Evgeny Nikitich Kubarev

The functioning of stationary soil lysimeters is determined by a limited volume of soil in both horizontal and vertical directions. The areal spatial limitation and the proximity of phytocenoses to each other in the large lysimeters at the
Moscow State University Soil Station determines the interbiogeocenotic exchange of plant litter, while the vertical
one excludes the role of groundwater and their influence on soil formation. The absence of lateral runoff, which is
common in natural landscapes, and the increased supply of alkaline earth elements with atmospheric precipitation
and dust, reduces the manifestation of the eluvial-illuvial process. Comparison of lysimetric waters in 1967–1968
and 2014–2015 showed a significant increase over time in the concentration of elements such as calcium, sodium,
magnesium and potassium, and among the anions chloride and sulfate ions. The local spatial geochemical contrast
of lysimetric waters caused by the effect of anti-icing agents, however, does not change the relative migration ability
of elements. According to the level of biogeochemical accumulation of elements in the soil, macroelements form
a series of Ca > K > Al > Mg > Na, and trace elements — Zn > Sr > Cu > Ba, while maintaining the same type on all
types of lysimeters. An increase in the concentration of elements in the soil occurs in the following order: broad
leaf > spruce > mixed > pure fallow. The increased accumulation of elements in the soil profile of spruce forests in
comparison with mixed plantations correlates with the type of humus forming here, which is close to the moder
type, which is due to the combination of coniferous and deciduous litter.

The paper discusses the problem of reducing the content of ascorbic acid (as a plant-protective antioxidant compound in Solanum tuberosum L. potato tubers) while improving the nutritional regime — the use of complete mineral fertilizer in low doses, humidity and temperature conditions and physiologically optimal for potato growth pH values (weakly alkaline). The possibilities of using exogenous antioxidants (humic preparations) to maintain the level of ascorbic acid in commercial products are considered. Experimental data were obtained in fi eld studies on two types of soils and in two climatic regions (Voronezh and Moscow regions). It has been shown that humic preparations can maintain the level of ascorbic acid as an independent top dressing, and against the background of full mineral fertilizer with an increase in yield.

The Department of Erosion and Soil Protection has developed the main scientific directions – «Assessment of ero- sion processes in soils of various bioclimatic zones», «Study of the basics of sustainable land use» and «Ecological and economic assessment of soil and land degradation». It is proposed to develop both existing areas of scientific research with a certain adjustment of their names and problems («Analysis and modeling of erosion processes in soils, including in the context of climate change», «Development of the concept of sustainable land use in the context of food security», «Ecology, economics and socio-demographic features of land use in the context of climate change and soil degradation»), as well as new directions that have some research history at the department — «Development of principles of soil protection», «Development of methodological foundations of land reclamation». The necessity of creating a holistic concept of soil protection is considered in particular detail. This concept should include both the formulation of legal (legislative and regulatory-methodological) principles of soil protection, and the definition of criteria for assessing soils under which their protection can be carried out, and the development of soil protection systems (first of all, from the manifestation of erosion processes) in various bioclimatic and administrative-territorial conditions.

Summary Soil erosion as one of the types of land degradation aff ects various economic interests of people. It is shown that the most promising areas of erosion studies, where economic methods can be applied, are — assessment of actual damage fr om soil erosion, determination of the magnitude of probable damage from the occurrence of erosion
processes in soils, economic analysis in the development of sustainable land use systems for territories whose soils are subject to erosion. Th e group of methods for determining economic damage is characterized by the greatest development, including taking into account ecosystem services that soils «lose» as a result of erosion processes. Methods for assessing the risk of soil erosion have signifi cant development potential, since by now a powerful database of predictive models and equations (USLE, RUSLE, RUSLE2, WEPP, EUROSE, CREAMS, EPIC, VNIIZiZPE, etc.) has been created, allowing to assess indicators of soil erosion in the future. Th e neoclassical theory of capital is used in the development of sustainable land use systems, which requires that the fertility of the soil and the net social benefits from non-market goods and services from agricultural land should be maintained over time. Th us, it is possible to
create compensatory taxation mechanisms for territories wh ere soil erosion processes occur.

It is shown that a significant amount of soil and environmental studies necessary for the economic assessment of damage/harm from pollution, degradation and clutter can be reduced through the use of express methods for assessing the ecological state of soils. Such methods include the determination of the volumetric magnetic susceptibility of soils (MV), which characterizes the degree of anthropogenic load on the territory — the so-called level of anthropogenic land pollution. For the territory of the Educational and Experimental Soil and Ecological Center of Lomonosov Moscow State University "Chashnikovo" (EE SEC "Chashnikovo"), the area with the highest soil moisture index and the magnitude of damage from "man-made" pollution is the "roadside strip" — the territory directly adjacent to the Leningradskoye Highway. In the "ditch" zone, the magnitudes of magnetic susceptibility and soil damage decrease compared to the "roadside strip", but still have significant values. In the "forest belt" zone, the values of soil moisture indicators decrease significantly compared to the "road strip" and "ditch", and the amount of damage from "man-made" pollution here is zero, just as for the "arable land/fallow land" zone. The obtained maximum amount of damage from technogenic pollution in the "roadside strip" — 17.37 rubles/m2 (at a cadastral value of 6.03 rubles/m2) — gives an approximate idea of the damage caused to lands by man-made load.

The article presents the results of a study on the dynamics of the height, reserves, and chemical composition of snow cover within the megapolis (Moscow) and conditionally background territories of the Solnechnogorsk district of the Moscow region (Educational and experimental soil and ecological center of Lomonosov Moscow State University “Chashnikovo”) for the winter-spring period of 2023–2024.

The study objects included: the drainage divide area of the Klyazma River in conditionally background conditions and two types of soil lysimeters from the Faculty of Soil Science of the Lomonosov Moscow State University located within Moscow. The first type of lysimeters was characterized by various soil cultivation methods under continuous operation in meadow mown phytocenosis conditions. The second type of bulk lysimeters were situated under different land use types (bare fallow, fallow land, overgrowing fallow land, spruce plantations, mixed, and broad-leaved forests) formed on a uniform mineral matrix represented by cover loam.

The dynamics of snow cover exhibited similar patterns in both natural and city conditions: maximum snow reserves occurred in February, followed by a decline in spring. Minimum snow reserves were observed in lysimeter areas with spruce plantations, while maximum reserves were recorded in treeless areas, including grass fallow and lysimeter plots under various soil cultivation conditions. In urban environments, significantly higher concentrations of certain alkali and alkaline earth elements (sodium, calcium, strontium), as well as zinc and copper, were detected. The concentrations of the most mobile anions, particularly chlorides, in the snow water of the megapolis exceeded those in natural conditions by 2–3 times. This is consistent with the higher pH and electrical conductivity values for snow water in urban settings.

The type of phytocenosis played a key influence in the spatial distribution of snow and its components. Coniferous and mixed forests retained more snow, which reduced the migration of lysimetric waters, whereas broader-leaved and open areas experienced more intense snow accumulation and vertical water migration.

 

It is shown that time has always been considered by soil scientists as a “special” factor of soil formation — the form of the soil's existence as a material body. Soil formation processes are almost always nonlinear in time and cyclical (often this cyclicity is interrupted by the flow of soil formation). The soil, as a natural body, on the one hand, obeys the internal laws of self-development (in particular, the erasure of “lithological memory” and the development of “soil memory” during one stage /spurt of evolution), on the other hand, is subject to various (including anthropogenic) factors of influence, theoretically, all types of nonlinear dynamic behaviors - chaos, multistability, amplitude decay, solitons. The change in soil condition over time within one stage of their multi-stage evolution is usually described by a logistic equation. Differentiating the state function S from time t allows us to get an idea of the rate dS/dt and acceleration d2S/dt2 of soil formation processes. The inflection points on the soil condition graph become the extreme points on the graphs of derivatives of soil formation. It is noted that dissipative processes prevail in the “first half”, and antidissipative processes prevail in the “second half” of each stage of evolution. The predominance of dissipative processes over antidissipative ones is not homogeneous at all: at first it occurs at the start of the acceleration of soil formation, and then — at the stage of decrease.