Monitoring the state of snow cover in the Khabarovsk Territory
Authors: Mishchenko Olga , Shelganova Alina 
Published: February 2023

In the article, the authors considered the issues of snow cover monitoring in the conditions of the Khabarovsk Territory. An analysis was made of the main pollutants in the period from 2014 to 2020, the impact of snow cover on the environment was studied, and the ways in which pollutants entered were analyzed. The presented work is of an analytical and research nature — to trace the accumulation of pollutants in the snow cover, for further development of solutions to improve the atmospheric air monitoring system in the cities of the region. The work was carried out within the framework of research work 3.21-TOGU. The state of protection of the environment and vital human interests from the possible negative impact of economic and other activities on the territory of the Khabarovsk Territory at the present time cannot be considered satisfactory. Environmental problems are global in nature and do not have territorial, state borders, but to date, a unified system for monitoring and assessing the ecological state of the ecosystem with the prolongation of the dynamics of changes in the future has not been created in the region. And the known set of methods and tools for assessing the environmental situation does not provide the required level of reliability. Snow cover is a natural accumulator of a large amount of aerosol substances, in which atmospheric precipitation is accumulated and preserved; in addition, it can be considered a natural indicator of both the state of the atmosphere and pollution of soils, water, and biosphere objects. At present, under the conditions of an ever-increasing anthropogenic load on the environment, high-quality, timely information about the state of the environment is needed. Although interest in research on the chemical composition of the snow cover has recently grown, it should be noted that in the territory of the Khabarovsk Territory, little is done in depth research in this area. The territory of this region is located in the form of a narrow strip on the eastern outskirts of Asia, the climate of the region is monsoon. It is characterized by cold, snowy winters and wet, hot summers. Climatic conditions change significantly both from north to south, and depending on the proximity to the sea, as well as on the nature of the relief. The period of snow occurrence is from 4 months, mainly in the southern, southwestern regions, to 6 months in the northern regions, which, according to the authors, is a good help for a detailed study of accumulated pollutants. In addition, in the region, more than 83.14 % of the population lives in cities with high and very high levels of air pollution, which primarily affects health (among the common types of diseases, respiratory diseases are in first place, circulatory system diseases are in second, third disease of the musculoskeletal system). To reduce the technogenic load on the atmosphere, it is necessary to install more efficient cleaning systems at thermal power plants and introduce effective technical control of the transport composition in the region, review and improve the atmospheric air monitoring system.