Abstract In northernmost Fennoscandia, grazing by reindeer (Rangifer tarandus L.) has a substantial impact on the vegetation of boreal forests and arctic-alpine tundra heaths, which are reflected in below-ground processes, such as nutrient mineralization and soil organic matter decomposition. In the present thesis, the effects of reindeer grazing on soil nutrient cycling were studied by comparing grazed situation with an ungrazed control area in ten boreal forests and six arctic-alpine tundra heaths. In boreal forests, reindeer grazing reduced microbial respiration in both the oligotrophic and mesotrophic study areas, indicating a deficiency of labile substrates for the soil microbes due to reindeer grazing. Simultaneously, there was heterogeneity in the impact on nitrogen mineralization rates as at some sites, mineralization was enhanced by grazing. The fertilization effect of urine and faeces can therefore be strong enough a factor to outweigh a reduction in quality of soil organic matter. In the oligotrophic forests, low soil moisture content in the grazed areas could sometimes limit the mineralization rates even when the potential for mineralization was enhanced by grazing. In the tundra ecosystems, there was spatial variation in the impact of grazing on microbial respiration and nitrogen mineralization. Low grazing intensity occurring outside the growing season had a retarding impact on nutrient cycling in both unfertilized, nutrient-poor and fertilized, nutrient-rich conditions. In contrast, a relatively high grazing intensity enhanced the mineralization rates in two nutrient-poor and two nutrient-rich tundra heaths. When three different grazing intensities were compared in one oceanic, nutrient-rich and one continental, nutrient-poor tundra heath, the strongest positive effect of grazing on soil nutrient cycling occurred in the heavily grazed areas. The data do not support the assumption that soil nutrient availability regulates whether herbivores enhance or retard nutrient cycling in the soil. Instead, the net effect of grazing is determined by the balance between the underlying mechanisms that may work at opposite directions. The most important of these mechanisms are the grazer-mediated impact on the decomposability of the dominant vegetation and fertilization by urine and faeces. The duration, intensity and seasonal timing of the grazing seem to be important factors that regulate whether reindeer grazing enhances or retards soil nutrient cycling in each specific area. Due to the high spatial and temporal variation in the effects of grazing observed in this study, it is not possible to generalize the overall impact of grazing. Further study is required in order to determine the exact conditions under which grazing enhances or it retards soil nutrient cycling.

O prospecto Rio Vermelho está localizado no setor oriental da Província Mineral de Carajás, perto do contato com os metassedimentos da Faixa Araguaia. A mineralização está localizada em uma zona de splay da Falha de Carajás, próxima do depósito IOCG do Cristalino (Huhn et al., 1999). O minério é hospedado por granitoides arqueanos deformados e afetados por alterações hidrotermais de vários estágios controladas por estruturas NNW-SSE. O levantamento geológico de superfície-subsuperfície e petrografia detalhada, juntamente com análises de química mineral, permitiram a identificação de diferentes estágios hidrotermais. A alteração hidrotermal começa com um sistema sódico com albita e quartzo substituindo o feldspato original. A alteração sódica é melhor preservada em áreas distais. A potassificação, representada pela cristalização do microclínio juntamente com o quartzo, sobrepõe a paragênese da albita e ocorre proximal à zona de minério. A cloritização ocorre em dois momentos diferentes, pré e sin-mineralização. A pré-mineralização é caracterizada por clorita lamelar associada a epidoto e quartzo. A sin-mineralização é marcada por clorita fibro-radial, enriquecido em Fe-Al e Mn, e associada com óxidos de ferro e sulfetos de cobre que preenche veios e brechas. Antes da fase de mineralização, a silicificação marca o início da fase de brechação que produz veios de quartzo O estágio de mineralização de cobre, com o minério preenchendo brechas dominado por calcopirita, com bornita subordinada, ocorre associado a óxidos de ferro, com abundante hematita e magnetita subordinada. A sericitização com epidoto e carbonato é um processo pós-mineralização e caracteriza a última fase de alteração hidrotermal. O hidrotermalismo que começa com fases sódicas, termina com sericita, parece marcar uma variação na temperatura entre 600 a 250 °C. A transição de alteração sódica e potássica de alta temperatura para baixa temperatura na zona do minério em um ambiente dúctil-rúptil sugerem uma entrada de água meteórica no sistema. A hematita derivada da transformação de magnetita indica fluidos extremamente oxidados e sugere uma temperatura de deposição <350° C durante a formação do minério. As características hidrotermais da mineralização de cobre do Prospecto Rio Vermelho sugerem um IOCG superficial dominado por hematita. Sua posição regional nas bordas da Faixa Araguaia, mas não afetada pelos processos neoproterozóicos, abre uma nova área de exploração na parte mais oriental do Domínio Carajás. / The Rio Vermelho prospect is located in the eastern sector of the Carajás Mineral Province, near to the contact with the metassediments of the Araguaia Fold Belt. The mineralization is located in a horse splay zone of the Carajás Fault, near to the Cristalino IOCG deposit (Huhn et al. 1999). The ore is hosted by archean deformed granitoids affected by multi-stages hydrothermal alteration controlled by a NNW-SSE structures. Geological surface and subsurface survey and detailed petrography coupled with mineral chemistry analyzes allowed the identification of different hydrothermal stages. The hydrothermal alteration starts with a sodic system with albite and quartz substituting the original feldspars. The sodic alteration is preserved in distal areas. Potassification, represented by the crystallization of microcline together with quartz, overprints the albite paragenesis and occurs proximal to the ore zone. Chloritization occurs in two different moments, pre- and syn-mineralization. The pre-mineralization is characterized by lamellar chlorite associated with epidote and quartz. The syn-mineralization is marked by fibro-radial chlorite, enriched in Fe-Al and Mn, and associated with iron oxide and copper sulfides filling veins and breccias. Before the mineralization stage, silicification marks the beginning of the brecciacion phase producing quartz veins The copper mineralization stage, with ore filling breccias dominated by chalcopyrite with subordinate bornite, occurs associated with iron oxides, with abundant hematite and subordinate magnetite. Sericitization with epidote and carbonate is a post-mineralization process and characterizes the last hydrothermal alteration phase. The hydrothermalism starting with sodic phases and ending with sericite marks a temperature ranging from 600 to 250°C. The transition from high temperature sodic and potassic alteration to low temperature in the ore zone in a ductil-ruptil environment, suggest an input of oxidized meteoric water. The hematite derived from magnetite transformation indicates extremely oxidized fluids and suggests a depositional temperature < 350° during the ore formation. The hydrothermal characteristics of the copper mineralization of the Rio Vermelho Prospect suggest a shallow IOCG type dominated by hematite. Its regional position at the borders of the Araguaia Fold Belt, but not affected by the Neoproterozoic processes, opens a new area for exploration in the easternmost part of the Carajás Domain.

The Cassenha Hill copper-gold prospect is situated in the Catabola area, Huambo Province, southwestern Angola. Geologically, the prospect is part of the Angolan Central Eburnean Zone (CEZ) and consists of Paleoproterozoic metasedimentary rock sequences which have been intruded by Eburnean granitoids at ± 2.1 Ga. The prospect itself comprises an area of 180 Km2 and has been intermittently explored since 2005 by Rift Valley Resources (RVR) and its associates. The Cassenha Hill prospect is characterized by the occurrence of partially altered and highly oxidized metasedimentary rocks (meta-mudstone, meta-siltstone, carbonate-rich rock, meta-sandstone, breccia, and quartzite), and altered isolated granitoids. This study represents the first detailed study of the prospect and aims to shed light on the characteristics of the various rock types (i.e., host and barren rocks), their source/provenance, styles of alteration, and the origin and/or type of the fluid responsible for the mineralization. Techniques applied include borehole core logging, petrography, whole-rock geochemistry (XRF and ICP-MS), and stable isotope geochemistry on samples collected on the surface and from exploration boreholes drilled as part of RVR exploration program. Overall, the petrographic and geochemical studies undertaken in the rocks of the Cassenha Hill prospect indicate the following: (1) The rocks are moderately to strongly fractured; (2) The rocks have experienced weak to moderate chemical weathering; (3) The rocks are compositionally immature and originated from felsic provenance; (4) The rocks are sulfur-poor, and lacking in sulfide minerals (5) The rocks are enriched in LREE and LILE elements and depleted in HREE and HFSE elements; (6) The mineralization is associated with chloritization alteration and predominantly occurs within and/or at the edges of quartz/chlorite-rich veins/fractures and is not restricted to any rock type. Two ore stages could be identified, namely, hypogene ore (stage I) consisting of pyrite ± chalcopyrite ± other copper sulfides, and supergene ore (stage II) consisting of malachite ± azurite ± chrysocolla, which represents the prevalent mineralization at the prospect. The δ 18O value of quartz veins range from +12.81 to +13.53‰, while the δD of chlorite minerals range from -51 to -45‰. Therefore, assuming fluid-rock interaction took place at ≈ 350oC, due to the presence of quartz, the fluid had δ 18OH20 values of about +8‰, which are typical of magmatic waters. On the other hand, at a temperature of ≈ 350oC, and with the difference between chlorite and water being -33.5‰, such fluids would have had δDH20 values of about -20‰ (δ 18OH20= -4‰), which are typical of meteoric waters. Although the various mineral phases have yielded different isotopic signatures, this study suggests that water is ultimately of meteoric origin but exchanged with hydrogen-poor magmatic rock, thus maintaining the meteoric signature. The continuous influx of meteoric waters within the fracture system led to the development of copper oxides such as malachite, azurite and chrysocolla, which possibly originated from the insitu oxidation of the hypogene sulfides. This signature, together with other field, petrographic and geochemical observations allows one to, tentatively, suggest that the Cassenha Hill prospect represents an extension of a polymetallic vein-type of porphyry Cu deposit that has been subjected to supergene processes at the weathering profile.

In North Dakota, adoption of conservation tillage practices has resulted in an accumulation of crop residue remaining on the soil surface. North Dakota producers receive a nitrogen credit for long-term no-till but due to previous crop residue this credit may not be realistic for providing partial nutrient needs to subsequent crops in a cool environment with a short growing season. Our objectives were to evaluate the N mineralization potential of common crop residues to determine whether crop residue accumulation in no-till systems can provide sufficient nitrogen quantities needed for subsequent crops. Three lab incubation studies were conducted to provide N mineralization insights for individual crop residues, crop residues over several simulated growing seasons, and crop residue in diversified cropping systems. Differences in soil texture, surface application versus incorporation of residue, freeze and thaw cycles and combinations of residues were all factors examined. Results indicated that crop residue decomposition and N release from the residue treatments generally immobilized N but were not significantly different from the bare soil for nearly all studies. The only exception observed was for the forage radish cover crop which showed the potential to improve soil N mineralization in select three-year rotations. Findings of these studies show that most wide C:N ratio crop residues will immobilize soil N in a no-till system under ideal conditions (i.e. moisture, temperature, and residue particle size). These findings suggestion that a fertilizer N credits may require reevaluation and take into consideration soil moisture with validated data to support the fertilizer N credit.

The plant-soil nitrogen cycle plays a significant role in allocation of available N to plants, and improved understanding of N cycling helps sustainably increase fertilizer use efficiency. There are various processes (nitrogen mineralization and nitrification) involved in the availability and mobility of nitrogen in the soil. The primary objective of this study was to determine the NUE under contrasting nitrogen treatments over a period of five years. Additionally, we examined the effect of different N treatments on N mineralization and nitrification in conventional and organic farming systems. This project was funded by Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Competitive Grants Program Grant no. 2011-67019-30178 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture and by the Utah Agricultural Experiment Station. We established silage corn field plots in northern Utah, and silage corn was grown using ammonium fertilizers or manure composts over five years. Nitrogen use efficiency was found to be higher in ammonium sulfate fertilizer treatments as compared to compost treated soils. Nitrogen mineralization and nitrification rates were examined for soils from the silage corn field plots and also for additional soils from certified organic field plots receiving steer compost, steer manure and crop rotations. There was a significant overall nitrogen treatment effect for both conventional and organic rotational plots. Carbon mineralization rates were found to be higher in compost under conventional plots and manure under organic rotational plots as compared to control. There was no significant treatment effect found in gross mineralization and nitrification rates in 2015 and 2016. Gross nitrification rates were found to be the higher in AS200 treatment versus compost and control in 2016. Improved knowledge of the timing and rates of nitrogen supply is vital for improving NUE and for reducing excessive use of fertilizers while maintaining an acceptable yield. The optimization of fertilizer rates according to crop demand at different stages of growth will be helpful in the efficient management of available N especially for composts and manures.

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<p> Previous workers in the Hamilton area have pointed out the occurance of lead and zinc mineralization within the Mid-Silurian carbonate beds. They also mentioned the existance of bitumens in these rock units.</p> <p> Analysis of 30 dolomite samples and separated bitumens by atomic absorption for Cu, Pb, Zn showed that the localization of the metals in the carbonates was controlled by the concentration of the bitumens in the rocks.</p> <p> Analysis of 5 bitumens samples by atomic absorption for Cu, Pb, Zn suggested that the bitumens act merely as a reducing agent and are not preferred sites for base metal accumulation.</p> / Thesis / Bachelor of Science (BSc)

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