Category:Soil contamination
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The Category:Soil contamination is a subcategory of Category:Environmental chemistry. It is a large and fundamental area of research addressing the presence of anthropogenic chemicals in soil.
Soil contamination is the presence of man-made chemicals or other alteration to the natural soil environment. This type of contamination typically arises from rupture of underground storage tanks, application of pesticides and herbicides, percolation of contaminated surface water to subsurface strata, leaching of wastes from landfills or direct discharge of industrial wastes to the soil. The most common chemicals involved are petroleum hydrocarbons, solvents, pesticides, herbicides, lead and other heavy metals. The occurrence of this phenomenon is correlated with the degree of industrialization and intensity of chemical usage.