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Русский Institute of Physico-Chemical and Biological Problems of Soil Science RAS (IPKhiBPP RAS)
Year founded: 1970
Type of activity: research in the field of physicochemical and biological processes of soil formation, spatial and temporal organization of soils
The origins of the creation of the Institute of Physicochemical and Biological Problems of Soil Science date back to the second half of the 60s of the last century, when the USSR Academy of Sciences recognized the need to return the science of “soil science” to the fundamental scientific disciplines. The institute owes its birth to one of the world leaders in soil science, corresponding member of the USSR Academy of Sciences Viktor Abramovich Kovda, on whose initiative the Institute of Agrochemistry and Soil Science of the USSR Academy of Sciences was created in Pushchino in 1969-1971.
From the problems of the origin of life on Earth to studying the possibility of life in space
The evolution, functioning and ecological role of soils as a component of the biosphere is the main scientific direction of research at the Institute of Physics and Biochemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences. In addition to maintaining fertility resources and organic carbon, the soil controls the quality of water resources, being a natural filter, transforms the forms of nutrients, ensures the biodiversity of the animal, plant and microbial world and regulates the emission and flow of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. All these functions, critical for the life of the biosphere, are carried out in the thinnest soil layer and are under increasing impact from anthropogenic loads.
Since its inception, the Institute has solved major problems in the development of international and all-Union programs (soils of the world, their classification and diagnostics, world land resources, biological nitrogen in agriculture and biocenoses, biological program, etc.). A soil map of the World was created, published in English and Russian. The publication of this map is a significant contribution of Russian soil scientists to the assessment and rational use of the world's land resources. In 1987, work on the soil map of the world was awarded the USSR State Prize.
A major State project in which the Institute was involved was the redistribution of water flow from the Northern and Siberian rivers. Understanding the vital importance of replenishing the water resources of the Aral Sea basin, nevertheless, the Institute’s staff expressed great doubt about the favorable outcome of this project. The first, very tentative forecasts showed that the removal of part of the flow of Siberian rivers will cause unfavorable changes in the floodplains of these rivers (intensified permafrost phenomena, and in the southern arid regions along the route of the proposed canal, soil salinization may increase. A mathematical model of reclamation changes in the soil cover in the canal zone was constructed The results of these studies, of course, played an important role in the closure of the “Project of the Century”.
Much attention was paid to important national economic tasks, among which reclamation research occupied a special place. It has been shown that the unfavorable consequences of long-term irrigation of chernozem soils is soil compaction, that is, severe destruction of the soil structure and a decrease in water and air permeability. For work in the field of modeling soil processes under irrigation conditions in arid areas, young scientists of the Institute were awarded the Lenin Komsomol Prize.
Over its almost 50-year history, the Institute has repeatedly undergone structural changes. Since 2000, the Institute began to be called the Institute of Physico-Chemical and Biological Problems of Soil Science of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IPKhiBPP).
The priority problems of the Institute are the impact of global climate change on the evolution of soil cover, the role of soils in the runoff and emission of greenhouse gases, physicochemical and biological processes of soil formation
The first block of scientific research at the institute is research into the biosphere functions of soil cover, which largely regulates the composition of the atmosphere and is a reservoir of nutrients for plants and microorganisms. The soil is a kind of buffer that prevents a sharp change in the concentration of so-called greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, which play a major role in shaping the global climate situation. Modern climate change is directly related to the imbalance of the global carbon cycle due to an unprecedented increase in industrial emissions of carbon-containing greenhouse gases. On the agenda is the establishment of measures of responsibility of different states for the state of the carbon balance in the territories under the jurisdiction of these states. The Institute’s employees have proven that Russia, with its forests, is clearly an environmental donor, that is, the absorption of carbon dioxide on its territory significantly exceeds its emissions. The leading laboratory of the Institute of Physics and Biology of the Russian Academy of Sciences actively continues to study the biogenic balance of carbon dioxide. A forecast of possible changes in ecosystems due to global warming related to the problem of greenhouse gases is developed using mathematical modeling methods in the Ecosystem Modeling Laboratory.
The second block is the study of paleosols of the geological and historical past of our planet. A unique feature of the biosphere is the preservation of detailed paleosol archives (thousands and millions of years) of past changes in climate, environment and life on Earth. Within the framework of this problem, research is being actively carried out with institutions of the Russian Federation and international partners (Great Britain, Italy, Canada, USA). Data were obtained on the patterns of Pleistocene and Holocene climate dynamics, soil and vegetation cover in the semiarid and arid regions of Eurasia. Unique and characterized by absolute novelty are the studies of paleosols of the Paleozoic (300-400 million years ago) on the territory of the East European Platform, which give an idea of the initial stages of soil formation on Earth, the evolution of the pedosphere and biosphere. Together with archaeologists, the Institute’s specialists examine the soils of archaeological sites of the Bronze Age, Early Iron Age and the Middle Ages. The use of a complex of soil science methods in the study of buried soils and cultural layers of ancient settlements makes it possible to reveal many aspects of the life of ancient man, his everyday and industrial activities, and relationships with the environment. Archaeological soil science as a new scientific direction originated here, within the walls of the Institute of Physics and Biology of the Russian Academy of Sciences and today is one of the “calling cards” of the Institute.
The third block is the study of permafrost soils. 70% of Russian soils are located in the permafrost region. Research is being conducted in Kolyma, Kamchatka, Chukotka, Antarctica, and the Arctic shelf (joint research is being conducted here with scientists from New Zealand and the USA). A new direction in this block is astrobiology, the study of the likelihood of the existence of extraterrestrial life forms in the Universe. Scientists have germinated the seeds of plants that had lain in permafrost for hundreds of thousands of years. Research in this area is necessary to understand the properties and “behavior” of soils under extreme conditions. The importance of studying cryopreservation can hardly be overestimated: samples of “frozen” soils fly into space with isolated microorganisms. During three conferences (including one European) at the Institute of Physics and Biochemistry of the Russian Academy of Sciences, work not only on Earth soils, but also research on Mars was reviewed.
Currently, the Institute of Physical and Biological Problems of the Russian Academy of Sciences is one of the leading centers in the field of soil science and, according to tradition, carries out a large scientific and organizational work on holding all-Russian and international scientific forums.
