Modeling Land Use and Management Practices Impacts on Soil Organic Carbon Loss in an Agricultural Watershed in the Mid-Atlantic Region

Measuring organic carbon (OC) losses from soils presents a challenge because of the intricate interplay of human-induced and biophysical processes. This study employs SWAT-C to simulate particulate OC (POC) and dissolved OC (DOC) losses from the Upper Maurice Watershed in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Simulation outcomes reveal that surface runoff was the primary contributor to the total DOC load (65%), followed by lateral flow (30%), and then groundwater (5%). Meanwhile, POC load was linked to erosion processes induced by surface runoff. Our findings indicate that agricultural land-use types exhibited the highest annual average DOC and POC loads. Forests and grasslands displayed intermediate loads, while barren land had the lowest load. Concerning seasonal fluctuations, agricultural land-use types exhibited distinct DOC and POC load patterns when compared to forest and grassland types, indicating the dominant role of management practices in determining soil OC (SOC) losses. Additional modeling of management practices' impact on SOC budgets indicates maximal SOC sequestration with full irrigation, no-till (NT), and full fertilization. In contrast, the largest SOC depletion arises from combining conservation tillage (CT) and no fertilization, irrespective of irrigation. This study shows that SWAT-C can be used to simulate land use and management impacts on SOC dynamics.

Automated summary

This study employs SWAT-C to simulate organic carbon (OC) losses from soils in the Upper Maurice Watershed. The findings reveal that surface runoff is the main contributor to dissolved OC (DOC) load, while erosion induced by surface runoff is linked to particulate OC (POC) load. Agricultural land-use types exhibit the highest OC loads, and management practices play a dominant role in determining soil OC losses. Full irrigation, no-till (NT), and full fertilization result in maximal soil OC sequestration, while combining conservation tillage (CT) and no fertilization leads to the largest soil OC depletion.