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Abstract The lack of proper understanding of multi-layer soil moisture (SM) profile (signals) remains a persistent challenge in sustainable agricultural water management and food security, especially during drought conditions. We develop a machine-learning algorithm using the concept of learning from patterns to estimate the multi-layer SM information in ungauged locations firmly based on local knowledge of the climatic and landscape controls. The Contiguous United States (CONUS) is clustered into homogeneous regions based on the association between SM and climate and landscape controls. Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost) algorithm is applied to homogenous regions to capture the complex relationship between appropriate predictor variables and in-situ SM at multiple layers over the CONUS. Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) Level 4 (L4) surface (0–5 cm) and rootzone (0–100 cm) SM along with climate and landscape datasets are used as predictor variables. In-situ multi-layer SM recorded by Soil Climate Analysis Network (SCAN), Snow Telemetry (SNOTEL), and U.S. Climate Reference Network (USCRN) networks are utilized as predictands. XGBoost models are then trained region-wise and layer-wise to estimate multi-layer SM information at 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 cm depths (five layers) at 1-km spatial resolution. Results indicate that the predictor variables have varying levels of influence on SM with changing soil depth, and meteorological variables have the least importance. Validation at 79 independent locations indicates the multi-layer SM estimates successfully capture temporal dynamics of SM, with most locations achieving ubRMSE less than 0.04 m3/m3. The high-resolution SM estimates offer spatial sub-grid heterogeneity compared to SMAP L4 SM.

The introduction of temporary grassland into an annual crop rotation is recognized to improve soil ecosystem services, and resulting legacies can be beneficial for the following crops. In this context, the aim of the present study was to evaluate legacy effects of introducing temporary grassland into an annual crop rotation on five ecosystem services (i) soil structure maintenance (aggregate stability), (ii) water regulation (saturated hydraulic conductivity), (iii) biodiversity conservation (microbial biomass and microbial metabolic activity, as well as microorganism, enchytraeid, springtail and earthworm communities), (iv) pathogen regulation (soil suppressiveness to Verticillium dahliae), and (v) forage production and quality. Three crop rotation schemes, maintained for twelve years, were compared in four random blocks, one being an annual crop rotation without grassland (0%), another with a medium percentage of grassland (50%, corresponding to 3 years of continuous grassland in the crop rotation), and a third one with a high percentage of grassland in the crop rotation (75%, corresponding to 6 years of continuous grassland in the crop rotation). The results showed that the grassland introduction into an annual crop rotation improved, whatever the duration of the grassland, soil structure maintenance and biodiversity conservation, while it decreased pathogen regulation and did not modify water regulation. Comparing the two crop rotations that included grassland, indicated a stronger beneficial grassland legacy effect for the higher proportion of grassland concerning soil structure maintenance and biodiversity conservation. By contrast, water regulation, pathogen regulation and forage production were not affected by the legacy of the 75% grassland during the rotation. Overall, our findings demonstrated the extent to which grassland legacies are affecting the current state of soil properties and possible ecosystem services provided. To improve ecosystem services, soil management should take legacy effects into account and consider longer timeframes to apply beneficial practices. This work was supported by the EU SoilMan project (grant number 01LC1620) funded through the 2015–2016 BiodivERsA COFUND call for research proposals, with national funders the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), the French National Research Agency (ANR), the Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning (FORMAS), the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO), the Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding (UEFISCDI), the European Regional Development Fund (Centre of Excellence EcolChange). We would like to thank the National Research Infrastructure “Agro-écosystèmes, Cycles Biogéochimique et Biodiversité” (ACBB) http://www.soere-acbb for providing access to an excellent field experiment and the “the AnaEE France (ANR-11-INBS-0001)”, “AllEnvi” and “CNRS-INSU” which support it. We thank Météo France for meteorological data.

This article is an overview of a biosystem of food-industry wastewater (WW) treatment using microalgae towards circular bioeconomy through biosynthesis of compounds of added-value. Focusing on circular bioeconomy with concern to environmental pollution, the management of water-resource and energy-crisis could be combined; by upgrading conventional WW treatment and simultaneously producing a renewable and sustainable source of energy algal-lipids for biodiesel production. Phyco-remediation of food WW using microalgae has revealed many advantages that can fulfill new demands for the WW treatment. WWs can be valuable resources of micronutrients and organic content (carbon source) for algal cultivation. In this review, prospective routes for the production of value-added compounds (polysaccharides, amino acids, biofuels, and biopigments) along with the bioremediation of food industry WW have been discussed. Furthermore, limitations and issues of phyco-remediation of WW using microalgae have also been reviewed with perspectives for further research and development.

Growing environmental concerns are potentially narrowing global yield capacity of agricultural systems. Climate change is the most significant problem the world is currently facing. To meet global food demand, food production must be doubled by 2050; over exploitation of arable lands using unsustainable techniques might resolve food demand issues, but they have negative environmental effects. Current crop production systems are a major reason for changing global climate through diminishing biodiversity, physical and chemical soil degradation, and water pollution. The over application of fertilizers and pesticides contribute to climate change through greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and toxic soil depositions. At this crucial time, there is a pressing need to transition to more sustainable crop production practices, ones that concentrate more on promoting sustainable mechanisms, which enable crops to grow well in resource limited and environmentally challenging environments, and also develop crops with greater resource use efficiency that have optimum sustainable yields across a wider array of environmental conditions. The phytomicrobiome is considered as one of the best strategies; a better alternative for sustainable agriculture, and a viable solution to meet the twin challenges of global food security and environmental stability. Use of the phytomicrobiome, due to its sustainable and environmentally friendly mechanisms of plant growth promotion, is becoming more widespread in the agricultural industry. Therefore, in this review, we emphasize the contribution of beneficial phytomicrobiome members, particularly plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), as a strategy to sustainable improvement of plant growth and production in the face of climate change. Also, the roles of soil dwelling microbes in stress amelioration, nutrient supply (nitrogen fixation, phosphorus solubilization), and phytohormone production along with the factors that could potentially affect their efficiency have been discussed extensively. Lastly, limitations to expansion and use of biobased techniques, for instance, the perspective of crop producers, indigenous microbial competition and regulatory approval are discussed. This review largely focusses on the importance and need of sustainable and environmentally friendly approaches such as biobased/PGPR-based techniques in our agricultural systems, especially in the context of current climate change conditions, which are almost certain to worsen in near future.

Biosolids produced at wastewater treatment facilities are extensively used in agricultural land and degraded mine sites to improve soil health and soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks. Many studies have reported increases in SOC due to application of biosolids to such sites. However, lack of a comprehensive quantification on overall trends and changes of magnitude in SOC remains. Here, we performed a meta-analysis to identify drivers with a relationship with SOC stocks. A meta-regression of 297 treatments found four variables with a relationship with SOC stocks: cumulative biosolids carbon (C) input rate, time after application, soil depth and type of biosolids. The cumulative biosolids C input rate was the most influencing driver. The highest mean difference for SOC% of 3.3 was observed at 0–15 cm soil depth for a cumulative C input of 100 Mg ha−1 at one year after biosolids application. Although years after biosolids application demonstrated a negative relationship with SOC stocks, mineralization of C in biosolids-applied soils is slow, as indicated with the SOC% decrease from 4.6 to 2.8 at 0–15 cm soil depth over five years of 100 Mg ha−1 biosolids C input. Soil depth illustrated a strong negative effect with SOC stocks decreasing by 2.7% at 0–15 cm soil depth at a cumulative biosolids C input of 100 Mg ha−1 over a year. Overall, our model estimated an effect of 2.8 SOC% change, indicating the application of biosolids as a viable strategy for soil C sequestration on a global scale. Refereed/Peer-reviewed

Source-separating sanitation systems offer the possibility of recycling nutrients present in wastewater as crop fertilisers. Thereby, they can reduce agriculture's impacts on global sources, sinks, and cycles for nitrogen and phosphorous, as well as their associated environmental costs. However, it has been broadly assumed that people would be reluctant to perform the new sanitation behaviours that are necessary for implementing such systems in practice. Yet, few studies have tried to systematically gather evidence in support of this assumption. To address this gap, we surveyed 3763 people at 20 universities in 16 countries using a standardised questionnaire. We identified and systematically assessed cross-cultural and country-level explanatory factors that were strongly associated with people's willingness to consume food grown using human urine as fertiliser. Overall, 68% of the respondents favoured recycling human urine, 59% stated a willingness to eat urine-fertilised food, and only 11% believed that urine posed health risks that could not be mitigated by treatment. Most people did not expect to pay less for urine-fertilised food, but only 15% were willing to pay a price premium. Consumer perceptions were found to differ greatly by country and the strongest predictive factors for acceptance overall were cognitive factors (perceptions of risks and benefits) and social norms. Increasing awareness and building trust among consumers about the effectiveness of new sanitation systems via cognitive and normative messaging can help increase acceptance. Based on our findings, we believe that in many countries, acceptance by food consumers will not be the major social barrier to closing the loop on human urine. That a potential market exists for urine-fertilised food, however, needs to be communicated to other stakeholders in the sanitation service chain. (C) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V.

India has the largest area of rainfed dryland agriculture globally, with a variety of distinct types of farming systems producing most of its coarse cereals, food legumes, minor millets, and large amounts of livestock. All these are vital for national and regional food and nutritional security. Yet, the rainfed drylands have been relatively neglected in mainstream agricultural and rural development policy. As a result, significant social-ecological challenges overlap in these landscapes: endemic poverty, malnutrition and land degradation. Sustainable intensification of dryland agriculture is essential for helping to address these challenges, particularly in the context of accelerating climate change. In this paper, we present 100 questions that point to the most important knowledge gaps and research priorities. If addressed, these would facilitate and inform sustainable intensification in Indian rainfed drylands, leading to improved agricultural production and enhanced ecosystem services. The horizon scanning method used to produce these questions brought together experts and practitioners involved in a broad range of disciplines and sectors. This exercise resulted in a consolidated set of questions covering the agricultural drylands, organized into 13 themes. Together, these represent a collective programme for new cross- and multi-disciplinary research on sustainable intensification in the Indian rainfed drylands.