Long-term impacts of wildfire and logging on forest soils

ABSTRACT Soils are a fundamental component of terrestrial ecosystems, and play key roles in biogeochemical cycles and the ecology of microbial, plant and animal communities. Global increases

in the intensity and frequency of ecological disturbances are driving major changes in the structure and function of forest ecosystems, yet little is known about the long-term impacts of

disturbance on soils. Here we show that natural disturbance (fire) and human disturbances (clearcut logging and post-fire salvage logging) can significantly alter the composition of forest

soils for far longer than previously recognized. Using extensive sampling across a multi-century chronosequence in some of the tallest and most carbon-dense forests worldwide (southern

Australian, mountain ash (_Eucalyptus regnans_) forests), we provide compelling evidence that disturbance impacts on soils are evident up to least eight decades after disturbance, and

potentially much longer. Relative to long-undisturbed forest (167 years old), sites subject to multiple fires, clearcut logging or salvage logging were characterized by soils with

significantly lower values of a range of ecologically important measures at multiple depths, including available phosphorus and nitrate. Disturbance impacts on soils were most pronounced on

sites subject to compounding perturbations, such as multiple fires and clearcut logging. Long-lasting impacts of disturbance on soil can have major ecological and functional implications.

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OTHERS MULTISCALE RESPONSES AND RECOVERY OF SOILS TO WILDFIRE IN A SAGEBRUSH STEPPE ECOSYSTEM Article Open access 23 December 2022 FIRE-DRIVEN DISRUPTIONS OF GLOBAL SOIL BIOCHEMICAL

RELATIONSHIPS Article Open access 30 January 2025 ANNUAL GRASS INVASIONS AND WILDFIRE DEPLETE ECOSYSTEM CARBON STORAGE BY >50% TO RESISTANT BASE LEVELS Article Open access 11 November

2024 DATA AVAILABILITY The data that support the findings of this study are available in the Supplementary Information and from the corresponding author upon request. REFERENCES * Bowman, D.

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granting access to restricted sites, volunteers who assisted in data collection, A. Bissett for methodological advice, W. Blanchard for statistical advice, and the following groups for

funding: the Paddy Pallin Foundation, Centre of Biodiversity Analysis, the Ecological Society of Australia and the Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment fund. AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND

AFFILIATIONS * Fenner School of Environment and Society, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia Elle J. Bowd, Craig L. Strong & David B.

Lindenmayer * Research Institute for Environment and Livelihoods, College of Engineering, IT and the Environment, Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia Sam C.

Banks Authors * Elle J. Bowd View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Sam C. Banks View author publications You can also search for this author

inPubMed Google Scholar * Craig L. Strong View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * David B. Lindenmayer View author publications You can also

search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar CONTRIBUTIONS E.J.B. conducted data collection and statistical analyses, and led the writing of the manuscript and experimental design of this

study. D.B.L. contributed to the experimental design of this study and manuscript editing. S.C.B. contributed to statistical analysis, experimental design and manuscript editing. C.L.S.

contributed to manuscript editing. CORRESPONDING AUTHOR Correspondence to Elle J. Bowd. ETHICS DECLARATIONS COMPETING INTERESTS The authors declare no competing interests. ADDITIONAL

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INFORMATION Supplementary Description, Supplementary Fig. 1 and Tables 1–7 RIGHTS AND PERMISSIONS Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Bowd, E.J., Banks, S.C.,

Strong, C.L. _et al._ Long-term impacts of wildfire and logging on forest soils. _Nature Geosci_ 12, 113–118 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0294-2 Download citation * Received:

14 June 2018 * Accepted: 17 December 2018 * Published: 21 January 2019 * Issue Date: February 2019 * DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0294-2 SHARE THIS ARTICLE Anyone you share the

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