The content of metals in peat complexes in the Arctic territories of the Komi Republic, which are under the influence of aerotechnogenic pollution, exceeds the reference values \u200b\u200bby 1.2-3 times, reports the press service of the University State of St. Petersburg on March 31. on the official Internet portal.
The study was carried out by ecologists from Saint Petersburg State University and the Institute of Biology of the Komi Scientific Center of the Federal Research Center of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The results of the study were published in the international scientific journal International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.
Scientists analyzed peat complexes in the Arctic Komi territories. Quantitative chemical analysis of heavy metals and arsenic content was carried out in layers up to the full thickness of the peat deposit using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy, atomic absorption spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy with ray detection. X of dispersive energy.
“The combination of these research methods made it possible to determine the content of heavy metals and arsenic, as well as to estimate the size and shape of the mineral particles that accumulate in the upper layers of the peat as a result of aerotechnogenic input”, and said. o Evgeny Abakumov, Head of the Department of Applied Ecology at Saint Petersburg State University.
The scientists studied the content of heavy metals at two conditionally background sites (located 20 kilometers southeast of the city of Inta) and at a site near Inta, which is under the influence of aerotechnogenic pollution. It is observed that even the most remote regions are subject to chemical attack to one degree or another.
As the results of the study showed, in the peat bogs of the far north of the taiga, the content of pollutants (substances whose increased content leads to pollution) increases compared to the background values. On this territory, the mercury content is 1.2 times higher than the background, cadmium – 1.6 times, lead – 2 times, copper – 3.1 times, arsenic – 1.2 times.
Environmentalists believe that a significant portion of mercury, lead, cadmium, and other heavy metal compounds enter the subarctic with air masses as a result of regional and transboundary transport. The main local sources of pollution in the study area include the Inta industrial agglomeration, including thermal power plants located five kilometers from the site subject to air pollution.
Source: Rossa Primavera
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