Carbon sequestration in rehabilitated quarries with sewage sludge-amended soil

Authors

  • Robert Gonzalez-Campistany Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
  • Vicenç Carabassa-Closa Centre de Recerca Ecològica i Aplicacions Forestals (CREAF)
  • Josep M. Alcañiz-Baldellou Centre de Recerca Ecològica i Aplicacions Forestals (CREAF); Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

Keywords:

carbon sequestration, rehabilitation of mined sites, soil remediation, sewage sludge.

Abstract

The current issue of climate change requires a search for viable alternatives to try to alleviate it. One of the many options is to contribute to the reduction of atmospheric CO2 sequestering carbon (C) in the soil. Rehabilitation of degraded areas, such as those affected by mining activities, increases the amount of organic C sequestered in the soil when these areas are recovered. In this paper, quantitative and qualitative changes over a period of 18 years in soil organic C of a dolomitic limestone quarry are presented. This site was partially rehabilitated by using a mixture of the local (control) soil amended with sewage sludge or soil alone. The study compares samples collected in November 1996 and others in the spring of 2014. Of these, the C oxidizable with potassium dichromate (total organic C) and other more stable C fractions, such as C non-hydrolysable with hydrochloric acid and C insoluble in alkaline media (humin), were analyzed. The results show that the content of organic C in sludge-treated plots and control plots has increased significantly after 18 years. It has also been observed that the sewage sludge-treated soils have higher values of insoluble C and recalcitrant C than the control plots. Thus, considering the period 1996-2014, soil rehabilitation using sewage sludge represents a net sequestration of 26 MgC·ha-1 compared to 19 MgC·ha-1 in the control plots. Therefore, the application of sewage sludge can help to accelerate and to increase carbon sequestration in soils of rehabilitated mining sites.

Keywords: carbon sequestration, rehabilitation of mined sites, soil remediation, sewage sludge.

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Issue

No. 42: juny 2017

Section

Articles

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