Browsing by Author "Acevedo, Sara E."

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    A comparative study of soil metal concentrations in Chilean urban parks using four pollution indexes
    (2022) Vega, Alejandra; Arce, Guillermo; Rivera, Javier I.; Acevedo, Sara E.; Reyes Paecke, Sonia; Bonilla, Carlos A.; Pasten Gonzalez, Pablo Arturo; CEDEUS (Chile)
    Toxic metal enrichment in urban soils from natural and anthropogenic sources is a public health concern thatchallenges sustainable urban development. Active and legacy mining is likely a major contributor of localizedmetal pollution in resource-based economies, although other sources associated with industrial and trans-portation activities may also contribute in urban settings. In mining countries, such as Chile, with no soil qualityregulation, public policies that seek to protect human health should assess metal distribution and pollution in-dexes to guide interventions, especially in urban green spaces. To assess the role of active and legacy miningwaste sites within the urban and peri-urban areas, metal concentrations in the soils of urban parks weremeasured in this study, and four pollution indexes were calculated for four cities of Chile. Copiap ́o and Andacolloin northern Chile represented the cities with several active and legacy mining waste sites located within theurban and peri-urban areas, while conurbation La Serena-Coquimbo and Gran Santiago represented the cities inmining districts that lacked major mining waste sites within their urban perimeters. A total of 82 (Copiap ́o), 30(Andacollo), 26 (La Serena-Coquimbo), and 59 (Gran Santiago) composite surface soil samples were collectedfrom the urban parks. Considering Canadian guidelines for residential/parkland soils, the value for Cu (63 mg/kg) was found to be exceeded in 99%, 50%, 100%, and 97% of samples collected from Copiap ́o, La Serena-Coquimbo, Andacollo, and Gran Santiago, respectively. The guidelines for lead (140 mg/kg) and zinc (250mg/kg) were exceeded in less than 12% of samples collected from Copiap ́o and Gran Santiago. Arsenic was notmainly quantified (<10% quantification frequency, quantification limit = 36 mg/kg). The calculated modifiedpollution load, Nemerow, and soil quality indexes indicated that soils in the urban parks were more polluted incities with urban mine wastes, however, the pollution load index ranked higher metal pollution in Gran Santiago.This study presented the first comparative study of metals in urban parks of Chile, highlighting a large proportionof parks with soil copper concentrations above the international guidelines, while showing higher median values in cities containing urban mine waste disposal sites.
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    Changes in macroaggregate stability as a result of wetting/drying cycles of soils with different organic matter and clay contents
    (2024) Melej, Maria Jesus; Acevedo, Sara E.; Contreras, Cristina P.; Giraldo, Carolina, V; Maurer, Tessa; Calderon, Francisco J.; Bonilla, Carlos A.
    The wetting-drying (WD) cycles, caused by natural or anthropogenic processes such as rainfall or irrigation, can affect many soil properties. Among these properties, soil aggregate stability has been introduced as a convenient soil health indicator because of its relation to the soil's primary particles (sand, silt, and clay) and organic matter content (OM). However, previous studies have shown erratic effects depending on soil type and WD cycle setup when measuring aggregate stability. Therefore, this study aimed to characterize the soil primary particles composition and organic matter (OM) content of macroaggregates and measure the effects of WD cycles on aggregate stability. A series of soils with distinctive properties, such as OM and clay contents from five different USDA textural classes (loam, sandy loam, silty clay loam, silty loam, and clay loam) were used. Particle size distribution, OM, and mass fraction were measured in three aggregate size classes (2-1 mm, 1-0.5 mm, and 0.5-0.25 mm), and isolated aggregates were exposed to 3, 6, and 12 wetting and drying cycles. The main results indicate that soils with a high OM content have macroaggregates with finer particles, and the OM in soils is linearly related to the macroaggregate OM content. For 2-1 mm aggregates, a statistically significant reduction (p < 0.05) of water-stable aggregates compared to the control sample (0 cycles) was observed for every cycle, with reduction values between 4.8-7.3 %. An increase was observed only between 6-12 cycles (1.84 %). Additionally, statistically significant reductions were observed after the first three cycles in 1-0.5 mm aggregates and the first six in 0.5-0.25 mm aggregates. Finally, the macroaggregates were more resistant to the WD cycles when their clay and OM contents increased or the soil pH decreased. This study provides high-resolution results of macroaggregate particle size distribution and OM. It relates them to the effects of WD cycles in water-stable aggregates and soils with different land uses.
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    Effect of data availability and pedotransfer estimates on water flow modelling in wildfire-affected soils
    (2023) Acevedo, Sara E.; Martinez, Sofia I.; Contreras, Cristina P.; Bonilla, Carlos A.
    Understanding the impact of wildfires on soils exposed to fire is critical, especially in the current climate sce-nario, where an increase in the occurrence of wildfires is expected. Near-surface soil physical properties are affected by temperature increases caused by wildfires; therefore, changes in the soil water retention curve (SWRC) are expected. Parameters describing the SWRC can be obtained either by measuring or deriving using pedotransfer functions (PTF). However, PTFs have been developed using data from agricultural soils without major heating events; therefore, it is uncertain whether the estimation of parameters in fire-affected soils is reliable. This study evaluated changes in the hydraulic properties of near-surface soil due to fire during three wildfire events of different magnitudes. The objectives were: a) to identify changes in soil properties and SWRC due to wildfires, b) to assess the PTF performance (Rosetta versions 1, 2, and 3) of non-affected and fire-affected soils and (c) to evaluate changes in SWRC due to wildfires and water flow behavior changes through modelling using the HYDRUS-1D model. Decreases in organic matter (OM) and Ksat and increases in pH and bulk density (BD) were observed in fire-affected soils compared to non-affected soils. Based on sand, silt, clay, bulk density, and field capacity, Rosetta version 1 had the lowest values of root-mean-square error for the entire range of suctions, although it did not accurately estimate theta s or Ksat. Among Rosetta's estimations, Ksat showed the highest variations, which were more marked in fire-affected soils, when measured values were 15.85 cm d-1 while those estimated were 79.14 cm d-1 on average. The implications for hydrologic modelling were translated into lower annual water content and higher infiltration when using Rosetta inputs compared to inputs based on the measured SWRC.
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    Effects of soil heating changes on soil hydraulic properties in Central Chile
    (2024) Giraldo, Carolina V.; Acevedo, Sara E.; Contreras, Cristina P.; Santibanez, Fernando; Saez, Esteban; Calderon, Francisco J.; Bonilla, Carlos A.
    Wildfires are natural phenomena for most ecosystems on Earth. Many soil properties are impacted by fire, including soil hydraulic properties. We used a laboratory experiment to replicate the temperatures reached by a natural wildfire and documented the effects on soil hydraulic properties. This study hypothesizes that the impact of heating on soil hydrological properties can be explained by the interaction of a number of variables especially organic matter content (OM), cation exchange capacity (CEC), texture, pH, and electrical conductivity (EC). The main objective of this study is to explore the interconnections between soil hydraulic, chemical, and physical properties, focusing on understanding how these relationships change across different ecoregions and temperatures. Sixteen soils were collected across 16 sites susceptible to forest fires in the Central Zone of Chile and heated to 100 degrees C and 300 degrees C for two hours. These sites were representative of two distinct ecoregions: the Chilean Matorral (CM) and the Valdivian Temperate Forests (VTF). Chemical, physical, and hydraulic soil properties were measured before and after heating. At 100 degrees C, there were no significant changes in chemical, physical, or hydraulic soil properties. At 300 degrees C, significant changes were observed in most soil properties in soils from both ecoregions. The OM content and CEC decreased, whereas pH and electrical conductivity increased. In addition, clay content and water aggregate stability (WSA) decreased, while all hydraulic properties increased their values. The aforementioned results demonstrate that infiltration increased after the soil was heated. This can be attributed primarily to decreases in clay content. At the same time, the water repellency (R) index decreased, allowing water to more easily wet the soil particles. Correlations revealed that CEC and clay are the main factors ruling soil hydraulic properties at all temperatures. Clay mineralogy also contributes to the soil hydraulic behavior observed. Nonlinear models were developed to estimate hydraulic properties at 100 degrees C and 300 degrees C, using the main soil properties. The models illustrated that the soils of the CM ecoregion, which are characterized by lower OM and influence of clay/CEC ratio, would be less affected by fire compared to the soils of VTF. The water holding capacity would decrease in both ecoregions. However, due to the greater changes in OM and clay in VTF, the impact would be greater than in CM.1
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    The R package infiltrodiscR: A package for infiltrometer data analysis and an experience for improving data reproducibility in soil physics
    (2024) V. Giraldo, Carolina; Acevedo, Sara E.; Bonilla, Carlos A.
    This paper discusses the interest in utilizing R, a programming language, in soil physics for enhanced data reproducibility. Reproducibility is challenging across scientific disciplines, including soil science, and it is encouraged by demands for transparency from funding bodies and governments. Open and reproducible soil physics research can benefit the scientific community. With a focus on open science practices, the authors developed {infiltrodiscR}, leveraging existing R knowledge in soil physics. The package facilitates analysis of infiltration data, demonstrated through analysing changes in infiltration using published data. Results align with previous findings, showcasing {infiltrodiscR}'s potential in promoting reproducibility in soil science research.