Browsing by Author "Rawlins, B. G."

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    Spatio-temporal variability of some metal concentrations in the soil of eastern England, and implications for soil monitoring.
    (Elsevier, 2006-08) Lark, R. Murray; Bellamy, Patricia H.; Rawlins, B. G.
    Previous workers have proposed the use of multivariate geostatistics for the problem of estimating temporal change in soil properties for soil monitoring, but this has yet to be evaluated. We present a case study of this approach from the Humber–Trent region in North East England. We extracted data from two sources on cobalt, nickel and vanadium concentrations in the topsoil on two dates. Auto-variograms were estimated for each metal on each date, and pseudo cross-variograms for each metal on the two dates. It was shown that robust estimators of the auto and pseudo cross-variograms were needed for the analysis of these data. A linear model of coregionalization was then fitted to describe the spatio-temporal variability of each metal.
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    Technologies for increasing carbon storage in soil to mitigate climate change
    (Wiley, 2014-04-23) Whitmore, A. P.; Kirk, Guy J. D.; Rawlins, B. G.
    Means to enhance storage of carbon in soil or avoid its loss from soil are discussed and examined from the viewpoint of policy. In particular, technologies that have until now received little attention are assessed. The main means by which soil carbon might be increased are first listed. These are the following: (i) increasing the rate of input of organic matter; (ii) decreasing the rate of its decomposition by biological or chemical means; (iii) increasing the rate of its stabilization by physico-chemical protection within aggregates and organo-mineral complexes; and (iv) increasing the depth or more correctly the total soil volume sequestering carbon at maximum rate. Immediate gains in carbon storage might be made by switching to more perennial crops, especially grasses that, as a result of breeding, are able to put more carbon into soil. In the longer term, targets for research such as understanding the role of enzymes in carbon turnover and the exploitation of the capacity in subsoils are suggested. Increased fixation of CO2 as inorganic carbonate in soils by application of silicate wastes may have some role.