On the example of industrial cities of West Siberia, the peculiarities of technogenous polluytion of the soil cover by heavy metals are considered. The main of them are mosaicism and polymetallicity, wherein local priority contaminants may be chemical elements poorly studied in pedology and agrochemistry. Th lack of information about the regional and local background amount of these elements in the objects of natural milieu, the absence of hygienic standards of their content in the soil and vegetable products, which is usual in such cases, do not let estimate more completely and correctly the ecological situation in the territory under study. The hygienical standards for the soils in this country do not take into account fully their buffer capacity with respect to heavy metals and ignore the protective capacity of plants, due to which it is possible to grow hygienically pure potatoes and vegetables also on "dangerously contaminated soils".
More than 6 million hectares of arable lands (mainly chernozems) in West Siberia suffer from erosion and deflation. In soils affected by soil-destroying processes 4.5-6.5 t/ha fine earth is alienated annually. The differences in the type of soil-destroying processes,humus content and granulometric composition of chernozems influence the magnitude of carbon loss (150-450 kg/ha annually).
On the basis of studying the content and proportions. Spatial and profile distribution of trace elements in the soil cover of the south of West Siberia, the main factors determining the elemental chemical composition of soils are indicated. It is demonstrated that the trace element composition of soils depends on 1) geological peculiarities of the regions of formation of the initial material for the soil-forming rocks and the types of its transportation; 2) the patterns of distribution of sediments with respect to power, mineralogical and granular-metrical composition; 3) transformation of sediments during their accumulation and soil formation.
Summarized data on emission of carbon dioxide and methane obtained according to the standardized method during studies of various types of swamp ecosystems in sub-zones of northern, middle and southern taiga are considered. Average estimates of carbon dioxide and methane content in the surface layer of the atmosphere and in swamp waters have been obtained. The influence of natural ecological and techno-genus factors (conditions) on their time course and distribution in the direction of latitude-zonal climatic gradient is discussed. It is concluded that in the atmosphere there is a considerable proportion of mineral methane under the conditions of intense exploitation of petroleum and gas dew posits of West Siberia. The role of northern swamps in the global (planetary) cycle of carbon oxides is discussed. Important peculiarities and causes of degradation phenomena in northern swamp provinces resulting in formation of the so-called "rimpi" have been elucidated.
An effort was made to explain possible involvement of soil formation in the evolution of organisms. It took place in a mediated manner, through changes of life conditions which proceeded in association with soil formation or directly through the soil as a habitat.
Data on microbial transformation of carbon in some regions of Middle and East Siberia (Krasnoyarsk Krai), Central Evenkia, Lower and middle reaches of the Angara, and the West Sayan are presented. It has been established that the total productivity of bacteria and fungi of the upper humus horizon of the soils of biogeocenoses studied amounts to 1.4-4.0 mg/cm3 (1.2-3.8 t/ha in the 0-50 cm layer), or 0.3-1.5 % of the amount of humus. The calculated carbon of the microbial biomass of the soils studied varies from 0.65 to 2.0 mg/cm3 (0.7-1.3 t/ha in the 0-50 cm layer) or 0.4-1.7 % of the total carbon. At the average microbial biomass level in the soils under study of 2.5 t/ha (0.025 g/cm3), the amount of energy reaches 1375 kcal/m2. The annual amount of carbon dioxide supplied to the atmosphere from the forest soils of the regions under study due to the microbiota activity varies from 4.8 to 5.5 t/hs. In the litters of pine, cedar and deciduous forests during the vegetation season up to 0.8-2.2 t/ha (40-53 %) of vegetable remnants is decomposed, which amounts to 0.3-1.1 t/ha (40-70 %) in terms of cellulose.
During 18 years after sowing the natural vegetation in arable soil, the abundance of fungi increased by 40 % and amounted to 50-60 % of that under natural forest. The abundace of microorganisms utilizing various nitrogen sources and oligotrophs decreased therein by 20-30 % and exceeded respective parameters under forest on the average by 30 %. The rate of change of the abundance of some or other group of microorganisms during restoration of natural vegetation on arable soil was determined by its place in the trophical chain formed in the process of decomposition of vegetable litter.
Relationship between the characteristics of vegetation (above-ground and subterranean phytomass, above-ground biomass, species composition and projective cover) and soil properties (power of organogenic and root-inhabited layers, humus content of the 0-20 cm layer, the thickness of abiotic alluvium) has permitted developing biological indicators and criteria of quantitative estimation of resistance, degree of physical and general degradation, and time course of recovery of disturbed soil-vegetation cover of tundras. An analytical description of the process of vegetation and soil self-recovery is given which permits determining, by the accessible minimum of initial information, the duration of various degradation levels and of the total duration of recovery under different conditions of water regime.
The influence of Trichoderma asperellum, Bacullus subtilis and Pseudomonas fluorescence strains promising for biocontrol of vascular mycosis of seedlings of coniferous plants, on the biological activity and structure of soil microbiocenosis of forest nursery soil was studied. It has been established that the use of antagonists decreases the total abundance of microflora only up to the moment of formation of the root zone, limiting the development of phytopathogenic fungi. Further on, the introduced biological agents change the structure of the microbiocenosis, contributing to the increase of abundance of sporeless bacteria and to limitation of the abundance of phytopathogens.
The studies of the degree of toxicity of the soil, vegetation and water of the lake Shira using Paramecium caudatum as the test object have demonstrated that on the whole the littoral vegetation is not toxic. The littoral soils at the depth of 20 and 40 cm have a toxicity index of IV and V, which witnesses to their critical condition. The slightest decrease of the toxicity index can lead to worsening of the soil and, possibly, to irreversible changes. The terst object used has detected the increase of degree of toxicity of water and plants in sites of anthropogenous loading (beach, boiler house).
