Soil moisture content as a predictor of soil disturbance caused by wheeled forest harvesting machines on soils of the Western Carpathians

Limiting surface soil disturbance caused by forest harvesting machines is an important task and is influenced by the selection of efficient and reliable predictors of such disturbance. Our objective was to determine whether soil moisture content affects soil load bearing capacity and the formation o...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of forestry research Vol. 28; no. 2; pp. 283 - 289
Main Authors Allman, Michal, Jankovský, Martin, Messingerová, Valéria, Allmanová, Zuzana
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.03.2017
Springer
Springer Nature B.V
Department of Forest Harvesting, Logistics and Ameliorations, Faculty of Forestry, Technical University in Zvolen, T.G. Masaryka 24, 96053 Zvolen, Slovakia
Subjects
Analysis
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Correlation analysis
Forest harvesting
Forest management
Forest soils
Forestry
Gravimetry
Life Sciences
Machinery
Magneto-electric machines
Moisture content
Original Paper
Plastic properties
Regression analysis
Soil bearing capacity
Soil moisture
Soils
Carpathian Mountains
Forest harvesting erosion
Soil bearing capacity
Gravimetric sampling
Atterberg plasticity limit
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Limiting surface soil disturbance caused by forest harvesting machines is an important task and is influenced by the selection of efficient and reliable predictors of such disturbance. Our objective was to determine whether soil moisture content affects soil load bearing capacity and the formation of ruts. Measurements were conducted in six forest stands where various machines operated. We measured the formation of ruts along skid trails in connection with varying soil moisture content. Soil moisture content was determined through the gravimetric sampling method. Our results showed that severe（rut depth16–25 cm） to very severe disturbance（rut depth [26 cm）occurred in forest stands where the instantaneous soil moisture exceeded its plasticity limits defined through Atterberg limits. Atterberg limits of soil plasticity ranged from 26 to 32 % in individual stands. Regression and correlation analysis confirmed a moderately strong relationship（R = 0.52; p ／ 0.05） between soil moisture content and average rut depth. This confirmed that soil moisture is a suitable and effective predictor of soil disturbance.
Bibliography:23-1409/S
disturbance moisture machines stands plasticity harvesting predictor moderately operated limits
Limiting surface soil disturbance caused by forest harvesting machines is an important task and is influenced by the selection of efficient and reliable predictors of such disturbance. Our objective was to determine whether soil moisture content affects soil load bearing capacity and the formation of ruts. Measurements were conducted in six forest stands where various machines operated. We measured the formation of ruts along skid trails in connection with varying soil moisture content. Soil moisture content was determined through the gravimetric sampling method. Our results showed that severe（rut depth16–25 cm） to very severe disturbance（rut depth [26 cm）occurred in forest stands where the instantaneous soil moisture exceeded its plasticity limits defined through Atterberg limits. Atterberg limits of soil plasticity ranged from 26 to 32 % in individual stands. Regression and correlation analysis confirmed a moderately strong relationship（R = 0.52; p ／ 0.05） between soil moisture content and average rut depth. This confirmed that soil moisture is a suitable and effective predictor of soil disturbance.
ISSN:1007-662X
1993-0607
DOI:10.1007/s11676-016-0326-y