Explore the vast range of titles available.

Plastic film mulching (PFM) technology plays an important role in agricultural production in “drought and cold” regions, and macroplastics pollution in farmland has become a major concern affecting the sustainable development of regional agricultural production. However, there remains a lack of research on the effects of film application and macroplastics characteristics on soil nutrients in farmland. In this study, the characteristics of plastic film application and macroplastics, and their effect on soil nutrients in typical plastic film cropland in northern Xinjiang were explored by field research and a review of the relevant literature. It was found that the average annual growth rate was higher in areas where the amount, usage intensity, and proportion of plastic film were lower. The amount of plastic film input was a key factor affecting the amount of macroplastics. The macroplastics amount of plastic film was positively correlated with soil organic carbon content and negatively correlated with soil available phosphorus; however, it had no effect on soil available potassium. It is necessary to take immediate action regarding the characteristics of plastic film application and macroplastics and the impact of macroplastics on soil nutrients, in order to establish a response to the dual challenges of food security and sustainable agricultural development in terms of plastic film pollution prevention and control measures.

Manure is a primary source of methane (CH4) emissions into the atmosphere. A large proportion of CH4 from manure is emitted during storage, but this varies with storage methods. In this research, we tested whether covering a manure heap with plastic reduces CH4 emission during a short-term composting process. A static chamber method was used to detect the CH4 emission rate and the change of the physicochemical properties of cattle manure which was stored either uncovered (treatment UNCOVERED) or covered with plastic (treatment COVERED) for 30-day periods during the four seasons? The dry matter content of the COVERED treatment was significantly less than the UNCOVERED treatment (P < 0.01), and the C/N ratio of the COVERED treatment significantly greater than the UNCOVERED treatment (P > 0.05) under high temperature. In the UNCOVERED treatment, average daily methane (CH4) emissions were in the order summer > spring > autumn > winter. CH4 emissions were positively correlated with the temperature (R2 = 0.52, P < 0.01). Compared to the UNCOVERED treatment, the daily average CH4 emission rates from COVERED treatment manure were less in the first 19 days of spring, 13 days of summer, 10 days of autumn and 30 days of winter. In summary, covering the manure pile with plastic reduces the evaporation of water during storage; and in winter, long-term covering with plastic film reduces the CH4 emissions during the storage of manure.