Efecto del uso forestal y ganadero sobre aspectos físicos y biológicos del suelo y la relación con sus funciones en bosques de Austrocedrus chilensis del Sudoeste de Río Negro.

Abstract

Research related to the impacts of forestry and livestock activities on the soils of Andean-Patagonian forests is scarce, and it is important to increase knowledge about this key component because of its link to multiple functions and ecosystem services. In this sense, the aim of this work was to study the effect of forest and livestock use on physical and biological aspects of the soil and the relationship with its functions in A. chilensis forests in southwestern Río Negro. For this purpose, 57 stands with different intensities of livestock (IUG) and forest (IUF) use were sampled. The intensity of use was determined by the number of stools and stumps per transect. Soil structural stability (SSS), unsaturated hydraulic conductivity (Ku), soil organic matter (SOM), particulate organic matter (POM), organic matter associated with mineral fraction (MAOM) and root density (RD) were determined at each site. Generalised linear models (GLM), selected for their Akaike information criterion (AIC) after testing their suitability by visual assessment of the homogeneity and normality of the residuals, were used to analyse the relationship between the intensity of use and the variables considered. DR and MOAM were significantly related to changes in IUG. This suggests that multiple soil functions could be affected. However, given the high resilience of these soils, such effects on soil functions may not be observed in practice. Finally, it is important to continue investigating the possible implications of silvopastoral activities in these ecosystems, in order to promote more sustainable management of the natural commons.