Tag Archives: water storage capacity

385-396 G. Várallyay
The impact of climate change on soils and on their water management
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The impact of climate change on soils and on their water management

G. Várallyay

Research Institute for Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry (RISSAC) of theHungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest; e-mail: g.varallyay@rissac.hu

Abstract:

Human activities result in changes in the global environment, sometimes with severe consequences for our future life. Changes in the gas composition of the atmosphere – partly due to CO2 and ‘greenhouse gases’ emission – may lead to a rise in temperature with high spatial and temporal variability, to alterations in the global circulation processes, and to a serious rearrangement of atmospheric precipitation, increasing aridity in some locations. These modifications are reflected sensitively by ecosystems (natural vegetation and land use pattern) and by considerable alterations in soil formation and degradation processes, in soil properties and soil functions.The potential impacts of the forecasted climate change reservoirs are briefly summarizedin the present paper with special regard to soil water management, soil moisture regime and their influences on the main soil degradation processes. Based on this analysis, conclusions are drawn regarding the possibilities of sustainable soil moisture and the required measures of rational control: increasing water use efficiency; reducing evaporation, surface runoff, seepage and filtration losses; increasing water storage capacity and available moisture range of soils.

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