On July 22 the first stage of a comprehensive scientific expedition of of Geography of Lomonossov Moscow State University in the Republic of Buryatia was finished. The expedition consists of 12 students, graduate students and staff of the MSU Faculty of Geography, specializing in environmental management, hydrology, geochemistry of landscapes and soil geography.
As the leader of the expedition - Candidate of Geographical Sciences, Scientific Secretary of Scientific-Methodological Council on Ecology of the Ministry of Education and Science, the scientific secretary of the Moscow center of the RGS Tatiana Puzanova, all assignments are completed in full and in time.
Members of the expedition took samples of water and sediment from the adit drains and river Kholodnaya, samples of vegetation (algae, larch, lichen), and soil. These samples will be analyzed by mass-spectral with inductively coupled plasma spectrometer Elan-6100 (Perkin-Elmer, USA) in the All-Russian Research Institute named after N. Fedorovskiy. Their analysis will help determine the degree of influence of the adit streams, containing high content of some chemical elements, on the environment and directly on the ecosystem of the lake.
In addition, with help of field laboratory indicators of acidity, salinity, redox potential and temperature were measured in all water bodies and soil samples. Flow rate and water consumption were measured in river Kholodnaya.
On July 23 the expedition arrived in the area Khakussy where the environmental camp, organized by the Foundation for Protection of Lake Baikal, had been deployed. Over the next two weeks landscape shooting and organization of ecological trails will be carried out.
At the stele “The 109th Meridian” (The most northern point of Lake Baikal)
At the entrance to the adit at the Kholodninskoe deposit
Sampling of algae from the adit creek
Reindeer at the pass
On the way
Measurement of flow rate and water consumption
Laying and description of soil profile
Sampling of cedar needles
On the horizon – Khakussy
