## 3 Results and Discussion  
### The Physical and Chemical Parameters of Peat Core  
Active acidity levels in researched peat core range from 3.50 to 4.38; meanwhile the exchange acidity was in the angrier pH range and amounts from 2.56 to 3.48 (Figure 2). Based on the information received, the investigated peat can be referred to the highly acidic type as the pH is below 4.5 units. The pH of peat is determined by the existence with available acids, such as acetic acid, formic acid, oxalic acid and various types of acids [48]. Vertically, the active and exchange acidity are observed to decrease insignificantly with depth. There are increased pH values in the near-surface layer of peat 0-6 cm associated with leaching low-molecular-mass organic acids, which can affect the mobility of radionuclides. On the other hand, the washout of low-molecular-mass acids deep into the peat core, where reducing conditions prevail, may contribute to the processes of acetoclastic and autotrophic methano genesis, during which H\({}^{+}\), acetate and formate ions are actively consumed [49; 50]. The content of carbonates in the studied peat core is in trace amounts and varies between 0.05 and 0.32%. The curve of the vertical range of carbonate concentrations demonstrates its gradual decrease, which is limited to a depth of 38-40 cm, which practically coincides with the minimum of the bog water level for the studied period. The underlying part of the peat profile (40-50 cm), on the contrary, is characterized by a slight increase in the carbonate fraction. The content of ash value for the peat core is between 0.69 and 6.21%. In the vertical distribution, the maximum content of ash values is observed in the 6-8 cm horizon, perhaps because of washout of ash contents out of the top peat layers and its accumulation in there. Previously, for the natural site (ISNO-1 [29]), the maximum ash content was fixed at a depth of 19-21 cm, whereas at the current dried site there is a significant shift of the horizon enriched in ash components upward along the section, which is probably associated with compaction of the peat structure and decomposition of its organic part due to drainage. Anthropogenic impacts manifested in the history can also cause a sharp increase in the ash index [51]. Below the depth of 6-8 cm, there is a trend of a non-monotonic reduction in the ash content in the transition on the bottom levels of structures, linked to the atmospheric type of swamp feeding. A lot of the research ash from peat is 98-99% aluminium, oxides of silicon, calcium, iron, sodium, magnesium, sulphur and phosphorus. [49]. The organic matter is 94-99%, which allows us to categorise the peat massif as a low-ash type with a low level of degradation [52]. The water soluble salts concentration varies between 0.52 and 2.73 mg/g. The highest concentration of salts is in the top peat horizon (0-4 cm). Under the horizon, an almost monotonic decrease in this indicator is observed, which is caused by the atmospheric mechanism of the deposit feeding as well as by the activity of the rhizosphere of the peat formers. The obtained values of the physicochemical parameters (Figure 2) identify the researched peat as an acidic phase of oligotrophic peat soils [53]. Based on the data of the experiment, the studied section of the peat core profile consists primarily of sphagnum and sphagnum-furry types of peat. At the same time, the natural  
Figure 2: Variation in the physicochemical characteristics of the ISO-1 peat core. site was characterised by the prevalence of peat sphagnum species. The trends of changes in structure-sensitive peat parameters, such as the level of decomposition(r) and bulk density (Table 1), for the horizons of the ISO-1 peat core differ in principle from the core of the same peat-bog with a natural hydrological regime, characterised in detail in the work [29].