Ecological and geochemical monitoring of the soil–surface water system in the impact zone of the thermoelectric power station

This study examined spatial patterns of chemical elements in soils within the potential impact zone of the Burshtyn Thermal Power Plant and compared the soil results with non-synchronous published surface-water data.Instrument screening reported 30 components; quantitative interpretation used ten variables with complete results for 19 sites, while Pb was quantified at 12 sites.Soil conditions were assessed using concentration factors, Al-normalized enrichment factors, the geoaccumulation index, Spearman correlations with Benjamini-Hochberg false-discovery-rate control, and exploratory principal component analysis (PCA).All enrichment factors for Cr, Ni, Cu, Zn, and quantified Pb were below 2. Pb values of 43-77 mg/kg were above the cited 32 mg/kg comparison value, although this screening result requires confirmation by complete analytical QA/QC.Mean Zn was 2.44 times the regional background.After FDR adjustment, significant associations remained for Fe-K, Fe-Ni, Fe-Cr, K-Ni, and K-Cr.No significant monotonic relationship was detected between distance and enrichment factors across all sites or within the six downwind sites.The first three PCs explained 80.1% of total variance.A reduced eight-variable PCA retained the Fe-Cr-Ni pattern and the Ca-Si contrast, whereas the Cu-Zn pattern was less stable.The water-to-soil ratio was redefined as an empirical cross-compartment aqueous-representation ratio (Rw/s, kg/L), rather than a leaching coefficient.Ca and Sr had the highest ratios, Mg and Zn intermediate ratios, and Fe, Mn, Cr, and Cu the lowest.Because soil samples were collected in 2026 and water data originated from earlier studies, the comparison does not demonstrate leaching or soil-to-water transfer.The multielement structure is consistent with a substantial lithogenic or mineral-matrix contribution, while localized anthropogenic contributions to Pb and Zn cannot be excluded.