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Soil Bulk Density Lab Report
Soil Bulk Density Lab Report
Dana Kelly
2. Methodology
2.1 Site Description
Stockton University’s campus in Galloway, New Jersey was chosen for the study area due
to the variety of disturbances found throughout (Figure 2.1.1). Located within the Pinelands, this
area receives about 44 inches of precipitation a year. An average of 24 inches of that evaporates
into the air or comes from vegetation and an additional 2 to 3 inches runs off the land into the
nearest water body. Around 17 to 19 inches of the 44 inches works its way into the shallow
aquifer. The average temperature ranges from a July average of 74°F to 30°F in January. Annual
snowfall averages 16 inches. The soil type in the area was determined to be atsion series soil
using the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Web Soil Survey. With a parent
material of sandy marine sediments, atsion soil works to leach iron compounds which prevents it
from entering waterbodies in excess and harming other natural processes such as the process of
forming iron bog. The disturbance levels varied from 1-8+, as determined based on the sliding
scale in Figure 2.1.2.
Figure 2.1.1
Site Map
Figure 2.1.2
Table 2.3.1
Dunn Test P-Value Results
Disturbance High Low Moderate Very Low
Low 0.154523
3. Results
Based on p-values retrieved from the Dunn test, it was determined the biggest variances
in soil bulk density can be found when comparing high disturbance areas and low disturbance
areas. The difference between bulk density between high and moderate disturbance areas was
determined to be relatively small (p=0.582), as were the differences between high and very high
use soils (p=.422349). Unexpectedly, differences between moderate and very low disturbance
areas were also small (P = .55). Nevertheless, results were consistent with the hypothesis; areas
of very high disturbance had the highest soil bulk density, an indicator of low soil quality (mean
of ~1.15kg/ha and standard deviation of .23) and areas of very low disturbance had the lowest
soil bulk density (mean of ~0.30 kg/ha standard deviation of .34).
Figure 3.1
Average Soil Bulk Densities with a Standard Deviation of 0.5 at Varying Disturbance Levels
4. Discussion
The Stockton University Galloway Campus may be causing soil degradation in various
areas throughout as observed by the high soil bulk densities found in very high, high, and
moderate disturbance areas. Atison soil is sandy, which (Table 4.1) suggests the ideal bulk
density for plant growth to be >1.80. While no averages reach that number, it’s clear that the
areas of higher use are slowly approaching it and evidence from past studies suggests that bulk
density will continue to increase with use. Should these areas continue to be in use, root
restriction may occur. Further, the areas of high disturbance create higher levels of runoff. With a
location that’s adjacent to several on campus parking lots, this can affect the amount of pollutants
able to travel to nearby water bodies as well as accelerate erosion.
Table 4.1
General Relationship of Soil Bulk Density to Root Growth Based on Soil Texture
Soil Texture Ideal bulk densities for Bulk densities that restrict
plant growth (g/cm3) root growth (g/cm3)
Nevertheless, assuming based on averages soil bulk density isn’t extremely degraded in
the studied area on campus, remediation would be relatively easy. Introduction of native plant
species can improve quality and reduce impact. Alternatively, paths altered to avoid areas
reaching extreme degradation.
5. Conclusion
High soil bulk density is indicative of low soil porosity and soil compaction, resulting in
poor quality soil that restricts proper movement of air and water flow. This can lead to inhibited
root growth, increased runoff, accelerated erosion, and a variety of other negative ecological side
effects. To determine how soil bulk density is impacted by disturbance, four sites of varying
disturbance on Stockton University’s Galloway Campus were chosen for the acquiring of 36
samples of atison series soil. After determining soil bulk densities, nonparametric statistical
analyses were performed to determine differences. It was found that areas of very high
disturbance were of the soil poorest quality, followed closely by high and moderate use areas.
However, none of the areas had soil bulk densities that restricted root growth, suggesting
remediation of impact wouldn’t be difficult.
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