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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 55(2)

Groundwater-induced accumulation of iron oxides and phosphorus retention in severely leached soils

Song Qiu A B and Arthur McComb A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A School of Environmental Science, Murdoch University, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia.

B Corresponding author. Email: qiu@murdoch.edu.au

Marine and Freshwater Research 55(2) 213-222 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF03002
Submitted: 3 January 2003  Accepted: 15 January 2004   Published: 31 March 2004

Abstract

Many sandy soils of the Swan Coastal Plain, Western Australia, are poor in Fe and P retention. A novel concept proposes to relocate Fe from groundwater to surface soils via watering, which should consequently improve P retention. To test the viability of this concept we examined several soils in Perth suburbs that had been watered for 3–27 years with groundwater containing high Fe. Energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis indicated that ‘Fe-watered’ soils had significantly higher Fe materials on the surface of soil particles. Oxalate-extractable Fe (Feo) increased by 52 times and citrate/dithionite-extractable Fe (Fed) increased by 6.6 times. Unusually high Feo/d ratios (average Feo/d = 0.71) in ‘Fe-watered’ soils strongly suggest that the accumulated Fe materials are predominantly amorphous and secondary Fe oxides, probably ferrihydrite. There was a substantial increase in P retention in top-soils, to a magnitude of 45–128 times, demonstrating that increasing Fe oxides in severely leached soils, caused by groundwater irrigation, increases P retention. This approach could be applied to other areas with similar physical characteristics and the present study demonstrates that watering with Fe rich groundwater might have strategic significance not only in the control of water pollution, but also in the rational use of water resources and the amelioration of soil salinisation associated with rising watertables.

Extra keywords: ferrihydrite, groundwater irrigation, iron oxidation, iron oxide, phosphorus adsorption, Swan Coastal Plain.


Acknowledgments

We thank the Town of Cambridge and Melville City Council for providing historical data and field assistance for this work. We also thank two anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments, which greatly improved a previous version of this manuscript. This study was funded by a Special Research Grant of Murdoch University and the Peel Centre for Water Excellence. A.McC. acknowledges support from Murdoch University under their Senior Scholar in Residence Scheme.


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