Download or read book The Soils of Japan written by Ryusuke Hatano and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-02-18 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides an overview of the distribution, properties, and function of soils in Japan. First, it offers general descriptions of the country’s climate, geology, geomorphology, and land use, the history of the Japanese soil classification system and characteristics and genesis of major soil types follow. For each region – a geographic/administrative region of the country – there is a chapter with details of current land use as well as properties and management challenges of major soils. Maps of soil distribution, pedon descriptions, profile images, and tables of properties are included throughout the text and appendices.

Download or read book Soil Fertilizer and Plant Silicon Research in Japan written by Jian Feng Ma and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2002-08-09 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Silicon (Si) plays a significant role in the resistance of plants to multiple stresses including biotic and abiotic stresses. Silicon is also the only element that does not damage plants when accumulated in excess. However, the contribution of Si to plant growth has been largely ignored due to its universal existence in the earth's crust. From numerous intensive studies on Si, initiated in Japan about 80 years ago, Japanese scientists realized that Si was important for the healthy growth of rice and for stability of rice production. In a worldwide first, silicon was recognized as a valuable fertilizer in Japan. The beneficial effects of Si on rice growth in particular, are largely attributable to the characteristics of a silica gel that is accumulated on the epidermal tissues in rice. These effects are expressed most clearly under high-density cultivation systems with heavy applications of nitrogen. Si is therefore recognized now as an ''agronomically essential element'' in Japan.Recently, Si has become globally important because it generates resistance in many plants to diseases and pests, and may contribute to reduced rates of application of pesticides and fungicides. Silicon is also now considered as an environment-friendly element. The achievements of Si research in Japan are introduced in this book, in relation to soils, fertilizers and plant nutrition.

Download or read book Volcanic Ash Soils written by S. Shoji and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 1994-01-06 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Volcanic eruptions are generally viewed as agents of destruction, yet they provide the parent materials from which some of the most productive soils in the world are formed. The high productivity results from a combination of unique physical, chemical and mineralogical properties. The importance and uniqueness of volcanic ash soils are exemplified by the recent establishment of the Andisol soil order in Soil Taxonomy. This book provides the first comprehensive synthesis of all aspects of volcanic ash soils in a single volume. It contains in-depth coverage of important topics including terminology, morphology, genesis, classification, mineralogy, chemistry, physical properties, productivity and utilization. A wealth of data (37 tables, 81 figures, and Appendix) mainly from the Tohoku University Andisol Data Base is used to illustrate major concepts. Twelve color plates provide a valuable visual-aid and complement the text description of the world-wide distribution for volcanic ash soils.This volume will serve as a valuable reference for soil scientists, plant scientists, ecologists and geochemists interested in biogeochemical processes occurring in soils derived form volcanic ejecta.

Download or read book Man made Soils written by Willy Groenman-Van Waateringe and published by . This book was released on 1988 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Urban Water in Japan written by Rutger de Graaf and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2008-06-04 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Water control is essential to Japan, as more than half of its invested capital is concentrated in elevations under sea level and the majority of the island nation is exceptionally vulnerable to flooding. To avoid potential crisis, the Japanese have developed exceptionally innovative water management practices. Offering the unique perspective of Dutch engineers, considered the world’s most progressive urban water experts, this volume provide a detailed look at how Japan has developed its modern water system. It looks at the system of Tokyo city, discusses river management practices and urban flood control throughout the country, and considers the impact that these innovations have had on delta regions.

Download or read book Multiplying Churches in Japanese Soil written by Mehn Wm. John and published by William Carey Publishing. This book was released on 2017-10-18 with total page 231 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since the beginning of missionary efforts in Japan in the sixteenth century, the Japanese church has experienced periods of quiet flourishing and periods of intense persecution. Arguably, however, it has never managed to take root as a truly indigenous church-despite great effort toward that aim. In Multiplying Churches in Japanese Soil, John Mehn asks the question: Why? What factors have contributed to the Japanese remaining largely unreached? Mehn examines the current state of affairs and then, with some careful analysis and case study, delves into effective models and leadership for planting churches in Japan that not only grow, but are also equipped to reproduce and multiply. Within these pages, discover mission strategy, kingdom perspective, and hope for the church in Japanese soil.

Download or read book The One Straw Revolution written by Masanobu Fukuoka and published by New York Review of Books. This book was released on 2010-09-08 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Call it “Zen and the Art of Farming” or a “Little Green Book,” Masanobu Fukuoka’s manifesto about farming, eating, and the limits of human knowledge presents a radical challenge to the global systems we rely on for our food. At the same time, it is a spiritual memoir of a man whose innovative system of cultivating the earth reflects a deep faith in the wholeness and balance of the natural world. As Wendell Berry writes in his preface, the book “is valuable to us because it is at once practical and philosophical. It is an inspiring, necessary book about agriculture because it is not just about agriculture.” Trained as a scientist, Fukuoka rejected both modern agribusiness and centuries of agricultural practice, deciding instead that the best forms of cultivation mirror nature’s own laws. Over the next three decades he perfected his so-called “do-nothing” technique: commonsense, sustainable practices that all but eliminate the use of pesticides, fertilizer, tillage, and perhaps most significantly, wasteful effort. Whether you’re a guerrilla gardener or a kitchen gardener, dedicated to slow food or simply looking to live a healthier life, you will find something here—you may even be moved to start a revolution of your own.

Download or read book Sclerotia Grains in Soils written by Makiko Watanabe and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2021-02-12 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book introduces what sclerotia grains are, and where and how they exist in soils, by compiling the results obtained from the studies on fungal sclerotia formed by Cenococcum geophilum (Cg) and related species, the visible black small grains persistent for a few thousand to ten thousands of years in forest soils and sediments. The chapters contain the results and discussions on the ecological distribution and regulating factors, characteristics, and function of Cg sclerotia grains, carried out by researchers from soil geography, soil science, soil microbiology, physiology, forestry, analytical chemistry, environmental chemistry, material science, and related disciplines. The anatomy of sclerotia grains in soil was realized in terms of interdisciplinary joint researches, which resulted in deepening understanding of the ecological function of the mesoscale organic component in soils. This book covers the natural history of sclerotia in soils, pedo-sclerotiology.

Download or read book Satoyama written by K. Takeuchi and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 252 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Japan’s traditional and fragile satoyama landscape system was developed over centuries of human life on mountainous island terrain in a monsoon climate. The carefully managed coppice woodlands on the hillsides, the villages strung along the base of the hills, and the carefully tended paddy fields of rural Japan made possible the sustainable interaction of nature and humans. Radical changes in the middle of the twentieth century led to the abandonment of satoyama landscapes which now are being rediscovered. There is a new realization that these woodlands still play a vital role in the management of the Japanese landscape and a new determination to manage them for the future. This multifaceted book explores the history, nature, biodiversity, current conservation measures, and future uses of satoyama. The information presented here will be of interest in all parts of the world where patterns of sustainable development are being sought.

Download or read book Agricultural Implications of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident III written by Tomoko M. Nakanishi and published by Springer. This book was released on 2019-01-30 with total page 250 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This open access book presents the findings from on-site research into radioactive cesium contamination in various agricultural systems affected by the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident in March 2011. This third volume in the series reports on studies undertaken at contaminated sites such as farmland, forests, and marine and freshwater environments, with a particular focus on livestock, wild plants and mushrooms, crops, and marine products in those environments. It also provides additional data collected in the subsequent years to show how the radioactivity levels in agricultural products and their growing environments have changed with time and the route by which radioactive materials entered agricultural products as well as their movement between different components (e.g., soil, water, and trees) within an environmental system (e.g., forests). The book covers various topics, including radioactivity testing of food products; decontamination trials for rice and livestock production; the state of contamination in, trees, mushrooms, and timber; the dynamics of radioactivity distribution in paddy fields and upland forests; damage incurred by the forestry and fishery industries; and the change in consumers’ attitudes. Chapter 19 introduces a real-time radioisotope imaging system, a pioneering technique to visualize the movement of cesium in soil and in plants. This is the only book to provide systematic data on the actual change of radioactivity, and as such is of great value to all researchers who wish to understand the effect of radioactive fallout on agriculture. In addition, it helps the general public to better understand the issues of radio-contamination in the environment. The project is ongoing; the research groups from the Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences of The University of Tokyo continue their work in the field to further evaluate the long-term effects of the Fukushima accident.

Download or read book Xray CT for Geomaterials written by Jun Otani and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2004-10-06 with total page 402 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) scanning has been widely used for medical diagnosis. This technique is now attracting increasing interest as a tool in non-destructive testing in engineering. This book reports the early results of research into this application, with particular reference to deformation and failure of geomaterials. Presenting papers of the International Workshop on X-CT for Geomaterials at Kumamoto, Japan in 2003. The book is intended for researchers and professionals in the fields of geotechnical engineering, soil, rock and concrete engineering, and geology.

Download or read book Evaluation of Soil Organic Matter Models written by David S. Powlson and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-06-29 with total page 424 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Soil organic matter (SOM) represents a major pool of carbon within the biosphere, roughly twice than in atmospheric CO2. SOM models embody our best understanding of soil carbon dynamics and are needed to predict how global environmental change will influence soil carbon stocks. These models are also required for evaluating the likely effectiveness of different mitigation options. The first important step towards systematically evaluating the suitability of SOM models for these purposes is to test their simulations against real data. Since changes in SOM occur slowly, long-term datasets are required. This volume brings together leading SOM model developers and experimentalists to test SOM models using long-term datasets from diverse ecosystems, land uses and climatic zones within the temperate region.

Download or read book Inorganic Constituents in Soil written by Masami Nanzyo and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-10-16 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This open access book is a must-read for students of and beginners in soil science. In a well-organized and easy-to-follow manner, it provides basic outlines of soil minerals, new methods and recent developments in the field, with a special focus on visual aids. The chapters on primary minerals, secondary minerals, non-crystalline inorganic constituents and inorganic constituents sensitive to varying redox conditions will help readers understand the basic components of soils. Further, readers are introduced to new analytical methods with the aid of microscopy and recent developments in the field. Uniquely, the book features case studies on the identification and isolation methods for vivianite crystals from paddy field soils, as well as a useful procedure for identifying noncrystalline constituents such as volcanic glasses and plant opals, which can also be applied to other soils depending on the local conditions. Given its focus and coverage, the book will be useful to all readers who are interested in agronomy, plant production science, agricultural chemistry and environmental science. In addition, it can help biogeochemists further expand their research work on the rhizosphere of wetland plant roots, iron and phosphate dynamics, etc.

Download or read book GlobalSoilMap written by Dominique Arrouays and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2014-01-27 with total page 496 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: GlobalSoilMap: Basis of the global spatial soil information system contains contributions that were presented at the 1st GlobalSoilMap conference, held 7-9 October 2013 in Orléans, France. These contributions demonstrate the latest developments in the GlobalSoilMap project and digital soil mapping technology for which the ultimate aim is to produce a high resolution digital spatial soil information system of selected soil properties and their uncertainties for the entire world. GlobalSoilMap: Basis of the global spatial soil information system aims to stimulate capacity building and new incentives to develop full GlobalSoilMap products in all parts of the world.

Download or read book The Potential of U S Forest Soils to Sequester Carbon and Mitigate the Greenhouse Effect written by John M. Kimble and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2002-09-25 with total page 446 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Much attention has been given to above ground biomass and its potential as a carbon sink, but in a mature forest ecosystem 40 to 60 percent of the stored carbon is below ground. As increasing numbers of forests are managed in a wide diversity of climates and soils, the importance of forest soils as a potential carbon sink grows. The Potenti

Download or read book Anthropogenic Soils in Japan written by Makiko Watanabe and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-10-11 with total page 186 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book enhances the discussion of anthropized soils with photographs of soil profiles and provides general information about soils in Japan, using data on their physical and chemical properties. Soils targeted in this book have wide spectra in anthropized influences from lesser effects such as agricultural improvements to drastic changes caused by infrastructure construction. These include soils sealed by technic hard materials, on ski slopes, on river embankments and coastal berms, in historical urban parks, on man-made islands in Tokyo Bay, in reclaimed lands, in greenhouse fields, and those filling in swamplands. These examples supported with data can be a bridge between agriculture and civil engineering to understand how anthropogenic activities influence soils. Because anthropogenic impacts have increased during the past decades along with concentrations of populations into cities, processes in soils must be addressed from the point of view of diverse land-use purposes. The book includes information with new data produced by active researchers from many institutes and universities as it refers to soils altered by human activities and thus is informative to specialists in various disciplines related to soils. It is also valuable to students for viewing soils in cities, infrastructure construction areas, and other affected locations. Evaluation and understanding of soils now has become essential for researchers in a range of fields and for policy makers in agriculture as well as urban planning, civil engineering, and disaster sciences. This work serves as an impetus for launching further study of soils and environments.

Download or read book Environmental Soil Properties and Behaviour written by Raymond N. Yong and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2012-03-05 with total page 458 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From bridges and tunnels to nuclear waste repositories, structures require that soils maintain their design engineering properties if the structures are to reach their projected life spans. The same is true for earth dams, levees, buffers, barriers for landfills, and other structures that use soils as engineered materials. Yet soil, a natural resource, continues to change as a result of natural and anthropogenic stresses. As the discipline of soil properties and behaviours matures, new tools and techniques are making it possible to study these properties and behaviours in more depth. What Happens to Soil Under Weathering, Aging, and Chemical Stress? Environmental Soil Properties and Behaviour examines changes in soil properties and behaviour caused by short- and long-term stresses from anthropogenic activities and environmental forces. Introducing new concepts of soil behaviour, soil maturation, and soil functionality, it integrates soil physics, soil chemistry, and soil mechanics as vital factors in soil engineering. The book focuses on environmental soil behaviour, with particular attention to two main inter-related groups of soil–environment issues. The first is the use of soil as an environmental tool for management and containment of toxic and hazardous waste materials. The second is the impact of ageing and weathering processes and soil contamination on the properties and behaviour of soils, especially those used in geotechnical and geoenvironmental engineering projects. A Transdisciplinary Look at Soil-Changing Processes To determine short- and long-term soil quality and soil functionality, the authors emphasize the need to be aware of the nature of the stressors involved as well as the kinds of soil-changing processes that are evoked. This book takes a first step toward a much-needed transdisciplinary effort to develop a broader and deeper understanding of what happens to soil and how we can determine and quantify the effect of biogeochemical processes. It offers a timely resource for the study of soil properties and behaviours, effects of environmental changes, and remediation of contaminated soil.