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Sustainability
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Advancing Water and Soil Sustainability with Integrative Approaches
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Advancing Water and Soil Sustainability with Integrative Approaches

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Engineering and Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 May 2025 | Viewed by 2497

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Xiaokai Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Environment and Ecology, Jiangnan University, Wuxi 214122, China
Interests: environmental risk assessment; water and soil remediation; biochar
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce a new Special Issue titled “Advancing Water and Soil Sustainability with Integrative Approaches” in the journal Sustainability. In recent decades, environmental issues have emerged as the most significant challenge for sustainable development and public health worldwide. The excessive discharge of chemicals into the environment, coupled with the unsustainable use of resources, has placed immense pressure on water and soil health and led to environmental degradation. The pollution and degradation caused by human activities damage ecosystems, reduce agricultural yields, and threaten human health. Thus, it is essential to identify effective methods for assessing environmental problems and implementing appropriate solutions.

Environmental concerns are receiving increasing attention across various disciplines, including ecology, agriculture, biogeochemistry, soil science, and environmental science. Numerous strategies have been employed for environmental pollution risk assessment, remediation, and restoration. This Special Issue aims to highlight the progress made in enhancing the sustainability of water and soil environments. We invite reviews, original research papers and et cetera on, but not limited to, the following topics:

  • Risk assessment of water and soil pollution;
  • Remediation of water and soil pollution;
  • Geochemical behavior of pollutants;
  • Improvement of soil fertility;
  • Sustainable development of agricultural production.

Dr. Xiaokai Zhang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sustainability
  • water pollution
  • soil health
  • remediation techniques
  • pollution risk assessment
  • environmental degradation

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue polices can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 5759 KiB  
Article
Effect of Plow Pan on the Redistribution Dynamics of Water and Nutrient Transport in Soils
by Meng’en Zhang, Shuting Dai, Saima Gul, Lizhi He, Hanbo Chen and Dan Liu
Sustainability 2024, 16(20), 8859; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16208859 - 13 Oct 2024
Viewed by 985
Abstract
Plow pans are an essential part of the agricultural soil structure. By adjusting the soil bulk density and plow pan height, the water and nutrient transport are dynamically redistributed. Plow pans play a crucial role in promoting crop growth, increasing yields, and supporting [...] Read more.
Plow pans are an essential part of the agricultural soil structure. By adjusting the soil bulk density and plow pan height, the water and nutrient transport are dynamically redistributed. Plow pans play a crucial role in promoting crop growth, increasing yields, and supporting sustainable land management. In this study, a column experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of plow pan height (10 cm and 15 cm) and bulk density (1.2, 1.4, and 1.6 g cm⁻3) on soil nutrient and water leaching under high-volume (HV) and low-volume (LV) fertilizer applications. The results reveal that the leachate volume decreased by 61.9% at a plow pan height of 10 cm and by 96.2% at a plow pan height of 15 cm when the bulk density was increased from 1.2 to 1.4 g cm⁻3 under HV conditions. There was no leachate when the plow pan bulk density was 1.6 g cm−3. The reserved concentration of alkali-hydrolyzable N in the plow pan soils was the highest when the plow pan had a bulk density of 1.4 g cm−3 and a height of 15 cm. However, when the plow pan height was 15 cm, the available P content in the plow pan soils decreased by 27.0% and 21.0% at bulk densities of 1.4 g cm⁻3 and 1.6 g cm⁻3, respectively, when compared with 1.2 g cm⁻3. Furthermore, the available P concentrations in the plow pan and subsoil layers decreased with an increase in the plow pan height. The available K concentrations in the topsoil decreased by 26.8% and 24.0% when the plow pan bulk density was increased from 1.2 to 1.4 g cm−3 at heights of 10 and 15 cm, respectively. Thus, the optimal plow pan height and bulk density are closely related to the types of soil nutrients. However, it is clear that excessively high bulk densities (e.g., 1.6 g cm−3) negatively impact soil properties. For different nutrient requirements, a bulk density of 1.2 or 1.4 g cm−3 can be chosen, with each providing suitable options based on the specific nutrient needs. This research offers practical insights into changes in nutrient adsorption and fixation in agricultural production associated with alterations in plow pan bulk density. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advancing Water and Soil Sustainability with Integrative Approaches)
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13 pages, 2505 KiB  
Article
Effects of Combined Biochar and Chemical Fertilizer Application on Soil Fertility and Properties: A Two-Year Pot Experiment
by Xinyu Zhao, Lizhi He, Kun Geng, Haiyan Zhang, Jie Wang, Tao Gan, Xiali Mao and Xiaokai Zhang
Sustainability 2024, 16(20), 8780; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16208780 - 11 Oct 2024
Viewed by 1326
Abstract
A two-year pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of the combined application of biochar and chemical fertilizer on soil quality and vegetable growth by adding different proportions of chemical fertilizer and biochar to the soil in 2022 and no fertilizer in [...] Read more.
A two-year pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of the combined application of biochar and chemical fertilizer on soil quality and vegetable growth by adding different proportions of chemical fertilizer and biochar to the soil in 2022 and no fertilizer in 2023. It was concluded that the combined treatment improved the soil’s properties. After two consecutive years of planting vegetables, the improvement of soil properties was the most significant with the 1.5 g biochar + 80% chemical fertilizer optimal fertilizer application (BCF6) treatment. In comparison to the control (CK), soil pH, electrical conductivity, and dissolved organic carbon increased by 0.59 units, 166.6%, and 282.6%, respectively. Soil fertility also improved significantly, indicating that the combined treatments resulted in the slow release of nutrients to enhance the effectiveness of the fertilizers. Co-application significantly increased the yield of the edible parts of Chinese cabbage and improved its quality. The most significant effects of vitamin C content and soluble protein were observed in Chinese cabbage under BCF6 treatment, which were 3.33 and 1.42 times more than the CK, respectively. Utilizing biochar as a partial substitute for chemical fertilizers can improve soil structure and fertility over the long term while reducing the reliance on chemical fertilizers, ultimately providing sustained economic and ecological benefits for agricultural production. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advancing Water and Soil Sustainability with Integrative Approaches)
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