Impact of Land Use On The Variability of Soil Attributes Within Distinct Amazonian Environments

Abstract

\n Changes in soil attributes caused by the conversion of native forest for agricultural use in the Amazon region is an area of research because of current uncertainties regarding land use and occupation processes. These uncertainties are significant for tropical soils. Understanding changes in soil attributes is vital for developing strategies to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in the Amazon region. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of land use on soil attribute variability occurring in distinctly Amazonian environments. This study was conducted using five meshes in Southern Amazonas: Forest 1, cassava, sugarcane, Forest 2, and Archeological Dark Earth (ADE). Descriptive statistical, geostatistical, and multivariate analyses were performed on data obtained from local measurements of CO2 emissions and data obtained from physical and chemical analysis of soil layers up to a depth of 20 cm. Most physical, chemical, and biological attributes of the soil were related to land use classifications. The similarity between cultivated and forested areas yielded no evidence of land degradation resulting from land use. Increasing certain physical attributes total porosity (PT), soil moisture (SM), and Macroporosity (Macro) yielded a greater increase in the CO2 efflux for ADE and Amazon forest environments than for cultivated regions.