Paleosols of the unique fortress of Arkaim located in the steppe zone of the southern Transural region (Chelyabinsk oblast) were investigated. The dating of the buried soils was performed using the...

The effects of different land-use histories on contents of soil carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) and fluxes of greenhouse gases [carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), and nitrous oxide (N₂O)] measured using the closed chamber method were investigated in the Arkaim museum reserve located in the South Ural of Russia. A natural forest site (NF) and two grassland sites that had different land-use histories (CL: cropland until 1991; PST: pasture until 1991; both sites have been fallow for 18 years) were selected for soil sampling and gas flux measurements. The vegetation in NF was mainly Betula pendula Roth. with steppe cherry and grassy cover. Perennial grasses (Stipa spp., Festuca spp. and others) have been planted in CL and PST since 1991 to establish reserve mode, and the projective cover of these plants were > 90% in both sites in 2009. Soil samples were taken from the A horizon in the three sites, and additionally samples of the O horizon were taken from NF. The contents of soil C and N [total C, total N, soluble organic C, soluble N and microbial biomass C (MBC)] in the O horizon of NF were the largest among all investigated soils (p < 0.05). Additionally, the total C, total N and MBC in PST were significantly larger than in CL (p < 0.05). Positive CO₂ fluxes (i.e., CO₂ efflux) in all three investigated sites were observed. The CO₂ efflux in NF was significantly larger than in CL and PST (129, 30 and 25 mg C m⁻² hour⁻¹, respectively, p < 0.05), although there was no significant difference in values of CO₂ efflux between CL and PST. There were no significant differences in the fluxes of CH₄ and N₂O among NF, CL and PST (p > 0.05). Our current research indicated that, in soils of the Eurasian steppe zone of Russia, total C, total N and MBC were affected not only by current land-use (i.e., fallow grassland vs. natural forest) but also by past (until 18 years ago) land-use.

Specific features of the chemical composition of burozems, podzols, and alluvial soils of the Sakhalin Island are revealed. Burozems on eluvial and colluvial deposits, podzols on marine sediments,...

Soils of the Arkaim Reserve were studied before the establishment of the reserve and, then, 12 and 18 years after the reservation of this territory. Former pastures and hayfields occupy 70% of the...

The spatial variability of the density, moisture, pH, humus, and benzo[ a]pyrene contamination in a structural-metamorphic agrozem within the impact zone of the Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk thermal power plant...

Podzols in oil-mining areas of northeastern Sakhalin were examined. The physicochemical properties of the podzols on the industrial plot, on the adjacent territory, and in the background landscapes...