small range (between 0.2 and 0.4), where as the disturbed dry and the disturbed saturated curves showed a huge difference in the initial and final void ratio values. The difference was decreasing with the increase in pre-loads. We found that pre-consolidation stress values obtained were not increasing with the increase in depth. The disturbed saturated samples from the 4 m depth showed over-estimation of the results, where as the disturbed saturated samples from 8 m appeared to be realistic. We found that the magnitude of water induced compaction increased with the increase in preloads and a decrease with respect to the depths