Soil organic carbon and soil microbial biomass as affected by restoration measures after 26 years of restoration in mined areas of Doon Valley

Soil organic carbon is simultaneously a source and sinks for nutrients and plays a vital role in soil fertility maintenance Soil microbial biomass can be a useful indicator of soil quality and could possibly serve as assessment criteria of successful rehabilitation of ecologically disturbed areas. To assess the impact of restoration on organic carbon and microbial biomass carbon of soil a study has been conducted at rock phosphate mined area, lies in between longitude 77°38’ to 78°20’ E and latitude 29°35’ to 30°30’ N of Doon Valley. Climate of Maldeota has well demarcated summer, rainy and winter seasons. The soil texture of Maldeota varies from sandy loam to loamy sand. The natural vegetation of the site is represented by tropical dry mixed deciduous forest type. The area was restored way back in 1982. The study site was 26 year old restored mined area having plantation of Acacia catechu and Dalbergia sissoo while adjacent Natural forest area contains dominant tree species of Cassia fistula, Bauhinia vareigata and Flacourtia cataphracta respectively. Results indicated the recovery of soil quality after restoration as the microbial biomass in the restored area was found to be greater as compared to the natural forest.