Name
Do climate-driven changes in snowmelt and soil freeze-thaw affect phosphorus build-up and loss in canola fields in western Canada?
Date & Time
Monday, May 25, 2026, 4:00 PM - 5:30 PM
Description
In cold region agricultural watersheds, winter hydrologic processes are critical drivers of nutrient mobility, yet their contribution to the long-term soil phosphorus (P) balance remains under-characterized compared to growing season soil P outflow pathways. This study utilizes an enhanced process-based model (SWAT), calibrated and validated for 1990-2016 period, to study the snowmelt dynamics and soil temperature phase-changes on P cycling in a large western Canada agricultural watershed. The climate data analysis revealed a significant shift in winter hydrology, characterized by earlier snowmelt (~2 weeks earlier) and more frequent soil freeze-thaw cycles. Our simulations demonstrate that these shifts enhanced winter P mobilization via potential increased mineralization. However, our results also indicate that these winter mechanisms were insufficient to offset the P accumulation driven by moisture-limited plant uptake during the growing season. This study dissects the specific mechanisms of cold-season P fluxes, and illustrates winter processes, while intensified by climate change and warming, play a secondary role in summer moisture availability in determining long-term soil P balance in cold-region agricultural watershed.
Location Name
McInnes Room
Full Address
Dalhousie University
Halifax NS
Canada
Session Type
Poster
Abstract ID
150
Speaker Organization
University of Alberta
Session Name
H-8
Co-authors
Junyu Qi 2, Symon Mezbahuddin 3,4, Miles Dyck 4, Derek MacKenzie 4, Monireh Faramarzi 1,* 1 Watershed Science and Modelling Laboratory, Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2E3, Canada 2 Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center, University of Maryland, College Park, 5825 University Research Ct, College Park, MD 20740, USA 3 International Trade Division, Alberta Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration, Edmonton, AB, Canada 4 Department of Renewable Resources, Faculty of Agricultural Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Edmonton, AB T6G 2R3 Canada.
Presenting Author
Yinlong Huang