Assessment of Impact of Anthropogenic Disturbances on Soil Characteristics in the Sub-tropical Forests of Aizawl, Mizoram

Madhurima; B P Mishra

doi:10.17485/IJST/v16sp1.msc22

Article

Assessment of Impact of Anthropogenic Disturbances on Soil Characteristics in the Sub-tropical Forests of Aizawl, Mizoram

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Indian Journal of Science and Technology

DOI: 10.17485/IJST/v16sp1.msc22

Year: 2023, Volume: 16, Issue: Special Issue 1, Pages: 158-164

Original Article

Assessment of Impact of Anthropogenic Disturbances on Soil Characteristics in the Sub-tropical Forests of Aizawl, Mizoram

Madhurima^1*, B P Mishra²

¹Research Scholar, Department of Environmental Science, Mizoram University, Aizawl, Mizoram, India
²Professor, Department of Environmental Science, Mizoram University, Aizawl, Mizoram, India

*Corresponding Author
Email: [email protected]

Received Date:23 January 2023, Accepted Date:09 June 2023, Published Date:10 September 2023

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

Objectives: Soil degradation has become a global concern. Understanding the soil health is necessary as it plays a crucial role in conserving the forest resources, along with ensuring food security in the twenty-first century. The study area under investigation has witnessed drastic change in land use given the anthropogenic activity like agricultural and developmental activity. Therefore, this study aims to understand the impact of these disturbances on soil characteristics. Methods: To understand the effect of anthropogenic disturbance on the soil of sub-tropical forest in Aizawl district, each soil profile was analyzed for texture, soil moisture content (SOM), soil organic content (SOC), soil organic matter (SOM), available nitrogen (AN), available potassium (AK) and available phosphorus (AP). The correlation was applied among the physical and chemical properties of soil samples. Findings: There values varied from undisturbed to disturbed stand for pH (5.06-5.53), SMC (18.5-30.71), SOC (.552-1.43), SOM (-0.949-2.431) BD (0.9-1.22), AN (40.39 to 108.71kg/ha), AK (69.72 to 108.59kg/ha) and AP (0.281 to 0.851kg/ha). The findings reveal that there is disturbance affects the physical and chemical properties of soil. Novelty: and therefore we need to adapt the management strategies that are specific to requirements of the sites.

Keywords: Anthropogenic Disturbance; Agriculture; Desertification; Soil degradation; Soil health

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© 2023 Madhurima & Mishra. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Published By Indian Society for Education and Environment (iSee)