Forum Geografic. Studii şi cercetări de geografie şi protecţia mediului Year 8, No. 8/ 2009, pp. 64-71 ASSESMENT OF DEGRADATION PROCESSES AND LIMITATIVE FACTORS CONCERNING THE ARENOSOLS FROM DĂBULENI – ROMANIA Petru IGNAT 1 , Alina GHERGHINA 2 , Andrei VRÎNCEANU 3 , Amelia ANGHEL 4 Abstract: Soil degradation can be described as a process by which one or more of the potential ecological functions of the soil are harmed and also like a process that lowers the current and/or future capacity of the soil to produce goods and services. The arenosols from Dăbuleni Plain, located in the SW of the Romanian Plain, have a large extension due the aeolian sand deposits which covers the Danubian loess terraces. The main degradation processes affecting the arenosols are the removing and deposition of soil material by wind forces. This type of degradation causes loss of topsoil and severe sand accumulation, which reflects in terrain deformation. The loss of topsoil induces a decrease in depth of the A horizon due to the removal of soil material by the wind because of their sandy texture and insufficient protection offered by vegetation. We should also mention that the forest shelter belts are being destroyed. An irregular removal and depositions of soil material by wind action causes deflation hollows, hummocks and dunes which lead to “terrain deformation” with severe consequences concerning land quality. Key words: soil degradation, limitative factors, arenosols, Dăbuleni Plain Rezumat: Evaluarea proceselor de degradare şi a factorilor limitativi privind arenosolurile din Dăbuleni - România. Degradarea solului poate fi descrisă ca un proces prin care una sau mai multe din potenţialele funcţii ecologice ale solului sunt afectate, dar şi ca un proces care diminuează prezenta sau/ şi viitoarea capacitate a solului de a produce bunuri şi servicii. Arenosolurile din Câmpia Dăbuleni, situată în sud- vestul Câmpiei Române, au o mare extindere datorită dunelor de nisip care acoperă terasele de loess danubian. Principalele procese de degradare care afectează arenosolurile sunt îndepărtarea şi sedimentarea materialului din sol de către vânt. Acest tip de degradare cauzează pierderea stratului de sol superior şi acumulări masive de nisip, care se reflectă în deformarea terenului. Pierderea stratului superior de sol determină o descreştere în adâncime orizontului A datorită îndepărtării materialului din sol de către vânt datorită texturii lor nisipoase şi protecţiei insuficiente oferită de vegetaţie. Ar trebui să menţionăm de asemenea că zonele de adăpost ale pădurii sunt distruse. O îndepărtare neuniformă şi sedimentările materialului din sol prin acţiunea vântului determină concavităţi prin deflaţie, movile şi dune care duc la “deformarea terenului” cu consecinţe grave asupra calităţii terenului. Cuvinte cheie: degradarea solului, factori limitativi, arenosoluri, Câmpia Dăbuleni. Introduction Land degradation is defined as deterioration of soil and its environment below natural capacity to sustain in a durable manner the natural and/or man- made ecosystems (Dumitru and Munteanu, 2002). In the context of current climate change, the regions with sandy soils are directly affected by drought and desertification. Regarding these, through the United Nation Convention to Combat Desertification, at which Romania adhered, a special interest has been given for controlling the effects of these processes since 1994. Also, the International Soil Reference and Information Centre (ISRIC) have coordinated a series of projects evaluating the current state of degraded lands. One important project is SOVEUR (Mapping of Soil and Terrain Vulnerability in Central and Eastern Europe), completed in 2000 by publishing a soil and terrain database and map at 1:2.5 million scale, on the status of soil degradation. The processes of land degradation and limitative factors regarding the agricultural production have been studied with the aim of counteracting their negative effects on soil quality. 1 National Research and Development Institute for Pedology, Agrochemistry and Environmental Protection petruignat.icpa@gmail.com 2 alinagherghina@yahoo.com 3 vranceanuandrei@yahoo.com 4 amelutu@yahoo.com 64