Influence of carbonate rocks on soil hydromorphism in mining activity zone

Abstract

Operation of mining and processing plants violates the hydrogeological conditions of the land, which can contribute to the hydrogenous transformation of landscapes and soils. The geological feature of the Belgorod Region is the presence of chalk eluvium as soil-forming rocks on hill slopes (3.6% of the territory). Soils are often underlain by chalk deposits which are characterized by significant microporosity and microfracturing. Five soil profiles were studied using the profile-genetic and morphological methods. The morphological indicators of the process of gleying are the color of the soil and the presence of glandular neoplasms. The catena included soils: gray forest soil-contact-gley on mantle loam underlain by chalk eluvium; soddy underdeveloped on eluvium chalk; soddy-carbonate medium washed out on the eluvium of chalk; soddy-reclaimed thin humus soil-gley on deluvial deposit. The appearance of gray forest gley soils nearby groundwater occurrence in flat areas in the upper parts of the slopes is due to the fact that the soils are underlain by carbonate rocks, which can contribute to moisture stagnation. The main cause of formation of hydromorphic soils on the upland slope is the occurrence and weathering of carbonates in combination with their water-lifting capacity. This leads to a violation of the law of similar topographic series. Thus, Cretaceous rocks make significant adjustments to the formation of soils and their distribution over the relief. When anomalous soil properties are detected, even in the industrial zones of mining plants, a detailed consideration of all possible causes of the observed phenomena, not only anthropogenic, but also natural, is necessary.