The decomposition and fate of 15N-labeled beech litter was monitored in three European beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) forests (Aubure, France; Ebrach, Germany; and Collelongo, Italy) for 3 years. Circular plots around single beech trees were isolated from roots of neighboring trees by soil trenching, and annual litterfall was replaced by 15N-labeled litter. Nitrogen was continuously released from t...

The loading, solubility, mobility, and plant availability of P is a growing environmental concern to regulators and planners of nutrient management plans, confined animal feeding operations, and wastewater land application permit sites. Insufficient information is available on how P reacts from different organic sources when applied to calcareous soils. A field study was conducted to determine ...

There is a lack of data for how the viability of biological agents may degrade over time in different environments. In this study, experiments were conducted to determine the persistence of Bacillus anthracis and Bacillus subtilis spores on outdoor materials with and without exposure to simulated sunlight, using ultraviolet (UV)-A/B radiation. Spores were inoculated onto glass, wood, concrete, ...

Surface mining in Appalachia disrupts large areas of forested land. Federal and state laws require disturbed lands be reclaimed by re-constructing the landscape and replacing soil materials to provide a rooting medium. If insufficient quantities of native topsoil are available, substitute materials derived from the overburden may be used as soil media. This study examined soil and foliar nutrie...

This article compares the sorption behaviour of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol, 2,3,4,6-tetrachlorophenol, pentachlorophenol, chlorotriazine atrazine, methylthiotriazine ametryn, methoxytriazine atratone, hydroxyatrazine, and didelakylated atrazine in a topsoil and an aquifer sediment before and after removal of sorbent organic matter and in humic acid. Freundlich isotherm coefficients Kf and 1/n and fr...

Soil organic carbon (SOC) fractions, along with soil properties, are greatly affected by forest management. In this study, three thinning treatments: control (conventional management mode), moderate thinning intensity and heavy thinning intensity, were applied in Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata) plantations in eastern China. The dissolved organic carbon (DOC), soil light fraction organic c...

The environmental and health effects caused by nitrate contamination of aquatic systems are a serious problem throughout the world. A strategy proposed to address nitrate pollution is the restoration of wetlands. However, although natural wetlands often remove nitrate via high rates of denitrification, wetlands restored for water quality functions often fall below expectations. This may be in p...