The impact of hydrogen emission on the structure of soil microbial biomass

Abstract

Population density and biomass of microorganisms were studied in background soils and in soils affected by hydrogen degassing. These parameters were lower in the latter soils. Actinomycetes and fungal mycelium could not be isolated from the soils treated with hydrogen already on the fourteenth day of the experiment; the number and biomass of fungal spores decreased to zero levels even earlier, on the seventh day. Fungi represent a specific physiological group, and their capacity for environmental adaptation is much lower than that of bacteria.