Assessment of production eco-system services of the salted and solonetzic soils of South of Ukraine

Abstract

The purpose. To develop system of assessment of production eco-system services of the salted and solonetzic soils of South of Ukraine. Methods. Field, laboratory probes, systems analysis. Results. South chernozems of different extent of natural and irrigational salinization and alkalinity within the limits of Ingulets irrigation system (Kherson and Mykolaiv oblasts, South of Ukraine) are studied with the purpose to develop the system of assessment of production eco-system services of saline lands of Ukraine. The algorithm of assessment of production eco-system services of saline lands of Ukraine is also offered. It includes soil-reclamative inspection, assessment of contemporary ecological-and-agromelioration state of lands, assessment of receptivity of eco-system services to different types of amelioration. It is fixed the following: ecological-and-agromelioration state of the majority of rain-fed lands is satisfactory; state of soils sewaged by sprinkling irrigation and inferred from irrigating — good and satisfactory depending on the level of occurrence and mineralization of soil waters; state of soils sewaged by dropping — unsatisfactory. The 10-mark rating scale for production eco-system services of the salted and solonetzic soils with application of methods of digital cartography is offered. Assessment of the level of production eco-system services according to the offered method showed that there were no plots with good level of production eco-system services, 14 plots had satisfactory level, and 1 — unsatisfactory. Unsatisfactory level of production eco-system services was caused by mainly close levels of occurrence of soil waters. Conclusions. The offered methodical approach opens opportunities of more complete use of potential of production functions of saline lands by differentiation of reclamative loads and their adaptation to operation of biological systems.