Ash, a by-product of combustion processes, should be treated as a substance which may replace natural raw materials. However, an unresolved problem is how to tackle ash storage areas, which should be rehabilitated. The purpose of the study was to determine which species of plants are able to colonise active ash settling ponds, and under what conditions these plants can develop. During the plant growing season of 2015, field studies were performed on the surface of two active ash settling ponds of the Dolna Odra Electric Power Station. Special attention was paid to the composition of flora, as well as the chemical composition of ash and plants. The plant coverage of the ash settler surface was found to vary from 1 to 60%, depending on the level of water. The fauna included common pioneer species (Agrostis stolonifera, Atriplex patula, Juncus bufonius, Phragmites australis, Poa pratensis, Ranunculus sceleratus). The conditions of their growth were defined by the content of macro-elements of the ash, which varied from medium to very high, its pHKCl (7.96) and the optimum degree of saturation of the sorption complex with cations (V 98.4%). The factors that modified the plant growth could be high salinity (2.38 mS·cm-1) and the content of exchangeable Na (39.5%). The total content of heavy metals in the ash and plants was below the critical one. The species which have been able to colonise the active ash settling ponds belong to the pioneering plants of habitats connected with water. However, the analyzed habitat does not basically affect the morphology of plants, except for common reed.

23.1.2018