Scholarly record

ACCUMULATION AND MIGRATION OF MOBILE FORMS OF LEAD AND COPPER IN URBAN SOILS OF THE ROSTOV AGGLOMERATION

С. Н. Горбов

Abstract

The Rostov urban agglomeration is the largest in the Southern Federal District. Due to the rapidly growing population, the number of industrial enterprises is also increased, the by-products of which are various heavy metals. Accumulation of heavy metals negatively affects the biological and enzyme activity, leads to the general soil degradation. But the most dangerous factor for plants and other living organisms is the degree of availability, which is determined by the mobility of the chemical elements. Compared to the massive pool of research data about heavy metal total content, the mobile forms of heavy metals are deficiently studied, although they represent the main threat to contamination of soils. Monitoring and assessment of the ecological state of urban soils are very important, since the high index of urbanization, 3/4 of population leaves in the cities and towns, has remained in Russia yet. This will help to predict the further development of the environmental situation and prevent negative consequences. The paper presents the results of the accumulation and profile distribution of copper and lead as the most common pollutants. The objects of research are the soils of the city of Rostov-on-Don and the Rostov agglomeration, which are undergone a powerful anthropogenic load. It leads to the appearing of new previously unusual features. The formation of the urban horizon (Urbic) and the buried humus-accumulative horizon (Abur) can be considered as the main diagnostic features of urban soils in the South of Russia. The mobile forms of the elements in the air-dry soil are determined in ammonium acetate buffer (pH = 4.8) on an atomic adsorption spectrometer MGA-915. The pollution of surface soils horizons of urban areas including Chernozems of recreation areas with lead is everywhere. The profile of urban soil of Rostov agglomeration is characterized by quite heterogeneous distribution of mobile heavy metal forms. The general feature of urban soils is sudden changing of total metal amount by layers. It indicates to the eclectic nature of soil profile consisting layers of diverse bulk material.

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