Abstract

The object of the research is the ecosystems that are directly adjacent to the Ukrainian highways of interstate, state and regional importance. The areas on the roads М02, М03, Н07, Н12 and Р44 were under investigation. Assessment of the emissions of roadside ecosystems is a perspective and difficult task. One of the key problems is the detection of the trends of vehicles movement impact on roadside ecosystems. During the study, bioindicative methods were used. The lichen indication method was used to study the pollution of atmospheric air by sulfur oxides. Phytotesting of soils from the studied sites was also applied. The results of bioindicative studies have shown that the level of air pollution by sulfur dioxide along the highways of inter-state importance is higher than others. At the sites of these roads, the concentration of sulfur dioxide exceeds the maximum permissible. This can be explained by the intensive movement of vehicles, including trucks. After all, combustion of diesel fuel is a significant source of sulfur dioxide. According to the calculation of phytotoxicity effect of the soil, selected on the studied sites, the highest level of soil contamination is also observed along the interstate highways. The studies have shown that the impact on roadside ecosystems depends on the category of a highway, as well as its technical condition. The impact level is higher on the roads with high traffic density and areas with poor technical roadbed condition.

Highlights

  • Ecosystems adjoining the highway are an immediate vehicle pollution acceptor

  • It is shown that the level of atmospheric pollution by sulfur dioxide along highways of interstate importance is higher than the corresponding pollution level along motorways of other categories

  • Along the highway P44 the concentration of sulfur dioxide is lower than the maximum permissible

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Summary

Introduction

Ecosystems adjoining the highway are an immediate vehicle pollution acceptor. These ecosystems can have different characteristics (forest, meadow, agro ecosystems), but what unites them all is that the prevailing impact on them is exerted by emissions from motor vehicles. The continuous growth of vehicle fleet and traffic flow intensity lead to load increment in the above-mentioned ecosystems. Plants give a well-defined response to abiotic changes, performing an indicative role. Plant bioindication of the environmental condition is believed to be one of the most accessible techniques for estimating anthropogenic load [1]. The undeniable advantage of bioindicative assessment is that we observe the «live» response of a particular biocenose to changes in the environment

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