Resumen de Impacts of the invasion of prosopis juliflora on soil characteristics in degraded lands of North India
Land degradation remains a pertinent challenge in several regions of the world and severely impacts the productivity, ecosystem functioning and livelihoods of people. This study presents anassessment of the impacts of invasion by Prosopis juliflora on the soil in the degraded lands around the Ganges basin close to Varanasi in Northern India. The study focused on the analysis of key sustainability indicators in the soil physio-chemical and biological traits such as moisture content, bulk density, Water holding capacity, soil organic matter, Available phosphorous, nitrogen, microbial biomass and soil dehydrogenases. The results show that there is a significantincrease in several of these parameters in areas where the species is present as compared to its absence. This could be important for soil fertility amelioration and afforestation projects in denuded soils. The species also has a great economic value for resource utilization in terms of fodder, biomass and food for animal consumption and by local populations which are discussed here. Unlike some parts of the world where the species has been the introduced, the potentialbenefits of this species have not been fully recognized by the local populations in the study area. Increasing public perception towards this resource will increase its utilization and provide economic benefits to the rural populations that inhabit these areas.
