On the use of cluster analysis for interpretation of soil pollution monitoring data obtained near mining enterprise

Abstract

Assessment of soil contamination in areas affected by mining facilities is a necessary part of the research during the local environmental monitoring. Different methods of statistical analysis can be used to process and analyze monitoring data. This paper presents the cluster analysis outcomes of the chemical composition of soil samples collected in the area of a copper mine during the annual monitoring. As a result of cluster analysis, all soil sampling points were divided into three clusters, which seem to be characterized by different mechanisms of pollution (background points without pollution, points in the sanitary protection zone of the quarry with aerogenic dust pollution, intermediate points with mixed pollution type). Based on the study outcomes, one can conclude that the application of cluster analysis in the soil monitoring data processing makes it possible to assess the boundaries of the influence zone of the dust pollution source with a little number of soil sampling points. © 2018 Author(s).