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Contamination of agricultural soils
Last update of indicator28.11.2023
Indicator definition
The indicator describes the condition and development of soil contamination with hazardous substances.
Related policy documents and targets
Principles of the State Land Policy (2001)
The Slovak Government declares that the land of the Slovak Republic is the common wealth of the citizens of the state and the heritage of future generations. It is an essential and non-renewable resource, and it forms an integral part of Earth's ecosystems. It remains a basic environmental, ecological, economic and social potential of Slovakia, and must therefore be carefully protected from damage and unjustified reduction of its area and volume.
The Slovak Government declares that the land of the Slovak Republic is the common wealth of the citizens of the state and the heritage of future generations. It is an essential and non-renewable resource, and it forms an integral part of Earth's ecosystems. It remains a basic environmental, ecological, economic and social potential of Slovakia, and must therefore be carefully protected from damage and unjustified reduction of its area and volume.
Strategy of adaptation of SR to the adverse impacts of climate change - update (2018)
Adaptation measures in the native environment:
Adaptation measures in the native environment:
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Utilising soil-protecting technologies of farming.
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Soil-protecting minimising technologies.
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Implementation of measures to improve soil structure (deep tillage, using manure or green fertilizing).
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Organic agricultural systems and application of organic fertilisers.
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Application of organic fertilisers in accordance with the law.
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Support of integrated production and ecological agriculture measures.
Adaptation measures in the domain of agriculture.
- Eco-friendly growing technologies.
- Implementation of integrated methods of pest control in agriculture.
Greener Slovakia - Environmental policy strategy of the Slovak Republic until 2030 (Envirostrategy 2030) (2019)
Goal: 3.1 Promoting more eco-friendly approaches in agriculture.
Priorities:
- Area-wide monitoring aimed at determining and evaluating the occurrence of pollutants in the soil will be implemented.
- Stricter control of the sale and use of industrial substances in agriculture will be introduced.
Vision and Strategy for the Development of Slovakia until 2030 - Long-term Strategy for the Sustainable Development of the Slovak Republic - Slovakia 2030 (2021)
Objective of the Integrated Development Program I.
Population growth and qualitative development, with special emphasis on education, health, culture, the development of civil society and the rule of law, and the conservation and sustainable management and development of natural resources.
I.5 Ensure effective and sustainable management of natural resources
- Ensure the protection, restoration and improvement of natural resources, including ensuring the stability and health of ecosystems and their services and mainstreaming adaptation and mitigation measures to the adverse effects of climate change into all departmental strategic documents and municipal and regional development documents as an overriding public interest (e.g. in transport planning, energy, spatial planning, water management, agriculture, forestry, sustainable tourism, overall landscape care, etc.).
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Define the reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases and pollutants into the environment and the avoidance of degradation of strategic natural resources (water, forests and soil) as a public interest.
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Reduce the acidification of agricultural soils by ameliorative liming or promote basic agrochemical and agrotechnical measures to improve overall soil quality parameters with a view to better utilisation of nutrients from fertilisers.
Common Agricultural Policy Strategic Plan 2023-2027 (2022)
Specific objective 5: Promote sustainable development and provide management of natural resources such as water, land and air, including by reducing dependence on chemicals
Program statement of the Government of the Slovak Republic for the period 2023 – 2027 (2023)
In the field of soil protection and agricultural governance, it will be based on the understanding of agriculture as a complex whole, and therefore declares as its basic strategic goal all-round support for the use of its potential in order to significantly increase the food security of Slovakia, consisting in ensuring the population's access to high-quality, safe and affordable available food while simultaneously strengthening aspects of ecological, environmentally friendly management on agricultural and forest land.
Key question
Have the limit values of hazardous substances in agricultural soils been observed?Key messages
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The development of soil contamination after 2005 has been very gradual. Comparing the individual monitoring cycles of the PMS-S (Partial monitoring System - Soil), there was no deterioration in the hygienic status of agricultural soils. Most of the hazardous substances in agricultural soils did not exceed the established limits, except for sites that had been contaminated in the past (in the vicinity of industrial plants, in the area of influence of geochemical anomalies).
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From the point of view of soil contamination, the main risk elements (Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn, Ni, As) were monitored in 2022, which recorded above-limit values in the previous monitoring cycle. Selected localities were analyzed, in which contamination by at least one contaminant was determined after the evaluation of the 4th sampling cycle (sampling year 2007). In the evaluated groups of soils in 2022 (podzols, rankres and lithozems of TTP, brown soils of OP, regozems on carbonate loose sands and regozems on non-carbonate loose sands of OP, saline soils) at the monitored contaminated sites, based on the observations so far, in the comparison of the sampling years 2007 and 2018 recorded a positive trend in the development of Cd and Pb content and a negative trend in the case of the total Ni content.
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The latest hygienic survey of agricultural soils in the vicinity of the aluminium smelter in Žiar nad Hronom shows a slight reduction in the area of soil contaminated with fluorine, but the process of reducing the concentration of the monitored and evaluated element in the soil is only gradual. The average value of water-soluble fluorine in the soils opposite the aluminium smelter is still quite high and even today exceeds 4 times the value of the applicable hygiene limit for water-soluble fluorine in soils (5 mg.kg-1).
| Change since 2005 | Change since 2015 | Last year-on-year change |
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| The soil contamination after 2005 was without major changes. Soils contaminated in the past are contaminated also at present. | Since 2015, the content of most hazardous substances in agricultural soils has not exceeded the specified limits. |
The assessment of contamination of soils with hazardous substances throughout the monitoring network shall be carried out at 5 year intervals. |
Detailed assessment
The evaluation of soil contamination is based on the assessment of hazardous substances content in the soil, especially of risk elements (Cd, Cr, Pb, Ni, Zn, Cu, As, Hg), F, PAH (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), which have a high biotoxicity degree for warm-blooded animals and humans.
Hazardous substances are present in the soil in different concentrations and in different forms. Their increased level may be caused due to various anthropogenic activities, such as: industry, energy, transport and agriculture, but often it is also typical for mountainous areas, so called natural geochemical anomalies.
In the 1st PMS-S monitoring cycle it was found that 69.5% of agricultural lands of the SR belonged to the category of non-contaminated ones, occurring primarily in areas with the most productive agricultural soils. 28.7% of land was marked as risk-bearing, exceeding A, A1 limit at least in one of risk elements. These soils were present mostly in mountainous areas with the provable high percentage of natural geochemical anomalies, and in areas with visible impact of global and regional emission transfer. Only 1.4% of soils belonged to the category of contaminated ones, exceeding B limit, and 0.4% to the category of extremely contaminated soils, exceeding C limit.
Hazardous substances are present in the soil in different concentrations and in different forms. Their increased level may be caused due to various anthropogenic activities, such as: industry, energy, transport and agriculture, but often it is also typical for mountainous areas, so called natural geochemical anomalies.
In the 1st PMS-S monitoring cycle it was found that 69.5% of agricultural lands of the SR belonged to the category of non-contaminated ones, occurring primarily in areas with the most productive agricultural soils. 28.7% of land was marked as risk-bearing, exceeding A, A1 limit at least in one of risk elements. These soils were present mostly in mountainous areas with the provable high percentage of natural geochemical anomalies, and in areas with visible impact of global and regional emission transfer. Only 1.4% of soils belonged to the category of contaminated ones, exceeding B limit, and 0.4% to the category of extremely contaminated soils, exceeding C limit.
The most common contaminants of soil were Pb and Cd, less Ni and As. Extremely high values in categories B and C were reached by Hg, Cu, Cd, Pb, As locally, F, Cr. From organic pollutants that persist in the soil for longer, mainly polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are subject to monitoring. Other organic pollutants are more of "point" pollution character. Within the monitoring of SR soils, the highest levels of PAH were detected in particular in fluvial soils, in the floodplains of larger rivers, in Mollic, locally also in the Luvisols and Cambisols and around industrial centres. Average content of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in agricultural soils of SR was around 200 mg.kg-1.
Values above 1,000 mg.kg-1 were only of local character (Žiar nad Hronom, Strážske, floodplain of the Danube and Morava). (Report on the State of SR Environment, 2002)
Values above 1,000 mg.kg-1 were only of local character (Žiar nad Hronom, Strážske, floodplain of the Danube and Morava). (Report on the State of SR Environment, 2002)
The results of the 2nd PMS-S monitoring cycle, with the sampling in 1997 showed that, compared to the 1st monitoring cycle, the hygiene condition of agricultural soils slightly improved, whereby the number of soils that exceeded the A1 reference limit for contaminated soils declined. The provable vertical migration of hazardous elements in the soil profile was recorded. (Monitoring of SR soils, 2002)
The results of the 3rd cycle, with the sampling in 2002 showed that the content of the majority of hazardous substances in selected agricultural soils did not exceed the limit specified at that time. For cadmium and lead, excessive limit values were only in soils situated in higher altitudes (podzols, andosols), which might relate to remote transfer of emissions. In the 3rd monitoring cycle, out of 274 agricultural areas of 15 802 ha acreage in total, there were detected no above-limit agricultural areas by monitored pollutants (PAHs, PCBs, chlorinated hydrocarbons). (Report on the State of SR Environment, 2006).
The areal survey of soil contamination (ASSC) as a subsystem of PMS-S, closely linked to agrochemical soil testing system (AST), monitors contaminants in agricultural soils in the selected cadastral areas. The soils from these cadastral areas were selected on the basis of increased content of contaminants on an agricultural land, whose values were determined by the analysis in the 1st ASSC cycle, where at least one of the monitored parameters exceeded the limit value. The overview of above-limit hazardous substances in the agricultural soils of SR is presented in the following maps.
Overview of limit-exceeding values of lead in the SR agricultural soils for the period 2001-2005 (Pb limit = 30.00 mg/kg)
Source: CCTIA
Overview of limit-exceeding values of cadmium in the SR agricultural soils for the period 2001-2005 (Cd limit = 0,30 mg/kg)
Source: CCTIA
Overview of limit-exceeding values of mercury in the SR agricultural soils for the period 2001-2005 (Hg limit = 0,30 mg/kg)
Source: CCTIA
Overview of limit-exceeding values of arsenic in the SR agricultural soils for the period 2001-2005 (As limit = 5,00 mg/kg)
Source: CCTIA
Overview of limit-exceeding values of chromium in the SR agricultural soils for the period 2001-2005 (Cr limit = 10,00 mg/kg)
Source: CCTIA
Overview of limit-exceeding values of nickel in the SR agricultural soils for the period 2001-2005 (Ni limit = 10,00 mg/kg)
Source: CCTIA
Overview of limit-exceeding values of copper in the SR agricultural soils for the period 2001-2005 (Cu limit = 20,00 mg/kg)
Source: CCTIA
Overview of limit-exceeding values of zinc in the SR agricultural soils for the period 2001-2005 (Zn limit = 40,00 mg/kg)
Source: CCTIA
In case of monitored risk elements of 4th PMS-P monitoring cycle, with the sampling in 2007, there were indeed exceedances of statutory limits in some cases, more significantly increased content was recorded only for cadmium and lead mainly in lower river flows, which indicates their transport often from remote areas. The increased content of cadmium was detected in some rendzina, whereby organic matter and neutral soil reaction - in which the said element is less movable- contribute to its accumulation (Report on the State of SR Environment, 2012).
When comparing the 5th monitoring cycle (sampling year 2013) with the previous 4th monitoring cycle, there was a positive trend for total As and Cd and a negative trend for total Co, Cu, Ni and Zn at the monitored contaminated sites. Report on the State of SR Environment, 2018).
Samples of the 6th monitoring cycle were collected in 2018 and are being progressively processed and evaluated.