Ecochemical condition of soils located in river valleys of urban areas

Abstract

The paper deals with assessment of the ecochemical condition of soils within river valleys in the areas of selected cities of the Lublin region. The assessment was based on the determination of enzymatic activity and content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soils located directly in river valleys and out of their range. The study was located in valleys of the most important rivers of Lublin region: Vistula, Wieprz, and Bystrzyca within the administrative borders of Kazimierz Dolny, Krasnystaw, and Lublin, respectively. The research areas were selected around busy roads and bridges with a potentially high level of anthropogenic pressure. The present research showed that the enzymatic activity of soils located in river valleys was about 1.5 times higher than in the soils beyond their reach. The determined content of PAHs in the soils from the river valleys was clearly lower than in the soils out of their range, which proves that habitat conditions of river valleys have a beneficial effect on detoxification of the soil environment.

Keywords

• anthropopressure
• river valleys
• soils
• enzymatic activity
• detoxication
• PAHs