Assessing and modeling the impacts of treated municipal biosolid amendments on spruce plantation nutrition and growth in Nova Scotia, Canada

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The primary objective of this project is to develop a forest nutrient management decision support tool to promote sustainable forest management in Nova Scotia, with applicability elsewhere in Atlantic Canada. A secondary objective is to evaluate the potential for using alkaline-stabilized municipal biosolids as a potential soil amendment to help remediate the impacts of acid deposition and calcium depletion in eastern Canadian forest soils. These objectives will be met by: (i) calibration and validation of the forest ecosystem, stand-level growth model FORECAST for use in Nova Scotia; (ii) conducting two comprehensive field trials using alkaline-stabilized biosolids on white spruce plantations and integrating results into FORECAST modelling; (iii) conducting a series of forest soil and alkaline amendment incubation trials and integrating results into FORECAST modelling; (iv) conducting an operational and economic analysis of methods to apply alkaline-stabilized biosolids in Nova Scotia spruce plantations; (v) using FORECAST to evaluate the sustainability of projected yields under current plantation management practices in Nova Scotia; and (vi) using FORECAST to evaluate the nutrient sustainability of alternative plantation management regimes, including those with biosolids fertilization.