It has become clear that soil water repellency is much more wide-spread than formerly thought. Water repellency has been reported in most continents of the world for varying land uses and climatic conditions. Soil water repellency often leads to severe runoff and erosion, rapid leaching of surface-applied agrichemicals, and losses of water and nutrient availability for crops. At present, no optimum management strategies exist for water repellent soils, focusing on minimizing environmental risks while maintaining crop production. The book starts with a historical overview of water repellency research, followed by seven thematic sections covering 26 research chapters. The first section discusses the origin, the second the assessment, and the third the occurrence and hydrological implications of soil water repellency. The fourth section is devoted to the effect of fire on water repellency, section five deals with the physics and modeling of flow and transport in water repellent soils, section six presents amelioration techniques and farming strategies to combat soil water repellency, and section seven concludes the book with an extensive bibliography on soil water repellency.

Table of Contents:
Origin of Soil Water Repellency: Hydrophobic compounds in sands from New Zealand, D.J. Horne, J.C. McIntosh; Chemical characterisation of water repellent materials in Australian sands, C.M.M. Franco, P.J. Clarke et al. Assessment of Soil Water Repellency: Characterizing the degree of repellency, J. Letey, M.L.K. Carrillo, X.P. Pang; Sessile drop contact angle method, J. Bachmann, A. Ellies, K.H. Hartge; Water-entry value as an alternative indicator, Z. Wang, L. Wu, Q.J. Wu. Occurrence and Hydrological Implications: Soil wettability in forested catchments in South Africa, D.F. Scott; Soil water repellency in arid and humid climates, D.F. Jaramillo, L.W. Dekker et al; Water repellency in dunes along the Dutch coast, L.W. Dekker, C.J. Ritsema, K. Oostindie; Water repellent soils on UK golf greens, C.A. York, P.M. Canaway; Soil water repellency in the Natural Park of Donana, southern Spain, F.J. Moral Garcia, L.W. Dekker et al; Soil water repellency in northeastern Greece, A.K. Ziogas, L.W. Dekker et al; Soil moisture - a controlling factor in water repellency?, S.H. Doerr, A.D. Thomas; Wetting patterns in water repellent Dutch soils, L.W. Dekker, C.J. Ritsema; The impact of water-repellency on overland flow and runoff in Portugal, A.J.D. Ferreira, C.O.A. Coelho et al; The erosional impact of soil water repellency - an evaluation, R.A. Shakesby, S.H. Doerr, R.P.D. Walsh. Effect of Fire on Water Repellency: The role of fire and soil heating on water repellency, L.F. DeBano; Infiltration rates after prescribed fire in Northern Rocky Mountain forests, P.R. Robichaud. Physics and Modeling on Water Repellent Soils: Physics of hydrophobic soils, T.W.J. Bauters, T.S. Steenhuis et al; Solute transport through a hydrophobic soil, B.E. Clothier, I. Vogeler, G.N. Magesan; Effects of water repellency on infiltration rate and flow instability, Z. Wang, Q.J. Wu et al; Non-equilibrium model for gravity-driven fingering in water repellent soils - Formulation and 2D simulations, J. Nieber, A. Sheshukov et al; Modeling implications of preferential flow in water repellent sandy soils, C.J. Ritsema, L.W. Dekker. Ameloriation Techniques and Farming Strategies on Water Repellent Soils: Clay spreading on water repellent sands, M.A. Cann; Treating water repellent surface layer with surfactant, L.W. Dekker, K. Oostindie et al; Management of water repellency in Australia, P.S. Blackwell; Water repellency - a whole farm bio-economic perspective, A.K. Abadi Ghadim.