Soil and Groundwater Pollution from Agricultural Activities

Contents: Preface. 1. Agricultural activities and environmental impacts: i. Major agricultural practices. ii. Classification of crops. iii. Nutrients. iv. Crop diseases and control. v. Agricultural situation in India. 2. Soil--Processes and properties: i. Introduction to soil. ii. Soil formation. iii. Soil degradation. iv. Classification of soil. v. Characteristics of soil. vi. Constituents of soil. vii. Types of soil in India. 3. Groundwater hydrology: i. Groundwater: an introduction. ii. Occurrence and distribution of groundwater. iii. Groundwater movement. iv. Groundwater yield. v. Groundwater recharge. 4. Soil and groundwater pollution: i. Soil pollution. ii. Groundwater pollution. iii. Environmental influences and groundwater levels. iv. Groundwater quality and analyses. v. Soil quality and analyses. vi. Case study: groundwater quality in India. 5. Irrigation and drainage: impacts and remedial measures: i. Irrigation effects. ii. Drainage: merits and demerits. iii. Remedial measures. iv. Example of leaching requirements. v. Case study: impacts of irrigation and drainage in India. 6. Environmental impacts of fertilisers: i. Inorganic fertiliser. ii. Organic fertiliser. iii. Fate pathways and effects of fertilisers. iv. Mode, time and quantity of fertiliser application. 7. Pesticides and environmental impacts: i. Properties of pesticides. ii. Movement of pesticides. iii. Types of pesticides. iv. Commonly used pesticides in India and their properties. v. Environmental impacts of pesticides. vi. Appropriate use of pesticides. 8. Monitoring of soil and groundwater pollution: i. Objectives and scales of monitoring. ii. Monitoring strategy. iii. Groundwater monitoring plans. iv. Monitoring by sampling in unsaturated/Vadose Zone. v. Monitoring the saturated zone. vi. Data acquisition and processing. 9. Soil and groundwater treatment: i. Control of point and non-point sources of pollution. ii. Treatment methods. iii. Soil remediation. iv. Groundwater treatment. 10. Conservation and management of soil and groundwater: i. Soil conservation. ii. Groundwater management. iii. Sustainable agriculture. iv. Eco-watershed management. Model answers to learning activities. Distance learning in environment engineering.