METHOD OF INTEGRATED ASSESSMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITION OF SOIL Russian patent published in 2013 - IPC G01N33/24 

FIELD: ecology.

SUBSTANCE: samples of uncontaminated background soil and contaminated with heavy metals or crude oil and oil products are taken, and for each pair of samples of soil the number of ammonifying bacteria, the number of microscopic fungi, the abundance of bacteria of the genus Azotobacter, the catalase activity, the invertase activity, the germination of radish is determined. IRS of the soil is calculated as follows: IRS =Σ( Pconti/Pfoni)×100%/n, where Pconti is the value of i-th index (number of ammonifying bacteria, million/g, the number of microscopic fungi, million/g, the abundance of bacteria of the genus Azotobacter, %, catalase activity, ml O₂/min, the invertase activity, ml, glucose/24 h, the germination of radish, %, for contaminated soil; Pfoni is the value of i-th/min, the indicator for uncontaminated soil; n is the number of indicators (n=6). The environmental condition of the soil is determined according to reduction of the IRS. If the IRS value in the contaminated soil is over 95%, the normal ecological condition of the soil is stated. In reduction of the IRS to 90-95% the satisfactory condition is stated. In reduction of the IRS to 75-90% the poor condition is stated. In reduction of the IRS below 75% the catastrophic condition is stated.

EFFECT: method enables to assess quickly and accurately the environmental condition of the soil.

17 tbl, 2 ex