Analysis of the informative value of integral indicators of chemical soil contamination in the evaluation of the status of areas
Bogdanov, N.A.
Gigiena i Sanitariia 1: 10-13
2012
ISSN/ISBN: 0016-9900 PMID: 22712313 Document Number: 658243
The analysis of the informative value of integral indicators of chemical soil contamination in the diagnosis of the status of lands used for different functional purposes has ascertained that the highest validity of information on the pattern and degree of area pollutions is achieved using by the indicator based on hygienic standards (soil pollution index (SPI)). The Xc index based on the background content of trace elements is largely subjective and unacceptable in complex soil geochemical conditions where the regional background (a railway, the Karelian Isthmus) cannot be chosen. SPI accounts for the values of not only trace elements, but also other hygienically regulated substances (As, Hg, mobile forms of metals, hydrocarbons, etc.). The quantity of hygienically dangerous lithochemical anomalies found by means of SPI is several times greater than that by means of Zc (settlements, the Volga delta).