Numerical and observational studies have documented the climatic importance of land surface variability, especially in soil moisture and surface roughness. Land surface representations within global c h a t e models, however, have been based on global vegetation data sets that characterize the surface as invariant at scales smaller than about (100 km12. Within climate model grid areas, the vege...

The variance budget of land surface hydrological quantities is analyzed in the second Atmospheric Model Intercomparison Project (AMIP2) simulation made with the Canadian Centre for Climate Modelling and Analysis (CCCma) third-generation general circulation model (AGCM3). The land surface parameterization in this model is the comparatively sophisticated Canadian Land Surface Scheme (CLASS). Seco...

This roadmap identifies research topics to be addressed within the SCAPE project between M24 and M38. It provides a general overview of research goals addressed in the R&D work packages in the project, and analyses topics emerging in the cross-section of these and the open issues identified in the general roadmap. We furthermore provide a report on the outcomes of a workshop on Open Research Ch...

Soil quality has been significantly degraded in the Loess Plateau of China by soil erosion. Our objectives were to (i) identify regional-scale soil quality factors (groupings), (ii) select soil attributes within these factors that can be used as indicators of soil quality, and (iii) determine the impact of land use on these soil quality factors and indicators for the Loess Plateau in China. Soi...

Facing widespread poverty and land degradation, Vietnam started a land reform in 1993 as part of its renovation policy package known as “Doi Moi”. This paper examines the impacts of improved land tenure security, via this land reform, on manure use by farm households. As manure potentially improves soil fertility by adding organic matter and nutrients to the soil surface, it might contribute to...

The interactions between soil invertebrates and land use and management are fundamental for soil quality assessment but remain largely unaddressed. The aim of this study was to evaluate the changes in soil arthropod community of an entisol brought about by different land use systems under semiarid climate in Pernambuco State, Brazil. The soil invertebrate community was sampled using pitfall tra...

Optimized land resource management depends on reliable and detailed information describing the spatial distribution of soils, geology, topography, and land use. Soillandscapes are three-dimensional (3D) systems commonly represented using 2D maps utilizing geographic information systems. Addressing 3D soil-landscape reality is crucial for land resource management in terms of crop growth and tran...

Twenty eight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined for a total of 203 top soil samples collected from eight different land categories in Shenzhen, China during the winter of 2007. The concentrations, compositional profile, and the potential sources of PAHs in soil were discussed. Overall, PAH pollution in the soil of Shenzhen is still in the low-end of the world after 30 years...