Analysis of geoecological state of soils from industrial areas in the Vratsa Balkan. II. Diluvial and alluvial (diluvial) - meadow soils along the Gluharka river (village of Lyutadzhik) and the Leva river (village of Zgorigrad)

Venera Tsolova, Martin Banov, Milena Harizanova, Natalya Andreeva, Ivona Nikova

Abstract: Nowadays, the extraction of copper and zinc ores with high nugget lead is terminated, but the geoecological status of soils remains not clear. This article presents the ecological assessment of content of potentially toxic elements Pb, Cu, Zn, As, Ni, Cd and Cr in diluvial and alluvial (diluvial) - medow soils along the Gluharka river in the land of Lyutadzhik village and the Leva river in the land of Zgorigrad village. The same analytical methods and sampling procedures as described in Part I are used.
High levels of soil pollution are established in the Lyutadzhik and Zgorigrad villages. In the Lyutadzhik village, 259.4 ha of deluvial-meadow soils (loamic) are contaminated with lead, 2.1 ha of which are dangerously contaminated with lead and copper.
In the Zgorigrad village, 34.1 ha of alluvial (diluvial)-meadow soils (loamic) are classified as chemically degraded. They are contaminated in an extremely dangerous extent, whereat a pollution index of 14.7 is established in 1.1 ha of soils. This an extremely high value resulting from the combined effect of several toxic trace elements (Pb, Cu, Zn, As and Cd) could doom to continued degradation of soil functions and create an unprecedented health risk.

Keywords: geoecology; Lyutadzhik; soils; toxicity coefficient; trace elements; Zgorigrad

Date published: 2017-04-24