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[Display omitted] • Droughts and floods are increasing worldwide. • Changes in soil moisture affect the soil microbiome. • Climate change affects the soil environment. • Changes in the soil environment affect crop production. • Drought and floods have a negative impact on agriculture. Climate change is progressing and is already visible to the naked eye around the world. Hydrological events associated with climate change, i.e. floods and droughts, have reached extreme levels in recent years. Researchers warn that these phenomena will continue to intensify. According to recent reports, the number of extreme weather events, including hydrological phenomena, has increased by 60% in Europe over the last three decades. Both water shortages and water surpluses affect the soil environment and its functions. This in turn has a direct impact on crops and agriculture. For example, in the US alone, droughts and floods were responsible for more than 70% of the decline in cereal yields in 2011 alone. However, the soil environment is a complex ecosystem that is not yet fully understood, making it difficult to predict the impact of climate change on its quality and functioning. In this paper, we discuss the effects of floods and droughts on the soil microbiome and the implications of these changes for agriculture. We suggest that changes in soil moisture are an important factor affecting crop growth and yield, which is of great importance for global food security. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Various morphometric approaches to identify highly dissected terrains. • Different complementary morphometric proxies of landscape dissection are used. • Spatial pattern of erosional 'hot spots' indicates differential uplift and subsidence. • Advantages and limitations of different approaches discussed. The paper presents an attempt to recognize areas of enhanced erosional dissection, based on a combined analysis of several geomorphometric variables and using four different approaches (rank-based, cold and hot spot analysis, k-means clustering of 'raw' data, and k-means clustering of local measures of spatial autocorrelation). The study area includes the Orlickie-Bystrzyckie Mountains Block (OBMB), which is a block-faulted range within the Sudetes Mountains, Central Europe, typified by fault-generated range fronts, remnant planation surfaces and topographic ramps due to large-scale tilting. Geology is diverse, with basement rocks and sedimentary cover, and the relevant timescale is late Cenozoic. Morphometric variables derived from a LiDAR-based DEM include contour length, standard deviation of elevation, median valley depth and standard deviation of curvature, and are considered to account for various morphometric signatures of erosional dissection. While deriving compound measures of dissection, three grid cell sizes were considered. Within the OBMB several areas were identified as erosionally dissected to a considerable degree. Their spatial pattern is complex and reflects several factors simultaneously. Differential uplift appears as the main trigger, but the erosional response varies, depending mainly on the size of runoff contributing area – itself related to the pattern of uplift, and the distance from the margins of elevated areas. Lithology (bedrock resistance to erosion) seems to play a subordinate role. We also discuss various issues related to the procedures themselves, pointing out their advantages and limitations. Procedural setups proposed in this paper are not site-specific and may be used in various topographic and geological settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Physical and chemical weathering characteristics among different scales are compared. • Supergene and hypogene alteration are separated by means of chemical and mineralogical properties. • Comparison of weathering features at different scales enhanced the understanding of weathering. • Aridity-humidity climate changes during Permo-Carboniferous were assessed. Intracratonic sedimentary basins develop on first-order nonconformities. Although the evolution of such basins has been the focus of many studies, the formation of the basement surfaces has rarely been considered. In this paper, we investigated the physical and chemical paleoweathering of different basement rocks at the post-Variscan nonconformity in Central Europe. We used a comprehensive approach by accounting for different scales and integrating physical and chemical weathering. Physical weathering was qualitatively classified at the macro/mesoscale and quantitatively classified at the microscale using thin sections and through measuring fracture areas by image analysis. Chemical weathering was quantified by distinguishing the mineralogical and geochemical characteristics measured by X-ray diffractometry (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Compared to previous studies, common physical and chemical weathering indices were normalized to the rock types to improve the weathering intensity comparison. Clay transformation and carbonate/dolomite precipitation in the paleoweathering sections indicate a temperature interval of 100 to 300 °C for the circulating fluids during burial. The maximum chemical weathering intensity was found at the top surface of the basaltic andesite with a CIA N (normalized chemical index of alteration) value of 83, whereas the IPW N (normalized index of physical weathering) was less than 0.1. The gabbroic diorite and granite had a CIA N value of 78, whereas the physical weathering intensity was approximately 0.6. The lowest chemical weathering intensity was observed at the top of the granodiorite and tonalite at 71, and both rock types showed the highest physical weathering intensity of approximately 4. Because of the normalization procedure, the differences in the ratio of chemical versus physical weathering can be directly linked to aridity-humidity changes in the lower Permian paleoclimate. The concept and results of this work can be used for future studies on continental paleoclimate as well as for reservoir modeling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Farmland abandonment in Europe is a major problem because of environmental, socioeconomic and landscape implications. In this paper, a general view of the extent of abandoned land, the stages of abandonment and the drivers that manage this process in Europe is presented. A scientific literature review shows an abandonment at the beginning of the 19th century, although the largest abandonment in terms of area took place in the mid-20th century. This abandonment had a far greater impact on mountain areas because of rural depopulation as well as biophysical constraints. Since the last decades of the 20th century, abandonment driven by the CAP in European Member States and by the end of the communist regime in Central and Eastern Europe has been taking place. This abandonment affects peripheral marginal areas due to biophysical or socioeconomic conditions. Semi-arid areas in Southern Europe have also seen an important extent of abandoned land over the last few decades. The literature draws on the ongoing abandonment from the following decades, and 3–4% of current farmland is considered to be affected. It is noted that, among the drivers, external factors (migration, socioeconomic model, public policies, etc.) act as enhancers that emphasize land abandonment. However, internal causes (agro-ecological and socioeconomic factors and also the features of agricultural holdings) control the dynamics and the extent of this phenomenon. The international literature about land abandonment in Europe is vast, and most of the specialized production is devoted to the effects of land abandonment, while few works determine the extent, stages and drivers of land abandonment. Finally, it is necessary to review the grey literature to obtain more quantitative information on the amount of abandoned land in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Landscape's hydric potential (LHP) could be used as indicator in water management. • LHP method refers to runoff reduction in ecosystems. • The LHP values are reflected in land cover changes. • Trends of flow discharges in rivers could be explained by LHP changes. This paper presents an approach for mitigating water-related problems, that relates the retention of precipitation and use of ecosystems, as a tool for improving the quality, quantity and availability of water resources throughout the region. One approach is the determination of the landscape's hydric potential (LHP). Land cover changes can influence ecosystems in different ways depending on crucial factors that depend on water resources. Thus-far, many studies describe the influence of land cover changes on individual features of catchments and hydrological regime, but few have made an attempt to analysis how changes in land cover can holistically influence processes in catchments. In this context the innovative aspect of this work presents the consequence of land cover changes on water retention expressed by LHP — a general descriptor that is linked with many composite influence factors on water retention. A study was carried out on 33 catchments located in central Europe. Results show increased forest cover having a positive trend in the context of LHP. Conversely, increased urban and industrial areas negatively impact LHP. The presented analysis reveals that a few land cover changes had direct and clearly positive effects on LHP. The LHP had decreased in 21 catchments and increased in 12 catchments. Decreased LHP was generally observed in catchments located on the left side of the Vistula basin where there are more advantageous conditions for agriculture, rising industry and urban areas. The study showed that during the analyzed period, obtained changes of LHP values did not strongly affect hydrological regimes in studied catchments. Our results show that LHP is a very good and useful descriptor that includes many characteristics of catchment and could be used for river catchment management purposes. The landscape's hydric potential can be used in any catchment in the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Silbury Hill, near Marlborough, Wiltshire, UK, is one of the largest prehistoric mounds in Europe, characterised by uncertain structure and unusual burial conditions. Internal collapses occurred in autumn 2000 as a result of the incomplete refilling of tunnels dug in the last few centuries. Planning for the repairs has provided an opportunity to examine samples from recent exploratory boreholes and the 1960s excavations. This paper brings together the results of these investigations, comparing the materials from inside the hill with nearby soil profiles. The truncated nature of the old ground surface and the extensive multiple iron pans found inside the hill are discussed, along with their implications for construction and post-depositional processes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Upland and shield areas of central and northwestern Europe are characterised by an abundance of relict weathering mantles (saprolites). These saprolites, if accurately dated and interpreted, may serve as an important complementary source of information about long-term environmental history. In this paper, methods used to establish ages of weathering mantles are reviewed, such as stratigraphic and morphostratigraphic dating, clay mineral and stable isotope analysis, K–Ar and cosmogenic isotope dating, particularly with reference to European examples. The record of deep weathering in the Mesozoic and Cainozoic is examined to explain the peculiarities of the evidence and controls on the changing style of weathering through time. Weathering has been a continuous process through time, but general and local geological conditions have resulted in different ages of preserved mantles. An apparent trend from an earlier kaolinitic/ferrallitic style of weathering in the Mesozoic and Early Tertiary, towards a grussic style by the end of the Cainozoic, does not only reflect climate change, but it is also broadly consistent with tectonic/geomorphic history and related changes in land surface stability. Miocene and Plio–Pleistocene saprolites, in particular, show that in different geomorphological and lithological circumstances, different types of weathering mantles could have evolved. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]