PARENT SESSION
Poster Session 15: Urban Ecology
Tuesday, August 9, 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM, Exhibit Hall 220 A-E, Level 2, Palais des congrès de Montréal
The influence of original local biogeochemical anomalies of salts on the destruction of valuable species of urban plants.
Viter, Irina1, Danielova, Irina*,2, Danielov, Sergey*,3, 1 Moscow University, Moscow, Russian Federation2 Moscow University, Moscow, Russian Federation3 Moscow University, Moscow, Russian Federation
ABSTRACT- The usage of anti-ice agents for the purposes of street traffic security in the zone of middle latitudes with moderate continental climate in Russia has become the reason of the environmental pollution with their salt components. During the last ten years of the twentieth century the rates of usage of sodium chloride in Moscow increased tremendously. The maximum amount of salt (310 thousands tons) was dispersed during the winter 2000-2001. The excessive treatment by anti-ice agents of green territories of world famous state war memorial complexes (Alexandrovskij park, Poklonnaya hill) has led to the local degradation of vegetation (Danielova I. 2002 YIII INTECOL, Seoul, Korea). Unnatural die-off trees on coniferous alleys in 2004 was from 50-100%, tissues of deciduous trees unnaturally spread. The financial expenditures for the restoration of parks on polluted soil are unjustified high and non-effective because of the problem of the replacement of valuable floral composition of vegetation by weed species. The constant geochemical and geobotanical control of the local destruction of forests in Moscow region (Danielova I. et al. 1998 YII INTECOL, Florence, Italy) allows to determine the period of natural rehabilitation of ecosystems damaged by original biogeochemical anomalies of salt. The results has shown that (1) processes of exchange absorption of sodium by soil and salt dissolution in ground and subsoil waters last 1-2 months during the season of snowmelting, (2) sandy soil self-cleaning, vanishing of halophytes (salinity tolerant plants) and restoration of degraded grass cover last 3-5 years, (3) desalination of ground and subsoil waters and domination of natural association of shrubs and trees comes not earlier as 10-15 years after cessation of salt intervention.
Key words: anti-ice agents, local biogeochemical anomalies of salts, degradation of vegetation, natural rehabilitation of ecosystems