Synergistic impact of bioavailable PHEs and alkalinity on microbial diversity and traits in agricultural soil adjacent to chromium-asbestos mines

Sonali Banerjee; Saibal Ghosh; Shreya Chakraborty; Dibyendu Sarkar; Rupali Datta; Pradip Bhattacharyya

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2024.124021

Synergistic impact of bioavailable PHEs and alkalinity on microbial diversity and traits in agricultural soil adjacent to chromium-asbestos mines

Environ Pollut. 2024 Apr 22:350:124021. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.124021. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Sonali Banerjee¹, Saibal Ghosh¹, Shreya Chakraborty¹, Dibyendu Sarkar², Rupali Datta³, Pradip Bhattacharyya⁴

Affiliations

¹ Agricultural and Ecological Research Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, Giridih, Jharkhand, 815301, India.
² Stevens Institute of Technology, Department of Civil, Environmental, and Ocean Engineering, Hoboken, NJ, 07030, USA.
³ Department of Biological Science, Michigan Technological University, Michigan, USA.
⁴ Agricultural and Ecological Research Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, Giridih, Jharkhand, 815301, India. Electronic address: pradip.bhattacharyya@gmail.com.

PMID: 38657890
DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.124021

Abstract

Soil microbial communities undergo constant fluctuations, particularly in response to environmental factors. Although the deposition of toxic mine waste is recognized for introducing potentially hazardous elements (PHEs) into the soil, its specific impacts on microbial communities remain unclear. This study aims to explore the combined effects of soil alkalinity and bioavailable PHEs on microbial diversity and traits in agricultural soil adjacent to a chromium-asbestos mining area. By employing a comprehensive analysis, this study indicated that microbiological attributes were reduced in contaminated areas (zone 1), whereas both the levels of bioavailable PHEs (CrWs: 31.08 mg/kg, NiWs: 13.90 mg/kg) and alkalinity indices (CROSS, MCAR, MH) were significantly higher. The spatial distribution of soil alkalinity and bioavailable PHEs, primarily originating from chromium-asbestos mines, has been determined. This study also elucidates the negative relationship between soil stressors (Alkalinity and PHEs) and microbial activities (soil enzymatic activity, microbial respiration, and biomass carbon). The vector's length exhibited a notable difference between zone 1 (0.51) and zone 2 (0.32), indicating a substantial limitation on carbon (C). Also, the investigation of soil bacterial diversity unveiled notable disparities in the prevalence of microbial populations inside zone 1. Proteobacteria constituted 57.18% of the total population indicating a noteworthy prevalence in the contaminated soils. Finally, the random forest (RF) algorithm from machine learning was selected and proven to be a robust choice in Taylor diagrams for predicting the causative stressors responsible for the deterioration of soil microbial health. Therefore, this research offers insights into the health and resilience of soil microbial communities under synergistic stress conditions, which will aid environmentalists in planning future interventions and improving sustainable farming techniques.

Keywords: Alkalinity; Geospatial pattern; Multi-model approaches; PHEs; Soil bacterial diversity.