Volume 36, Number 3, 2012

The purpose of this study was to adjust equations that establish relationships between rainfall events with different duration and data from weather stations in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil. In this study, the relationships between different duration heavy rainfalls from 13 weather stations of Santa Catarina were analyzed. From series of maximum annual rainfalls, and using the Gumbel-Chow distribution, the maximum rainfall for durations between 5 min and 24 h were estimated considering return periods from 2 to 100 years. The data […]

Increased global demand for food, coupled with the market requirements, not only related to quality, but also to diversity, is leading to an increased use of pesticides in crops. In this context, the search for information and technologies to reduce environmental risks associated with pesticide use plays an important role. Laboratory studies have provided data on the behavior of pesticides in soils, but little is known about the identity and toxicity of the metabolites formed. This study evaluated the behavior […]

The distribution of natural levels of trace elements in soils is rather variable. Therefore, the determination of background levels (BLs), based on averages or global intervals of concentration, are mostly unsuitable. This study proposed to establish BLs based on soils with similar properties, grouped by chemical and physical properties based on Pearson’s correlation analysis, factor analysis (FA), cluster analysis (CA), and discriminate analysis (DA). The Pearson correlation analysis and factor analysis showed that the variables soil Fe, Mn, Ti, silt […]

Poultry litter is an important nutrient source in agriculture, although little information is available regarding its decomposition rate and nutrient release. To evaluate these processes, poultry litter (PL) was applied to the soil to supply 100, 200 and 300 kg ha-1 N contained in 4,953, 9,907 and 14,860 kg ha-1 PL, respectively. The litter bag technique was used to monitor the process of decomposition and nutrient release from the litter. These bags were left on the soil surface and collected periodically (after 15, 30, 60, […]