SUPERVISOR: Christine STUMPP

PROJECT ASSIGNED TO: Márton TÓTH

Soils are important ecosystems and are relevant for food and water security. However, intense agriculture and climate change have increased the vulnerability of soils. The FAO recognized that the most significant threats to soil function are soil erosion, loss of soil organic carbon, and nutrient imbalance1 also having severe consequences for river water quality. In Austria, 13% of the agricultural land and more than 5% of the total territory are potentially at high risk of erosion by water2. Unsustainable land management practices affect the soil degradation processes. Tillage-based crop production systems and simplified crop rotations affect soil nutrient availability. The improper application of fertilizers and inappropriate irrigation practices, overstocking, overgrazing, and burning of rangelands have similar effects 3.

The appointed research targets in assessing and increasing the soil quality and thus mitigating negative consequences for river systems. Therefore, the impact of different long-term agricultural practices on soil degradation processes in Lower Austria will be investigated. Chemical, biological, and physical soil properties of different tillage systems from long-term experiments will be determine and compared and its consequences on soil degradation and hydrological processes analyzed.

The objectives of this research are:

(i) Developing an indicator, which can describe the soil quality, soil conservation, and soil water management status.

(ii) Modeling of the hydrological processes at the plot and catchment scale.

(iii) Statistical analysis of newly measured data and data from long-term experiments, which were carried out by the Austrian Federal Agency for Water Management.

This research is funded by the project TUdi, "Transforming Unsustainable management of soils in key agricultural systems in EU and China. Developing an integrated platform of alternatives to reverse soil degradation". The project is in close cooperation with the Austrian Federal Agency for Water Management and international partners in the EU, China, and New Zealand.

The outcomes of this thesis will represent the goals of the project TUdi. The results will be significant for the farmers and other stakeholders in developing strategies for sustainable agricultural management in the future. For HR21, the project is of relevance because improved soil health will reduce the export of sediments and nutrients to rivers.

1 FAO. The greatest challenge of the soil erosion. Rome (2019) 7-60.

2 Strauss P., Klaghofer E. (2006): Status of Soil erosion in Austria in book: Soil Erosion in Europe. 205-212.

3 www.fao.org/climate-smart-agriculture-sourcebook/production_resources/moduleb7-soil/chapter-b7-3/en