Assessment of the impact of military actions on the safety of soil and agricultural products

The object of the study is the chemical and toxicological indicators of soil, wild forage, and cow's milk in areas near the combat zone. The full-scale war in Ukraine is affecting security, including food security. Military actions contribute to the contamination of soils with heavy metals and other hazardous substances. However, there are no studies to identify the impact of soil contamination on the safety of milk produced in areas near combat zones. It was found that all the collected soil samples contained increased levels of cadmium, mercury, and arsenic. The highest concentration of cadmium was found in sample S2 (14.06 mg/kg), collected in an arable land 30 km from the border. The lowest was in sample S3 (13.47 mg/kg), which was collected in a pasture 39 km from the border. However, the highest amount of arsenic (6.5 mg/kg) was found in an arable plot in the same settlement. The lowest amount of arsenic was found in sample S6 (3.96 mg/kg), taken from an arable land plot in the village of Sulske. Sample S6 (7.69 mg/kg), collected from an arable plot 43 km from the border, contained the highest mercury content. Thus, it can be assumed that the cause of pollution with heavy metals is not agricultural activity. It is obvious that other factors also influence the condition of the soil, in particular military actions, since the greatest soil pollution is observed in the areas that are closest to the combat zone. Despite soil contamination, no excess toxic substances were detected in wild forage. The likely reason is that this area is characterized by deep, low-humus black soil, which is able to retain heavy metals, reducing their bioavailability to plants. Cow's milk produced in these areas is safe, which is confirmed by the analysis of heavy metal content in it.