SOIL AND VEGETATION TRANSFORMATION UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF THE POURING OUT ANCIENT BRINE WELLS IN PERM KRAI

Abstract

The article deals with the problem of changes in the soil and vegetation cover as a result of more than 300-year long salt load. The study was carried out in the area of brine wells outflow onto the soil cover within the area of a 16th-century settlement where a group of 5 wells with outflowing brines with sodium-chloride chemistry and water salinity of about 30 g/L has survived to this day. The impact of sodium chloride waters on the alluvial soils of the Usolka River led to the emergence of secondary solonchaks with sulphate-chloride sodium salinization (Chloridic Gleyic Fluvic Solonchak (Humic, Loamic)). In the course of research, morphological and physicochemical analyses were conducted. Chloridic Gleyic Fluvic Solonchak (Humic, Loamic) forms under hydromorphic conditions. Starting from the depth of 45 cm, a dark, almost black, gley horizon with a distinct smell of hydrogen sulphide was observed in the soil. The sum of toxic salts in the soil reached 1,23%; the sodium adsorption ratio (SAR) varied from 13,8 to 19,8; pH was 7,15–8,2. The study area is characterized by the presence of salt-tolerant herbaceous plants. The halophyte Salicornia perennans Willd. has appeared within the wells discharge zone at a distance of 0,2–1,5 m from salty streams. Analysis of the salt load impact on the soil and vegetation cover of taiga landscapes will make it possible to predict the environmental impact of the potash industry of Perm Krai.