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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Fayetteville, Arkansas » Poultry Production and Product Safety Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #337460
Research Project: Quantifying Air and Water Quality Benefits of Improved Poultry Manure Management Practices

Location: Poultry Production and Product Safety Research

Title: Effects of buffer strips and grazing management on soil loss from pastures

Author
item Moore, Philip
item PILON, CRIS - University Of Arkansas
item Pote, Daniel
item PENNINGTON, JOHN - Beaver Watershed Alliance
item Martin, Jerry
item Brauer, David
item Raper, Randy
item Dabney, Seth

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 1/8/2017
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Intensive grazing pressure can cause soil erosion from pastures causing increased sediment loading to aquatic systems. The objectives of this work were to determine the long-term effects of grazing management and buffer strips on soil erosion from pastures fertilized with broiler litter. Field studies were conducted for 12 years on 15 small watersheds. Five treatments were evaluated; hayed (H), continuously grazed (CG), rotationally grazed (R), rotationally grazed with a buffer strip (RB), and rotationally grazed with a fenced riparian buffer (RBR). Broiler litter was applied annually at a rate of 5.6 Mg ha-1. Bulk density increased with increasing grazing pressure and was highest in the CG watersheds. Runoff volumes, sediment concentrations and sediment loads were also highest for the CG treatment and lowest for the H and RBR treatments. The average runoff amounts during 12 years were 4.8, 8.4, 7.7, 6.0, and 8.1 cm yr-1 for the H, R, RB, RBR, and CG treatments, respectively. Annual average sediment loads were 25, 30, 58, 71, and 110 kg ha-1 for H, RBR, R, RB, and CG, respectively. Version 2 of the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE2) predicted soil loss fairly well for the R, RB, and RBR treatments, but over-predicted soil loss from CG and H treatments. Using rotational grazing in combination with fenced riparian buffers or converting pastures to hayfields appear to be good options for reducing soil erosion and runoff to waterways.