This paper presents dependences between the contents of Cu and Pb, and the enzymatic activity of dehydrogenases, acid phosphatase, urease and protease. Studies were carried out in soil samples taken from upper horizons of black earth and grey-brown podsolic soils in the neighbourhood of the Legnica Copper Works. The analyzed soils showed silt texture (SiC) and a differentiated content of organic matter. Upper humus horizons were characterized by high contamination by Cu and Pb, but their amounts decreased with an increasesd distance from the emission source. Significant amounts of the mentioned mineral xenobiotics caused a distinct decrease of biological life activity in the analyzed soils.
This overview article presents major forms of reclamation and development of external and internal spoil tips, which are formed during brown coal mining and from bottom ash dumped near open-pit mines and power stations. In the late 1970s, a new form of agricultural and forest recultivation was developed – the PAN model. According to the concept, crops and forest-forming plant species should be introduced to post-mining grounds immediately after the end of technical recultivation. Vegetation is a particularly reliable indicator of habitat properties and small changes taking place in nature undergoing recovery. Other bioindicators of the quality and health of newly formed soil include the biomass of microorganisms, their count, composition and enzymatic activity. In many countries the assessment of the influence of anthropogenic stress factors on the count of soil microorganisms has become one of key elements of obligatory inspection under environmental monitoring. In consequence of revitalisation of anthropogenically changed areas, biological life is restored within the period of at least 20–30 years. It is manifested by the development of microbial population and soil fauna.
The objective of our study was to investigate the activity of selected soil enzymes (dehydrogenases, phosphatases, urease, and protease), as well as cadmium and lead concentrations, in soils and vegetables from gardening allotments in areas exposed to industrial contamination and from areas of similar physiographic conditions but that were not exposed to the direct impact of industrial emissions. Investigations comprised eight gardening allotments situated in the area of Upper Silesia (Miasteczko Śląskie, Zabrze) and in cities in eastern Poland (Lublin, Stalowa Wola). Strong correlations were demonstrated between cadmium and lead concentrations in the soil and root systems of analyzed plants (red beet, carrot, parsley). The observed high inactivation of the examined enzymes in soils exposed to strong anthropogenic influence (the area of Upper Silesia) confirms that soil environment contamination with Cd and Pb reached levels that threaten living organisms.
The aim of the study was to determine the abundance of soil microbiome and enzymatic activity Hin a control soil sample and in samples with post−mining sediment containing high concentrations of arsenic and some trace elements. The samples were collected under two−year−old seedlings of Norway maple (Acer plantanoides L.) and small−leaved lime (Tilia cordata Mill.), which came from the Pniewy Forest District (western Poland). Optical emission spectrometry with excitation in plasma induced by the Agilent 5110 ICP−OES spectrometer was applied to analyse the concentration of arsenic and other heavy metals in the substrates and plant material. Before analysis the samples were mineralised with concentrated (65%) nitric acid (V). The count of selected groups of soil microorganisms was measured with the serial dilution method by Koch. The microbiome was measured on selective media. The activity of dehydrogenases as well as acid and alkaline phosphatase was measured spectrophotometrically. The soil and sediment on which the seedlings grew were characterised by the following physicochemical parameters: soil texture (control – loamy sand, sediment – silt), pH (control – 5.85−5.92, sediment – 7.13−7.43), the content of phosphorus (control – 117−121 mg/kg, sediment – 38−46 mg/kg), potassium (control – 6.97−7.03 mg/kg, sediment – 57−61 mg/kg), nitrogen (control – 0.53−0.65 mg/kg, sediment – 1.7−2.1 mg/kg) and total carbon (control – 9.4−10.2 g/kg, sediment – 54.2−57.2 g/kg). The samples contained: control – 0.24 mg/kg, sediment – 282 mg/kg of Astotal, control – below the detection limit, sediment – 1,766 and 16,220 mg/kg of As(III) and (V) respectively. The counts of the microorganisms were lower (10³−105) than in typical arable soils (105−109). The counts of bacteria and actinobacteria under the lime seedlings in the control were greater than in the sediment, whereas the counts of moulds were roughly identical. The counts of bacteria and moulds in the sediments under the maple seedlings were greater than in the control, whereas the counts of actinobacteria were roughly identical. The sediments under both species exhibited higher alkaline and acid phosphatase activity than the control soil sample. Only dehydrogenases exhibited higher activity in the control soil under both tree seedlings.
In the presented study, three methods of copper fractionation – Tessier et al., BCR, and Zeien-Brümmer – were compared. The object of experiments comprised soil samples collected from the drilling level (0-25 cm) of soils situated at two transects (eastern and western) and at different distances from the source of emission (i.e. shaft furnace chimneys) near the Legnica Copper Smelter. Copper content was determined by the AAS method using appropriate reference materials. A significant dependence was found in the copper concentration at a distance from the emitter that declined markedly at points more distant from it. Mean values of copper in individual fractions as well as confidence intervals exhibited a higher similarity between Tessier et al. and Zeien-Brümmer methods. In the case of all methods, copper quantities in fraction B (associated with Fe and Mn oxides) and C fractions (associated with organic matter) were similar. In the remaining fractions, i.e. A (easily exchangeable and carbonate) and D (residual), considerably greater differences were determined. The performed solubility indices analysis (fraction A/Σ fraction A+B+C+D) revealed that the results obtained using the Tessier et al. method differed considerably from those obtained by employing BCR and Zeien-Brümmer procedures.
The authors investigated the impact of the Sinorhizobium inoculum density on the plant development of alfalfa, nodulation and nitrogenase activity. It was found that plants inoculated with a 10% inoculant (4.9 x 10⁶ CFU) were characterized by the best growth, more profuse fresh material and a very well developed root system and, additionally, they revealed higher nitrogenase activity.
Our paper presents results of investigations aimed at determining correlations between the content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and the enzymatic activity of a forest soil on an extensive area of forest damaged by a large fire 12 years ago. The investigations comprised experimental plots in the cultivations of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) and grey alder (Alnus incana L.) MOENCH on three sample surfaces on which different methods of soil preparation were applied. The statistical analysis of the obtained results clearly showed the inhibiting influence of the PAH content on the activity of dehydrogenases, acid phosphatase, alkaline phosphatase and protease, which indicated that the examined soils were loaded with PAHs to such a degree that it was dangerous to living organisms. A highly significant positive correlation was found between urease activity and PAH content.
Soils from the Lublin area exposed to low-stack emission from home heating and transport were investigated. Changes in soil enzymatic activity and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) content were analysed. Soil samples were collected in July and November 2016 and January 2017. Results of the study show that enzymatic activity and PAHs content depended on types of buildings, study period (intensification of pollutant emission from household heating), traffic volume and atmospheric air movement. Low enzymatic activities and high PAHs contents in the soils were observed in the autumn-winter period in the areas with dense single-family housing and located in the vicinity of streets with intense road traffic.
The objective of the study was to determine the dynamics of the enzymatic activity in a substrate containing a microbiological inoculum (Effective Microorganisms – EM) intended to improve French marigold growth and flowering. The material used in the study was peat substrate of 5.5–6.0 pH into which plants were planted and then inoculated with different doses of the EM biofertilizer (1 : 10, 1 : 50, 1 : 100). Samples of the substrate on which experimental plants were cultivated were collected during the following three phases: the phase of seedling planting, the phase of vegetative growth and the phase of flowering. The scope of investigations comprised determination of the activity of dehydrogenases, urease and acid phosphatase activity by the spectrophotometric method. In addition, the following plant morphological analyses were per-formed: plant height, shoot number and length, number of buds and inflorescences, and leaf greenness index (SPAD). It was found that the phase of plant development was proved to be the main determinant of the activity of the enzymes under study. The EM biofertilizer had positive effect on the acid phosphatase activity. However, the preparation did not have stimulating effect on the activity of urease or dehydrogenases. The EM biofertilizer concentrated at 1 : 100 and applied into the soil and foliage resulted in a larger number of darker leaves and greater number of inflorescences on the plants.
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