BIOGENIC RESOURCES OF THE ASSIMILATION POTENTIALOF OIL-CONTAMINATED SOILS OF THE ABSHERON PENINSULA

Abstract

The role of microorganisms and plant phytocenoses in self-cleaning of the soil cover of the Absheron Peninsula from hydrocarbon pollutants is compared and estimated. The phytotoxicity of soil samples contaminated with oil and oil products is studied with respect to test cultures, the number and biomass of microorganisms in these samples, and the assimilation capacity of phytocenoses. It is found that the process of complete assimilation of hydrocarbon substances in the gray-brown soil prevailing in the peninsula, with a degree of pollution of 10%, can be about 19-23 years long. The amount of hydrocarbons absorbed by the phytocenoses of the region during the vegetation period is only in the range of 55-137 g per hectare. In the assimilation of hydrocarbons into gray-brown soils, the determining role belongs to hydrocarbon oxidizing microorganisms. It is necessary to develop and use soil remediation technologies in a controlled manner with optimization of their physicochemical properties and increase of their biogenicity, i.e. assimilation capacity in relation to hydrocarbon contamination.