Soil degradation by the extensive livestock in the southern amazon of the state of Mato Grosso

Cattle breeding in Brazil has a long history of pasture management, however, information on changes in soil properties due to the conversion of forest areas to pasture in the Amazon biome is still incipient. The objective of this study was to measure the impacts on the chemical and physical properties of a Yellow-Red Latosol cultivated with pasture for 10 and 20 years without corrections in comparison to the forest condition. The conversion of forest land use to pasture over a 20-year period resulted in reduced pH, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, base saturation, and cation exchange capacity. There were no significant changes in soil carbon stocks. Soil use for 10 or 20 years with pasture resulted in increased soil density, causing surface compaction.