Nitrate formation and movement before and after clear-cutting of a monitored watershed in central New Brunswick, Canada

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Abstract
A watershed of 391 ha, supporting tolerant hardwoods on elevated sloping portions and softwoods on low lying areas, was clear-cut in 1978. Nitrate N was monitored over 5 yr before and 3 yr after clear-cutting by periodic extraction of soil solution samples and continuous sampling of the brooks draining the cut and a similar control watershed. The brooks were gauged to determine water discharge. Before clear-cutting, nitrate N was not detectable for most of the time in soil solutions under softwood cover, but occurred commonly under hardwood cover with concentrations ranging upward to 4.7 mg/l. Nitrate N in the brooks varied from undetectable to 0.3 mg/l. After clear-cutting, nitrate N increased to maximum concentrations of 13.4 mg/l, in the soil solution under hardward cover, and 1.6 mg/l, in the main channel of the brook. Soil solution N was not changed significantly by clear-cutting of softwood stands. The 3-yr cumulative N loss attributable to clear-cutting was 19.1 kg/ha. Nitrate N in soil solutions, branch and main stream indicated that disproportionately larger amounts of N were lost from the elevated and sloping portions of the watershed than from the lower lying areas.

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