LAUSR

The paper presents the results of field and laboratory studies aimed at studying the processes of oil transformation in the soil under the influence of natural biological processes during a two-year period on artificially created old spills. The soil of the study area was characterized as meadow. The high toxic effect of oil was confirmed, which was expressed in the complete extinction of soil flora and fauna. Despite the low oil content in the soil (less than 5%), soil self-purification processes were not observed. Moreover, the high sorption properties of the soil, the violation of the water regime and the lack of aeration led to the “conservation” of oil and significantly slowed down the natural processes of its biodegradation. This was confirmed by a slight change in the content of oil products a year after the start of the experiment, as well as the presence of free oil in the pore space of the studied soil.