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Processes
Special Issues
Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions
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Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions

A special issue of Processes (ISSN 2227-9717). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental and Green Processes".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 15533

Special Issue Editors

Dr. David Fernández-Calviño

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Plant Biology and Soil Science, University of Vigo, 32004 Ourense, Spain
Interests: impacts of agriculture on soil biodiversity; soil microbial ecology; soil pollution processes; sorption and transport of heavy metals, pesticides and antibiotics; impact of soil pollution on soil biota; by-products for soil remediation
Dr. Manuel Arias-Estevez

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Plant Biology and Soil Science, Faculty of Sciences, Campus Ourense, University of Vigo, 11, 32004 Ourense, Spain
Interests: soil and soil contamination; soil remediation
Prof. Dr. Ruth Pereira

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
GreenUPorto – Sustainable Agrifood Production Research Center & Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre s/n, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
Interests: soils quality; ecotoxicology; nanotoxicology; risk assessment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Joana Lourenço

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
CESAM & Department of Biology of the University of Aveiro, University Campus of Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Interests: impacts of uranium mining residues on soil organisms; molecular effects of metals and radionuclides on soil organisms; impacts and occurrence of bystander effects on soil organisms

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The conservation and rehabilitation of degraded soils are two of the greatest challenges of humanity in this century. Pollution, compaction, impoverishment of organic matter, erosion, and loss of biodiversity are some of the threats identified at European and global level, which require urgent and coordinated action by the scientific community and the main social groups involved in soil management. Some of the Sustainable Development Goals established by the United Nations, such as the eradication of poverty and hunger (SDGs 1 and 2), the establishment of the conditions for the health and welfare of human beings (SDG 3), the improvement of water quality (SDG 6), and the protection of life and terrestrial ecosystems (SDG 15), depend directly on the quality of the soil and the restoration of its functions and services. The soil will also be a great ally of humans in the fight against climate change, if it is properly managed. The Iberian Peninsula, due to its geographical location, has unique and common characteristics associated with a great diversity of soils and edaphoclimatic conditions, concentrated in a relatively small area. The effectiveness of the measures adopted to protect the soils will benefit the exchange of experiences and knowledge, as well as the common actions on both sides of the border. Emerging and innovative technologies at the service of soil sciences will also be a critical factor for “precision conservation”, not only for mapping and characterizing the soil as a resource, but also for data exchange and in the support of the decision-making underlying its sustainable management.

The Iberian Conference on the theme “Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions” (CISDS2020) aims to bring together specialists from the Iberian field of various scientific and technological areas that contribute in the exchange of results of their research and technological developments, for the following themes:

  • Environmental pollution and risk assessment;
  • Urban soils (including compaction and waterproofing);
  • Climate change impacts on soils and edaphic communities;
  • Soil biodiversity;
  • Soil quality indicators;
  • Remote sensing applied to mapping and soil management;
  • Citizen science at the service of best practices of soil management and conservation;
  • Soil salinization;
  • Emerging pollutants (such as microplastics, nanomaterials, antibiotics, etc.);
  • Organic waste valorization;
  • Soil functions and ecosystem services;
  • Soil organic matter;
  • Other threats (erosion, desertification, natural disasters).

All the authors of accepted contributions at CISDS2020 are invited to submit manuscripts.

Dr. David Fernández-Calviño
Dr. Manuel Arias-Estevez
Prof. Dr. Ruth Pereira
Dr. Joana Lourenço
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Processes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • soil
  • environmental pollution
  • climate change
  • biodiversity
  • soil functions
  • ecosystem services
  • organic wastes
  • conservation

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research

3 pages, 206 KiB  
Editorial
Special Issue on “Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions”
by David Fernández-Calviño, Manuel Arias-Estévez, Ruth Pereira and Joana Lourenço
Processes 2022, 10(5), 980; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10050980 - 14 May 2022
Viewed by 2328
Abstract
Food production is increasing year by year, with modern agriculture occupying high-fertility soils [...] Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions)

Research

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16 pages, 7314 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of the Potential of Agro-Industrial Waste-Based Composts to Control Botrytis Gray Mold and Soilborne Fungal Diseases in Lettuce
by Cátia Santos, Joana Monte, Natália Vilaça, João Fonseca, Henrique Trindade, Isabel Cortez and Piebiep Goufo
Processes 2021, 9(12), 2231; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9122231 - 10 Dec 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2605
Abstract
Composts are widely used in horticulture as organic amendments to improve the properties of soils. Composts have also been reported to enhance the disease suppressive potential of soils and, therefore, could be used as a strategy for managing plant diseases. The aim of [...] Read more.
Composts are widely used in horticulture as organic amendments to improve the properties of soils. Composts have also been reported to enhance the disease suppressive potential of soils and, therefore, could be used as a strategy for managing plant diseases. The aim of this study was to test the ability of soils amended with four different agro-industrial waste-based composts (chestnut peels and shells, spent coffee grounds, grape marc, and olive leaves) to inhibit the growth and activity of Botrytis cinerea and several soilborne pathogens. First, the capacity of aqueous compost extracts to inhibit the growth of Botrytis cinerea and five soilborne fungi was evaluated in vitro using a broth macrodilution method. Second, lettuce plants were grown on soils amended with composts and inoculated either with B. cinerea or the soilborne fungus Fusarium oxysporum Schlechtendahl isolated from lamb’s lettuce. The determination of minimal inhibitory concentrations indicated that none of the composts inhibited the mycelium growth of the selected fungal pathogens. However, the pathogens did not cause any damage on plants grown on the chestnut- and olive-based composts. Lettuce yields were also highest for plants grown with composts made from chestnut and olive, irrespective of the amount of compost incorporated into soils (5% or 10%, weight basis). The grape-based compost also exhibited a fertilization effect, although the effect was associated with increased Fusarium wilt severity. Both N immobilization and symbiosis with the compost’s microflora were used to explain the pathogenicity of F. oxysporum Schlechtendahl in response to amendment with composts made from grape and coffee wastes. The beneficial effects of the chestnut- and olive-based composts reported in this study could be exploited in strategies aimed at reducing reliance on synthetic pesticides for the control of fungi in lettuce cultivation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions)
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18 pages, 4132 KiB  
Article
Long-Term Effects of Calcium-Based Liming Materials on Soil Fertility Sustainability and Rye Production as Soil Quality Indicators on a Typic Palexerult
by Miguel Ángel Olego, Miguel Javier Quiroga, Cristina Mendaña-Cuervo, Jorge Cara-Jiménez, Roberto López and Enrique Garzón-Jimeno
Processes 2021, 9(7), 1181; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9071181 - 07 Jul 2021
Cited by 20 | Viewed by 3104
Abstract
Liming is a common practice used to improve acidic soil properties, as is essential for agricultural quality. A long-term field experiment with one lime rate (6000 kg/ha of carbonate calcium equivalent) and three calcium-based liming amendments (gypsum, limestone and sugar foam) was maintained [...] Read more.
Liming is a common practice used to improve acidic soil properties, as is essential for agricultural quality. A long-term field experiment with one lime rate (6000 kg/ha of carbonate calcium equivalent) and three calcium-based liming amendments (gypsum, limestone and sugar foam) was maintained on a Typic Palexerult for 10 years in order to determine changes in soil acidity and to assess the effects on crop (rye) yields. The soil acidity conditions decreased with all the amendments tested, but the sugar foam and limestone was more effective than gypsum over a long-term period. No significant changes in organic soil matter levels between the treatments tested were found. Interestingly, an increase in the leaching of organic soil matter was observed in limed soils. Lime application significantly increased the total rye biomass compared to the control soils during the whole experiment (2002–2011). Yield trends observed in spike and stem biomass were similar to those reported for total rye biomass. In this respect, at the end of the research, gypsum, limestone and sugar foam increased in relation to the total production of rye biomass by 16%, 32% and 38%, respectively, as compared to the control soils. Additionally, a significant and prolonged difference in calcium concentrations in rye stems between unlimed and limed subplots was observed. However, in spite of the results presented here, further investigations are needed to gain a better understanding of the long-term effects of liming on the chemical properties of soil. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions)
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14 pages, 543 KiB  
Article
Cowpea Crop Response to Mineral and Organic Fertilization in SE Spain
by Virginia Sánchez-Navarro, Raúl Zornoza, Ángel Faz and Juan Antonio Fernández
Processes 2021, 9(5), 822; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr9050822 - 08 May 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2411
Abstract
Mineral fertilization is considered to be useful for improving soil fertility and yields. However, its use is linked to global warming and soil and water pollution by its rapid mobilization. On the other hand, organic fertilization is recommended to maintain or improve soil [...] Read more.
Mineral fertilization is considered to be useful for improving soil fertility and yields. However, its use is linked to global warming and soil and water pollution by its rapid mobilization. On the other hand, organic fertilization is recommended to maintain or improve soil organic carbon and total nitrogen stocks while contributing to climate change mitigation. The main goal of this study was to assess the effect of two different fertilizer types, mineral and organic, during three cowpea crop cycles on the soil’s physicochemical properties, enzyme activities, crop yield, crop quality and nutritional composition when considering two cowpea cultivars (Feijão frade de fio preto (FP) and Feijão frade de fio claro (FC)). The use of mineral fertilizers was seen to contribute to improved soil fertility due to the increase in soil properties, such as recalcitrant carbon, total nitrogen, ammonium content, available K and available Mg. On the other hand, organic fertilizers only increased the nitrate content in the soil. There were no differences in terms of cowpea crop yield, quality and nutritional composition by fertilizer type. Thus, both fertilizer types contributed to the same crop yield and quality, and thus the use of organic fertilizers can result in a sustainable alternative for maintaining cowpea crop yield and quality. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions)
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20 pages, 6851 KiB  
Article
Monitoring, Diffusion and Source Speculation Model of Urban Soil Pollution
by Zhichao Li, Wanchun Lu and Jilin Huang
Processes 2020, 8(11), 1339; https://doi.org/10.3390/pr8111339 - 23 Oct 2020
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2169
Abstract
The rapid industrialization of cities has brought many challenges to the environment and resources. Industrial wastes, automobile exhaust, coal combustion soot and other pollutants accumulate in urban soil, and the characteristics of urban soil are changed, causing many pollutants to accumulate in the [...] Read more.
The rapid industrialization of cities has brought many challenges to the environment and resources. Industrial wastes, automobile exhaust, coal combustion soot and other pollutants accumulate in urban soil, and the characteristics of urban soil are changed, causing many pollutants to accumulate in the urban soil environment. Heavy metals are toxic and harmful pollutants existing in soil that cannot be biodegraded or thermally degraded; thus, heavy metals pose a threat to environmental quality and humans. To solve the environmental pollution of soil heavy metals, we utilize kriging interpolation to determine the geological distribution of the environmental pollution of metal elements and analyze the main causes of soil heavy metal pollution. Next, the propagation characteristics and diffusion process of heavy metal pollutants are thoroughly analyzed; in addition, an improved one-dimensional convective dispersion model and an improved air subsidence model are established, and real urban soil data are taken as an example for the fitting test. The results show that the improved models that consider more factors, such as adsorption or decomposition factors during the process of convective dispersion, absorption and expulsion factors of the crop root and topographic factors and height changes during the process of air subsidence, are effective. This paper is helpful for distinguishing the primary pollution sources and migration routes of soil metal element pollution and provides a certain reference value for protecting the environment and reducing heavy metal pollution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soil and Sustainable Development: Challenges and Solutions)
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