An integrated approach to the study of ecosystem state for soil and vegetation cover of urban areas

The article substantiates the need for a comprehensive assessment of the state of the ecosystem. To do this, it is necessary to perform studies of the state of the soil, water and vegetation cover using various devices. The studies were carried out both in a stationary laboratory using samples taken from the territory, and in the field using devices for express control. For additional control of the vegetation cover, the results of video filming and research carried out using a thermal imager and radar stations were used. The latter method is extremely effective if the soil or plants contain large amounts of radioactive substances or heavy metals. For research, previously compiled maps of contamination of territories using GIS technologies were used. Comparison of these data will help to establish the causal factors of pollution. In addition, it is possible to identify the migration of pollution under the influence of various climatic phenomena, etc. The use of high-resolution instruments (for example, an X-ray spectrometer or a power optical microscope) allows one to determine the entire spectrum of contamination in soil, water and on plant samples. This allows in the future to assess the behavior of chemical elements in the “soil-plant” system to determine the possibility of cleaning the area using plants. Of particular interest is the burning of fallen leaves with burying waste in the ground.