‫التقرير النهائي‬
Administrative Information
‫المعلومات االدارية‬
:‫المرجع‬
‫ااي زع ا‬
Project Title - )‫عنوان المشروع (عربي وأجنبي‬
‫تااار ر اخااتادامات االرااااي والعملزااات اللراعحااة علاار انتجااال اليربااون العاااو‬
.‫الترب اللبنانحة‬
Impact of land use history and agricultural practices on carbon sequestration in
selected Lebanese soils.
Principal Investigator - ‫الزانث الرئحخي‬
‫رقم الهاتف‬
‫العنوان االلكتروني‬
Telephone
e-mail
03-646159 therese.atallah@ul.edu.lb
‫العنوان‬
Address
RasDekwanek
‫الوظيفية‬
Post
Professor
‫المؤسسة‬
‫االسم‬
Institution
Name
Faculty of Thérèse
Agricultural Atallah
SciencesLebanese
University
Co-Workers - ‫الزانرون المشاركون‬
‫العنوان االلكتروني‬
e-mail
tlldarwish@gmail.com
‫المؤسسة‬
Institution
CNRS –
Remote sensing
LARI – Tel
Amara
‫االسم‬
Name
Dr Talal
Darwish
Dr Ihab Jomaa
Min of
Agriculture Saida
Two years
Eng. M. Abou
Daher
: Duration -‫المدة التعاقدحة للمشروع‬
Scientific Information
‫العلمحة‬
‫المعلومات‬
ّ
Objectives - ‫الهدف‬
The objectives were to quantify the soil organic carbon with time as related to
some agricultural practices. More specifically, the significance of no-tillage under
Mediterranean Lebanese conditions as a means to mitigate the emission of carbon
dioxide was focused on.
Achievements -‫أالنجالات المنققة‬
 The study of the soil organic carbon in pairs of plowed/abandoned olive
orchards submitted to the same pedo-climatic conditions.
 The evaluation of the effect of spatial position and of soil depth on the
distribution of the soil organic carbon.
 Establishment of the stocks of soil organic carbon (0-30 cm) in pairs of
plowed/abandoned soils. Abandon lead to stock increase in 76% of cases.
 Organic farming favored a build-up of the soil organic carbon, regardless of
the crop.
Perspectives - ‫آ اق الزنث‬
Through the right management practices, a farm can be turned from a C source to
a C sink. There are a wide range of management options and farming practices
that can increase the soil organic carbon. This could be demonstrated in fields
where weeds were left on the ground, to the contrary of the plowed fields. Thus,
future studies might involve a study of the fields managed using no-tillage or
conservation agriculture, as well as those where a leguminous green manure is
grown. The impact of these practices on the soil organic carbon and on the soil
biological quality need to be investigated.
Publications & Communications - ‫المنشورات والمخاهمات ي المؤتمرات‬
Proceedings
Abstract in the 17th International Scientific Conference organized by LAAS,
November 12-13, 2010.
Abstract entitled “Status of soil organic carbon in abandoned olive orchards”
accepted in the 18th LAAS Conference, March 2012.
Abstract - ‫موجل عن نتائج الزنث‬
Substantial soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration could be accomplished by
changing from conventional plowing to less intensive methods. Since the
introduction of no-tillage methods is very recent in Lebanon, it was decided to
select abandoned sites to examine the status of SOC. The study area was
represented by 48 plots from 13 locations below 1000 m. Plots, mostly clay in
texture, were equally distributed between strongly calcareous (25-50% CaCO3)
and moderately calcareous (5-25% CaCO3). Four soil samples were collected per
plot: two positions (tree area/between trees) combined with two depths (0-10
cm/10-30 cm). The field position had a significant effect on the organic carbon,
with higher contents found under tree than between trees. Further, greater OC
contents were found on the surface (0-10 cm) compared to the deeper soil layer
(10-30 cm). This can be explained by the transformation of plant debris and litter
on the surface of the soil to organic materials that enrich the soil. Stocks of SOC
were compared by pairs under similar pedo-climatic conditions, in the upper 30
cm. The stock differences (Δstock: Stockabandoned–Stockplowed) gave mostly positive
values (76% of pairs). The stock increase between the abandoned and their
controls ranged between 2 and 42 t ha -1, against -33 and –9 t ha-1 for the stock
decrease. The mean stock in the abandoned fields (151.51 t ha-1) was slightly
higher than in plowed plots (137.2 t ha-1).
Elsewhere, organic farming is considered as a promoter of the organic carbon
sequestration. To check this aspect, eight sites with a known history of organic
farming were sampled. Land occupation ranged between vegetables and fruit
trees. The stock of organic carbon at 0-30 cm depth in the organic field in Zgharta
(116.8 t ha-1) was higher than in the conventional field (73.88 t ha -1) and it was in
the organic field in Fatreh (198.9 t ha-1) higher than the conventional field (117.9
t ha-1).
Key words: carbon sequestration, soil organic carbon, tillage, organic
farming, stock organic carbon, plowed fields, abandoned olive orchards.