| Organic matter amendment to soil provides a source of plant nutrients, improves soil condition, and minimizes disposal of organic waste materials in landfill. Reclamation of a compacted Gleyed Eluviated Dystric Brunisol was conducted using tillage, addition of a mixture of land stored primary clarifier waste and municipal biosolids (70 Mg/ha and 155 Mg/ha, respectively) following tillage, and seeding fallow legumes and grasses. Comparisons were made between plots treated with tillage and biosolids (with or without seeding), tillage only treated plots (with or without seeding), and control plots in soil properties including soil solution composition, bulk density, %C, pH, available NO3-N and NH4-N. C:N, base saturation, ECEC (displacement by BaCl2 method), and total elemental composition (by mixed acid microwave digestion). Lodgepole pine ( Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud) seedlings planted in the study area were measured for foliar nutrient status, total height, basal diameter, needle length, leader height, and shoot weight. Seeding fallow legumes and grasses was not found to have a significant effect on soil properties of biosolid-treated plots. The cover crop failed to establish on tillage-treated areas. The pH, ECEC, total P, and total Ca of plots with biosolid treatment were significantly higher than those for tillage-treated and control plots. C:N and total Na of biosolids-treated plots were significantly lower than those of tillage-treated and control plots. Total K was largely unaffected by treatment. Soil solution Na and Ca were significantly changed by biosolid treatment relative to control plots and tillage-treated plots. Soil solution pH was significantly increased by biosolid treatment relative to control plots, but not in comparison to tillage-treated plots. Biosolid amendment did not significantly change seedling height, but seedlings planted on tillage-treated and unreclaimed landing (control) plots were significantly smaller than those of an off-landing plot. |
