Impact of point polluters on terrestrial ecosystems: Methodology of research, experimental design, and typical errors

Abstract

Research on changes in the structure and functions of ecosystems exposed to the impact of external factors is a central task of the modern ecology (Moretti, Duelli, and Obrist, 2006), which explains the interest of ecologists in analyzing the consequences of indus� trial pollution. It is especially popular to perform stud� ies in the vicinities of point polluters (i.e., those whose size is negligibly small compared to that of their impact zones). These point polluters primarily include ferrous and nonferrous (nickel, copper, lead, zinc, aluminum, etc.) smelters, mineral fertilizer and cement plants, industrial facilities for the synthesis and processing of organic chemical compounds, and coalor oilfired power plants. The results of such studies are relevant to many fields of ecology (e.g., ecotoxicology, bioindication, ecological monitoring, modelling, and standardization) and also to allied sci� ences: the theory of evolution, biogeochemistry, and many others. However, none of these fields covers all aspects of the impact of point polluters on living nature or takes full account of their specific features. An integrated picture of ecosystem transformation under the impact of industrial pollution can be created only within the framework of an emerging scientific field that we proposed to name the ecology of impact regions, or impact ecology (Vorobeichik, 2004). An impact region is understood as a complex of ecosys� tems differing in spatiotemporal scale that are located around a point polluter and exposed to the impact of pollutants (primarily atmospheric emissions) from this source. Abstract—The current state of the ecology of the impact regions is outlined. It is argued that the complex of ecosystems situated around a point polluter (an impact region) is an appropriate model for solving several fundamental and applied ecological problems related to the exploration of strong external impacts on biota. Typical methodological errors resulting from insufficient attention to specific features of passive experiments are analysed, and ways to avoid them are proposed. The principles of spatial arrangements of study sites within the impact region and of the selection of experimental and evaluation units are discussed.