Development and application of multi-proxy indices of land use change for riparian soils in southern New England, USA.

Understanding the effects of land use on riparian systems is dependent upon the development of methodologies to recognize changes in sedimentation related to shifts in land use. Land use trends in southern New England consist of shifts from forested precolonial conditions, to colonial and agrarian land uses, and toward modern industrial-urban landscapes. The goals of this study were to develop a set of stratigraphic indices that reflect these land use periods and to illustrate their applications. Twenty-four riparian sites from first- and second-order watersheds were chosen for study. Soil morphological features, such as buried surface horizons (layers), were useful to identify periods of watershed instability. The presence of human artifacts and increases in heavy metal concentration above background levels, were also effective indicators of industrial-urban land use periods. Increases and peak abundance of non-arboreal weed pollen (Ambrosia) were identified as stratigraphic markers indicative of agricultural land uses. Twelve 14C dates from riparian soils indicated that the rise in non-arboreal pollen corresponds to the start of regional deforestation (AD 1749 +/- 56 cal yr; mean +/- 2 SD) and peak non-arboreal pollen concentration corresponds to maximum agricultural land use (AD 1820 +/- 51 cal yr). These indices were applied to elucidate the impact of land use on riparian sedimentation and soil carbon (C) dynamics. This analysis indicated that the majority of sediment and soil organic carbon (SOC) stored in regional riparian soils is of postcolonial origins. Mean net sedimentation rates increased -100-fold during postcolonial time periods, and net SOC sequestration rates showed an approximate 200-fold increase since precolonial times. These results suggest that headwater riparian zones have acted as an effective sink for alluvial sediment and SOC associated with postcolonial land use.

Effects of forested floodplain soil properties on phosphorous concentrations in two Chesapeake Bay sub-watersheds, Virginia, USA.

Aquatic ecosystems are known to undergo fluctuations in nutrient levels as a result of both natural and anthropogenic processes. Changes in both extrinsic and intrinsic fluvial dynamics necessitate constant monitoring as anthropogenic alterations exert new pressures to previously stable river basins. In this study, we analyzed stream water and riparian zone soil phosphorous (P) dynamics in two third-order sub-watersheds of the lower Chesapeake Bay in Virginia, USA. The Ni River is predominantly forested (70 % forested), and Sugarland Run is a more human impacted (>45 % impervious surfaces) sub-watershed located in the suburbs of Washington D.C. Total stream P concentrations were measured during both high and low flows and Mehlich-3 methods were used to evaluate potential P fluxes in riparian soils. The results show total stream P concentrations in Sugarland Run ranged from 0.002 to 0.20 ppm, with an average of 0.054 ppm. In contrast, the forested Ni River had typical stream P concentrations <0.01 ppm. Total soil P was significantly higher in the more urbanized Sugarland Run basin (23.8 ± 2.1 ppm) compared to the Ni River basin (16 ± 3.7 ppm). Average stream bank erosion rates and corresponding cut-bank P flux rates were estimated to be 7.98 cm year(-1) and 361 kg P year(-1) for Ni River and 9.84 cm year(-1) and 11,600 kg P year(-1) for Sugarland Run, respectively. The significantly higher values of total P in the stream water and floodplain cut-banks of Sugarland Run suggests erosion and resuspension of previously deposited legacy sediments is an important processes in this human-impacted basin.