A comparison of nutrient losses from two simulated pastureland management scenarios

Abstract

Fecal deposits by grazing animals on pasturelands have the potential to leach nutrients to runoff during rainfall events. Unlike croplands, grazing systems such as pasturelands or rangelands have little opportunity to ameliorate nutrient runoff through in-field or edge-of-field management practices. Thus, we investigated the amounts and concentrations of nutrients in overland flow from simulated grazing lands. Two grazing management scenarios were simulated: continuous grazing represented by two sparsely vegetated (SV) plots and rotational grazing represented by two densely vegetated (DV) plots. In addition, there were two control plots. The plots were treated with standard cowpats and rainfall was simulated until overland flow at the edge of the plots reached steady-state. Higher runoff was observed from DV plots (9.97 mm) than SV plots (7.05 mm), but the average total suspended solids concentration in runoff from SV plots was approximately 17 times the concentration observed in runoff from the DV plots. The average total phosphorus (TP) concentrations were highest in plots simulating continuous grazing (5.91 mg L⁻¹). In both DV and SV plots at least 83% of the TP was found to be in the dissolved form. The average total Kjeldhal nitrogen (TKN) and total nitrogen concentrations observed in runoff samples from SV plots were 1.25 and 1.46 mg L⁻¹, respectively. Organic nitrogen comprised 95% of the TKN observed in runoff samples from SV plots. The SV plots have relatively higher loads for those nutrients in the particle associated form compared to DV plots, whereas DV plots had higher loads for those nutrients in the dissolved form. Grazing lands without any additional manure applications were found to release nutrients in high levels and vegetation did not show any effect on removing dissolved nutrients from runoff. These results are useful to inform selection of appropriate management practices to reduce nutrient transport to surface waters in watersheds dominated by grazed lands.