SREL Reprint #2305

Role of soil chemistry in soil remediation and ecosystem conservation

Domy C. Adriano1, Anna Chlopecka1, and Daniel I. Kaplan2

1University of Georgia, Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, Aiken, South Carolina
2Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington

Introduction: In densely populated and industrialized countries, soil resources are under severe exploitation for the production of food and fiber and energy-related biomass. The ever increasing world population means more land, including those of marginal quality, needs to be converted for man's use. There is growing awareness of the importance of a sustainable environment in natural resource conservation. This was a theme of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Development and the Environment held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In essence the importance of sustainable environments to sustainable development and economy was emphasized.

While the role of physically degraded soils, i.e., soils eroded by wind and water, on soil productivity is well known, much less is known about the impact of adverse biological and chemical processes on the soil's well-being (Lai & Pierce, 1991; Logan, 1992; Adriano et al., 1997). Thus, biochemical processes leading to soil contamination need to be elucidated. A knowledge of these processes is needed to enable scientists and engineers to develop and design methods of mitigating the adverse effects of polluted 2 Soils.

SREL Reprint #2305

Adriano, D.C., A. Chlopecka, and D.I. Kaplan. 1998. Role of soil chemistry in soil remediation and ecosystem conservation. pp. 361-386 In: Soil Chemistry and Ecosystem Health, St. Louis, MO.

This information was provided by the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory (srel.uga.edu).