Distribution of water-soluble inorganic ions in the soils of Cyprus

Abstract The water-soluble anion content of soils reflects variable input of geogenic and anthropogenic influences, and is an important indicator of soil fertility, the existence or risk of salinization and effects of other pollutants. A rapid ion chromatography method has been used to determine the concentration of water-soluble F − , Cl − , NO 3 − and SO 4 2 − on a suite of 3771 top soil samples collected as part of the geochemical atlas of Cyprus project. Excluding areas with salt flats and beach deposits, the average soil concentrations in Cyprus are 193 mg/kg for Cl − , 17 mg/kg for F − , 67 mg/kg for NO 3 − and 866 mg/kg for SO 4 2 − . Parent lithology (especially sedimentary environment) and the effects of seawater are the dominant controls on F − and Cl − , whereas SO 4 2 − and NO 3 − display a mix of geogenic and anthropogenic influences (including the effects of agriculture and mining of the basalt-hosted sulphide deposits). They display distinct fractal population characteristics that can be related to different sources of anions.