This session focuses on understanding the processes that govern soil–vegetation–landforms interactions, soil resource conservation, and landscape resilience under climatic and human disturbances. We welcome theoretical, modelling, and empirical studies addressing, at different spatial scales, soil degradation processes—such as erosion, salinisation, desertification, nutrient loss, and pollution—as well as the spatial organization of soils and vegetation that shapes ecosystem function and stability including influence and impact on societal aspects.
We also invite contributions on sustainable and restorative practices, including conservation agriculture, agro-forestry, soil amendments, erosion and salinity control, and other nature‑based solutions that enhance soil health, water retention, biodiversity, and ecosystem resilience. Approaches combining methodologies such as modelling, long‑term observations, remote sensing, participatory methods, and policy frameworks are particularly encouraged.
Overall, the session aims to advance an integrated understanding of how soils, vegetation, and landforms coevolve under global change, and how sustainable management can support long‑term soil conservation, productivity, and multifunctionality.
Orals: Thu, 7 May, 08:30–12:25 | Room 0.11/12
Karst regions cover approximately 15% of the global terrestrial surface and serve as important carbon sinks. However, these ecosystems are highly fragile, and the increasing frequency of droughts under climate change poses mounting threats to their ecological stability. In this study, we utilize long-term remote sensing vegetation and climate datasets, combined with a paired-pixel approach and neural network models, to investigate and compare vegetation responses to extreme climate conditions in karst and non-karst regions, providing a scientific basis for the conservation and management of karst ecosystems. Our results indicate that vegetation in karst areas is more likely to survive droughts than that in non-karst regions, owing to its greater drought resistance. Vegetation exhibits a trade-off between drought resistance and resilience: in high-altitude, steep-slope areas with persistent water scarcity, vegetation predominantly displays drought resistance, whereas in more humid regions, it tends to be more resilient. Overall, vegetation responses to extreme climate events differ significantly between karst and non-karst regions, with lithology exerting a strong control over vegetation dynamics. These findings offer important insights to support ecological restoration and adaptive management strategies in karst regions under a changing climate.
How to cite: Xiao, L., Zhou, J., Tarolli, P., and Zuecco, G.: Adaptive Mechanisms of Karst Vegetation Facing Intensifying Drought under a Changing Climate, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-3935, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-3935, 2026.
How to cite: Kästner, K.: On the stripe width distribution of regular vegetation patterns, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-14495, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-14495, 2026.
Tropical Montane Cloud Forests (TMCFs) are considered a rare and highly specialized type of ecosystem. They are distinguished by the frequent presence of clouds and mist at the canopy level. They occur where mountains are regularly enveloped by trade wind–driven orographic clouds and convective cloud systems. TMCFs are strongly linked to regular cycles of cloud formation, with one of the most direct ecological influences being the deposition onto soil and vegetation surfaces through fog interception. This process contributes to consistently high moisture availability and supports unique forest structure, productivity, and biodiversity.
Despite their high biodiversity and endemicity, TMCFs are ranked among the most threatened ecosystems on a global scale. This distinct ecozone is restricted by elevation, terrain, precipitation, and climate. Furthermore, due to the fragmentation of TMCFs and their susceptibility to climate change, their ecological threat levels are higher. TMCFs are extremely sensitive to climate change and human activities. Climate change not only threatens TMCFs but also reduces the possibility of upward treeline movement because of high solar radiation and evaporation at higher altitudes.
Despite their ecological importance, TMCFs are experiencing rapid degradation because of climate change and land-use pressure. Rising temperatures, altered precipitation regimes, and shifts in cloud base height threaten to reduce suitable climatic envelopes, accelerate habitat fragmentation, and disrupt ecological connectivity across montane landscapes. As a result, elevation, landscape, precipitation and climate are the main constraints of TMCFs. These limitations make TMCFs particularly vulnerable to environmental change. Therefore, it is crucial to understand how TMCFs forest structure and connectivity are distributed across space.
Using remote-sensing and spatial modeling framework, this study evaluates habitat suitability and landscape connectivity of three species in Mesoamerican TMCFs. The three species are cloud-forest–associated vertebrates: Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno), Violet Sabrewing (Campylopterus hemileucurus), and Baird’s Tapir (Tapirus bairdii). The analyses presented here emphasize cloud forest condition and connectivity rather than species-specific outcomes.
The region of interest ranges from southern Mexico through Central America, including core TMCFs areas found in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and western Panama. Species occurrence data was gathered from iNaturalist and eBird platforms. A set of environmental predictors covering climate, topography, vegetation productivity, and anthropogenic pressure were compiled from global databases. Habitat suitability models were produced through Maximum Entropy (Maxent), a species distribution modeling approach, by utilizing these environmental predictors and evaluating their accuracy using k-fold cross-validation tests. These suitability outputs were further transformed into resistance surfaces and used to identify high-resistance cloud forest areas, movement corridors, and bottlenecks.
We expect suitable TMCF habitat to be highly related to high-elevation, moist environments and to decline sharply across lowland and landscapes with human intervention. Under continued climate warming and the expansion of human activities, further contraction and fragmentation of TMCFs are anticipated, increasing the importance of remaining habitats for maintaining ecological resilience.
By centering on TMCFs structure and connectivity, this study provides spatially explicit information to support conservation prioritization, land-use planning, and climate-adaptation strategies, offering decision-makers a scalable framework for protecting one of the world’s most climate-sensitive ecosystems.
How to cite: Cai, K. and Hope, V.: Spatial Modeling of Habitat and Connectivity for Three Forest Vertebrates in Mesoamerican Cloud Forests, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-15426, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-15426, 2026.
Human-caused habitat loss paired with degradation driven by land-use and climate change represent the most challenging threats to global biodiversity. These factors increased habitat fragmentation and disrupted ecological processes. Characterizing landscape connectivity is necessary for conservation planning and maintaining viable populations under increasing anthropogenic pressure. Factorial least-cost path (FLCP) analysis is a functional connectivity approach that can infer the distribution and abundance of movement pathways between all core areas or individuals across a landscape. Unlike pairwise least-cost paths, FLCPs compute cost-distance paths for every source–destination pair, creating a spatial surface that reflects movement abundance and redundancy on pathways. FLCP analyses can be valuable for identifying redundant pathways and bottlenecks under changing environmental conditions yet require advanced technical expertise and computational capacity, limiting accessibility for non-specialist users.
This study compares two connectivity modeling frameworks: the Universal Corridor Network Simulator (UNICOR) and the Connecting Landscapes (CoLa) decision-support system to evaluate their performance when applied to Tropical Montane Cloud Forests (TMCF) landscapes. TMCFs are defined by persistent cloud cover that creates distinct climatic conditions necessary to maintain biodiversity. TMCFs are one of the most climate-sensitive habitats because of their restricted climate, natural fragmentation, and endemic levels.
Both tools implement resistance-based approaches to modeling movement though there are differences in conceptual design, computational structure, and connectivity outputs. UNICOR applies a factorial least-cost path approach in which individual-based movement probabilities are computed for each source–destination pair, yielding a connectivity network appropriate for analyzing the overall permeability of the study regions landscapes. In contrast, CoLa functions as an integrated conservation decision-support system for conserving biological diversity, applying habitat suitability and resistance connectivity models simultaneously. Resulting in CoLa producing multiple connectivity maps including dispersal kernels, corridor areas, and least-resistance pathways, maintaining its focus on decision support in the field of biological conservation.
The growing demand for connectivity modeling outputs that are both interpretable and transparent fueled the inspiration for this comparison. Although UNICOR works better to represent emergent connectivity patterns across entire populations, CoLa emphasizes accessibility for assessing the trade-offs of development and biodiversity conservation. Despite their growing use, few studies have systematically compared outputs from these tools within the same ecological system, especially the newborn system CoLa. Users and practitioners have limited guidance for selecting connectivity approaches suited to spatial scales and data constraints.
To make these comparisons ecologically meaningful, Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno), Violet Sabrewing (Campylopterus hemileucurus), and Baird’s Tapir (Tapirus bairdii) were employed to initiate resistance surface development. These species span canopy, mid-story, and terrestrial movement strategies, enabling assessment of how each modeling framework represents connectivity across ecological guilds.
Both UNICOR and CoLa were implemented on the same resistance data derived from climate, vegetation productivity, topography, and anthropogenic pressure across montane regions throughout Mesoamerica. Resulting connectivity networks were compared in terms of spatial patterning, corridor density, bottleneck identification, and interpretability for conservation planning. Through this comparison, the study highlights how tool choice influences connectivity interpretation and conservation conclusions in montane environments.
How to cite: Hope, V. and Cai, K.: Comparing Factorial Least-cost Path Result from UNICOR and CoLa in Mapping Ecological Connectivity Networks in Mesoamerican Cloud Forests, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-15450, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-15450, 2026.
Land-use transitions associated with the rapid expansion of ground-mounted photovoltaic (GMPV) parks represent an emerging anthropogenic disturbance with potential consequences for plant–soil feedbacks and ecosystem stability. While vegetation re-establishment is often used as an indicator of ecosystem recovery following such transitions, it remains unclear whether aboveground recovery reliably reflects the recovery of belowground soil processes.
Here, we use multi-year monitoring to examine vegetation dynamics, soil biotic responses, and soil carbon and nutrient trajectories following the conversion of a lowland forest plantation into a GMPV park in subtropical Taiwan. Vegetation cover beneath twelve solar panels was monitored monthly, while soil arthropod communities were sampled using pitfall traps over one year, with adjacent forest plantation plots serving as reference sites. Soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen concentrations were quantified during the construction phase (2022) and one and two years after operation (2024 and 2025).
Vegetation cover increased steadily beneath solar panels during the operational phase and was accompanied by a pronounced increase in soil arthropod abundance, exceeding that observed in the reference forest. Taxonomic richness approached forest levels; however, community composition remained significantly distinct, indicating the emergence of a novel soil biotic assemblage. In contrast, SOC and total nitrogen concentrations showed no detectable recovery over the same period. The dominance of fern vegetation appeared to provide insufficient organic inputs to support soil carbon accumulation, revealing a clear decoupling between aboveground vegetation recovery and belowground carbon and nutrient dynamics.
Rather than testing specific mechanisms, this observational study identifies a consistent recovery pattern that generates testable hypotheses. We propose that, in typhoon-prone regions, engineering requirements for GMPV installations may impose stronger constraints on soil structure, potentially amplifying soil compaction and hydrological alteration, thereby delaying the recovery of soil carbon and nutrient pools despite rapid vegetation re-establishment. These findings highlight the risk that vegetation-based assessments may mask persistent soil limitations and emphasize the need to incorporate soil biological and biogeochemical indicators when evaluating the long-term sustainability of renewable energy landscapes in climate-risk-prone regions.
How to cite: Wang, C. and Chang, R.-C.: Vegetation recovery masks decoupled soil responses following land-use transition to ground-mounted photovoltaic parks, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-6611, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-6611, 2026.
The beauty of river networks has continuously inspired science to elucidate their self-similarity and the underlying organizing principles. In his pioneering work, Robert Horton postulated several laws explaining the scaling of stream networks, which are today widely accepted in fluvial geomorphology. Another avenue to explain the nature of river networks acknowledges that landforms in general and rivers in particular have been shaped by the physical work of surface runoff in the past. Several studies proposed thus that river networks and their watershed co-evolve towards energetically optimal steady states, minimizing total dissipation or energy expenditure in the entire network. Here we reconcile both research avenues, by linking Horton’s stream laws with the theories of river hydraulics and of non-linear, dissipative dynamic systems.
We found that 18 of the largest streams on Earth have self-organized in a highly similar way despite they spread across nearly all continents, climate zones and various geological settings. Specifically, we show that Horton stream numbers of these rivers exhibit a strongly similar fractal scaling with downstream increasing catchment area. This scaling reflects a step-wise transition of the stream network from a high to a low entropy state by means of channel confluence. By combining this insight with energy balance calculations, we found that the potential energy flux in all these rivers was found to grow with catchment size, implyingthatthese “river engines” generate power at largely similar rates, creating the necessary degrees of freedom for their downstream self-organization. Based on null model for energy dissipation in the stream network in combination with Lacey’s theory, we show that all these streams perform uniform work along their course, while energy dissipation is minimized at every junction. A minimization of specific energy dissipation per unit discharge yields, furthermore, a theoretical scaling exponent of Horton stream numbers which drops into the error margin of the averaged observed scaling exponents.
Overall, our work reveals that the joint analysis of Horton’s stream laws of stream numbers and areas holds the key to a universal relation for self-organization of river networks towards a functional optimum, minimizing energy dissipation and thus maximizing power in the entire network.
How to cite: Zehe, E., Schroes, S., and Savenije, H.: Linking fractal scaling of river networks to self-organisation and optimality, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-10049, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-10049, 2026.
This study explores the significant effects of climate change on the low-lying islands of the Indian Sundarban Delta (ISD), an area recognized for its high vulnerability within South Asia. The ISD covers approximately 10,200 km² across India and Bangladesh and is characterized by islands rising less than five meters above sea level, formed from ancient sedimentary deposits. These distinctive geographic features, coupled with the region’s dense mangrove forests—which represent most India’s mangrove habitats—make the ISD particularly sensitive to climate-driven disturbances. Local communities whose livelihoods depend on fishing, agriculture, and non-timber forest resources face mounting threats from environmental changes.
The research examines the long-term impacts of climate change on both ecological and human systems in the ISD, focusing on how rising temperatures, increased tropical cyclones, storm surges, drought, altered rainfall patterns, and sea level rise are transforming the islands. Using satellite imagery spanning from 2000 to 2024, the study maps shift in island size and shape, as well as the condition of embankments, providing a spatial and temporal analysis of vulnerability across different locations. Two key indices—Normalized Difference Salinity Index (NDSI) and Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI)—are employed to assess changes related to sea level rise, while geostatistical methods reveal long-term patterns and trends in these environmental impacts.
By documenting both physical alterations and the experiences of residents, the study highlights the escalating risks posed by climate change to coastal populations. It emphasizes the urgent need for targeted interventions and informs policymakers and stakeholders about effective adaptive strategies. The findings underscore the importance of resilience and community-led adaptation as essential responses to ongoing ecological and socio-economic challenges. In sum, this research provides a comprehensive understanding of how climate change is reshaping the ISD and offers guidance for sustainable management and policy development in similarly vulnerable coastal regions.
How to cite: Roy, S. and Casto, B.: Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Change in the Indian Sundarban Delta, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-201, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-201, 2026.
How to cite: Sharma, V. and Eslami, S.: Salinity, Structural Transformation, and the Gendered Reallocation of Labor in Viet Nam, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-21780, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-21780, 2026.
Optimality in the co-evolved soil-vegetation system has been a highly debated topic by researchers for over a century. Widely accepted conceptual models in the biogeosciences such as Jenny's model of soil development and Holdridge life zones have hypothesised the co-evolution of soils, vegetation and climate, highlighting systematic functional patterns across climate gradients. Modelling of these systems has significant complexity due to the feedbacks between the abiotic and biotic sub-systems and the variance in temporal and spatial scales that they operate. This often results in the under-representation of soil development and its constraint on system evolution, dynamics and fluxes. Thermodynamic optimality principles (TOP) in the form of maximum power and entropy production have been proposed as a modelling approach to explain natural system trajectories. However, to date there has been minimal work utilising these approaches and highlighting its benefits and limitations in modelling the co-evolved soil-vegetation system. We believe this is in part due to three main issues which will be addressed in this work: 1) The lack of a clear case being made for why TOP is an applicable approach, 2) Inconsistency in the methodology surrounding the application of TOP when modelling energy, water and mass dynamics, and, 3) The spatial and temporal scales that adhere to TOP, capturing gradients, feedbacks and boundaries has not been critically evaluated for the soil-vegetation system. By addressing these current knowledge gaps within the literature, we clarify the benefits and limitations of utilising TOP in the modelling of these complex systems, creating a path forward for modelling trajectories of these systems within a thermodynamic framework which can be critically assessed and compared to real world observations.
How to cite: Lyell, C., Zehe, E., Lane, P., and Sheridan, G.: How to apply thermodynamic optimality principles to co-evolved soil-vegetation systems, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-8554, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-8554, 2026.
Background: The study of the formation and evolution of black soils holds significant implications for the sustainable utilization of black soil resources and human societal development. However, research exploring the regularity of black soil formation and evolution through surface substrate investigations remains limited.
Method: This paper, based on the novel concept of “surface substrate layer” proposed by China’s Ministry of Natural Resources, takes the black soils in Fengcheng City and Kuandian County of Dandong City, Liaoning Province, China as the research object.
Objective: Through integrated analysis of surface substrate classification and geochemical element characterization, this study systematically elucidates the multidimensional controlling mechanisms of parent rock properties on black soil pedogenesis for the first time.
Results: The results demonstrate pronounced differences in soil characteristics developed from various parent materials. In terms of physical properties: soils formed by the weathering of sedimentary rocks (e.g., carbonate rocks) exhibit finer particle sizes, while soils derived from older metamorphic rocks (e.g., TTG gneiss) have the coarsest particle sizes; soil pH is primarily influenced by parent rock mineral composition, with basic rocks (e.g., basalt) developing acidic soils whereas marble forms neutral soils; soil bulk density correlates with the compactness of parent rocks, with soils developed from Cenozoic basalt
exhibiting the highest bulk density. Regarding geochemical characteristics: principal component analysis clearly distinguishes soils developed from different parent rock types, demonstrating their elemental composition inheritance from parent rocks. Chemical index of alteration (CIA) and silica-alumina ratio (Sa) analyses reveal that basic rocks (e.g., Cenozoic basalt) undergo the highest degree of weathering, while metamorphic rocks such as TTG gneiss exhibit the greatest weathering resistance. Beneficial trace elements (e.g., Se, N, P) are generally enriched, but their enrichment levels are closely related to parent rock types. Therefore, lithology of parent rocks serves as the key factor controlling the formation and differentiation of surface substrate properties in the study area’s black soil.
Conclusions: This understanding holds significant scientific importance for deepening the comprehension of black soil formation and evolution patterns, as well as for implementing precise conservation measures and soil quality improvement based on surface substrate investigation backgrounds.
How to cite: Chen, Z., Chen, X., Shao, M., and Tang, Y.: Characteristics and evolution of ground substrate in the black soil area of the residual veins of Changbai mountain, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-6031, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-6031, 2026.
Abstract
Agricultural terraces in Mediterranean mountain environments provide a sustainable means of farming on steep terrain while delivering essential ecosystem services. However, land desertification driven by land abandonment and a changing climate raises new concerns for the sustainability of these environments. Land suitability analysis (LSA) provides a valuable tool to support decision-making for sustainable management and potential expansion of terrace agriculture. Traditional LSA approaches typically require fully labelled dataset, but in many real-world applications only a fraction of positive examples is available, with the rest unlabelled. This study aims to present an integrated predictive modelling framework that combines GIS with data-driven Machine Learning (ML) techniques, capable of learning from positive and unlabelled datasets for LSA. The proposed framework was applied to develop a terrace suitability map for Cyprus’ Troodos Mountains. A 5-m DEM was processed to extract the mountain area, with elevation ≥500m and slopes ≥15%, defining the study area. Crop plots registered under the Single Area Payment Scheme of the European Common Agricultural Policy were used to classify the study area into Terrace-Present (TP) and Terrace-Absent (TA) cells, with TP serving as labelled positive and TA as unlabelled samples. A two-step ML approach was applied, first identifying reliable negatives from TA cells, then using these with TP cells for suitability prediction. Despite a high class imbalanced between positive (3.4%) and unlabelled dataset (96.6%), the developed PU classifier achieved a Recall of 84.6%, Precision of 81.5%, and an F1 score of 83%, demonstrating robust and balanced performance. The resulting suitability map identified approximately 7,000 ha of land in the highest suitability class, indicating potential for future terrace development. Feature importance analysis identified land cover as the most influential parameter accounting for 23.9% of the total mean SHAP value, while terrain slope and tree cover density contributed 15.0% and 14.9%, respectively. Comparative analysis between 2017 and 2024 revealed abandonment of terraced agricultural land (29% decrease) as well as revitalization (12% increase). The resulting suitability map and accompanying data layers are accessible through a Google Earth Engine application, aiming to support informed decision-making for sustainable landscape planning.
This research has received financial support from the REACT4MED Project (GA 2122), which is funded by PRIMA, the Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area, a Programme supported by Horizon 2020, the European Union’s Framework Programme for Research and Innovation.
How to cite: Meena, A. K., Zoumides, C., Djuma, H., Sofokleous, I., Camera, C., and Bruggeman, A.: Mapping agricultural terrace suitability in Mediterranean mountain environments using a positive–unlabelled classification framework, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-3453, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-3453, 2026.
The Common Agricultural Policy, CAP, 2023-2027 reinforces the relevance of agricultural landscape features such as hedges, linear plantations, isolated trees, groves and islands of vegetation. In this way, these elements are no longer considered marginal spaces without agricultural value but rather form part of an essential and valued green infrastructures.
This work focuses on the study of the evolution of these landscape elements and potential areas for the assessment of their status in the agricultural area of the municipality of Córdoba (Spain). Thus, a comparison has been made between the situation in 2005 and the current situation to assess if:
1- Changes in land use during this period may have influenced the increase/decrease in landscape elements.
2- Different interventions carried out within the region have increased the number of these elements.
The work was carried out by analysing freely available information such as orthoimages from the National Aerial Orthophotography Plan (IGN) comparing them with GIS products from the Geographic Information System for Agricultural Parcels (SigPac, 2001). In addition, other GIS products (IGN) from previous years were consulted in order to carry out checks on the evolution of the elements.
The comparison showed a decrease in potential areas corresponding to pre-existing inactive hydrographic network. However, the appearance of new gullies was also recorded, compensating for the lost surface area. In the case of unproductive strips, the total balance resulted in a decrease of surface area.
In the case of groups of woody vegetation developed in the inactive hydrological network, there was an increase in pre-existing groups and new ones were inventoried in areas where this type of vegetation did not previously exist (a great part in the network of new gullies inventoried). Regarding linear plantations, almost the entire recorded length was maintained, in addition to an increase of almost the same length as a result of new plantations. In the case of hedgerows, replanting initiatives and some natural developments compensated for the disappearance of some areas due to agricultural activity and the natural death of vegetation.
Main conclusions of this analysis suggest:
1- The increase of surface and technification of olive cultivation favoured the disappearance of some landscape elements.
2- Gullies and linear structures are potential elements to develop and increase natural vegetation.
3- The municipality of Cordoba still shows high potential to implement vegetation-based measures to improve ecosystem services.
References
Ayuntamiento de Córdoba. (2008). Proyecto de Diversificación del Paisaje Rural de la Campiña del TM Córdoba. Concejalía de Medio Ambiente.
Guzmán et al.2022. Land Use Policy, 116, 106065.
Acknowledgements: Grant PID2023-146177OB-C21 and C22 funded by MICIU/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and “ERDF A way of making Europe”, by “ERDF/EU”.
How to cite: Itarte Basterra, M., Pedraza Moya, S., Mora, J., Guzmán, G., and Gómez Calero, J. A.: Evolution of Agricultural Landscape Elements in Córdoba (2005–2025) Using Orthophotos and GIS: Dynamics, Losses and Opportunities under the CAP Framework, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-14167, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-14167, 2026.
International trade increasingly redistributes natural resources, effectively displacing environmental pressures across borders. As the world's largest oilseed importer, China's consumption significantly impacts global land use, yet the structural evolution of this trade network and its specific consequences for cultivated land protection remain unclear. To bridge this gap, this study adopts a metacoupling framework to examine the evolution of major oilseed trade patterns from 2010 to 2023 and their multi-scale impacts on cultivated land. By constructing a time-series global trade network and integrating it with virtual land flow modeling, we systematically examine how trade structures influence land resource allocation at both the domestic (China) and planetary scales. Our results reveal that the global oilseed trade network has become increasingly complex and efficient over the past decade. However, trade volume remains highly concentrated among a few key nations (e.g., the USA, China, and Canada). Structurally, the network has shifted from large, centralized clusters toward a multi-polar reorganization, indicating a dynamic restructuring of supply chain relationships that balances efficiency with emerging risks. Crucially, despite structural risks in the supply chain, China has leveraged massive virtual land imports to stabilize its domestic cultivated land pressure index at a low level (0.13–0.16). This trade mechanism functions as a critical "land-sparing" strategy at the global scale: the total global land savings generated by China's imports steadily increased from 116.4 Mha to 193.1 Mha during the study period. This study highlights the dual role of China in alleviating domestic land pressure while reshaping global resource distribution. While global trade offers resource efficiency, the reliance on concentrated sources poses potential security risks. Future efforts should focus on building resilient supply chains and strengthening regional collaboration to balance national food security with global sustainable sustainability goals. This study demonstrates how integrated modelling approaches linking global trade networks to local land systems can bridge spatial scales, offering new insights for sustainable land management and resilient agroecosystem strategies.
How to cite: Wang, M., Jiang, G., Dong, X., Ji, W., and Yang, H.: Global oilseed trade links cultivated land conservation in China to worldwide land savings, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-2762, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-2762, 2026.
How land-use intensity (LUI) affects soil structure-dependent functions and organic matter (OM) quality in Patagonian wetland soils (Vegas) of southern Chile is an intriguing question. These wetland soils, which store large amounts OM and regulate water and nutrient fluxes, are increasingly exposed to intensification. While degradation of peatlands under drainage and conversion to agricultural activities is well documented, the long-term effects of contrasting LUI under intensification of livestock systems and peat extraction in southern Patagonia remain poorly understood. Research was conducted along a west–east climatic and aridity gradient in the Magallanes Region Chile. Four pairs of Vegas with contrasting LUI, low-and-high-intensity use of livestock and peat extraction sites were selected, spanning Histosols and Gleysols, including sedge meadows and Sphagnum peatlands. At each site, environmental conditions, vegetation inventory, and livestock management (stocking rate and density) were characterized. Soil structure-dependent functions were quantified from undisturbed cores collected at the surface horizon (5 cm) and the last horizon (~ 70 cm) before the appearance of glacial material or the water table. The water retention and shrinkage curves were measured, and from this, the bulk density (BD), air capacity (AC), plant available water (PAW), coefficient of linear extensibility (COLE), air permeability (Ka) were derived. The saturated hydraulic conductivity (ks), and anisotropy of air and water flows were quantified. The total and dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen (TC, TOC, IC, DOC, TN, TIN and TON), stable isotopes (¹³C, ¹⁵N), and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Most Vegas showed high OC (3,69-44%) with very high porosity (>80%), high shrinkage capacity, and strong deformation due to soil drying (COLE> 0.09), particularly in Histosols. and ks decrease with depth, especially in Sphagnum peatlands due to the OM decomposition and pore-size reduction. A soil structural shrinkage phase normally is presence, being often a residual and zero-shrinkage phases absent under low LIU. Anisotropy in fluid conduction was sporadic and more pronounced in the Gleysolic sites. OM quality varied strongly in the top and depth soils across sites. Sphagnum peatlands had the highest C:N ratios and high FTIR signatures of recalcitrant organic compounds, whereas sedge-dominated Vegas showed more similar spectral patterns. Depth profile declines in C:N and shifts in ¹³C and ¹⁵N abundances showing progressive OM decomposition and N enrichment. Unexpectedly, we found that high LUI did not deteriorate the structure-dependent functions. In several cases, more intensive but better managed systems displayed higher porosity, greater ks and Ka, and well-developed structural shrinkage phases. However, peat extraction in Sphagnum systems clearly damaged structural integrity. Results indicate that LUI effects are context dependent and that both low-intensity and over grazing for livestock production can be detrimental. A high LUI did not result in a marked deterioration of structure dependent soil functions, instead, it revealed a continuum of responses across the study sites. Recovery in structure-dependent soil functions were primarily associated with increased organic matter content, accompanied by a relative enhancement in organic matter quality. This implies that low land use intensity can be just as harmful without proper utilization and controlled use of natural resources.
How to cite: Ivelic-Sáez, J., Dec, D., Dörner, J., Matus, F., Arumí, J. L., Peth, S., Balocchi, O., Ordoñez, I., López, I., Horn, R., Álvarez, E., and Levio, M.: Resilience or degradation of Patagonian wetland soils: Soil structure and organic matter under contrasting land-use intensities., EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-1673, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-1673, 2026.
Timber harvesting can exert significant direct and indirect impacts on forest soil development and properties. It alters microclimatic conditions and reduces forest litter inputs, influencing humus formation, soil biological activity, and nutrient cycling. Moreover, increased soil exposure can enhance erosion processes, leading to the loss of organic and surface horizons. Together, these processes can substantially modify soil physical, chemical, and biological properties, with consequences for forest ecosystem functioning. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of timber harvesting on soil properties and development, and the underlying pedogenetic processes involved, approximately ten years after the end of harvesting activities.
The study was conducted in the Valle d’Aosta region (northwestern Italy). Six forest parcels classified as spruce-dominated coniferous forests, located between 1270 and 1850 m a.s.l. and predominantly east- or west-facing, were selected. Timber harvesting operations were completed by 2017, mostly in 2013, using the most common regional systems (cable yarding and winch-equipped tractors). Within each parcel, soil profiles were described and sampled by horizons in the harvested areas and adjacent control (non-harvested) areas. Soils and humus types were classified according to WBR and European humus forms reference base, respectively. Differences between soil profiles were evaluated considering carbon stock (C stock), pH, carbon to nitrogen ratio (C/N), thickness of organic horizons, soil structure, and biological activity.
Several variables, including pH and C/N, did not show consistent trends in relation to timber harvesting, likely due to the dominant influence of environmental factors, such as elevation, parent material, soil type and precipitation. In contrast, timber harvesting significantly affected organic horizons, resulting in a substantial reduction in OF thickness and C stock. A decrease in C stock was also observed in mineral horizons, particularly within the upper 40 cm, although it was less pronounced than in organic horizons. Consequently, the relative contribution of organic and mineral horizons to total carbon stock was also altered, with a reduced organic-to-mineral C stock ratio in harvested soils. These effects were mainly attributed to reduced litter inputs and altered microclimatic conditions, that shifted the balance between organic matter accumulation and decomposition toward degradation process. Moreover, the development of herbaceous vegetation in the harvested areas, whose deep root systems promoted microbial activity and organic carbon decomposition, further contributed to carbon losses in mineral horizons.
These changes also affected pedogenetic processes, particularly in Podzols, with the exception of the most strongly leached. Indeed, reduced acidic litter inputs from coniferous species led to a slowdown or cessation of podzolization processes, while herbaceous root systems provided continuous organic matter inputs to the E horizon. In addition, the increased biological activity, evidenced by abundant earthworm presence in harvested soils, promoted horizon mixing.
Therefore, by driving a shift from coniferous forest to herbaceous vegetation, timber harvesting can strongly influence soil properties and pedogenetic processes at different soil depths, over relatively short timeframes compared to soil formation rates. Enhanced biological activity emerged as a key driver of soil structural modification, humus transformation, and carbon stock reduction.
How to cite: Mascetti, G., Galvagno, M., Cislaghi, A., and D'Amico, M.: Soil responses to timber harvesting in coniferous forests of the Valle d’Aosta region, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-11640, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-11640, 2026.
Soil degradation in semi-arid island agriculture is driven by the combined pressures of land scarcity, intensive management and increasing climate variability. In volcanic environments, explosive eruptions add a further layer of disturbance, through abrupt ash deposition that can alter soil salinity, structure and organic matter dynamics. The 2021 Tajogaite eruption (La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain) covered large areas of irrigated banana (Musa spp.) plantations with centimetre-thick ash layers, raising concerns about long-term soil degradation, loss of productivity and the sustainability of these agroecosystems. Yet, medium-term trajectories of soil degradation and recovery after such events remain poorly documented.
We evaluated soil health trajectories in banana plantations affected by Tajogaite ash, comparing conditions 6 and 32 months after the onset of the eruption. Topsoil (0–20 cm) was sampled in eight commercial farms located along the eastern (n = 5) and western (n = 3) flanks of the new cone, spanning altitudinal and distance-to-sea gradients. At each farm (1–3 composite samples per site and date) we measured pH, electrical conductivity (EC, 1:5), oxidizable organic carbon, total nitrogen, loss on ignition, available P, exchangeable cations (Ca, Mg, K, Na and selected micronutrients), texture, water-stable aggregates (WSA), water holding capacity (WHC), basal and glucose-induced respiration, and the microbial metabolic quotient (qCO₂). Site-specific rainfall and ash-layer thickness were compiled, and texture- plus organic-matter-based pedotransfer functions were used to obtain first-order estimates of field capacity and permanent wilting point, for comparative purposes only.
Preliminary results reveal heterogeneous but generally resilient soil responses to ash deposition. In heavily ash-loaded western farms, EC and exchangeable Na declined from initially moderate–high values to clearly lower levels 32 months after the eruption, indicating a partial alleviation of salinisation risk. In eastern farms, EC remained within a moderate range, sometimes increasing slightly in line with resumed fertilisation, but without evidence of secondary salinisation. Across most sites, soil organic matter and total N were maintained or slightly increased, while WSA and WHC were stable or improved, suggesting a consolidation of soil structure as ash was progressively incorporated into the plough layer. Basal and induced respiration and qCO₂ values at both sampling times indicate active and reasonably efficient microbial communities, with no signs of persistent biological degradation.
Overall, banana plantation soils on La Palma show substantial functional resilience to volcanic ash inputs when supported by irrigation and ongoing management. However, differences between flanks and altitudinal zones point to uneven recovery and highlight specific hotspots of degradation risk. These findings underline the need to integrate hydrological, structural and biological indicators into post-eruption soil monitoring, and provide an empirical basis for designing targeted soil and water management practices that enhance soil conservation and resilience in volcanic island agroecosystems under global change.
How to cite: González-González, M., Garzón-Molina, M. S., and Jaizme-Vega, M. C.: Ash-affected yet resilient: soil degradation and recovery in banana agroecosystems after the 2021 Tajogaite eruption, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-20746, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-20746, 2026.
Desertification and drought are reducing water availability across Brazil’s semi-arid region, undermining livelihoods and exposing limitations in current water governance. More equitable and durable responses require approaches that combine scientific analysis with traditional ecological knowledge and participatory water-management practices. This study presents a collaborative project co-developed with Quilombola and Indigenous communities in a region severely affected by water scarcity and land degradation. Using an intersectional participatory framework, we integrate hydrological modelling and spatial analysis with qualitative fieldwork to identify policy gaps, constraints, and opportunities to strengthen water security. We mapped priority areas for water conservation and restoration and identified locations where desertification processes are advanced, especially in zones with an aridity index below 0.65. We also present preliminary results from focus groups and participatory workshops that surface community-defined water risks, locally grounded indicators of degradation, and feasible adaptation and restoration strategies. These insights are being directly mobilised in parallel policy discussions, creating a feedback loop between community evidence and decision-making. Specifically, our preliminary findings are feeding into the design of a state-level policy to combat desertification by supporting participatory planning, targeting priority areas, and strengthening implementation mechanisms that reflect both local realities and scientific evidence. This work contributes to Brazil’s National Action Plan to Combat Desertification and Mitigate the Effects of Drought and supports UNCCD and SDG targets related to water security and sustainable land management.
How to cite: Nóbrega, R., Galvão, C., Chohan, J., and Cunha, J. and the OCA team: From Community Evidence to Desertification Policy: Participatory Water Management and Local Knowledge in Brazil’s Semi-arid Region, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-14869, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-14869, 2026.
Excessive use of nitrogen fertilizers in arid and semi-arid regions poses serious environmental and agronomic challenges, including nitrate leaching, soil degradation, and reduced nitrogen use efficiency. This study evaluated the potential of nitrogen fertilizer reduction combined with nitrogen biological inhibitor (NBI) plants to sustain melon (Cucumis melo L. cv.yellow canari) productivity and quality under arid conditions in southern Tunisia during the 2025 growing season. This research was carried out as part of the PRIMA-funded TELENITRO project. The experiment compared a conventional nitrogen fertilization regime (control, N1) with two reduced nitrogen levels, namely 15% (N2) and 30% (N3) reductions, integrated with four NBI plant species: Medicago sativa (alfalfa), Panicum maximum, Sorghum commun, and Brachiaria hybrida. Production parameters, yield components, fruit quality traits, and nitrogen dynamics in soil and leaves were assessed. Results showed that nitrogen reduction significantly affected fruit size and yield, although the magnitude varied according to the associated NBI species. Under the 15% N reduction (N2), treatments incorporating Alfalfa, Panicum, and Brachiaria maintained fruit length, width, and seed cavity dimensions comparable to the control, while Sorghum resulted in lower fruit weight and yield. Average total yield under N2 ranged from 24.4 to 32.3 t ha⁻¹, with Panicum and Brachiaria showing the closest performance to the control (38.5 t ha⁻¹). At 30% nitrogen reduction (N3), a general decline in yield and average fruit weight was observed; however, Brachiaria and Panicum still produced acceptable yields, indicating their higher capacity to mitigate nitrogen reduction effects. Fruit quality parameters, including soluble solid content (SSC), dry matter content (DMC), and firmness, were not significantly affected by nitrogen reduction or NBI treatments, suggesting that fruit market quality was preserved. Soil nitrate and ammonium concentrations varied significantly over time and among treatments, with reduced nitrogen treatments generally exhibiting lower soil nitrate accumulation than the control, particularly at later sampling dates. Leaf nitrate concentrations were significantly reduced under NBI treatments, especially under N3, while ammonium content and C/N ratios indicated improved nitrogen assimilation efficiency in treatments associated with Sorghum and Brachiaria. Overall, the results demonstrate that integrating selected NBI plants, particularly Brachiaria and Panicum, allows a reduction of nitrogen fertilizer inputs by up to 15%—and partially 30%—without major yield or quality losses. This approach represents a promising, environmentally friendly strategy for sustainable melon production in arid regions of Tunisia.
How to cite: Wassar, F., Toumi, I., Ayadi, I., Mahmoudi, N., Bali, M., ElBeji, R., Boukchina, R., Dhaouadi, L., and Garcia, F.: Reducing Nitrogen Fertilizer Inputs in Melon Production Using NBI Plants under Arid Conditions in Southern Tunisia, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-10653, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-10653, 2026.
The MONALISA project (MONitoring and Assessing prevention and restoration soLutIons to combat deSertificAtion), is an Innovation Action Horizon project aimed at preventing and reversing Land Degradation and Desertification (LDD) across Mediterranean drylands. The project will address the complex issue of land degradation and desertification (LDD) in Mediterranean drylands, which are under increasing climatic pressure and have limited adaptive capacity.
The main objectives are to identify and promote innovative, tailored solutions to combat LDD in European and Mediterranean drylands and to provide a methodological framework to assess and monitor LDD risk while enhancing soil productivity across diverse land uses, including agriculture and agroforestry. To achieve these goals MONALISA will integrates scientific knowledge, local practices, advanced digital systems, artificial intelligence and remote sensing technologies. The project will address the “last mile” challenge by fostering collaboration between researchers, policy-makers, and land managers to ensure the adoption and scalability of these solutions.
The project results will range from methodological frameworks and tools to practical solutions implemented in case study areas. MONALISA will facilitate the development of new indicators, management scenarios, and technological innovations such as artificial intelligence algorithms and decision support systems (DSS). It will also create extensive capacity-building initiatives, engaging stakeholders, scientists, and land managers while advancing policy recommendations and commercial exploitation strategies.
The results will facilitate the understanding of drivers and impacts of various types of LDD in arid areas, their extent and localization. and this knowledge will be shared among key stakeholders. Additionally, the project will demonstrate the economic viability and environmental effectiveness of solutions for desertification prevention and land restoration, including soil protection, water retention, biodiversity preservation, and increased land resilience to drought.
How to cite: Seddaiu, G. and Assennato, F.: MONALISA project: understanding land degradation drivers and impacts to provide effective solutions to combat desertification, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-21204, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-21204, 2026.
Desertification is a long-standing and growing challenge in dryland regions worldwide, with serious consequences for ecosystems and livelihoods. Because desertification often results from an interaction between climatic variability, land use practices, and socio-economic pressures, models have become essential tools to analyse processes, explore future scenarios, and support environmental decision-making. Over the past four decades, a wide range of models has been applied to desertification research. However, it remains unclear how this body of modelling work has evolved over time, what it has prioritised, and whether it adequately supports land management and policy interventions.
To address this gap, a bibliometric analysis focusing on thematic structure and evolution was conducted to examine desertification modelling research published between 1981 and 2026. A broad search of the Web of Science database was used to capture studies linking desertification, and modelling, which after removing duplicates, resulted in a dataset of 3,200 scientific publications. Using the bibliometrix package in R, publication trends and keyword relationships were analysed to identify dominant research topics and their development over time. Thematic maps were produced for four consecutive periods to assess which themes are most central to the field and how conceptually developed they are within each period. A thematic evolution analysis was then applied to summarise how major research themes persist, emerge, or decline across decades.
The results show that desertification modelling research has expanded substantially across the study period, rising from a small number of studies in the 1980s and 1990s to rapid growth after 2000, with the majority of publications appearing in the last decade. Themes related to drought, rainfall variability, climate change, and modelling techniques consistently dominate the research landscape. On the other hand, impact and management themes remain marginal, suggesting a limited integration of social and decision-making dimensions within dominant modelling approaches. This observation was reinforced by the keyword co-occurrence network which showed an abundance of climate-related and modelling terms, while rarely showing social and management-oriented keywords. At the same time, desertification itself becomes a more specialised topic over time shifting towards a peripheral position relative to climate-driven and model-focused research.
These findings point to a clear imbalance when viewed through the Driver–Pressure–State–Impact–Response (DPSIR) framework, which conceptualises environmental problems as chains linking causes, system changes, consequences, and societal responses. While drivers and environmental states are well represented in the modelling literature, responses are weakly addressed. Building on this bibliometric analysis, the next phase of the study will undertake a scoping review of desertification models to systematically examine which DPSIR components are represented, how they are modelled, and to what extent existing models support management and policy decisions.
How to cite: Vasques, A., Corticeiro, S., and Keizer, J. J.: The evolution of desertification modelling research: A bibliometric analysis of thematic structure and change, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-13616, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-13616, 2026.
Posters on site: Thu, 7 May, 14:00–15:45 | Hall X3
The aim of this study was to establish a database including mapping of the state of soil degradation due to salinity in a vineyard-growing area of southern France (Domaine de Villeroy, Hérault) and to understand the processes that cause it.
The methods are based on direct measurements of soil salinity through sampling and indirect measurements using geophysics (EM38-MK2), measurements of surface and groundwater salinity in order to determine the geochemical signature of the various salinity poles (sea, ponds, canals, surface aquifers), and estimates of aquifer levels (piezometric surveys).
The data collected enabled the creation of transects and maps at different depths of the hydro-saline conditions across the entire area between May and July 2024. The mapping was carried out by combining a model based on machine learning methods (Boosting Regression Trees - BRT) of the variables considered and spatialisation with Kriging for the depths 0-20, 20-40, 40-60, 60-80, 80-100, and 100-120 cm. A corresponding estimate of the impact of salinity on the current vegetative development of the vine was made on the basis of aerial images and direct observations of plant vigour and plant mortality.
How to cite: Crabit, A., Ciampalini, R., Lorenzini, V., Cohan, E., and Colin, F.: Three-dimensional soil salinity mapping for vineyard management in coastal areas of South of France, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-19916, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-19916, 2026.
Saline soils represent one of the major constraints to agricultural productivity in Mediterranean coastal alluvial plains, with significant implications for the introduction of high-value crops such as avocado (Persea americana). The coastal alluvial plain of the Flumendosa River (southeastern Sardinia) is a heterogeneous environment where depositional dynamics, marine intrusion, and water management strongly influence the distribution of soil salinity and related pedological properties. This study presents an integrated approach to characterising salt-affected soils combining pedological surveys, field investigations, laboratory analyses, and remote sensing techniques. Measurements of key salinity parameters, particle size distribution and mineralogical investigations, with particular focus on clay components through X-ray diffraction (XRD), aimed to identify mineral assemblages responsible for salt retention and sodicisation. Mineralogy analysis was coupled with Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to investigate the micromorphology and formation processes of carbonate concretions. In parallel, processing of multispectral satellite data allowed the derivation of salinity-related indicators and the spatial mapping of soil salinity variability.
The integration of these complementary datasets enabled the development of a functional soil zonation for the Flumendosa plain, providing insights into their suitability for avocado cultivation and supporting the identification of appropriate management and mitigation strategies. The results highlight the effectiveness of a multidisciplinary approach in guiding sustainable agronomic decisions in salt-affected coastal areas.
How to cite: Lecca, M. C., Fancello, D., and Andreetta, A.: A multidisciplinary study of salt-affected soil in the coastal areas of Southeastern Sardinia (Italy), EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-23236, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-23236, 2026.
Land degradation driven by climate change is increasingly manifested through soil salinity and sodicity in Eastern Africa, posing major threats to ecosystem functioning and agricultural productivity. In the region, including Mozambique, rice is a key staple crop cultivated on salt-affected soils. Salinity constraints are common to coastal rainfed and irrigated lowland rice production systems, with either direct seawater influence or irrigation with saline and/or sodic water resources. While the development of locally adapted salt-tolerant rice varieties is progressing, there is a major research deficit regarding the pedological variability and associated soil biogeochemical processes in the salt-affected rice production systems of Eastern Africa. Such knowledge is essential for designing sustainable soil and water-based salinity management strategies under increasing climate and land-use pressure. The recently initiated DFG-funded project “Disentangling the impact of salinity and sodicity on organic matter cycling in paddy soils of Tropical Eastern Africa” aims at addressing this knowledge gap. The focus lies on Mozambique’s principal rice production system in the lowlands of the Zambezi River Delta, where progressing seawater intrusion and agricultural encroachment on saline wetland ecosystems lead to pedological situations with varying degrees of salinity impact. We report preliminary results from an initial field survey conducted in June 2025 (onset of the dry season), which covered two sampling transects comprising contrasting rice cultivation environments defined by soil texture (heavy clay Fluvisols vs. interdunal sand/loamy sand Arenosols) with 3 field locations each, representing a gradient of soil salinity. In relation to this study design, we present data comprising soil profile descriptions, soil salinity parameters, along with organic matter and nutrient contents. Output from first selected farmer interviews complement the pedological assessment, providing insights into local perceptions of experienced environmental change and prevailing agronomic practices.
How to cite: Armando, B., Herrmann, J., Famba, S. I., Maria, R., Nkurunziza, L., Matendo, S. E., Gutiérrez Pola, A., Lenhardt, K., and Robert, M.: Pedological and agronomic assessment of salt-affected rice cultivation areas along a coastal gradient in the Zambezi Delta, Mozambique, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-10446, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-10446, 2026.
Predicting the response of wetlands in regulated catchments is challenging because their natural flow regime has been replaced by managed flows that depend on environmental allocations, as well as urban and agricultural demands. Many of such wetlands in semi-arid Australia have been significantly impacted by the combination of increased human demands and climate conditions characterized by pronounced inter- and intra-annual variability. For instance, the Macquarie Marshes in New South Wales have seen reductions in flow magnitude and variability due to human activities, leading to a 40–50% decrease in wetland area despite the provision of environmental flow allocations. Predicting ecological responses under altered flow regimes and variable climate remains a complex undertaking, as historical records, while informative, capture only a limited range of climate variability.
We employ stochastic climate data to investigate the long-term response of the Macquarie Marshes to climate variability. Two contrasting scenarios are assessed: one representing natural conditions (best-case) and another reflecting current managed conditions with complete removal of environmental flow allocations (worst-case). These scenarios are simulated using a catchment model of the Macquarie Valley (developed with WATHNET5) coupled with an ecological response model of the marshes, which predicts vegetation health (woody and non-woody) and bird breeding suitability (Ibis and Egret species). Each scenario is run across 100 replicates of 110-year sequences of stochastically generated climate data derived from historical records.
Compared to the best-case scenario, the worst-case scenario leads to an average 30% reduction in non-woody vegetation cover, with extended periods of severely diminished coverage. Woodland and river red gum forests experience a 30% decrease in the time they remain in good condition, coupled with up to a 10% increase in time spent in poor condition. These vegetation changes significantly impact bird breeding opportunities, reducing the number of favourable events by approximately 50%.
How to cite: Rodriguez, J., Carlier, R., Kuczera, G., Saco, P., Sandi, S., and Quijano Baron, J.: Long-term ecohydrological response of wetlands in managed catchments to climate variability, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-15609, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-15609, 2026.
Mangrove wetlands in the Pacific Islands are among the most significant yet vulnerable ecosystems, providing critical services such as habitat for marine life, flood protection, and carbon storage. Located in low-lying coastal zones, these wetlands face severe threats from sea-level rise (SLR), climate variability, and human-induced pressures, including land-use changes and flood management. Their capacity to persist under these conditions depends largely on sediment availability, as accretion-driven by sediment deposition and organic matter accumulation—enables mangroves to keep pace with rising sea levels.
This study employs an integrated modelling framework that combines hydro-sedimentological simulations of catchment processes with eco-geomorphological models of coastal wetlands to assess long-term resilience under current and future scenarios. We evaluate sediment loads from inland catchments, influenced by cropland expansion, management practices, and extreme events such as tropical cyclones, and incorporate these dynamics into wetland evolution models alongside SLR projections. This methodology not only improves understanding of key drivers of wetland stability but also offers a transferable tool for assessing vulnerability in other data-limited regions worldwide.
How to cite: Jorquera, E., Rodriguez, J., Saco, P., Quijano Baron, J., Breda, A., and Sandi, S.: Assessing mangrove vulnerability to climate and land use changes in Pacific Islands using a catchment-to-coast modelling framework., EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-8374, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-8374, 2026.
Rainstorm events are becoming increasingly frequent due to the impacts of global warming, which results in widespread erosion and associated tree destruction. However, previous studies of forest damage have focused on typhoons or wildfires, largely overlooking the increasing risk of tree destruction caused by rainstorm-induced erosion. It is unclear what scale of tree destruction can be caused by heavy rainfall. In this study, we used a tree segmentation method based on airborne light detection and ranging (LiDAR) technology to accurately quantify the tree destruction caused by heavy rainfall in a representative afforested catchment on the Chinese Loess Plateau. We evaluate the respective and combined contributions of tree structure (tree height, crown diameter, and crown area), forest structure (tree density, gap fraction, leaf area index, and canopy cover), and terrain parameters (elevation, slope, and terrain relief) using machine learning models (random forest and logistic regression). The results show that 3,253 trees in the catchment (0.9 km2) were destroyed due to rainstorm-induced erosion, of which 2,845 trees were located on gully slope landforms, accounting for 87.4% of all destroyed trees. Tree destruction was primarily induced by erosion on steep slopes (45.5°–50.5°) and by sediment deposition along the gully bed. Although the total deposition area (21,265 m²) that resulted in tree destruction exceeded the erosion area (20,020 m²), erosion was more destructive. Importantly, the interaction between increased tree structural parameters and higher canopy density (leaf area index and canopy cover) significantly promoted destruction, likely because the combined biomass and canopy weight increase mechanical load on saturated soils, which can counteract the inhibitory effect of terrain on destruction. This synergy also raises destruction probability at similar elevations. Our study provides a replicable methodology for assessing forest damage under extreme rainfall and highlights the need to avoid overly dense afforestation in vulnerable landscapes. The study underscores the need for improved climate-resilient reforestation strategies that consider both structural and topographic interactions in erosion-prone landscapes.
How to cite: Hao, M., Jin, Z., Gong, X., Li, P., Song, Y., and Hölbling, D.: Interacting effects of tree-forest structure and terrain on heavy rainfall-induced tree destruction, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-4477, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-4477, 2026.
Current agricultural practices can have a strong impact on soil and water quality. Continuous manipulation of the soil deteriorates soil structure and promotes soil erosion. Application of pesticides, and leaching of excess nutrients through overfertilization decreases soil life and negatively affects surface water and groundwater quality, with consequences for ecosystems and drinking water provisioning. Therefore, it is necessary to find innovative farming approaches that mimic or restore the natural functioning of soils in agricultural systems, thereby enhancing soil health and soil hydrological functioning, and decreasing nutrient transport from agricultural fields to groundwater and surface water. So far, research into the effect of innovative and nature-based agricultural practices has largely focused on soil parameters, and only a few studies have assessed the combined effects of different agricultural practices based on soil and groundwater indicators. In this study, we present a unique combination of long-term data (i.e., the results of a 23-year long experiment), spatially highly resolved soil and groundwater concentrations of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus compounds, nitrate isotope data, and soil health parameters (e.g., soil biodiversity) to compare the effects of tillage (conventional tillage and non-inversion tillage) and organic matter amendments (artificial fertilizer, manure slurry, and compost addition) in both a conventional and organic farming system in the Netherlands. Our first results show that phosphorus and nitrogen dynamics on the agricultural fields are not coupled, and that organic sites behave differently to the other fields especially for nitrogen. For example, nitrate concentrations in groundwater below these fields are much lower and nitrate shows a strong denitrification signal. For phosphorus, application of animal manure appeared to be the main driver of high concentrations in both soil and groundwater. Moreover, soil biodiversity is generally higher in the organic farming system. Overall, the differences between conventional and organic farming systems are pronounced, while other agricultural practices seem to have a secondary role for soil health and water quality.
How to cite: Lutz, S., Alsbach, C., Rozemeijer, J., and Dekker, S.: Evaluating nature-based agricultural practices and their influence on soil and water quality using a multi-parameter and long-term dataset, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-14155, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-14155, 2026.
Land degradation and desertification, the reduction or loss of the land’s biological or economic productivity, accelerated during the 20th century. This can be related to population growth, mechanisation of agriculture and forest management, increasing livestock numbers, the suboptimal design and implementation of land management policies, and climate change. The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Indicator 15.3.1 (Proportion of land that is degraded over total land area) aims to halt this degradation by balancing losses (declines in land-based natural capital) and gains (increases in land-based natural capital) across land use types. The Good Practice Guidance of SDG 15.3.1 and its 2025 Addendum, which supports the national-level reporting of the indicator, are developed with a global perspective. The reporting analysis starts in the year 2000, in consideration of the resolution and availability of Earth Observation data. Thus, important desertification processes are already missed. However, assessments can be undertaken at different levels of accuracy, detail and complexity, increasing from Tier 1 (broad methods with default values) to Tier 2 (additional use of country-specific data) to Tier 3 methods (more complex methods involving ground measurements and modelling). Here we will present an example of a desertification assessment for marginal, rainfed croplands in Cyprus, under 250-350 mm average annual rain, with the use of Sentinel-2 data. The methodology is inspired by the SDG 15.3.1 productivity sub-indicator and uses an innovative approach to address the time frame limitations of desertification assessments.
This research is financially supported by the TERRASAFE project, which is co-funded by the European Union (GA 10115737) and by UK Research and Innovation.
How to cite: Bruggeman, A., Michailidou, E., Makri, C., Zoumides, C., and Savvides, A.: Land Degradation Neutrality Assessment at Higher Tiers, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-21339, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-21339, 2026.
The Mediterranean region is increasingly affected by water scarcity, land degradation, and desertification processes driven by unsustainable land management practices and climate change, with significant impacts on agricultural sustainability and food security. In this context, Neglected and Underutilized Species (NUS), due to their adaptability to marginal and degraded environments and low input requirements, represent a viable option for enhancing agroecosystem resilience while contributing to sustainable land management and restoration efforts. In this study, a harmonized geospatial database at the scale of the Mediterranean basin was developed by integrating over 30 abiotic parameters, including soil properties, topography, vegetation, land cover, and climate indicators. Freely available global datasets were harmonized at a consistent spatial resolution and reference system and used to derive a set of key indicators that support cost-effective, large-scale assessments of soil health and climate stress over extensive areas. Both historical climate observations and CMIP6 future projections under SSP2-4.5 and SSP5-8.5 scenarios were considered.
Using internationally recognized classification standards and unsupervised clustering techniques, we performed a spatial zonation of abiotic environmental conditions by first classifying each individual parameter according to threshold-based schemes indicative of soil functional limitations or climate-induced stress. These classifications were subsequently integrated through a linear combination of the parameter-specific classes to jointly assess cumulative environmental constraints. This approach enabled the spatial identification of areas where an increasing concentration and severity of unfavourable conditions correspond to higher levels of land marginality and degradation susceptibility, and thus potential suitability for sustainable, low-input NUS cultivation across the Mediterranean basin.
This comprehensive dataset supports evidence-based land-use planning and climate-adaptation strategies, providing a foundation for scaling NUS cultivation to enhance ecosystem resilience and agricultural productivity under changing environmental conditions. The resulting database further underpins the development of decision-support tools for sustainable land-use planning and climate adaptation in Mediterranean agroecosystems.
This work was conducted in the framework of the project VENUS - “ConVErting marginal lands of the Mediterranean basin into productive and sustainable agroecosystems using low water demanding Neglected and Underutilized Species” funded by the PRIMA programme (Grant Agreement No. 2312) supported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.
How to cite: Cosma, M., Da Lio, C., Yaciuk, P. A., Donnici, S., Jarray, F., Kotti, M. L., Hermassi, T., Aschonitis, V., and Tosi, L.: Harmonized Geospatial Databases of Environmental parameters to Assess Land Degradation and Support Sustainable Cultivation of Neglected and Underutilized Species in the Mediterranean Region, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-14663, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-14663, 2026.
Grain legumes play a strategic role in European agriculture by providing plant-based protein for human consumption and animal feed, while enhancing agroecosystem sustainability through biological nitrogen fixation and reduced dependence on mineral nitrogen fertilizers. However, an excessive frequency of grain legumes within crop rotations can lead to the onset of soil-borne constraints commonly referred to as “legume soil fatigue”. This complex phenomenon is thought to arise from the interaction of biotic stresses, such as soil-borne pathogens and pests, and abiotic stresses, including soil compaction, waterlogging, and heat stress, yet its underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood.
During the 2025 growing season, field investigations were conducted in 12 pea (Pisum sativum L.) fields across northern Italy to assess the occurrence of legume soil fatigue and to identify the underlying drivers associated with this phenomenon. The sites were characterized by predominantly loam soils. Field assessments were performed at crop emergence, flowering and harvest, and included measurements on pea plants (e.g. sowing depth, plant height, plant density, and root health), as well as soil properties (e.g. soil compaction, visual soil structure, and chemical analyses). Agronomic management practices were documented and a 10-year cropping history was reconstructed through farmer interviews to quantify the frequency of legumes, cereals, and other crops within rotation.
Preliminary analyses revealed that pea root damage was positively correlated with legume cultivation frequency (R² = 0.47, p < 0.001) and with the abundance of inactive rhizobia (R² = 0.61, p < 0.001), suggesting that frequent legume inclusion in crop rotations promotes root diseases and reduce nitrogen fixation efficiency. Conversely, a higher abundance of active rhizobia was associated with improved soil structure (R² = 0.61, p < 0.001). Among abiotic factors, soil compaction showed positive relationships with silt (R² = 0.64, p < 0.001) and sand content (R² = 0.53, p < 0.001), likely reflecting surface crust formation in loam soils, which can contrast seedling emergence and early root development.
Overall, these findings indicate that legume soil fatigue in pea cropping systems emerges from the combined effects of crop rotation intensity and soil physical constrains, with direct implications for root health and symbiotic nitrogen fixation. Ongoing work will integrate multi-country datasets and long-term field experiments to identify and characterize abiotic drivers (soil factors), biotic drivers (bacterial, fungal, nematode, and protist communities) and farm history factors associated with legume soil fatigue, thereby providing practical management guidelines for the sustainable expansion of legume-based cropping systems across Europe.
How to cite: Borgatti, D., Ferretti, G., Radicetti, E., Ruf, T., Šišić, A., and Ben Hassine, M.: Field assessments of biotic and abiotic driving legume soil fatigue in pea (Pisum sativum L.) under Mediterranean conditions, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-17879, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-17879, 2026.
Posters virtual: Wed, 6 May, 14:00–18:00 | vPoster spot 2
EGU26-20735 | Posters virtual | VPS17
Effects of historical land use changes on soil carbon, nitrogen, and microbial communities in an alpine sandy region of northwestern ChinaWed, 06 May, 14:24–14:27 (CEST) vPoster spot 2
Land use change plays a crucial role in the dynamics of soil carbon and nitrogen, thereby influencing soil fertility. However, the effects of historical land use changes on deep soil carbon and nitrogen dynamics, as well as microbial community composition, in alpine sandy regions remain poorly understood. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate how different historical land-use types regulate soil carbon and nitrogen and shape microbial community structure along a deep soil profile in an alpine sandy ecosystem. The study site located at elevation of 2800 m, experiences an arid climate, with an annual mean temperature of 3.9°C, an average annual precipitation of 246.3 mm, and an annual potential evaporation of 1,716.7 mm, thereby classifying the area as an alpine arid region with predominantly sandy soils. This study investigated a 23-year-old Caragana microphylla shrub forest in the Gonghe Basin, northwestern China. Three land-use types were established: post-agricultural reforestation on sandy land (PR), where former cropland was converted to forest 23 years ago, direct afforestation on sandy land (PF), established directly on sandy land without prior agricultural use, and bare sandy land as a control (CK), which remained uncultivated and unafforested. Soil carbon, nitrogen, and microbial community structure were examined across the 0–500 cm soil profile among the three land-use types. Results indicated that historical land-use changes significantly influenced the storage of soil organic carbon (SOC), inorganic carbon (SIC), and total nitrogen (STN). Average concentrations of SOC, SIC, and STN across the 0–500 cm soil profile were highest in PR (2.40, 10.37, and 0.28 g·kg⁻¹, respectively), followed by PF (1.46, 9.53, and 0.17 g·kg⁻¹), and lowest in CK (0.89, 8.31, and 0.11 g·kg⁻¹). SOC and STN storage within each 100 cm depth increment were also greater in PR than in PF and CK. Soil water content emerged as a critical environmental factor regulating deep soil carbon and nitrogen cycling. Microbial diversity was highest in the 0–40 cm layer under PR, whereas PF exhibited greater diversity in deeper soil layers (100–500 cm). Bacterial communities were more sensitive to historical land-use changes than fungal communities. In CK, microbial communities were primarily influenced by soil physical factors, including pH, soil water content, and electrical conductivity, whereas in PF, SOC and STN were the dominant controlling factors. In PR, SIC content, soil bulk density, and soil water content played major regulatory roles. Overall, the post-agricultural reforestation model in alpine sandy regions demonstrates greater effectiveness than direct afforestation on sandy land in enhancing SOC, SIC, and STN storage across the 0–500 cm soil profile and in promoting surface soil microbial diversity. In contrast, direct afforestation on sandy land plays a distinct ecological role in maintaining microbial diversity in deeper soil layers. These findings highlight that, in sandy land restoration, consideration of the long-term legacy effects of historical land-use conversion is essential for promoting the sustainable development of desertification control strategies.
How to cite: Guan, J., Deng, L., Guo, J., Wang, Y., Li, W., Chen, Z., Cao, G., Wang, S., Xie, H., Li, X., and Wang, W.: Effects of historical land use changes on soil carbon, nitrogen, and microbial communities in an alpine sandy region of northwestern China, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-20735, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-20735, 2026.
EGU26-17043 | ECS | Posters virtual | VPS17
Chitosan-lignin hydrogels enriched with biochar and Se/Cu nanoparticles for the mitigation of cadmium and drought stress in maizeWed, 06 May, 14:27–14:30 (CEST) vPoster spot 2
Contamination of agricultural soils with heavy metals poses a critical threat to global food security and human health due to their high mobility and long biological half-life. Consequently, there is an urgent need for innovative remediation strategies, such as the development of safe multi-functional soil amendments, that do not disrupt food production. Among various additives, biochar (BC), obtained through the pyrolysis of organic wastes (including agricultural residues), is one of the most extensively studied. BCs can immobilize pollutants due to their developed surface area and abundance of functional groups. Hydrogels (HG) are another type of modifier that can simultaneously immobilize metals and improve the water-holding capacity of soils. Special attention is given to biopolymer-based HGs due to their biocompatibility and biodegradability. Furthermore, nanoparticles (NPs) have been reported to decrease heavy metal toxicity to plants. Thus, in this study, a series of hybrid chitosan-lignin HGs enriched with wheat straw-derived BC and selenium (Se) or copper (Cu) NPs were developed, and their effect on maize germination under water-deficit and cadmium contamination stress was evaluated.
During the study, agricultural soil was modified using 1% (w/w) of the developed HGs: (1) HG filled with BC; (2) HG filled with BC and SeNPs; (3) HG filled with BC and CuNPs; and (4) a combination of HGs (2) and (3). The plant growth experiment was conducted in a growth chamber and included soils contaminated with cadmium (35 mg/kg) and uncontaminated controls. Two weeks after sowing, watering was stopped, to simulate water-deficit conditions, and water evapotranspiration was monitored gravimetrically. After one week, seedlings were collected, and their fresh/dry mass and length were determined.
A decrease in evapotranspiration rates was observed for the soil modified with HGs. For example, the control soil lost 68 g/pot of water during 7 days, while the soils modified with HG/BC and HG/BC/SeNPs lost 59 and 57 g, respectively. Additionally, these HGs demonstrated a stimulatory effect on maize growth. The average shoot height increased from 18.3 cm in the control to 20.9 cm, and dry mass rose from 0.029 g to 0.037 g for the soils modified with HG/BC and HG/BC/SeNPs. The root dry mass also increased in both cases. Moreover, under cadmium contamination, both hydrogels neutralized the negative impact of the heavy metal on shoot growth. In contrast, HG filled with BC and CuNPs had an inhibitory effect on plant biomass growth. The mixture of hydrogels demonstrated a moderated effect on plant germination.
Acknowledgements: The research was funded by the Polish National Agency for Academic Exchanges under the Strategic Partnerships Program (BNI/PST/2023/1/00108) and the National Science Centre (2024/08/X/NZ9/00561).
How to cite: Siryk, O. and Szewczuk-Karpisz, K.: Chitosan-lignin hydrogels enriched with biochar and Se/Cu nanoparticles for the mitigation of cadmium and drought stress in maize, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-17043, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-17043, 2026.
EGU26-21034 | Posters virtual | VPS17
Beyond indicator frequency: a systematic review towards integrated impact assessment of soil-based solutions to mitigate land desertification processes.Wed, 06 May, 14:30–14:33 (CEST) vPoster spot 2
Desertification, defined by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) as land degradation in drylands driven by the interaction between climate variability and human activities, represents an escalating global threat, particularly in drought-prone regions. In Europe, large areas are already classified as high to very highly vulnerable to degradation, a situation expected to intensify under projected climate change scenarios and continued land-use pressures.
Recent estimates suggest that between 60 and 70% of soils in Europe are considered unhealthy, highlighting the urgent need for effective soil protection. Soil degradation compromises key ecosystem functions, including food production, water retention, nutrient cycling, carbon storage, and biodiversity conservation. If critical thresholds are exceeded, the resulting environmental and socio-economic consequences may become irreversible.
The EU Horizon project TERRASAFE aims to empower local communities in southern Europe and northern Africa to address the growing threat of desertification by promoting a suite of innovations, including nature-based solutions (biochar, compost, technosols, and hydrogels), sensor-based monitoring tools, and social approaches. The present work focuses exclusively on the four nature-based solutions, as these innovations directly modify soil properties and processes and are therefore most suitable for systematic evaluation through biophysical indicators. Although these solutions have been already tested across a range of dryland environments, their reported impacts remain unevenly investigated and fragmented across disciplines, indicators, and experimental scales. In this context, a robust understanding of the current state of knowledge is essential.
To address this need, the present study conducts a systematic review of the scientific literature assessing the effects of these four solutions under arid, semi-arid, and Mediterranean climatic conditions, with a specific focus on the indicators used to evaluate desertification-related processes. A wide range of soil, plant, and ecosystem indicators was examined and synthesized to determine whether they are being investigated evenly or whether critical indicators remain underrepresented in the current state of the art.
Preliminary screening reveals a marked dominance of physical, chemical, and productivity-related indicators, while biological, ecotoxicological, and eco-physiological indicators appear comparatively neglected. Identifying these knowledge gaps is pivotal to avoid partial interpretations of solution performance and to support broader, integrated impact assessments that adequately capture key desertification mechanisms.
In a subsequent phase, building on this representativeness analysis, the study will advance beyond indicator frequency, to identify which indicators most effectively explain desertification processes. This will provide a foundation to more targeted, meaningful, and decision-relevant monitoring strategies in regions with high vulnerability to desertification.
How to cite: Martins, M. A. S., Corticeiro, S., Gruselle, M.-C., Stolte, J., and Keizer, J.: Beyond indicator frequency: a systematic review towards integrated impact assessment of soil-based solutions to mitigate land desertification processes., EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-21034, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-21034, 2026.
