Methodological Approaches to Determining the Background Values of the Observed Indicators of Soil Condition and the Ranges of Permissible Deviations at Reference Sites

Abstract The article presents an analysis of the provisions of the regulatory documents in force in the Russian Federation, applied in the framework of the consideration of violations of legislation on the protection of soils and lands, in terms of establishing background values of indicators of their condition and limits of permissible deviations, and their justification, taking into account the materials of scientific research. It has been established that at the moment, the methodological approaches to determining the values of soil background indicators as a basis for the development of environmental standards, presented in the materials of Russian and foreign scientific publications, are not used to confirm the fact and degree of soil pollution. The existing databases of background monitoring of soils and lands are insufficient and do not meet the requirements of reliability. Determining the range of acceptable deviations from the background values in accordance with the current regulatory framework is only partially possible using the analytical uncertainty of laboratory testing specified in the metrological characteristics of certified methods. There is a need to take into account the uncertainty caused by sampling and the natural variability of soil properties, as well as to provide reliable quantitative data for assessing the ecological state of soils and lands: (1) updating the regulatory documents regarding the methodological support of the background monitoring procedure at reference sites; (2) creating a network of reference sites, taking into account a differentiated approach to establishing a background on lands of various functional purposes; and (3) development and filling of a specialized geoinformation system.