Superficial loss of reactive phosphorus potentially contaminant by intense rainfall simulation

Phosphorus is naturally present or added to the soil and, depending on the mix of factors, may trigger a high environmental risk to water resources in river basins. The aim of this study was to quantify the transfer for soil surface of some forms of reactive phosphorus originating from phosphorus fertilization on bare soil, carried by the runoff. The experiment was carried out in Lages, SC, Brazil, with two replications in the field under intense simulated rainfall (64 mm h⁻¹ for 50 minutes). The results indicate that phosphorus may represent a serious environmental risk to water resources of basins at different scales in time and space, through the reactive forms of phosphorus and their different ways of transportation.

water erosion; chemical contaminant; losses in runoff