The stock of productive moisture in soils of natural-technogenic complex of Kuzbass forest-steppe zone

Extraction of mineral resources has led to a specific degradation of soil cover located not only in the allotment, but also in thesurrounding natural landscapes. Anthropogenous landscape (for example, monton overburden and bearing strata) has an anthropogenicload on the surrounding natural ecosystems. This is stipulated in the individual structural and functional features: lithogenic base, relief,microclimate, inhomogeneous pedotope or biotope, etc. Therefore, the aim of this research was to estimate the reserves of availablemoisture in the soil cover of the natural and man-made Kuzbass forest-steppe region complexes depending on the degree of exposure.To achieve the goal, we had several objectives: to evaluate the reserves of available moisture in the soil cover of natural areas adjacentto the montons, to establish the underlying causes and conditions that affect their accumulation. In the spring / autumn 2009 we examinednatural territories in order to determine the content of moisture confined in the grounds of North (the Bachatsky coal mine) andCentral (the Shestaki coal mine) montons. The objects of the observation data of natural and technogenic complexes were the uplandareas located at various distances from anthropogenic objects at the southwest ↔ northeast transect, in relation to the prevailing southwesternwinds and the orientation of the sun. In all key areas, soil cover is represented by leached chernozem; on the territory along thenorth-eastern part of the Central monton - by chernozem-meadow soils. It was found that the most difficult mode to supply moistureto the located territories in the zone of the ecogenic influence of the North monton of the Bachatsky coal mine. In the area of maximumimpact, which is located at the south-western foot of the monton, in the bottom part of the leached chernozem soil profile a horizonforms with constant humidity, which usually does not exceed the wilting point. This situation is characteristic for the arid and semi-aridareas with the spread of common and southern black soil. In the area of maximum ecogenic impact in north-eastern foothills of theCentral monton (the Shestaki coal mine) sharp water logging is observed. This is due to the blocking of natural watercourses, whichcontributes to precipitation moisture accumulation in depressed areas, and to the temperature conditions. Away from montons, the supplyof moisture is stabilized up to the level characteristic for black soil. Thus, in the study area of natural and technogenic complexeswithin the same forms of relief  upland areas, two opposite processes occur: siccation and overwetting, which are characterized by theirsupply of reserves of available moisture. At the same time the accumulation of moisture and subsurface flow during the year is regulated,primarily, by man-made and ecogenic factors.

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