School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2000, South Africa.
Institute for Water Studies, Department of Earth Science, University of the Western Cape, Cape Town 7535, South Africa.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Jan 11;18(2):561. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18020561.
This study investigated the impacts of cultivation on water and soil quality in the lower uMfolozi floodplain system in KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa. We did this by assessing seasonal variations in purposefully selected water and soil properties in these two land-use systems. The observed values were statistically analysed by performing Student's paired -tests to determine seasonal trends in these variables. Results revealed significant seasonal differences in chloride and sodium concentrations and electrical conductivity (EC) and the sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) with cultivated sites exhibiting higher values. Most of the analyzed chemical parameters were within acceptable limits specified by the South African agricultural-water-quality (SAWQ) water quality guidelines for irrigation except for sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), chloride, sodium and EC. EC, pH and nitrate content which were higher than the specified SAWQ limits in cultivated sites. Quantities of glyphosate, ametryn and imidacloprid could not be measured because they were below detectable limits. The study concludes that most water quality parameters met SAWQ's standards. These results argue for concerted efforts to systematically monitor water and soil quality characteristics in this environment to enhance sustainability by providing timely information for management purposes.
本研究调查了南非夸祖鲁-纳塔尔省下姆福洛齐洪泛区系统的种植对水和土壤质量的影响。我们通过评估这两种土地利用系统中精心选择的水和土壤特性的季节性变化来做到这一点。通过进行学生配对检验来分析观察值，以确定这些变量的季节性趋势。结果表明，氯化物和钠离子浓度以及电导率（EC）和钠离子吸附比（SAR）存在显著的季节性差异，种植区的这些值较高。除了钠离子吸附比（SAR）、氯化物、钠和 EC 外，分析的大多数化学参数均在南非农业用水质量（SAWQ）灌溉水质指南规定的可接受范围内。在种植区，电导率（EC）、pH 值和硝酸盐含量高于规定的 SAWQ 限值。由于低于检测限，无法测量草甘膦、莠去津和吡虫啉的用量。研究得出的结论是，大多数水质参数都符合 SAWQ 的标准。这些结果表明，需要共同努力，系统地监测该环境中的水和土壤质量特征，通过提供及时的管理信息来提高可持续性。
