The researchers characterized and photographed the landscapes, analyzed the general geochemical situation, described the soil profiles and selected samples for laboratory study, the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources reported on its website.
“The global goal of the expedition is to detail and update fragments of the sections of the state soil map of I.S. Mikhailov on the Russian Arctic. The results of the study will also allow us to assess the impact of global climate change and anthropogenic activities on the level of productivity and the rate of transformation of terrestrial ecosystems in the Arctic,” the Ministry of Natural Resourcessaid quoted a researcher at the V.V. Dokuchaev Soil Institute Dmitry Nikitin as saying.
Another goal is to create a collection of microorganism strains capable of degrading petroleum products in polar climate conditions. According to Nikitin, this can serve as a good foundation for further work on the creation of biological products for cleaning the Arctic landscapes from oil products.
“In addition, the collection will allow screening (selection) of polar strains of microorganisms capable of synthesizing new antibiotics necessary for the treatment of acute infectious diseases,” he said.
The director of the Russian Arctic National Park, Alexander Kirilov, noted that the soil is a product of the interaction of climate, relief, organisms, dense and loose rocks, one of the complex and multifunctional systems known on Earth, and its study is necessary to understand the processes in the Arctic.
“The relevance of such studies is growing due to the raising response of polar ecosystems to global climate change. A lot of work needs to be done in order to compile a complete picture of the structure of the soil cover of the Franz Josef Land archipelago,” the Ministry of Natural Resources quotes Kirilov as saying.
The research in the national park was carried out as part of the second voyage of the Arctic Floating University 2022 expedition.
