ASSESSMENT OF SOIL ACIDIFICATION DUE TO A NATURAL GAS-FIRED POWER-PLANT BY USING 2 DIFFERENT APPROACHES

Potential soil acidification impacts of a proposed natural gas-fired c ombined cycle power plant were assessed using an integrated approach c oupling an atmospheric deposition model with soil acidification quanti fication. The deposition model was used to estimate the rates of nitro gen oxide (NOx) deposition on the air-soil boundary. The expected chan ges in the soil column were then predicted by utilizing mechanistic an d experimental methods, and the number of years required to reach crit ical pH values were predicted using the two methods mentioned above un der different rates of acidic deposition. The number of years predicte d by the mechanistic modeling approach was lower for all soils exhibit ing calcareous character.