The efficacy of three techniques to alleviate soil compaction at a restored sand and gravel quarry. Soil Use and Management 22:362371

ABSTRACT 1 Reinstated soil at restored sites often suffers from severe compaction which can significantly impede root 2 development. Several methods, such as ripping and complete cultivation, are available to alleviate 3 compaction that may occur as a result of soil reinstatement. This paper examines the effectiveness of the 4 industry standard industrial ripper and a prototype modern ripper, the Mega-Lift, in comparison with the 5 recommended best practice method of complete cultivation. An investigation of the penetration resistance of 6 the soil at a restored sand and gravel quarry was carried out using a cone penetrometer and a 'lifting driving 7 tool' (dropping weight penetrometer) three years following cultivation. All the cultivation treatments reduced 8 soil compaction to some degree compared to the untreated control plot. However, the penetration resistance 9 values suggest that rooting would be restricted at relatively shallow depths in the plots cultivated using th