EFFECT OF DIFFERENT LAND USES ON SOIL ORGANIC CARBON IN NEW ALLUVIAL BELT OF WEST BENGAL

Abstract

The soil organic carbon (SOC) is recognized as the key indicator of soil health. For sustainable soil and environmental management, information on SOC content of different land use types is essential. This study thus aimed to determine the impact of different land uses (forest, pasture and cultivated lands) on SOC content as well as with a few physicochemical properties and to determine interrelationships between SOC and physicochemical properties of the soil of productive new alluvial belt of Nadia district of West Bengal. A total of 30 surface soil samples were taken from 3 different land uses of forest, pasture, and cultivated lands; processed and analyzed for SOC and other physicochemical properties with standard methods. Additional core samples were collected for determination of bulk density of soil. Statistical analysis showed a significant difference in SOC content as well as other properties among the studied land uses. The average SOC content were found as 7.42, 5.64 and 3.24 g kg-1 for forest, pasture, and cultivated lands respectively. Addition of plant residues on the surface of forest soils and their reduced rate of disturbance is responsible for this high SOC content in forest soil. The SOC content showed significant correlation with available nitrogen (r = 0.918, P ≤ 0.01), pH (r = -0.584, P ≤ 0.05), BD (r = -0.652, P ≤ 0.05). It was found that land use has a significant effect on SOC in soil by altering natural soil characteristics under the same ecological conditions for maintaining and sustaining soil health and our data suggest that forest soil is healthier than other land uses.