Specific Reaction of Biota to Environmental Pollution in Tundra Ecosystems

Abstract

This paper shows the specific reaction of biota to gas industry environmental pollution in tundra ecosystems, such as alteration of tree-ring size of Siberian larch, changes in biodiversity of plant components, and accumulation of biological elements (nitrogen and phosphorus) on biogeochemical barriers in plants in the impacted areas of facilities for gas production complex. On a basis of these researches, we can conclude that atmospheric nitrogen-containing pollutants have a significant fertilizing effect on tundra ecosystems that is manifested in the reliable increase in the content of nitrogen, directly and phosphorus, indirectly through the enhancement of biochemical processes in plants. It is established that both studied species of lichens (Alectoria ochroleuca and Alectoria nigricans), and dwarf birch leaves can be used as indicator species/plant organs when considering atmospheric pollution. Increasing concentration of nitrogen in the tissues of tundra plants presents the evidence of its effective absorption by plant community that is most likely to lead to increased productivity of tundra plant communities as a whole.