Chemical and biological characteristics of reclaimed soils in the Most ŕegion (Czecg Reooublic)

Abstract

Soil organic carbon content [Corg], pHH2O, pHKCl and microbiological characteristics (microbial biomass carbon [CMB], extracellular microbial carbon [CEX], respiration, ammonification, and nitrification) were studied in 11 reclaimed soils, where the technical reclamation was carried out by Most Coal Mining Company in the year 2000 or 2001. These soils were immediately sown with legumes and grasses. Corg content in soil was rather wide ranging between 0.15-4.82%. The lowest value was determined in loess applied in the year 2001 at the locality No. 6 Mine Most, and the highest one at the locality No. 5 Mine Most amended with pulp wastes and sewage sludge (400 t and 200 t per hectare, respectively). pHKCl was in the range: 5.1-7.4. Six indicators of microbial status and metabolic activity of living micro-organisms, were used for the evaluation of the reclamation technology, i.e. (1) μg CMB/g dry soil, (2) μg CEX/mg CMB, (3) ratio CMB/Corg in per cent (4), potential respiration with glucose, (5) potential ammonification with peptone, (6) potential nitrification with (NH4)2SO4. The best results were found in the locality No. 5 Mine Most (reclaimed in 2000) amended with pulp wastes and sewage sludge (400 t and 200 t per hectare, respectively). The lowest values characterised the locality No. 1 Mine Slatenice (reclaimed in 2000) with a high content of coal powder and the lowest pHKCl (5.1). The use of mycorrhizal inoculum SYMBIVIT resulted in a high biological activity in the locality No. 11 Mine ___ that was the best among soils reclaimed in 2001.

Keywords

• reclaimed soils
• microbial biomass
• extracellular microbial carbon
• respiration
• ammonification
• nitrification
• mycorrhizal inoculum
• pulp wastes
• sewage sludge