In permafrost conditions, diesel fuel spills are processed by soil microorganisms, which leads to significant emissions of carbon dioxide, Russian scientists, whose article was published in the journal Environmental Pollution, learned.
In 2020, a man-made disaster occurred near Norilsk – during a spill, more than twenty thousand tons of diesel fuel got into the environment. Researchers from the Forest Institute. VN Sukachev SB RAS and Siberian Federal University studied the effect of different concentrations of the most common brand of diesel fuel on the activity of soil microbes and the amount of carbon they release into the atmosphere.
It turns out that diesel fuel significantly increases the release of “slow carbon” – produced by biological processes – from Arctic soils in most cases. Soil microorganisms living above the permafrost layer can use diesel fuel as food. As a result, they help reduce soil pollution from petroleum products. Researchers suggest using these microorganisms to develop drugs that will counteract the effects of contamination.
However, as a result of the vital activities of bacteria, carbon is released. Such microbes are active at sub-zero temperatures and, as a result, contribute to increased emissions of carbon dioxide in the cold period.
Source: Ferra
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