TY - GEN A1 - Uchino, Kazuki A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Bonhage, Alexander A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Raab, Thomas A1 - Wechler, Klaus-Peter A1 - Bauriegel, Albrecht T1 - Spatial heterogeneity of buried and recent soils in a drift sand area in North-Eastern Germany T2 - EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022 N2 - In the North European Lowland, on the sandy deposits of the Weichselian glaciation, soils developed during periods of landscape stability are often conserved under windblown sand. However, small-scale changes of sediments and other soil forming factors can result in high spatial variation of soil properties in these landscapes; and relocation of soil material by geomorphic processes further increases the spatial heterogeneity of the soil landscape. These spatial variations in soil properties and conservation need to be considered in order to correctly decipher and interpret the buried soils as records of past environmental conditions. In the forefield of the open-cast mine Cottbus-Nord, archaeological excavations in a dune and drift sand area revealed widespread buried soils of different characteristics. The densely spaced excavation trenches give exceptionally good insights into the pedosphere, allow for reconstructing the distribution of fossil and recent soils in a high spatial resolution, and offer good opportunities to improve the understanding of spatial and temporal patterns of soil formation. Remains of postpleistocene hunter-gatherer campsites were documented in archaeological excavations and found to be associated with a buried soil horizon. We recorded the stratigraphy of soil profiles along more than 15 trenches within an area of about 20 ha, and additionally described the position of buried soils from GPR surveys and microdrone photogrammetry. In a recently opened, 455 m long trench, all characteristic soils and sediments of the study region could be observed and stratigraphically connected. Within this trench, four profiles were identified for further research. Each profile was classified and described according to WRB and German Guidelines for Soil Mapping; and was sampled and investigated through laboratory analyses including determination of organic matter, total carbon and nitrogen contents, soil colour identification, texture analysis, magnetic susceptibility measurement, metal content analysis using X-ray fluorescence analyzer and pH measurement. The compaction and cementation of soil horizons was assessed in situ with a pocket penetrometer. Results show a small-scale mosaic of soils developed on fluvio-aeolian, limnic and aeolian sediments, high spatial variations in pedogenesis due to varying groundwater influence and intensity of horizontal and vertical leachate transport, and high variations in the erosion or conservation of fossil soils. The soil and sediment stratigraphy reflects several phases of landscape development: i) the formation of a Late Pleistocene soil on fluvio-aeolian deposits, ii) a fossilization by aeolian sands, iii) a stability phase with intensive podsolization and peat formation, and iv) a land use-induced aeolian remobilization of the sands. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-2354 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Kim, Minhye A1 - Bonhage, Alexander A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Raab, Thomas A1 - Bauriegel, Albrecht T1 - Initial processes of soil formation on Relict Charcoal Hearths (RCHs) in the Tauer Forest (Brandenburg, Germany) T2 - EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022 N2 - In the Tauer Forest, a woodland area north of the city of Peitz (Brandenburg, Germany), extensive charcoal burning was carried out from the mid-16th century to the mid-19th century resulting in numerous Relict Charcoal Hearths (RCHs). The most prominent feature of the soils on RCHs is the anthropogenically modified 20-30 cm thick RCH substrate that buries the former forest soil. The RCH substrate is a quite heterogenous mixture of mineral and organic compounds which were modified through heat during charring. It is characterized by its black color resulting from charcoal fragments (from fine dust to decimetre size pieces), lower bulk density, and higher porosity. After their use, the charcoal production sites were abandoned and soon became overgrown. Soil formation could commence in this anthropogenically modified RCH substrate. During recently conducted field work on RCHs in the Tauer Forest we detected features of initial podzolisation (bleaching of quartz grains) within this RCH substrate. To further investigate initial processes of soil formation (acidification, podzolisation, accumulation of soil organic matter) on RCHs, two different RCH sites were selected in the Tauer Forest: one RCH site in the forest district Tannenwald and one RCH site in the forest district Kleinsee. The Tannenwald site (RCH no. 29958) is situated in the western part of the Tauer Forest. It is an inland dune area with a coniferous forest (Scots pine, Pinus sylvestris L.) plantation. The forest soils are Podzols and the soils on the RCHs are classified as Spolic Technosols. The dense undergrowth consists of mainly blueberry (Vaccinium L.). Dendrochronological ages (determination by K-U Heußner, DAI Berlin) of charcoal pieces proof, that the charcoal hearth was used after 1655. The Kleinsee site (RCH no. 29424) is situated in the eastern part of the Tauer Forest. The parent material is sand from glaciofluvial sediments of the Weichselian glaciation. The forest soils are Brunic Arenosols (Protospodic) and the soils on the RCHs are classified as Spolic Technosols (Arenic). The deciduous forest is dominated by sessile oak (Quercus petraea (Matt.) Liebl.). The undergrowth is only scarce with some ferns (sporadic), blueberry (Vaccinium L.), some shoots of rowan (Sorbus aucuparia L.) and some moss. There is no dendrochronological age available from the RCH, but RCHs nearby were dated from the 18th to the 19th centuries. At both sites, three soil monoliths were sampled on the RCH platform and three monoliths from the natural forest soil as reference soils. The soil monoliths were sampled continuously in 3 cm vertical spacings. Following lab analyses were carried out: pH (CaCl2), pH (H2O), total carbon (TC), total nitrogen (TN), CECeff and total concentrations of selected elements. Analyses of pedogenic Fe are in progress. First results of these study will be presented and discussed. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-3563 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Al Jobayer, Md Adif A1 - Bloß, Katharina A1 - Porsch, Christopher A1 - Maaten, Ernst van der A1 - Maaten-Theunissen, Marieke van der A1 - Bonhage, Alexander A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Raab, Thomas T1 - Drought sensitivity of Pinus sylvestris L. on century old charcoal rich Technosols in the North-German Lowland T2 - EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022 N2 - Soils on relict charcoal hearths (RCHs), i.e. aged charcoal rich Technosols, feature documented legacy effects regarding their physical and chemical soil properties. These forest soils result from the pre-/early-industrial production of charcoal in upright standing hearths. Today, RCHs are found in forested areas as circular microrelief structures with average diameters of about 10 meters that contain technogenic soil horizons of about 20 cm thickness. RCH soils are most distinctly characterized by their large content of pyrogenic soil organic matter and consequently increased total carbon contents. The resulting changes in the soils’ cation exchange capacity, soil acidity, total nitrogen contents and total element stocks are often significant. Furthermore, changes in soil physical properties like a lower bulk density and a higher porosity result in changed soil-water- and temperature regimes. Combined, these effects potentially result in unique soil microhabitats that are restricted to relatively small, clearly defined areas in many forest ecosystems. Recent studies on RCH soils increasingly focus on potential changes in microbiological and vegetational composition and abundances and report diverse effects. Here, we study the effects of century old charcoal rich Technosols on the drought sensitivity of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) on three RCH sites located in Lower Lusatia, Saxony (Germany). Through dendrochronologial analysis of increment cores and historical climate data, we study climate-growth relationships for trees on RCH soils and reference forest soils for two periods (AD 1963-1992 & AD 1990-2019). Furthermore, we determine pointer years and components of resilience to quantify the trees’ reaction to extreme weather conditions. This analysis was accompanied by soil sampling and analysis on the RCH sites and adjacent reference forest soils. Here, we present preliminary results and discuss them in the context of findings from other studies on RCH soils. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-7978 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Raab, Thomas A1 - Bonhage, Alexander A1 - Verschoof-van der Vaart, Wouter A1 - Malik, Ireneusz A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Chauhan, Jai Singh A1 - Thekkethala, Jeenus Joby T1 - Soils on mining relicts in Upper Silesia, Poland – first results from the Mala Panew River catchment and the UNESCO heritage site Tarnowskie Góry T2 - EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022 N2 - The mining region of Upper Silesia has a long tradition with international significance. In 2017, the historic silver mine in Tarnowsky Gory was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. With the mining of galena (PbS), the region developed into one of the most important industrial centers in Central Europe in the 16th century. In addition to the underground galleries, the historical mining has left thousands of mining shafts as small relief forms, which have not been systematically investigated so far. Partly the mining shafts are associated with Relict Charcoal Hearths (RCH), another small form which is a result of charcoal production. In the Mala Panew River valley, north of Tarnowsky Gory, several tens of thousands of these RCH are found, which could be mapped by LiDAR in recent years. More detailed pedological investigations, which would allow a systematic comparison with other known RCH sites, are missing so far. Within the framework of a Polish-German cooperation project, we started in 2021 to investigate the mining shafts and the RCH in Tarnowsky Gory and in the Mala Panew River valley from a pedological-sedimentological point of view. At the RCH sites on the Mala Panew River, we focused on the following questions: How was the soil stratigraphy changed by the RCH construction? What are main processes of soil development before and after RCH construction? What was the role of the pits surrounding the RCH? How do the sites differ from the RCHs at Tarnowsky Gory especially with respect to soil properties and soil genesis? In Tarnowsky Gory, where a RCH was excavated directly next to a mining shaft, the following questions were in focus: How did the mining activity change soil distribution and soil properties? What are main processes of soil development on the different parts? What is the origin of the pit infill? What is the origin of the shaft rim deposits? Our work program included the construction of excavator trenches across the mining remains, construction, description and sampling of soil profiles along the trenches, schematic drawing of the soil stratigraphy, and laboratory analyses for the determination of texture, Munsell color, pH (CaCl2, H20), CaCO3 content, Ctotal & Ntotal and total elements by FPXRF. We present the first results of the ongoing investigations. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-969 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Bonhage, Alexander A1 - Raab, Thomas A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Ramezany, Shaghayegh A1 - Ouimet, William T1 - Pyrogenic carbon in temperate forests - long-lasting impact of historical charcoal production on soils and ecosystems T2 - EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022 N2 - Pre- and early industrial charcoal production has left a striking legacy effect on today’s soil landscapes in many forests of Central Europe and the North Eastern USA. Charcoaling in upright standing hearths (also called kilns) resulted in distinct circular micro relief structures, easily identifiable today in the field and on high resolution LiDAR-based digital elevation maps. Soils on these sites are characterized by one or multiple layers of decimetre thick charcoal rich substrate, which makes them Spolic Technosols according to the WRB soil classification. The focus of research on these sites increasingly deals with the difference of their soil physical and chemical properties in relation to unaffected forest soils and the potential implications for changes in vegetation and faunal growth. The controlling factor thereby is the soils large content of charcoal in various particle sizes, ranging from fine dust to large chunks. Studies have repeatedly shown the soils significant increase in total organic- and pyrogenic carbon content. The increase in total carbon stocks is thereby not only caused by pyrogenic carbon, but also by an apparently increased accumulation of non-pyrogenic organic matter. Here we present the latest findings regarding the carbon contents of centennially old charcoal rich technogenic substrates, sampled as part of multiple research projects in Brandenburg, Germany and the Litchfield hills in North-western Connecticut, USA. A focus will be the determination of highly aromatic carbon by the molecular marker Benzene-polycarboxylic acid (BPCA) and its prediction by FTIR-MIR chemometric methods. We discuss the results on forest soil carbon stocks on a site specific to a landscape and regional scale. Furthermore, the potential to use these sites to study the long term effects of charcoal admixture to soils by wildfires or biochar application will be discussed. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-8312 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Bonhage, Alexander A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Raab, Thomas T1 - Spatial and temporal variability of soil moisture in land-use legacy forest soils in Brandenburg, Germany T2 - EGU General Assembly 2022, Vienna, Austria, 23–27 May 2022 N2 - Soil physical properties can show high heterogeneity in forest soils, implying a high spatial variability of soil moisture and plant water availability. Legacy effects of past land use, resulting in a small-scale mosaic of anthropogenically modified and unmodified soils in forest areas, further increase this spatial heterogeneity. The soils associated with relict charcoal hearths (RCH), most prominently characterized by a technogenic layer rich in charcoal fragments, are a widespread example for such land use legacy soils in forest areas. The objective of our study was to characterize the soil moisture regime of forest soils and RCH soils on sandy substrates in the northeastern German lowlands; and in particular to assess the long-term effect of the prolonged summer drought period in 2018 on spatial and temporal variability of soil moisture. We monitored matric potentials, soil water contents and soil temperature from June 2018 in forest soils in the Tauersche Forst (Brandenburg, Germany). Three soil profiles (one reference forest soil profile and two characteristic RCH soil profiles) were instrumented, sampled for laboratory analyses of bulk density, pore size distribution, saturated hydraulic conductivity, and persistence of water repellency; and root density distribution in the profiles was recorded. The soils in all profiles show low porosity and plant available water contents. On RCH soils, overall porosity is clearly higher compared with the reference soils, mainly related to larger volumes of coarse and fine pores. Soil moisture monitoring shows very high spatial and temporal variability of the recorded data after the prolonged dry period in 2018, with gradual rewetting over the winter periods and only short-term fluctuations of soil moisture in reaction to high-intensity precipitation events in the summer periods. The comparison of in-situ and laboratory-based water retention data shows strong hysteresis effects during the rewetting, with increasingly clear reactions of soil water contents to precipitation events over the years following the dry period, especially in the charcoal-rich substrates. The differences in soil moisture between the dry and the wetter periods were clearly higher in the RCH soils, which, compared with the reference soils, showed higher water contents under wet conditions and lower water contents under dry conditions. The results affirm that land use legacies can clearly increase the spatial and temporal variations of soil moisture in forest areas. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu22-2182 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Raab, Thomas A1 - Hirsch, Florian A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Raab, Alexandra ED - Stolz, Christian ED - Miller, Christopher E. T1 - Geoökologische Folgen historischer Landnutzung T2 - Geoarchäologie N2 - Seit dem Neolithikum wirkt sich die Nutzung der Landschaft auf unterschiedliche Weise auf Relief, Böden, Gewässer, Flora, Fauna und Klima aus. Insbesondere die Folgen land- und forstwirtschaftlicher Wirtschaftsweisen waren dafür ausschlaggebend. Grundsätzlich reagieren Ökosysteme auf anthropogene Eingriffe, wie die Umwandlung von Wald in andere Nutzungsformen, mit einer schrittweisen Degradation sowie reversiblen oder irreversiblen Veränderungen. Beispiele sind Bodenerosion und eine veränderte Artenzusammensetzung. Die Abschätzung des Ausmaßes im globalen Maßstab gestaltet sich generell schwierig. Für die Geoarchäologie bedeutsam sind daher hauptsächlich lokale Spuren früherer Bewirtschaftung und Formen im Kleinrelief, die sich im Gelände wiederfinden lassen und als Geoarchive fungieren. Denn sie geben Aufschluss über (prä-)historische Bewirtschaftungsformen. So zeugen Wölbäcker, Hochbeete, Plaggenesche und die Relikte der historischen Teichwirtschaft, Moorkultivierung und Köhlerei von früheren Formen der Land- und Forstwirtschaft. Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-62774-7_8 SP - 71 EP - 77 PB - Springer Spektrum CY - Berlin, Heidelberg ER - TY - GEN A1 - Raab, Thomas A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Bonhage, Alexander A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Hirsch, Florian A1 - Birkhofer, Klaus A1 - Drohan, Patrick J. A1 - Wilmking, Martin A1 - Kreyling, Jürgen A1 - Malik, Ireneusz A1 - Wistuba, Małgorzata A1 - Maaten, Ernst van der A1 - Maaten-Theunissen, Marieke van der A1 - Urich, Tim T1 - Do small landforms have large effects? A review on the legacies of pre-industrial charcoal burning T2 - Geomorphology N2 - Relict charcoal hearths (RCHs) are small, anthropogenic landforms resulting from past charcoal burning and reaching significant land coverage in pre-industrial mining areas. We review three coupled legacies linked by RCH development: (i) a landscape-scale geomorphic effect, (ii) a unique soil fingerprint, and (iii) an evolving novel ecosystem. The history and technique of charcoal production are described to clarify legacy effects. Applying a recently presented morpho-genetic catalogue is useful for classified mapping of RCH findings. The RCH numbers and calculated RCH densities per study region vary greatly and impose uncertainties due to insufficient methods causing over- or underestimations. Areas with high RCH densities between 50 and 500 RCH/km2 seem reasonable. Machine learning-based remote sensing techniques are promising approaches with which to better assess the full scale of charcoal burning legacies. RCH soil properties feature dark charcoal-rich technogenic substrate layers classified as Auh horizons according to the World Reference Base with significantly increased C contents. These Auh horizons can also exhibit specific physical and chemical properties, such as relatively low bulk density, high porosity, high plant available water content, low thermal conductivity and differences in cation exchange capacity or nutrient status. However, relevant studies are rare, and thus, the effects may differ by study region. Regarding vegetation, there seem to be four main effects: changes in forest structure, species composition, recruitment pattern and productivity. The number of studies on this issue is, however, also very limited. Even fewer studies have examined the soil fauna in RCHs; thus, the reported effects cannot be used to draw general conclusions. Notably, RCH research has made considerable progress in the last five years, especially in the Light Detection and Ranging-based mapping of these small landforms and identification of RCH-specific soil properties, but ecological legacies are not well understood; thus, more interdisciplinary and integrative studies are needed. KW - Soil KW - Ecosystem KW - Forestry KW - Land Use KW - Anthropocene KW - Relict Charcoal Hearth (RCH) KW - Charcoal Kiln Remain (CKR) Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2022.108332 SN - 0169-555X VL - 413 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Hirsch, Florian A1 - Raab, Thomas A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Bonhage, Alexander A1 - Schneider, Marcus A1 - Bauriegel, Albrecht T1 - Quaternary and geoarcheology in Lower Lusatia T2 - DEUQUA Special Publications N2 - Open-cast lignite mines in Lower Lusatia provide unique insights into human-induced environmental changes in the Northern European Lowland and improve our understanding of Quaternary landscape dynamics. The excursion will focus on soils and sediments of Late Pleistocene and Holocene age that have been modified by land use since the Slavic Middle Ages. In the vicinity of the open-cast mine Jänschwalde and in the Tauer forest north of Cottbus characteristic remains of historical charcoal production, a ridge-and-furrow system and late Quaternary rubification in soils are presented. Y1 - 2022 UR - https://deuquasp.copernicus.org/articles/4/59/2022/ U6 - https://doi.org/10.5194/deuquasp-4-59-2022 SN - 2625-8137 VL - 4 SP - 59 EP - 71 ER - TY - CHAP A1 - Hirsch, Florian A1 - Raab, Alexandra A1 - Schneider, Marcus A1 - Raab, Thomas A1 - Schneider, Anna A1 - Bonhage, Alexander ED - Schopper, Franz T1 - Landschaftsgeschichtliche Untersuchungen am Eilenzfließ bei Taubendorf T2 - Ausgrabungen im Niederlausitzer Braunkohlenrevier : 2015/2016 Y1 - 2022 SN - 978-3-910011-87-8 SP - 199 EP - 204 PB - Brandenburgisches Landesamt für Denkmalpflege und Archäologisches Landesmuseum CY - Wünsdorf ER -