The Effect of Kerosene Pollution on the Cellulolytic Activity of Albic Retisols and Arenosols (Aridic): A Laboratory Experiment

Abstract

The results of a laboratory experiment modeling the effect of kerosene contamination on the cellulolytic activity of microbiocenosis of the Albic Retisol (Kaluga oblast, Russia) and Arenosol (Kyzylorda oblast, Republic of Kazakhstan) humus horizons are described. Cellulolytic activity is assessed according to the rate of weight loss in linen cloth fragments during the incubation for 0–3, 3–7, and 7–13 months. The intensity of cellulolytic activity in the unpolluted Albic Retisol is higher as compared with the Arenosol, which is determined by low acidity and an elevated content of organic matter and nutrients. The soil pollution with kerosene to 10 g/kg causes a reversible change in cellulolytic activity of both Albic Retisol and Arenosol (Aridic). A high load of kerosene (≥25 g/kg) inhibits cellulolytic activity in both soils over 13 months of observation. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1134/S1064229322020119. Fig. S1. Cellulolytic activity of soils in a laboratory experiment: (a) initial state of linen tissue (test object) and (b) linen tissue after three months of incubation. Table S1. Properties of soil humus horizons. Table S2. Initial water content in the studied soil samples with due account for the added kerosene. Table S3. Cellulolytic activity in soils grouped according to kerosene load (rate of mass loss, mg/g soil per day. Table S4. Significance of differences between cellulolytic activities of contaminated soil samples relative control samples according to the Mann–Whitney U-test. Table S5. Kerosene content in the studied soil samples at the end of the experiment, % of the initial content.

Data on the temporal changes in soil properties and microbiome composition after a jet-fuel contamination during the pot and field experiments

“…Cellulolytic activity was calculated as the mean rate of the loss in weight of test object relative to its initial weight over the selected observation interval in mg/(g day). [1 , 8] …”

“…The soils of the Kaluga region could be considered as the background for the Moscow region [1] where five international airports located including the Sheremetyevo Alexander S. Pushkin International Airport that is the second-busiest airport in Europe. Dystric Arenosols are the most vulnerable soils in the Baikonur Cosmodrome area, where ‘Soyuz’ vehicles running on kerosene are launched, and the airport named Krainiy is located [2 , 3] .…”

Protocol of conjugate evaluation of the biological activity of soils in terms of cellulolytic activity and biological consumption of oxygen

“…Soil organic matter decomposition is a fundamental ecosystem process that allows for the cycling of nutrients. The rate of organic matter decomposition is measured using various test objects, such as filter paper [1] , [2] , [3] , [4] , linen [ 5 , 6 ] or cotton [7] , [8] , [9] fabric, tea bags [9] , [10] , [11] , [12] , [13] , [14] , [15] , [16] , components of woody or herbaceous plants (needles, leaves and branches) [ 11 , [17] , [18] , [19] ]. Recently, the tea bags have become the most widely used among them with the subsequent calculation of a Tea Bag Index (TBI) [ 10 , [20] , [21] , [22] ] proposed by [23] .…”

“…The proposed method gives reproducible and reliable results on the biochemical activity of soil microorganisms in a wide range of soils, e.g. Retisols, Arenosols, Chernozems, Histosols, Regosols, Technosols [ 5 , 25 ], including those under hydrocarbon pollution [ 6 , 26 , 27 ].…”

Phytotoxic Effects of Kerosene on Plants of Forest and Bog Phytocenoses of Southern Taiga

“…This article focuses on the effects of kerosene on plant species typical of communities in the southern taiga sub-zone of European Russia (Central Russia) and their ability to recover from this exposure. We performed the experiments in connection with microbiome studies of the same soils in same location; the results of the microbiome studies are published in [7] and [26]. As a scientific hypothesis, we expected that taxonomically, ecologically and biomorphologically similar plant species from the Far East and European Russia would show a similar response to pollution by the same hydrocarbon fuels.…”