Urban Soils

Compacted Urban Soils and their Remediation

The effects of urbanization on soil structure can be extensive. Infiltration of rain water through soils can be greatly reduced, plus the benefits of infiltration and biofiltration devices can be severely jeopardized. Our research group (along with others), have been studying disturbed urban soils for several decades, both in the laboratory and in the field. The effects of compaction on infiltr...

A review of heavy metal contaminations in urban soils, urban road dusts and agricultural soils from China

Distribution Ratios of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Urban Soils

Distribution ratios and sources of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), including Fluoranthene (Flt), Pyrene (Pyr), Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP), Benzo(k)fluoranthene (BkP), Indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene (IP), Benzo(ghi)perylene (BgP) in urban surface and subsurface soil collected from Riyadh city, Saudi Arabia was studied. The sum of the six PAHs ranged from 30.5-1016.6 ng g -1 with an average of 286.6 i...

Chemical, Physical, and Biological Characteristics of Urban Soils

Urban soils provide an array of ecosystem services to inhabitants of cities and towns. Urbanization affects soils and their capacity to provide ecosystem services directly through disturbance and management (e.g., irrigation) and indirectly through changes in the environment (e.g., heat island effect and pollution). Both direct and indirect effects contribute to form a mosaic of soil conditions...

Rapid Removal of Atmospheric CO2 by Urban Soils.

The measured calcium carbonate content of soils to a depth of 100 mm at a large urban development site has increased over 18 months at a rate that corresponds to the sequestration of 85 t of CO2/ha (8.5 kg of CO2 m(-2)) annually. This is a consequence of rapid weathering of calcium silicate and hydroxide minerals derived from the demolition of concrete structures, which releases Ca that combine...