RESEARCH ON PHYTOREMEDIATION OF HEAVY METALS IN SOIL

SMIZTQ

Abstract

Human impacts on the environment lead to land pollution and exclude this territory from economic use. Various reclamation works must be carried out to return soils for agricultural use. In modern conditions, agrochemical land reclamation methods compete with biological ones, the latter being less energy- and resource-intensive and more environmentally friendly. Heavy metals inhibit plant growth, accumulate in them, and transfer through the food chain. These toxicants enter the soil and water bodies due to anthropogenic activity: the operation of metallurgical and energy complexes, transport and agricultural machinery, and agrochemicals. Due to the agricultural specifics of the Altai Krai, this problem is relevant for this region. Heavy metal pollution affects the quantity and quality of agricultural products. An effective method of cleaning soils from these pollutants is phytoremediation. In the first stage of the work, research was conducted to find remediant cultures and biotesters that respond to the presence of heavy metals in the soil. The change in biometric and gravimetric characteristics of oats was analyzed depending on the content of cadmium ions in the soil. The influence of cadmium, lead, zinc and nickel ions in the soil substrate on crops such as medicago, buckwheat and oats was investigated in the second stage. Phytoaccumulation of pollutants in plant biomass was considered. Based on the research results, recommendations were formulated for using the specified crops as biotesters or phytoremediants, considering the plants' reaction and their identified cumulative abilities.