Estimation of the areas of salt-affected soils in the European part of Russia on the basis of a digital map of soil salinization on a scale of 1 : 2.5 M

A digital version of the map of salt-affected soils on a scale of 1 : 2.5 M has been used to calculate the areas of these soils in the four federal okrugs (the Southern, Central, Volga, and Northwestern) of European Russia. The total area of soils with soluble salts in the upper meter reaches 23.3 million ha. More than half of them are solonchakous soils (with soluble salts in the layer deeper than 30 cm), and about 25% are saline from the surface. Soils of sulfate and chloride-sulfate salinization predominate (>50% of the area of salt-affected soils). Alkaline soda-saline soils and soils with the participation of soda comprise about 6%. We consider this value to be underestimated and requiring refinement, because soils of solonetzic complexes with neutral salts in the upper horizons may also contain soda in the solonetzic and subsolonetzic horizons, which was not always taken into consideration upon assessing the chemical composition of the salts. Solonetzes proper and solonetzic soils predominate among the salt-affected soils in the European part of Russia. The area of solonetzes is up to 9.4 million ha. The area of solonetzic soils (including solonetzic soils with salts in the layers of 0–100 and/or 100–200 cm) is 15.5 million ha. The highest percentage (32.2%) of salt-affected soils is in the Southern federal okrug.     

Anthropogenic transformation of soils in the northern Ergeni Upland (studies at the first experimental plot of the Arshan’-Zelmen Research Station)

The results of soil studies performed in 2005–2009 at the first experimental plot of the Arshan’-Zelmen Research Station of the Institute of Forest Science of the Russian Academy of Sciences are discussed. The post-reclamation state (about 55 years after reclamation) of the soils under forest shelterbelts and adjacent croplands in the rainfed agriculture was studied. The long-term efficiency of forest reclamation and crop-growing technologies developed in the 1950s by the Dokuchaev Soil Science Institute and the Institute of Forest to reclaim strongly saline solonetzic soils was proved. In 55 years, strongly saline sodic solonetzes with sulfate-chloride and chloride-sulfate composition of salts were replaced by agrogenic soils with new properties. Under forest shelterbelts, where deep (40–60 cm) plowing was performed, the soils were transformed into slightly saline solonetzic agrozems with slight soda salinization in the upper meter and with dealkalized plowed and turbated horizons (0–20(40) cm). Under the adjacent cropland subjected to the influence of the shelterbelts on the soil water regime, strongly saline solonetzes were transformed into solonchakous agrosolonetzes with slight soda salinization in the upper 50 cm. In the plow layer, the content of exchangeable sodium decreased to 4–12% of the sum of exchangeable cations. An increased alkalinity and the presence of soda were found in the middle-profile horizons of the anthropogenically transformed soils.     

Salt-affected soils of the Barguzin Depression

Factual materials on salt-affected soils in the Barguzin Depression (Buryat Republic) are generalized. A geomorphic map of the depression has been developed. The distribution of salt-affected soils and the specificity of salinization in different geomorphic regions are characterized. These soils tend to be developed within the low lacustrine–alluvial plain of the depression, on the floodplain of the Barguzin River and its tributaries. Smaller areas of salt-affected soils are found on the river terraces. They are virtually absent on ancient sandy ridged terraces (kuituns). The genesis and chemistry of soil salinization are mainly related to the discharge of slightly saline deep water along tectonic faults and fissures. An additional source of soil salinity is represented by surface water flows. The presence of permafrost preventing the leaching of salts and the cryoarid climate favoring the migration of salts toward the soil surface during the dry spring and early summer periods and during the soil freezing in the winter contribute to the soil salinization. Slightly saline hydromorphic solonchakous soils predominate among salt-affected soils of the depression; the portion of semihydromorphic saline soils is smaller. Automorphic saline soils rarely occur in the depression. Strongly saline soils— solonchaks—are widespread within lacustrine depressions around salt lakes. Soils of the soda and sulfate salinization predominate. The content of chlorides is small; their increased amounts, as well as the presence of sulfates, are indicative of the discharge of dee ground water onto the surface. The soda type of salinization is also related to the discharge of deep stratal water with further transformation of salt solutions during freeze–thaw cycles. Under anaerobic conditions, the formation of soda is favored the processes of sulfate reduction.     

Mycelial fungi in saline soils of the western Transbaikal region

Mycelial fungi in a solonchakous chestnut soil, a sulfate solonchak, and a soda solonchak were studied in the western Lake Baikal basin. The humus content, the degree of salinization, and the composition of salts affected the structure of the micromycete communities. In the chestnut soil, more than half of the species identified were found. The species diversity was higher in the nonsaline and humus horizons. The eolian deposit on the soda solonchak was characterized by the presence of six species of fungi that did not occur in other soil horizons. Their occurrence in the fresh deposit seems to be related to the eolian transfer of fungi with the fine earth from the adjacent areas with the nonsaline soils. The soda solonchak fungi are dominated by the haloalkalitolerant and alkalophilic micromycetes, among which the representatives of the Acremonium (A. antarcticum and A. rutilum) and Verticillum genera and Mycelia sterilia were identified. There was also an alkalophilic ascomycete, which is an indicator of soda salinization??Heleococcum alkalinum. On the whole, the soda solonchak had the lowest number of fungal germs and the lowest species diversity of mycelial fungi among the soils compared.     

Factors and mechanisms of soil salinization under vineyards of southern Taman

The spatial distribution of saline soils under vineyards in the south of Taman Peninsular is discussed. The Paleogene–Neogene clays of the Komendantskaya Mount serve as the source of salts. Vineyards were planted on an inclined plain at the foot of this mount. At present, their state on salt-affected soils worsens. In the upper part of the plain, solonchakous or deep-solonchakous slightly saline and nonsaline (within the upper 2 m) dark quasigley vertic soils (Vertisols) are formed. The salts are of the sulfate–sodium composition. Their vertical distribution has an eluvial pattern with a quick rise in the salt content from the surface layer to the depth of 50–100 cm and with a gradual increase in the salt content in the deeper layers. The absence of chlorides in the soils of flat areas within the slope attests to the predominance of lateral leaching of salts down the slope over their vertical leaching in the soil profiles. In the lower part of the slope, soil salinization mainly takes place in the hollow crossing the plain and the vineyard from the north to the south. In the middle part of the slope, nonsaline (to a depth of 2 m) agrohumus quasigley soils (Haplic Chernozems (Clayic, Aric, Stagnic)) are formed. Slight chloride–sulfate sodium salinization is only seen in the soils of the hollow, which contain fine-crystalline gypsum in the solid phase and display the accumulation of sodium chlorides in the middle part of the soil profile (in the 60–150-cm-thick layer). Heavy loamy agrochernozems with migrational and segregational forms of carbonates (Haplic Chernozems (Loamic, Aric, Pachic) are developed in the lower part of the slope; they are nonsaline to the depth of 2.5 m. In the area of transition from the humusquasigley soils to chernozems, specific horizons are formed in the hollow at the depth of more than 250 cm. Their soil solutions contain sodium, calcium, and magnesium chlorides against the background of the presence of fine-crystalline gypsum in the solid phase, which is typical of secondary salinization.     

Soil Cover of the Svetloyarsk Irrigation System after 50 Years of Reclamation Practices

The state of irrigated soils of the Svetloyarsk irrigation system (Volgograd oblast) after 50 years or irrigation and ameliorative impacts has been assessed with the use of published and new field data, cadastral materials, and remote sensing materials. In the recent two decades, the area of regular irrigation and the volume of irrigation water have decreased, which has led to the lowering of the groundwater level to the depth of 5 m and more. The pattern of sown areas is characterized by a rise in the portion of winter cereals. Surface planing during the construction of the irrigation system led to a considerable transformation of the soil cover. On convex elements, solonetzic and other topsoil horizons were almost completely cut off. In many areas, they were replaced by a mixture of different horizons, including carbonaceous material. There are now significant areas of soils of different geneses with carbonates from the surface. Former solonchakous and slightly solonchakous soils are now at the stage of deep desalinization: soluble salts in them have been washed to the second meter, where slightly or moderately saline horizons with a predominance of sulfates have been formed. Irrigated areas on satellite images are specified by spotty patterns differing from those of natural solonetzic soil complexes because of the significant transformation of the soil cover during the construction and operation of irrigation system. The anthropogenically transformed soils can be mapped. Soil maps reflecting the modern state of the of soil cover of irrigated areas are given.     

The boron content in soils of solonetzic complexes in the Irtysh Region of Omsk oblast and the boron resistance of plants

Data on the boron content in the main soil types of solonetzic complexes in the Irtysh Region of Omsk oblast are given. They attest to the boron salinization of the soils. It is shown that there is a risk of excessive boron accumulation in natural plants and crops. The boron resistance of crops cultivated on the boronsaline soils has been examined in the field and in pot experiments. Approximate normal and toxic levels of the boron content in soils and in plants and the corresponding Ca-to-B ratios in the aboveground phytomass are suggested. Amelioration of solonetzes with application of gypsum and phosphogypsum reduces the degree of their boron salinization and the boron uptake by plants.     

干旱区农田不同类型土壤盐碱化发生规律

为明晰西北干旱区平原农田典型土壤发生盐碱化的规律,2014年在新疆代表性平原农场采集砾砂、粉土/粉砂、粉土/粉细砂、粉土和亚黏土5类主要土壤进行试验,分析其岩性组成、毛细管作用及土壤表层积盐之间的内在关系,寻求3者相互影响机理。结果表明:土壤中粗颗粒含量越大,早期毛细管现象越明显,土壤表面积盐越多。细颗粒含量越多,早期毛细管作不明显,地表积盐量较少但持续时间较长,最终积盐量大于粗颗粒土壤。5类土壤在盐碱化发生早期(12 d左右)毛细现象最为突出,尤其1~4 d内地表的积盐大,速度最快。粗颗粒的砂性土发生盐碱化时,表面容易形成3~4 mm厚盐痂,阻止了地表盐碱化的发展。当土壤中粉粒和黏粒较多时,地表积盐主要以晶体形式出现。土壤的颗粒级配较好、压实度较大时,土壤表面的积盐量就较少。研究成果可为西北地区不同类型的土壤盐碱化治理方法、治理时段的选取等提供参考。     

Ameliorative status of irrigated soils in Rostov oblast

The development of irrigation and the ameliorative status of irrigated lands in Rostov oblast are analyzed for a fifty-year-long period (1952–2001). Three stages of irrigation development are specified. The first stage (1952–1982) was characterized by poor operating conditions of irrigated lands. The second stage (1982–1990) was a period of the most intense irrigation and improvement of the ameliorative status of irrigated lands. The third period (1990–2001) was marked by a drop in the area of irrigated lands and exclusion of lands with unsatisfactory ameliorative status from irrigation. The natural and operating conditions of 18 irrigation systems allocated to areas with different lithological and geomorphic features and soils (chernozems, dark chestnut, meadow, alluvial, and other soils) are characterized. It is shown that soil irrigation often leads to the development of negative soil processes, such as salinization, alkalization, and waterlogging. They are related to the natural and operating conditions of irrigated systems. Secondary salinization and waterlogging are most active in irrigation systems used for rice growing independently of the natural conditions. Upon initially weak salinization of soils and rocks, secondary salinization and alkalization are slightly developed. In the secondary saline and solonetzic soils excluded from irrigation, residual solonetzic features are preserved for more than 15–20 years.     

Salt accumulation and its control on the plains of Central Asia

The water-salt budget on the plains of Central Asia in natural conditions and under significant anthropogenic impact (irrigation and construction of hydraulic engineering systems) is analyzed. It is shown that up to 87.2 million tons of salts are annually transported to the plains of Central Asia from the surrounding mountains. Under natural conditions, the larger part of the salts was discharged into the Aral Sea, Balkhash and Issyk-Kul lakes, and into deep closed depressions (Tuzkan, Sarykamysh, and others). Thus, these salts were generally excluded from the geochemical turnover. Only 40% of the salts entered the deposits and groundwater of the plains. Irrigation has transformed the water-salt budget in the area. The input of salts into the groundwater and soils increased by 30% and induced the development of soil salinization in the region. Measures for salinization control are suggested. It is necessary to stop the discharge of drainage water into the rivers and the use of saline water for irrigation purposes. The existing irrigation systems should be reconstructed, and the irrigated areas should be reduced.     

Microbial complexes of therapeutic mud from Lake Tinaki-1

The number and biomass of prokaryote microorganisms in the therapeutic mud from the saline Lake Tinaki-1 (Astrakhan oblast) were studied. In the therapeutic mud of this lake, the organic matter decomposition is performed by bacteria, whose number is 250 million/g, which is an order of magnitude lower than the number of bacteria in the soils of the Volga River delta. The therapeutic mud is of the chloride type of salinization. It has a low organic carbon content, which is related to the low bacterial population in it. Among the ecological-trophic groups of microorganisms in the mud of Lake Tinaki-1, halophilic ones prevail. The highest carbon content of the microbial biomass (0.06 mg/g) was characteristic of the therapeutic mud, which is interpreted as an organic horizon of the soil profile studied. The share of carbon of the microbial biomass in the carbon of the mud organic matter varied from 0.5 to 1.4%.     

Salinization dynamics in irrigated soils of the Svetloyarsk irrigation system,Volgograd oblast

On the basis of soil surveys performed by the Volgograd hydrogeological reclamation expedition in 1998 and 2006, published data, and original materials obtained by the authors, the dynamics of soil salinization within the Svetloyarsk irrigation system in Volgograd oblast during the irrigation and post-irrigation periods have been traced. It is found that high irrigation rates under conditions of poor drainage and closed drainage basins upon both shallow (within the Caspian Lowland) and relatively deep (on the Ergeni Upland) occurrence of saline groundwater and the presence of natural salts in the soils and subsoils lead to the rise in the groundwater level above the critical level and the development of secondary salinization in the previously surfacesaline, deeply saline, and even nonsaline soils. During the post-irrigation period (15–18 years) under modern climatic conditions, the groundwater level has been descending to a depth of more than 3 m, and the degree of salinity in the upper meter of light chestnut and meadow-chestnut soils has decreased owing to the leaching of salts with atmospheric precipitation.     

Dynamics of the agrochemical fertility parameters of arable soils in the southwestern region of Central Chernozemic zone of Russia

Data of the agrochemical survey of arable soils in Belgorod oblast during the period from 1964 to 2014 have been analyzed. The soil cover mainly consists of typical chernozems (Haplic Chernozems) and leached chernozems (Luvic Chernozems) in the forest-steppe zone and ordinary chernozems (Calcic Chernozems) in the steppe zone. Under long-term agricultural use (from 1964 to 2014), the content of mobile phosphorus in arable soils of the region under study has increased from 55 to 137 mg/kg, and the content of mobile potassium has increased from 105 to 147 mg/kg. During the period of 1976–2014, the share of acid soils has increased from 22.8 to 45.8%, including medium-acid soils from 1.5 to 12.6%. No significant changes in the weighted average content of soil organic matter are revealed for the period from 1985 to 2014. The value of this parameter is within the range of 4.8–5.0%. In the 2010–2014, 95.0% of arable soils belonged to the category of low supplied with mobile sulfur; 99.2, 96.9, 94.1, and 54.4% of soils were poorly supplied with zinc, copper, cobalt, and manganese, respectively. During the same period, the maximum average productivity of the crop area (3710 f. u./ha) was noted at the application of 4.8 t/ha organic fertilizers and 97.9 kg/ha organic fertilizers on the average. The maximum long-term yields of sugar beet (36.8 t/ha) and corn grain (4.97 t/ha) were obtained at the application of relatively low fertilizer rates.     

Long-term salinization dynamics in irrigated soils of the Golodnaya Steppe and methods of their assessment on the basis of remote sensing data

A set of salinization maps (1983–2000) for the former Yusupov State Farm in the irrigated area of the Golodnaya Steppe (Uzbekistan) were developed with the use of aerial and satellite images taken in the early autumn season. A unified approach based on the analysis of the mottled patterns of the cotton fields was used. The soil cover of the farm consists of irrigated hydromorphic moderately saline soils with the participation of nonsaline and strongly saline soils. The long-ter m dynamics of the soil salinity were studied via superposing two or more maps for different years. It was shown that the long-term salinization dynamics could not be determined on the basis of the comparison of only two maps for different years. Maps of the trends of the salinization for the entire period of the observations, a map of the salinization dynamics showing the degree of changes in the soil salinity for the particular areas, a map of the areas with stable salinization through the entire period, and some other maps were developed. A considerable part of the investigated area was characterized by highly unstable soil salinity and active salinization-desalinization processes. The degree of the soil salinity varied from slight to strong and vice versa. For the entire period, the soils were mainly medium saline in the upper meter with a weakly expressed tendency for further salinization and a drop in the area of nonsaline and slightly saline soils.     

Zonal,provincial, lithological,and geomorphic features of soil salinization in the Southern federal okrug of Russia

The relationships between soil salinization and the zonal and provincial bioclimatic conditions, the lithological composition of the sediments, and the geomorphic features of the territory have been analyzed for the Southern federal okrug of Russia. It is shown that the lithological and geomorphic conditions (relief, salinity of parent materials, degree of drainage, and the depth of saline groundwater) play an important role in the distribution of salt-affected soils against the background of the more general regularities specified by the climate. The participation of salt-affected soils in the soil cover of the Southern federal okrug increases in the eastward direction from the forest-steppe zone to the semidesert zone in agreement with an increase in the aridity and continentality of the climate. The chemical composition of soil salts also changes: the sulfate and soda-sulfate types predominate in the forest-steppe zone; the sulfate type or the sulfate type with the participation of soda, in the steppe zone; the sulfate-chloride type, in the dry steppe zone; and the chloride type, in the semidesert zone. The lithological and geomorphic conditions within the particular zones and provinces affect the distribution pattern of the salt-affected soils and the degree and chemistry of the soil salinization. The areas of salt-affected soils were calculated with the use of a digital version of the Map of Salt-Affected Soils of Russia (1: 2.5 M scale) with due account for the participation of these soils in the soil cover of the particular delineations and the data on the depth of the upper boundary of the salt-bearing horizons, the degree and chemistry of the soil salinization, and the area of solonetzes and solonetzic soils.     

Climate and Vegetation Changes over the Past 7000 Years in the Cis-Ural Steppe

A multilayered archaeological site Turganik Settlement in the valley of the Tok River in the Cis- Ural steppe (Orenburg oblast) was examined with the use of paleopedological and microbiomorph methods. Ancient people inhabited this area in the Latest Neolithic (Eneolithic) (5th millennium BC) and Early Bronze (4th millennium BC) ages. It was found that cultural layers dating back to the Atlantic period of the Holocene had been formed under conditions of a predominance of grassy–forb vegetation with a small portion of tree species and dry climate; the ancient settlement was not affected by floods and was suitable for permanent living. It is probable that soils of the chestnut type with salinization and solonetzic features were developed in that time. The final stages of the accumulation of cultural layers were marked by strong shortterm floods, whose sediments partly masked the features of the previous long arid epoch. The highest degree of aridity was at the end of the Atlantic period. In the Subboreal and Subatlantic periods, soils of the meadowchernozemic type were formed; the spore–pollen spectra of these periods are characterized by a higher portion of tree species and by the presence of phytoliths of meadow grasses. The climatic conditions were generally colder and more humid, though some short-term aridization stages could take place. Some of these stages are recorded in the thickness of the studied sediments.     

Buried vertic paleosols of the North Caucasus in the third millennia BC

Paleosols buried under kurgans dating back to the Yamnaya, Catacomb, and Post-Catacomb cultural epochs of the Bronze Age (4600–3900 BP) on the territory of the Stavropol Upland (the North Caucasus) in the area occupied by vertic chernozems were studied. It was found that solonchakous and deeply solonchakous and solonetzic chestnut soils and solonetzes proper predominated in the study area during the Bronze Age. The solonetzic process was the leading pedogenetic process in the automorphic paleosols of the second half of the third millennium BC. The vertic features were weakly developed in the automorphic paleosols; they were better manifested in the paleosols developed on the floodplains. The paleosol data were used to reconstruct the environmental conditions in the region during the Bronze Age. The climatic conditions of that period were more arid and with less sharp contrasts between wet and dry seasons in comparison with the modern climate.     

Soils and the soil cover of the arkaim reserve (Steppe Zone of the Trans-Ural Region)

Soils of the Arkaim Reserve in the area around a unique settlement-fortress of the Bronze Age in Chelyabinsk oblast have been studied. These soils are generally typical of the entire Trans-Ural Plateau. The soil properties are characterized in detail on the basis of factual data on 170 soil pits and four soil catenas. The soil cover of the reserve is specified into six geomorphic groups: (a) denudational surfaces of the low mountains, (b) accumulative-denudational surfaces of the low mountains, (c) denudational-accumulative plain surfaces, (d) lacustrine-alluvial plain surfaces, (e) floodplain surfaces, and (f) slopes and bottoms of the local ravines and hollows. Chernozems occupy about 50% of the reserve; solonetzes and saline soils, 32%; meadow chernozems, 7%; and forest soils, 1%. The soils of the reserve are relatively thin; they have a distinct tonguing of the humus horizon and are often saline and solonetzic. The latter properties are inherited from the parent materials and are preserved in the soils for a long time under the conditions of a dry continental climate. The genetic features of the soils differ in dependence on the composition and age of the parent materials. With respect to the thickness of the soil profiles and the reserves of soil humus, the soils can be arranged into the following lithogenic sequence: the soils developed from the eluvium of igneous rocks-redeposited kaolin clay-montmorillonite-hydromica nonsaline and saline loams and clays. The content of C_org in the upper 20 cm varies from 2.5 to 5.6%, and the reserves of C_org in the layers of 0?C0.5 and 0?C1.0 m reach 57?C265 and 234?C375 t/ha, respectively. The soils of pastures subjected to overgrazing occupy two-thirds of the reserve. Their humus content is 10?C16% higher in comparison with that in the analogous plowed soils. Another characteristic feature of the humus in the soils of the pastures is its enrichment in the labile fraction (28?C40% of C_org).     

新疆浅层暗管排水降低土壤盐分提高棉花产量

土壤盐渍化问题严重制约着干旱区农业可持续发展,为达到土壤脱盐的效果,增加作物产量,该文针对膜下滴灌棉田,采用完全随机试验方案,在装有暗管的中度和轻度盐渍化土壤上种植棉花,分析暗管降盐技术对轻度和中度盐渍化农田土壤盐分变化规律及棉花产量的影响。结果表明:轻度和中度盐渍化农田土壤盐分剖面特征均由表聚型向脱盐型变化,中度盐渍化土壤0~20 cm土层盐分下降最快,其他土层盐分含量均呈现显著下降趋势;轻度和中度土壤最高脱盐率分别为50.96%和90.89%,中度盐渍化土壤盐分可降低至轻度水平;暗管排水的电导率变化范围为7.53~11.16 dS/m,pH值变化范围7.08~8.20;轻度和中度盐渍化棉田增产幅度分别为25.3%和55%。研究表明与滴灌配套的浅层暗管排水降盐技术可有效治理盐碱土壤,提高作物产量,该研究可为盐渍化土地的可持续利用提供依据。     

松嫩平原大安古河道强度盐渍土种稻脱盐试验

松嫩平原中、西部地区土壤盐渍化非常严重,盐渍土改良对于土地资源利用和生态环境改善具有重大意义。在大安古河道苏打草甸盐化土、碱化盐土和草甸碱土复区选择试验田,通过种植水稻,借助周期性的灌水、排水过程,溶洗土壤中的盐分,达到改良盐渍土的目的。经过连续4年的试验,土壤平均含盐量由试验前的0.45%降至第4个试验年的0.15%。从第1试验年到第4试验年,水稻产量由绝收逐渐增至4250 kg hm-2。试验结果表明,充分利用地表水资源,通过种稻改良强度盐渍土是可行的,同时也可为松嫩平原中、西部更大范围利用强度盐渍土壤资源、恢复生态环境提供科学指导。