Sustainable Management and Restoration of the Fertility of Damaged and Contaminated Lands and Soils

Abstract

The material is related to the description of the existing methods of technical and biological recultivation in order to restore the fertility of the damaged lands and soils by the traditional method - using humus soil material. New, innovative technologies are recommended to smoothly restore soil fertility by using waste products. The two stages of reclamation - technical and biological - are presented, and the advantages and disadvantages of the various methods of their implementation are examined. Various technological solutions have been justified to restore the fertility of damaged terrain by using reclamation substrates, which are mixtures of geological and waste materials in different proportions depending on the physicochemical characteristics of the individual components. Also used is a biological substrate with different components, mixed in volume ratios - geological materials with mild to heavy sandy-clayey mechanical composition, organic matter (humus), low nutrients for plants and lack of toxic components and compost materials. Technological developments for the recultivation of landfills by using sludge from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), which compensate for the shortage of humus materials, have been considered. The characteristics of the sediments reveal that they are an organic mass rich in macro- and trace elements and can be used as a fertilizer and source for enrichment of soils with organic matter and nutrients in reclamation activities.