Determination Of Soil Contamination Research Articles

Determination of Soil Contamination at the Wildland-Urban Interface after the 2021 Marshall Fire in Colorado, USA.

Wildfires at the wildland-urban interface (WUI) are increasingly common. The impacts of such events are likely distinct from those that occur strictly in wildland areas, as we would expect an elevated likelihood of soil contamination due to the combustion of anthropogenic materials. We evaluated the impacts of a wildfire at the WUI on soil contamination, sampling soils from residential and nonresidential areas located inside and outside the perimeter of the 2021 Marshall Fire in Colorado, USA. We found that fire-affected residential properties had elevated concentrations of some heavy metals (including Zn, Cu, Cr, and Pb), but the concentrations were still below levels of likely concern, and we observed no corresponding increases in concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The postfire increases in metal concentrations were not generally observed in the nonresidential soils, highlighting the importance of combustion of anthropogenic materials for potential soil contamination from wildfires at the WUI. While soil contamination from the 2021 Marshall Fire was lower than expected, and likely below the threshold of concern for human health, our study highlights some of the challenges that need to be considered when assessing soil contamination after such fires.

Damage of soil cover due to the impact of tourism in the Altai mountains

This article presents the results of a study on soil cover damage caused by uncontrolled tourism in the Kazakhstan Altai and Mongolian Altai ranges. According to the expedition and laboratory work, it was determined that the soil cover of 182,7 km long territory in the Mongolian Altay range was damaged due to the ruts of vehicles and the trampling of tourists. More than 56,9% of these measured areas were completely destroyed, and 35,4% became rocky or desert. In the Altai ridge of Kazakhstan, the soil cover was damaged due to the formation of branch roads on an area of ​​705,7 ha, which was 55,3 km long. Approximately 84,4% of the total recorded area is moderately damaged and the growth of plants and grasses has decreased. During the determination of soil contamination with heavy metals, a total of 40 samples were taken from 8 coordinates and analyzed. The amount of lead and nickel in the soil has increased by 2-4 times due to the influence of tourism in both the Mongolian Altai Range and the Kazakh Altai Range. Cadmium element was not found at all. The content of other heavy metals such as chromium, copper, and zinc is slightly increased and accumulated at the bottom of the road. In both Kazakhstan and Mongolia, it was determined that the soil is polluted with heavy metals only by tourists' cars, as there is no mining, metallurgical plants, or resorts within 300 km.   Keywords:  Kazakhstan Altai Ridge, Mongolian Altai Ridge, soil cover, soil pollution.

Assessment of soil clogging and seed productivity of weeds on poplar black landings

Goal. Determination of soil contamination of plots planted for planting black poplar and evaluation of seed productivity of weeds.
 Methods. The level of seed productivity of the weeds was determined by the weighting method in the following sequence. In the experiment, 10 plants of one weed species were cut and manually threshed on a tarpaulin. The purified seeds were weighed and, after determining the mass of 1000 seeds, the average amount (thousand units /plant) of seeds per plant was converted.
 Results. The problem with perennial plantations of bioenergy crops is that the plants are grown for 10—15 years in monoculture on the same section of the field. Consequently, large stocks of certain weeds in the soil can significantly affect the growth and development and productivity level of cultivated plants. So, before planting a plantation, it is necessary to assess the clogging of the plots for the presence of problematic weed species, which can potentially breed on black poplar plantings and impede effective plant care. Virtually all arable land is mothballed with a different weed seed bank. Weed seed stocks depend on the direction of use of the plot, the culture of agriculture, the quality of agricultural operations on care, crop rotation, culture, etc. However, two areas with the same seed reserves in the soil are difficult to find, although the percentage of the main weed species may be identical.
 Conclusions. Weeds traditionally have high seed productivity and form large seed banks in the arable soil, reaching 1.5—2.0 million units / ha. Bioenergy crops, especially perennial species, are extremely sensitive to weeds in the first year of growing season. Because they form rather modest growths of vegetative mass and can not receive photosynthetically active energy to the soil, and therefore it is important to ensure the purity of the field from weeds during the first year of vegetation.

Determination of arsenic content in soil using dt-neutron activation analysis

The proposed technique increases the accuracy and reliability of the results of analysis for arsenic content in soil, is characterized by an adequate detection limit for relatively low neutron flux density, and meets the GOST 17.4.3.03-85 requirements for methods for determination of contaminants in soil. Owing to the high selectivity and simplicity of the measurements, the feasibility of instrumental analysis of rather large inhomogeneous samples, and the lack of any need for special preparation of the sample, this technique is a useful supplement to neutron activation analysis methods for analysis of complex multicomponent objects (soils, bottom sediments, minerals, etc.). Due to the finite time required for the analysis, the major applications of the technique are practical ecological problems, in particular background monitoring, rather than routine control processes.