Resistance of Different Plant Species to Oil Pollution

This paper presents data on the effect of hydrocarbon (HC) vapors and soil contamination with oil on the morphological parameters and the content of the main photosynthetic pigments (chlorophylls and carotenoids) in green parts of plants of different taxonomic groups. In a laboratory experiment (growth in the atmosphere of oil vapors and in a soil containing 0.75–3.21% of oil), an increase in the content of chlorophylls and carotenoids is observed in the aboveground parts of the leafy moss (brium), plants from the Umbelliferae family (chervil and burnet saxifrage), and cereals (foxtail). Under field conditions, an increased content of photosynthetic pigments is observed in the leaves of wild rosemary and tansy, whereas in the plantain leaves their content is below the background value. The addition of HC-oxidizing bacteria (HOB) to the oil-contaminated soil increased the pigment concentration by 30–40%, indicating an additional stimulating effect of the HOB introduction.