Sources and causes of soil contamination. Types of soil pollution and environmental effects

Soil is a unique and priceless natural wealth. It is she who is able to provide a person with all the necessary food resources. Illiterate and careless human activities are the main causes of soil contamination.

Varieties of anthropogenic degradation of the environment

Soil contamination can be chemical and physical. Noise, vibration, electromagnetic field, ionizing radiation by radioactive substances, thermal radiation are physical or energy pollution that arise due to anthropogenic activity. Every day the number and variety of new industrial and transport enterprises, chemical production increases. Chemicalization of agriculture can lead to permanent anthropogenic degradation of the environment. The causes of soil contamination are all kinds of chemicals or xenobiotics that enter the ground with gaseous, liquid, solid waste.

Main sources of soil contamination

Every year the ecological situation in the country deteriorates due to anthropogenic degradation of the environment. Experts fix the crisis levels, which are much higher than the permissible standards. A large number of enterprises and plants throw into the atmosphere gas, aerosol, and other harmful solid particles. The scale of such pollution is regional and local.

Increasingly, in large and small towns, liquid soluble, as well as insoluble compounds can be discarded into reservoirs. In addition to all the above-mentioned emissions, vapors of mineral acid, organic solvents - all cause soil contamination.

Influence on ecology

An important and necessary type of natural resource is land. Every year there is a constant deterioration of the soil condition, which depends on natural and anthropogenic factors. Agriculture significantly affects the general state of the soil cover, causing erosion, pollution, depletion, acidification of the soil, solonetzation, waterlogging, degradation, and gleying.

Environmental contamination of soil is an important topic that is considered at meetings of scientists. It is known that anthropogenic impacts can affect absolutely all components of the geosystem. The general state of the soil cover is negatively affected by a decrease in the area occupied by natural plant formations. Man replaces it with agrocenoses. Constant plowing can lead to the complete disappearance of vegetation, as well as changes in the components of the water balance. This process arises because of the increase in the total share of surface runoff. Later, erosion processes can significantly increase, changes in soil structure occur, and its basic water and physical properties deteriorate. Because of heavy metals, all vegetation suffers.

The presence of a strong and constant wind, climatic conditions with insufficient indicators of moisture during the season, the destruction of natural vegetation due to extreme heat is all environmental contamination of the soil.

Consequences of oil pollution of land cover

When petroleum hydrocarbons enter the soil, very soon negative consequences can be observed. In the regions where there is intensive oil refining and oil production, the physical and chemical properties of the earth are quickly transformed.

Regular soil contamination with oil can lead to a shift of the soil solution towards alkali. Often there may be increased levels of total carbon. Do not forget about the significant change in the morphological properties of the earth, which consists in strengthening kutanobrazovaniya. After it can change the color profile of the soil profile, as well as the deterioration of the formation of any vegetation.

Specialists and scientists were able to prove that soil contamination with oil is a strong enough and critical impact on the presented natural resource. To then return it to a good state, it may take more than a dozen years.

Soil pollution by chemicals

In the modern world, technogenic intensification is developing at a fast pace, which, with all its strength, contributes to the pollution and dehumification of the earth. Secondary salinization takes place, as well as various erosion of the soil.

In the ground cover there are metals and pesticides, but because of inept and careless handling of it, the concentration of these substances can increase several times. Soil pollution from chemicals includes the emission of car exhaust, the introduction of compost fertilizer and much more. Due to chemical substances entering the soil, indicators of natural metals, such as lead, mercury, cadmium and copper, increase several times.

Specialists recommend using only natural, natural and biological methods for combating agricultural pests. This includes genetic methods, natural chemical compounds. Only with full compliance with all the rules, soil contamination with chemicals will not occur. This must be taken into account!

Anthropogenic pollution of soil

Anthropogenic sources of land degradation are stationary and non-stationary objects. It is worth noting that here you can include industrial and agriculture. Scientists have determined that economic, household and energy objects in most cases become technogenic sources.

If you look at the scale of the impact on the environment and land, anthropogenic pollution of the soil can be divided into global, regional and local. Mobile vehicles that leave behind a large amount of exhaust gas can affect the overall condition of the soil cover.

Influence of pesticides on the state of the earth in the modern world

Pesticides are more of an exclusively organic compound. They have a low molecular weight and different solubility in water. In the modern world, soil is the successor of pesticides that decompose into it. Here, the transferred substances can be transferred to plants or the environment.

Pollution of soils with pesticides occurs when a large amount of this organic compound has entered the earth. It can lie in it for a long time after application. It is worth mentioning that a whole complex of various chemical preparations that are intended for fighting animals and plants can be classified as pesticides.

As can be seen, the causes of soil contamination can be diverse. Some people do not even think that the usual actions for them sometimes have a detrimental effect on such a valuable resource as the earth.