Earthworms and soil mesofauna as early bioindicators for landfill restoration
Frank Ashwood
A * , Carlos Barreto B D , Kevin R. Butt C , Martin Lampert C , Kieron Doick A and Elena I. Vanguelova A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Forest Research, Alice Holt Lodge, Farnham, Surrey GU10 4LH, UK.
B Department of Biology, Algoma University, Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 2G4, Canada.
C Natural Sciences, University of Central Lancashire, Preston PR1 2HE, UK.
D Present address: Ontario Forest Research Institute, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, Sault Ste Marie, ON, Canada.
Soil Research 61(4) 311-328 https://doi.org/10.1071/SR21286
Submitted: 12 November 2021 Accepted: 24 November 2022 Published: 23 December 2022
© Crown Copyright, Crown Copyright of Canada, and The Authors 2023
Abstract
Context: Landfill activities physically disrupt soil habitats. When restoring landfill to ‘soft’ end uses such as woodland, the appropriate stockpiling and reapplication of native topsoil to provide suitable soil habitats may enhance soil fauna recolonisation and reduce restoration timeframes.
Aims: We studied the influence of reclamation practices on earthworm and mesofauna communities, and evaluated the role of earthworms and soil mesofauna as bioindicators of early landfill restoration success.
Methods: We investigated soil physico–chemical parameters, and earthworm and soil mesofauna communities at two restored landfill sites and the surrounding land uses. We also applied the QBS-collembola (QBS-c) and QBS-earthworm (QBS-e) index techniques in a reclaimed landfill setting.
Results: Natural colonisation of reclaimed landfill by earthworms occurred rapidly where original site topsoil was stockpiled, reapplied, and revegetated. QBS-e and QBS-c indices indicated that the most disturbed sites generally had the lowest soil biological quality. Mesofauna richness and abundance were generally higher in the low-disturbance sites.
Conclusions and implications: We demonstrate the value of recording a range of soil invertebrates during land reclamation, since different soil bioindicator groups respond differently to soil disturbance. QBS-c and QBS-e index techniques alongside traditional soil macro- and mesofauna assessments reinforced our observed soil fauna responses to reclamation practices. Thus, we encourage multitaxon soil monitoring during land reclamation. Where landfill restoration was carried out to a poor standard, results suggest that soil mesofauna are better indicators of soil status than earthworms. For future restoration schemes, best-practice methods are recommended to improve poor-quality reclaimed soil materials to facilitate rapid soil fauna recolonisation and soil structural development.
Keywords: Acari, biological indicator, Collembola, earthworms, landfill restoration, mesofauna, reclamation, soil compaction.
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