Cambios en la Química de los Suelos Forestales de Centroeuropea: Acidificación y eutrofización

Madrid

2004

285-295

SonderdruckBandaufführung

9570S

120642

We present changes in soil calcium and nitrogen that are direct consequences of anthropogenic emissions. Whithin only 15 years the soils of the Weilhartsforst (north of Austria) have lost a large part of the exchangeable calcium and the base saturation dropped from 25 to 5 %. The soils were acidified and are now within the aluminum buffer range. The main incentive to maintain high levels of soil calcium is the ensurance of the chemical groundwater quality and to a lesser degree the effect of calcium on tree growth. - Nitrogen is often the limiting factor for forest productivity. In historical forms of land-use, forests were providing nutrients for livestock and manifold materials that are now generated by the chemical industry. Hence, the nitrogen stocks of central European forest ecosystems were often depleted. Since several decades the forests receive large quantities of nitrogen from atmospheric deposition. Together with climate change it causes the acceleration of the forest growth rate. The additional growth may cause problems in the future, such as elevated nitrate concentrations in the groundwater and the exceedance of the possible nutrient supply from poor forest soils. However, until now the critical levels of nitrogen have not been reached yet and forests are utilizing the available nitrogen efficiently.