Military soil degradation in the northern part of Ukraine

Following the cessation of active hostilities in the Kyiv and Chernihiv regions in 2022, research was initiated to investigate the effects of military soil degradation. By 2024, approximately 150 hectares of agricultural land affected by active hostilities were identified and surveyed. These areas showed evidence of degradation due to aerial bombing, burning of military equipment, and artillery shelling.

Subsequently, a comprehensive series of laboratory tests were conducted on the collected soil samples to determine agrophysical and agrochemical parameters, as well as the presence of heavy metals and radionuclides. The results revealed that the density of ¹³⁷Cs contamination in these areas ranged from 2.07 to 8.20 kBq/m², and for ⁹⁰Sr –  from 0.62 to 3.49 kBq/m², respectively. These values don`t fall within the limits established for radioactive contamination zones under the Law 'On the Legal Regime of the Territory Affected by Radioactive Contamination as a Result of the Chornobyl Disaster' (¹³⁷Cs: higher 185 kBq/m², ⁹⁰Sr: higher 5.55 kBq/m²). Based on the observed levels of radioactive soil contamination and the transfer coefficients to agricultural plants, as well as measurements conducted during the study (e.g., the ¹³⁷Cs content in wheat grain was below 3 Bq/kg), it is not expected that permissible levels of ¹³⁷Cs contamination for agricultural products will be exceeded.

The analysis of soil agrochemical parameters in the Chernihiv region revealed a slight increase in the pH levels of water and salt extracts at explosion sites (craters). This rise in pH may be attributed to the infiltration of pollutants into the soil or the surfacing of deeper soil layers with naturally higher pH values. The concentration of mobile phosphorus forms in soil samples collected from explosion sites and areas of burned military equipment was found to be lower than in the control samples, with a maximum decrease of up to 40%. In terms of trace element content, an increase in the concentrations of mobile Cu forms by up to sixfold, as well as a decrease by up to thirteenfold compared to the control (military-undisturbed areas), were recorded. Conversely, a decrease in the concentration of mobile Zn forms was noted, with a maximum reduction of up to eightfold relative to the control. For mobile Fe forms, a significant increase in concentration was detected in explosion areas, with levels rising up to fivefold higher than the control. This increase in trace element concentrations is preliminarily attributed to the disruption of the soil structure, the mixing of soil horizons, and the physical and chemical weathering of element compounds within the soil.

In certain locations, an increase in the concentration of mobile forms of heavy metals was recorded compared to undisturbed areas, particularly for Cd, Mn, Ni, Pb, Co, and Cr. Nevertheless, no exceedance of the maximum permissible concentrations of these chemical elements, as stipulated in the current regulatory documents in Ukraine, was detected in the studied soils. The samples taken from the Kyiv region are still at the measurement stage.

We acknowledge the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine for the financial support of this research (Project 0124U001049).