Articles

The effectiveness of remediators in detoxification of soils contaminated with heavy metals was studied in a lab experiment. The objects of the study were the soils of the southern tundra, functioning under conditions of anthropogenic impact: Haplic Gleysols (Gelic) and Histic Fluvisols (Oxyaquic). The chemical ability of remediants to bind metals (Ni and Cu), transferring them to a sedentary state in comparison with the reference variants (without any addition of remediants), was evaluated. In experiments, remediants were used in three doses (D1, D2, D3): shungite; diatomite, glauconite and bentonite. To assess the immobilization of Ni and Cu in soils, acid-soluble (CR) forms (extraction of 1 n. HNO₃), mobile forms (ammonium acetate buffer solution with pH 4.8), water-soluble forms of Ni and Cu (1:20 aqueous extract) were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The effectiveness of soil detoxification during the application of remediants was evaluated by the phytotoxic effect in an express phytoassay with standardized tests (Brassica rapa CrGC and Avena sativa) represented by higher plants. A decrease in the proportion of mobile forms of Ni and Cu by 50% or more in Haplic Gleysols (Gelic) was revealed with the addition of any dose of ameliorants. The greatest effect of reducing mobility was exerted by shungite and diatomite at a dose of D1 — up to 15% Ni and Cu for Histic Fluvisols (Oxyaquic) soil. The use of the selected remediants in the indicated amounts did not reveal a phytotoxic effect on the tests in the experiment.

We studied morphological properties, pH, organic carbon content, and specific activity of ¹³⁷Cs and natural radionuclides (⁴⁰K, ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th) in the upper horizons of soils in deactivated and slightly damaged areas of the city. The studies were carried out in the urban ecosystems of the city of Elektrostal (Moscow region) in 2019, i.e. 6 years after local precipitation of ¹³⁷Cs due to a radiation incident. Morphological features of the upper horizons of urban soils were: brownish-gray color, light-loamy composition, small-lumpy and lumpy structure, inclusions of construction and household waste. In the upper horizons of urbiquasizems and urban soils, a low carbon content (less than 1%) with high coefficients of variation - were detected. In the studied urban soils, a wide range of water pH values was noted: from acidic (4,6–5,5) to highly alkaline (>8,0) reaction. Correlation analysis showed that in the upper horizons of UR, the content of organic carbon was reduced and alkalinization of the soil environment was observed. The accumulative type of distribution of ¹³⁷Cs was recorded for soil profiles of polluted urban ecosystems in which decontamination measures were not carried out. The profiles of urban soils that were subjected to decontamination revealed low values of the specific activity of ¹³⁷Cs in surface bulk layers and maxima in buried contaminated horizons. In the bulk horizons of UR, which include a large amount of crushed stone, there is an increase in the specific activity of ²²⁶Ra. Some technogenic horizons UR and TCH, consisting mainly of quartz sand, are characterized by very low values of specific activities ²²⁶Ra and ⁴⁰K. Correlations of chemical and radiation indicators in the profiles of urban soils reflect the different composition and properties of upper horizons formed as a result of excavation and decontamination work.

As part of the study of the ecological state of soils and vegetation in the zone of impact of the Sredneuralsky Copper Smelter (SUMZ), the following tasks were solved: the content of heavy metals in the soils of the test sites laid within the zone of impact of the SUMZ was determined; macrokinetic patterns of seasonal dynamics of the normalized relative vegetation index (NDVI) at the test sites in the zone of impact of the SUMZ were revealed; macrokinetic patterns of vegetation response in the form of NDVI, calculated according to MODIS and Landsat 8 data, to soil pollution by a complex of heavy metals in the zone of impact of the SUMZ were revealed; soil quality was ranked according to the patterns of vegetation response in the form of NDVI to soil pollution by a complex of heavy metals within the boundaries of the natural protection zone (NZZ) of the SUMZ according to 2023.

The intra-seasonal dynamics of photosynthetically active biomass in the form of NDVI was modeled using a theoretical growth equation based on MODIS satellite data. The seasonal maximum of the vegetation index at the trial sites in 2012 fell on the 25‒28 week. In 2023, it occurred on the 27‒33 week, depending on the location of the sampling point. The rate of maximum achievement is characterized by weak intra-seasonal and interannual variation.

The patterns of changes in the concentration of photosynthetically active biomass in the form of maximum NDVI for the 2023 season in response to the gross content of a complex of heavy metals (Cu, Pb, Cd and Zn) in the soil of the test sites were modeled using the theoretical equation of dose dependence. The maximum permissible level of the heavy metal complex in the soil in the form of a geometric mean, which does not cause a decrease in the values of the vegetation index calculated according to the data of the MODIS and Landsat 8 satellites, was 101 and 106 mg×kg^-1, respectively.

The analysis of histograms of the distribution of NDVI values within the NZZ was carried out, which showed how the true frequencies of occurrence of the values of the vegetation index correspond to the empirical boundary of the NZZ associated with the maximum dose dependence point identified by the study of the 2012. The nature of the distribution of true NDVI values for the NZZ exclusively fully supports the used zoning theory based on the analysis of dose dependence. The modern boundaries of the SUMZ natural protection zone are 4‒7 km away from the center of the sanitary protection zone.

Ratuioning of the content of hazardous substances in soil as an object of environmental protection in the Russian Federation is provided by a set of normative acts establishing the principles of assessment, approaches to the use of soils of varying degrees of anthropogenic transformation, the level of their pollution, at which the responsibility of the land user for violation of legislation on soil protection occurs. The analysis of normative acts shows that the most stringent pollution regulation system has been established in Russia, which is based on determining the compliance of the content of chemical elements and compounds in soils with sanitary and hygienic standards in the territories of settlements and agricultural lands. On other lands, as a standard, the excess of which leads to the onset of economic responsibility for pollution, the value of the concentration of the pollutant in the adjacent territory of a similar purpose and type of use, which is not adversely affected by a specific type of violation, is applied. At the same time, chemical elements and compounds are considered as pollutants, regardless of their origin, degree of danger and biological significance. The application of this approach within the framework of law enforcement practice creates significant problems in establishing the fact of negative impact, calculating the amount of damage from pollution, and developing measures for soil remediation. Thus, the current regulations consider as pollutants substances of natural origin, including those that ensure soil fertility and are applied with mineral and organic fertilizers. The use of the background level of substances as the maximum permissible value does not take into account the natural variability of elements and compounds in soils, as well as the errors of their chemical analysis. The excessive rigidity of the applicable standards is the reason for the increased costs of soil remediation measures.

The way out of this situation is to revise the rationing system, taking into account the biological significance of elements and compounds, and the need to introduce a multi-level system of soil quality indicators. There is a need to improve the conceptual framework as part of regulatory documents on soil protection.

The article discusses one of the ways to assess the condition of soil cover to improve the efficiency of land management using the example of the Volozhin region of the Republic of Belarus. A comprehensive assessment of the agrochemical and natural potential of the soil is proposed by means of typing the soil cover depending on agrochemical indicators (pH_KCl, humus content, mobile compounds of phosphorus and potassium) and a quality score reflecting the natural state of the soil. Using geostatistical methods, the values of agrochemical indicators were interpolated from elementary areas into areas of soil varieties of agricultural lands and classified according to the degree of content of agrochemical elements that made up the agrochemical potential (AP). After crossing the AP with the bonitet score, 9 groups of soils were identified according to soil-agrochemical potential (SAP), of which the largest share (58,2 %) is occupied by soils with average potential (61,950 ha). Based on the results of a spatial assessment of the PAP, it was determined that sod-podzolic and sod-podzolic swampy soils developing on light loams and cohesive sandy loams have the greatest potential. It was also revealed that areas with low PAP gravitate towards the most dissected areas of the terrain with sandy and cohesive sandy soils. Based on the typification carried out, the main types of preferred land use in the Volozhin region were determined: more than half of the agricultural land can be used for intensive agricultural use for arable land (52,1 %) and meadows (12,5 %), traditional land use is possible for 29,3 % territories and only 6,2 % of lands require the use of soil protection farming systems, primarily focused on erosion-hazardous areas of the area.

For landscape conditions in the upper reaches of the river Klyazma, Solnechnogorsk district, Moscow region, the height and reserves of snow cover were investigated, and the chemical composition of the snow was determined. The basis for considering the component composition of snow cover was the geochemical taxonomy of chemical elements based on the characteristics of water migration and abundance.

Data from 23 snow sampling points were interpolated in SAGA GIS using the inverse distance weighting (IDW) method. On this basis, zones differing in the chemical composition of snow are identified. One of the zones is confined to the M-10 Moscow-St. Petersburg highway, while the second borders on populated areas. The area close to the highway is characterized by increased levels of calcium, sodium, aluminum, and chloride ions in the snow cover. The second zone, bordering populated areas, is characterized by a high content of calcium, copper, and manganese in the snow. For the third zone, low concentrations of components in the snow were observed, which are characteristic of a superaquatic landscape due to the distance from sources of pollution.

The studied composition of snow waters belongs to the bicarbonate-sodium-calcium-chloride class. It has been shown that the height and reserves of snow cover are partially controlled by two factors: the type of elementary landscape and the type of ecosystem. Against this background, the spatial distribution of concentrations of elements and anions in snow is predominantly controlled by the anthropogenic factor.

The aim of the work was to assess the contribution of the following components – biomass and mortmass of tree stands, undergrowth, living ground cover, and forest litter — to the total organic matter’s pool of plant community. The object of the study was a territory of coniferous-deciduous forest located in Solnechnogorsk City District of the Moscow region, in which five permanent sample trial plots of 50×50 m were allocated. The greatest contribution to the total organic matter mass of studied plant communities was made by forest stand perennial parts (up to 87%) and forest stand mortmass (up to 14%), and phytomass of deciduous trees in stand containing 32 to 98%, which was connected with incompleteness of forest restoration succession process. The contribution of forest litter was no more than 3%; litter deposit was low (0,18–1,21 kg×m^-2), which is not typical for spruce forests, as is the fact that all litter is of the destructive type. Living ground cover in terms of floristic composition and ecological-coenotic structure was typical for the subzone of coniferous-deciduous forests; its contribution to the overall productivity of forest biogeocenosis was insignificant. The spatial intrabiogeocenotic structure of litter reserves and living ground cover biomass distribution was disturbed compared to typical spruce forests due to the high proportion of deciduous species in the forest stand. Deciduous species inclusion in the tree tier, typical of the final stage of formation of a secondary coniferous forest during succession, caused a slight increase in the intensity of the biological cycle, which was indicated in this case by a decrease in the supply of litter and a simplification of their structure. Since the biomass and mortmass of tree stand make the greatest contribution to the sequestration of carbon by forest biogeocenoses, it is these components that require the most detailed assessment during monitoring observations, the purpose of which is to assess the carbon reserves of terrestrial ecosystems.

The influence of the discharge of spent aircraft deicing fluid (ADF), utilized in civil aviation, on the chemical composition of the eluate of sod-podzolic soil was being studied in a column experiment. It was determined that Al, Ca, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, Sr, and Zn are released into the environment together with the ADF. It is also shown that the ADF leads to changes in the indicators of the composition of lysimetric waters such as СOD, pH, Eh, electrical conductivity, and heavy metal content. As a result of the ADF discharge, several elements, including Fe and Mn, become more mobile and migrate to the liquid phase, while others are fixed in the soil, resulting in the redistribution of elements in the soil profile.

Changes in the physical properties of podzolic soils were analysed three years after a cutting of coniferous-deciduous plantings in the territory of the middle taiga of the Komi Republic with three‒ and ten‒fold forwarder passes, as well as after leveling deep ruts formed after ten passes. The influence of different number of passes on soil density, filtration coefficient, penetration resistance is shown. An assumption about various mechanisms of soil change has been made: three forwarder passes lead to compression, ten — to compression and turbation, which was confirmed by indications of soil density and hardness. It was revealed that compression leads to an increase in density by 0.15 g×cm^‒3 and penetration resistance by 25%. Meanwhile, filtration rate did not change. Ten passes lead to turbation, which levels the possible compaction due to an introduction of forest litter into the upper mineral soil horizons. Moreover, hardness values decreased by 2‒3 times and water permeability decreased from 70 to 1 cm×day^‒1. It was revealed that leveling deep ruts causes a noticeable decrease in soil density after three years, including in comparison with the undisturbed soil. Furthermore, filtration rate increases several times. Penetration resistance is also increased. An estimation of the water retention curve approximation parameters by the van Genuchten equation made it possible to identify changes in soil of ruts compared to the a mechanically undisturbed site. A decrease in the range of mobile moisture was noted as a result of compaction after heavy equipment usage, leading to moisture stagnation in ruts.