Chloride movement in a de-watered saline soil profile

Bourgault du Coudray, P.L., Williamson, D.R. and Scott, W.D. (1994) Chloride movement in a de-watered saline soil profile. In: Proceedings of the Third Triennial Western Australian Soil Science Conference: Soils '94, 7 - 9 September, Busselton, Western Australia pp. 135-142.

Abstract

Surface ripping affected the downward movement of water and solutes within a saline dewatered duplex soil profile near Kellerberrin. Prior to ripping, 63% of the total rainfall ended up as runoff and there was little evidence from tensiometric measurements and soil solution samples of significant downward flows of water below a depth of 0.3m. Following ripping to a depth of 0.2m to break a near surface hard layer: runoff was reduced to around 13%; there was some change in soil matrix potential; some leaching of the surface soil occurred; and several preferred water fluxes were intercepted at a depth of 1.5m. These intercepted fluxes were recorded shortly after (<1hr) high intensity rainfall greater than 20mm, suggesting post ripping flow through macropores. The initial chloride storage in the profile was 162t ha-1, approximately 5t ha-1 chloride was leached during the field study (3%). The main leaching mechanism before ripping was runoff (0.5t ha-1). After ripping, flow through macropores and mesopores accounted for 0.5t ha-1 , runoff 0.09t ha-1 with the rest redistributed through the soil matrix.

Item Type:	Conference Paper
Murdoch Affiliation(s):	School of Environmental Science
Publisher:	Australian Society of Soil Science Inc (WA Branch)
URI:	http://researchrepository.murdoch.edu.au/id/eprint/27034

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