The impact of soil erosion on soil fertility and vine vigor

Fig: Soil Organic Carbon and weight of prune residue (Novara et al. 2018)

Soil is the most important natural resources for food production. Unfortunately, due to human induced cause like land degradation, it is causing soil erosion. Erosion impacts crop yields and threatens soil system (Mol and Keesstra, 2012). Erosion also leads to loss of nutrients, decrease thickness of soil level and lower soil water holding capacity (García-Díaz et al. 2017; Li et al., 2016). In Europe wheat yield losses ranged from 0.04% year and 0.67% year in Australia (Cerdà et al., 2017, Den Biggelaar et al. 2003). Researcher Agata Novara and her colleagues conducted a research to analyze the interactions among vines vigor, sediment delivery and soil organic carbon (SOC) in a sloping vineyard. Their results confirmed that soil erosion, sediment redistribution and SOC across the slope strongly affected by topographic features and curvature. To avoid the negative effects of soil fertility reduction on plant vigor, farmers can increase the use of external input which lead to a decrease of yield sustainability. In order to maintain the yield sustainability, we should control soil erosion and can help increase yield sustainability.

Original article:
Novara, A., Pisciotta, A., Minacapilli, M., Maltese, A., Capodici, F., Cerdà, A., & Gristina, L. (2018). The impact of soil erosion on soil fertility and vine vigor. A multidisciplinary approach based on field, laboratory and remote sensing approaches. Science of The Total Environment, 622-623, 474–480. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.11.272 

Are we making our life endangered by drinking water?

Figure: Drinking water system (Su, H.-C et al. 2018)

Antibiotics not only play as a therapeutic drug for human beings but also for aquaculture, livestock and farming. With the excessive use of antibiotics, it has made the environment contaminated by antibiotic resistant bacteria, antibiotic residues, antibiotic resistance genes (ARG). Since the rise of environmental contaminants, the antibiotic resistance genes (ARG) were detected in various places in our environment such as hospital wastewater, wastewater treatment plants, chicken, beef, pork, dairy. These ARGs can transfer to humans by drinking water sources and endangering human life. Su, H.-C and his colleagues conducted a research to investigate and occurrence and diversity of ARGs in source water, water treatment plants and tap water. Their research showed that 27 different ARGs were present in those water sources. The total abundance of the detected ARGs in tap water was much lower than that in source water. Sand filtration and sedimentation in drinking water treatment plants could effectively remove ARGs. It was found that Pseudomonas may be involved in the proliferation and dissemination of ARGs in the studied drinking water treatment system. It could be noted that sedimentation and sand filtration could be effective methods for removing ARGs in aquatic systems.



Original article:
Su, H.-C., Liu, Y.-S., Pan, C.-G., Chen, J., He, L.-Y., & Ying, G.-G. (2018). Persistence of antibiotic resistance genes and bacterial community changes in drinking water treatment system: From drinking water source to tap water. Science of The Total Environment, 616-617, 453–461. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.10.318