Toxic Contamination
Content
Aims, Principles, Structure and Methods of Partial Monitoring System SOIL

        The main aim of Partial monitoring system – Soil  “as a part of Environment monitoring of Slovakia”  is monitoring of soil contamination as well as soil properties which are important from soil fertility and other environmental functions point of view. Besides the monitoring of forest soils is a part of “International co-operative programme on forests health evaluation – ICP Forests”.
        There are monitored only irreversible soil properties changes in Slovakia. The reversible soil properties changes. so-called soil regimes are not registered. The object of monitoring system includes all soil cover of Slovakia (agricultural and forest soils as well as the soils in highland). So-called urban soils in municipal and plant areas are not monitored.

Soil monitoring system in Slovakia consists of 3 subsystems:

  1. the basic network of monitoring sites (650) at 5 years regular intervals.
  2. the key monitoring sites (21) at 1 years regular intervals.
  3. the area soil of soil contamination survey which has been realised on 19 257 agricultural plots.
        There are standardised in monitoring system as follows: the sites of monitoring network. the depth of sampling. pedological characteristics of sites. analytical methods. database and archives of soil samples. Soil monitoring network consists of 650 sites. 312 of them are on the agricultural soils and 338 sites are located on the forest soils. 21 typical (key) sites as well as 19 257 agricultural plots. The monitoring site has the radius 10 m (314 m2).
        The sites of basic network have geodetically measured co-ordinates. Soils have been sampled in following depths: surface organic layer of forest soils. 0 - 0.1 m, 0.2 - 0.3 m, 0.35 – 0.45 m and the soil parent material (in various depths). Soils from agricultural plots are sampled only in depths 0.1 – 0.3 m where 1 – 5 soil samples are mixed from 1 plot.
        Analytical methods: particle – size analysis (pipette method). CEC (0?1 M BaCl2). exchangeable cations (ammonium – acetate 1 M). Cd. Cr. Co. Pb. Cu. Ni. Zn. Se. As in total (decomposition by HF + HNO3 + HCl). Hg (TMA – 254 analysator). contents of Cd. Cr. Pb. Cu. Ni. Zn by M HNO3 extraction (mobile forms). Cr+6 by polarograph method in DTPA-CH3 COONa – HaNo3 electrolyte. PAH by GC – MSD method. PCB by GC. SD. GC – ECD method. pH (0.2M KCl. 0.01 CaCl2. H20) Cox by Tjurin method (in Nikitin. 1972) and Kononova and Beltchikova method (1961) C. H. N. O elements. 13C NMR analyse of humic acids with % of aliphatic C and % of aromatic lC. content of carboxyl groups (Schnitzer and Gupta method). P and K fractional composition (according Scharafat and Bujdoš methods). Erosion has been indicated by activity of 137Cs isotope method.
        Physical properties were determined (gravimetrically) in 100 cm3 cylinders. soil compaction (penetrometrically by Eijkelkamp gadget). infiltration capacity by measuring in the field. salinisation in soil paste and in water extract 1:10.
        Special monitoring is parallel measuring and comparison of soil properties between old soil samples (30 - 35 yr. old) and present ones. This special monitoring has orientation character because only few of old soil samples were in good preservation.