CONFERENCEThe Soil Research Laboratory of the Faculty of Exact Sciences and Technology, Department of Environmental Science, is a study and research support laboratory involved in both the academic process and scientific projects. The laboratory supports laboratory and practical work for several study courses, including those in the Environmental Science program as well as for students in the Geography and Geology study fields. Each year, around 70 students carry out practical work in the laboratory.
During laboratory sessions, students learn methods for preparing, processing, and analyzing various environmental samples. They develop practical laboratory skills and improve their ability to interpret and evaluate the results obtained. The Soil Research Laboratory provides a base for students of different study levels to carry out research and thesis work in soil science and the analysis of other environmental samples (such as peat, sapropel, and water).
The laboratory is involved in both national and international scientific research projects. The laboratory has established successful cooperation in environmental sample analysis with students, lecturers and researchers from the Institute of Biology and the Biology study field of the Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences of the University of Latvia. The Soil Research Laboratory is open to cooperation in collecting environmental samples and performing analyses.
The Soil Research Laboratory (study and research support laboratory) aims to support the academic process and scientific activity, as well as to implement the latest research and analytical methods.
The main tasks of the Soil Research Laboratory:
supporting laboratory work for bachelor's level courses such as Soil Science, Ecology of Latvian Surface Waters, and Environment and Protection of the Baltic Sea, as well as for the master's level course Water Supply and Wastewater Treatment;
providing research activities in the analysis of soil and other environmental samples;
to ensure scientific research by students, doctoral students and academic staff;
to ensure the implementation of the latest research methods in the field.
The Soil Research Laboratory provides students of bachelor's, master's, and doctoral study programs with the opportunity to conduct research on soil properties and its chemical composition. The laboratory also has equipment for collecting other environmental samples (water, peat, sapropel, plants, substrates), performing field measurements, extraction, and analysis.
The laboratory is equipped with: pH meters, conductometer, Vis/UV light spectrometer, multiparameter probe for field water measurements, drying oven, Muffle furnace, microwave digestion system (for sample preparation for metal analysis), elemental analyzer for determining carbon and nitrogen, total organic carbon (TOC) analyzer for both solid and liquid samples.
Projects
In recent years, the Soil Research Laboratory has been actively involved in the implementation of several projects, including:
Chemical ecology of invasive plants as a tool to understand their competitiveness in nature, elaborate their control and develop new generation of herbicides “InnoHerb”, project funded by the Latvian Council of Science;
Assessment of the ecological quality of lagoons, project supported by the Latvian Environmental Protection Fund;
Joint management of Latvian – Lithuanian transboundary river and lake water bodies (TRANSWAT,) Interreg Lat-Lit cross-border cooperation project;
Improving sustainable soil resource management in agriculture (E2SOILAGRI), project funded by the Norway Grants;
Study of the properties, structure, and modification possibilities of peat humic substances, project funded by the Latvian Council of Science.
Publications
Most significant publications:
Vincevica-Gaile, Z., Zhylina, M., Shishkin, A., Ansone-Bertina, L., Klavins, L., Arbidans, L., Dobkevica, L., Zekker, I., Klavins, M. (2025) Selected residual biomass valorization into pellets as a circular economy-supported end-of-waste. Clean. Mater., 15, 100295.
Ansone-Bertina L., Arbidans L., Borska E., Ozola U., Purmalis O., Sarsuns K., Dobkevica L., Sarakovskis A., Klavins M., Klavins L. (2024) Modification and activation of hydrochar obtained by the hydrothermal carbonisation process of invasive plant biomass. Bioresource Technology Reports, 26, art. no. 101863.
Niedrite, E., Klavins, L., Dobkevica, L., Purmalis, O., Ievinsh, G., Klavins, M. (2024) Sustainable control of invasive plants: Compost production, quality and effects on wheat germination. Journal of Environmental Management, 371, 123149
Purmalis, O.; Grinberga, L.; Dobkevica, L.; Skuja, A.; Ozolins, D.; Druvietis, I.; Ozols, V.; Paidere, J. (2024) Characteristics of Two Lagoons in the Coastal Area of the Baltic Sea. Limnol. Rev., 24, 53–75.
Muter, O., Gudrā, D., Daumova, G., Idrisheva, Z., Rakhymberdina, M., Tabors, G., Dirnēna, B., Dobkeviča, L., Petrova, O., Apshikur, B., et al. (2024) Impact of Anthropogenic Activities on Microbial Community Structure in Riverbed Sediments of East Kazakhstan. Microorganisms, 12, 246.
Tabors, G., Brūmelis, G., Nikodemus, O., Dobkeviča, L., Viligurs, K. (2023) Decreased atmospheric deposition of heavy metals in Latvia shown by long‑term monitoring using the moss Pleurozium schreberi. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 30, 94361–94370
Vanadziņš, I., Mārtiņsone, I., Kļaviņa, A., Komarovska, L., Auce, A., Dobkeviča, L., Sprūdža, D. (2022) Sapropel – Mining Characteristics and Potential Use in Medicine, Proceedings of the Latvian Academy of Sciences. Section B. Natural, Exact, and Applied Sciences, 76, 188 – 197,
Ansone‐Bertina, L., Ozols, V. Arbidans, L., Dobkevica, L., Sarsuns, K., Vanags, E., Klavins, M. (2022) Metal–Organic-Frameworks (MOFs) containing adsorbents for carbon capture. Energies, 15, 3473.
Head of the laboratory
