scholarly journals Effect of Soil Degradation and Remediation in Technogenic Barrens on the Uptake of Nutrients and Heavy Metals by Plants in the Kola Subarctic

2021 ◽  
Vol 54 (8) ◽  
pp. 1252-1264
Author(s):  
G. N. Koptsik ◽  
S. V. Koptsik ◽  
I. E. Smirnova ◽  
M. A. Sinichkina

Abstract To assess the state of plants and their response to changes in soil properties, the elemental composition of leaves of widespread and pollution-tolerant species Betula pubescens Ehrh. and Salix caprea L. has been studied near the nonferrous metallurgy enterprises in the Kola Peninsula. The content of nutrients and heavy metals in the leaves of undergrowth on technogenic barrens and remediation sites differing in remediation technologies has been analyzed. According to the results of leaf diagnostics, both species under barren conditions are characterized by a noticeable deficiency of K, Ca, P, and, especially, Mn and Zn. The leaves of both species accumulate Ni, Cu, Co, As, Cr, Fe, Al, Pb, V, and S. Willow leaves contain more Cd, Co, Cr, Ni, Cu, Al, Fe, As, S, Ca, K and less Mn than birch leaves. Chemophytostabilization has little effect, and the covering of contaminated soils with a constructed fertile layer leads to the enrichment of birch and willow leaves with Ca, K, and P. Under conditions of continuing atmospheric emissions and gradual accumulation of bioavailable heavy metals in soils after the remediation, the accumulation of metals in leaves is largely determined by the distance from the pollution source, reflecting the possibility of both root and foliar uptake. The concentrations of Ni and Cu in leaves in 2018 did not decrease compared to 2011. The low, albeit varying, ratios of the contents of heavy metals in undergrowth leaves and in the soil and weak correlation of heavy metal contents in these media indicated that B. pubescens and S. caprea retain their ability to regulate their chemical composition even under extreme conditions of technogenic barrens. At the same time, supporting the protective capabilities of plants via optimizing mineral nutrition and soil acidity in combination with a reduction in atmospheric pollution is a prerequisite for efficient remediation of technogenic territories in the Far North.

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 288-294
Author(s):  
Md Akhter Hossain Chowdhury ◽  
Tanzin Chowdhury ◽  
Md Arifur Rahman

Heavy metal accumulation in environmental compartments is a potential risk to the living system because of their uptake by plants and subsequent introduction into the food chain. A study was carried out to investigate the heavy metal contents in industrially contaminated soils collected from six different locations of Dhaka and Mymensingh districts and their effects on two important vegetables namely tomato and cabbage. Pot experiment was conducted using contaminated soils at the net house of Bangladesh Institute of Nuclear Agriculture (BINA), Mymensingh following completely randomized design (CRD) with three replicates. The higher level of heavy metal contents was found in the soil samples of Hajaribag and Dhaka Export Processing Zone (DEPZ). The highest Ni, Cd, Cr, Cu and Fe contents were 59.45, 18.79, 67.57, 40.81 and 1619.61 µg g−1 which were much above the recommended level except Cu contents. The highest yield of vegetables was obtained grown in Maskanda soil of Mymensingh district and the lowest from DEPZ soil of Dhaka. The highest Ni, Cr and Fe contents were 8.91, 7.22, 419.65 µg g−1, respectively in tomato fruits grown in the soil of Hajaribag whereas the highest Cu content (3.38 µg g−1) was obtained from Seedstore soil, Mymensingh and highest Cd content (2.88 µg g−1) was from Mitford ghat soil, Dhaka. In cabbage, the highest Ni (17.52 µg g−1) and Fe (411.25 µg g−1) contents were found in the soils of DEPZ whereas the highest Cr (9.17 µg g−1), Cd (3.52 µg g−1) and Cu (8.51 µg g−1) were obtained in the plants grown in the soils of Hajaribag, Mitford ghat and Maskanda, respectively. Concentrations of all the tested heavy metals except Cu in both vegetables were above the maximum allowable limit prescribed by the World Health Organization. Among the metals, the accumulation of Ni was found as higher amount (0.39 and 0.71 for tomato and cabbage, respectively) based on plant concentration factor or transfer factor. The results showed a positive correlation between concentration of the metals present in soils and in vegetables and the highest correlation was found with Cr in tomato and Fe in cabbage. However, both the soils and grown vegetables were consistently observed to pose a risk to human health. So, it can be recommended that government should take necessary action so that heavy metals used in the industries cannot come into the nearby agricultural field to ensure food safety as well as food security. J Bangladesh Agril Univ 17(3): 288–294, 2019


2020 ◽  
Vol 158 ◽  
pp. 04004
Author(s):  
G.U Okereafor ◽  
M.E Makhatha ◽  
L Mekuto ◽  
V Mavumengwana

The mining of gold is associated with several environmental challenges such as acid mine drainage, release of toxic metals which are associated to tailing sediments and have adversely impacted human health and the ecosystem. With increasing global population that is faced with limited land resources for agricultural activities, there is need for land restoration through effective rehabilitation of contaminated soils. The introduction of Hyparrhenia hirta, an indigenous grass specie as a phytoremediation technique for in situ rehabilitation of degraded soil is not only an economically viable approach but also environmentally friendly. Hyparrhenia hirta being a tufted and wiry perennial grass that is invasive with deep root system often aid in stabilizing the ecosystem owing to their self-fertile and drought resistant potentials that support that prevalence in harsh conditions at mine dump sites. In this study, mine tailings at Gold One Mine, Ekuhurleni, South Africa were assessed for heavy metal contents at the same time analysing the uptake of such heavy metals by Hyparrhenia hirta grass specie. The total metal mean concentrations was high (4023.67 mg/kg) for Hyparrhenia hirta which absorbed more of the following mean metal concentrations: 46.10 mg/kg for Cu; 40.08 mg/kg for Zn; 859.12 mg/kg for Pb; 618.26 mg/kg for Cr; 151.70 mg/kg for Co and 2308.41 mg/kg for Ni. The tailings were strongly acidic with a pH range of 3.86 – 4.34. These heavy metals despite the acidic environments were successfully absorbed by Hyparrhenia hirta grass specie. Along these lines Hyparrhenia hirta was discovered reasonable for re-vegetation of mine tailings dump as it has the capacity to hold together tailings sediments against wind and water erosion.


Soil Research ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kwon-Rae Kim ◽  
Gary Owens ◽  
Ravi Naidu

This study was conducted to investigate the distribution, bioaccessibility, and phytoavailability of heavy metal(loids) in long-term contaminated soils within the vicinity of a lead (Pb) and zinc (Zn) smelter in Lake Macquarie, NSW, Australia. Thirty-two representative surface (0–100 mm) soils were collected from the region surrounding the smelter. The soils were analysed for aqua regia extractable heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb), bioaccessibility using a simplified physiological-based extraction technique (SBET), and phytoavailability using 1 m NH4NO3 extractions, together with key soil properties known to influence metal speciation and availability. The area was found to be potentially contaminated with heavy metals (Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb) with many soil samples exceeding the Australian Health Investigation Levels for ‘Standard’ residential areas. Lead bioaccessibility ranged from 32 to 100% of the total Pb concentration, with bioaccessibility increasing as metal loading increased. Heavy metal phytoavailability was strongly related to soil pH for Cu (r2 = 0.84, P < 0.001), Pb (r2 = 0.70, P < 0.001), and Cd (r2 = 0.66, P < 0.001), implying that the phytoavailability of these heavy metal was mainly governed by soil acidity. Most significantly, the presence of multiple metals was found to influence metal phytoavailability. For example, the presence of Pb significantly influenced the phytoavailability of Cd (r2 = 0.89, P < 0.001) and Zn (r2 = 0.78, P < 0.001) in mixed heavy metal contaminated soils.


1970 ◽  
pp. 06-10
Author(s):  
Fahad Iftikhar Virk ◽  
Muhammad Qaisar Nawaz, Muhammad Sarfraz ◽  
Sadia Bibi ◽  
Muhammad Waqas

This study was conducted to evaluate the contamination and accumulation of heavy metals such as Cadmium (Cd) and Chromium (Cr) in soil and plant grown in contaminated soil. Orchard and relative non-orchard fields were chosen to carry out this study. For total and available metals, soil samples were collected equally from 24 different points of orchard and non-orchard field and were extracted with Mehlich-3 extracting solutions and aqua-regia. Wheat crops from orchard and non-orchard fields were analysed and collected with aqua regia for heavy metal contents. Irrigation water samples were also collected from fresh water irrigation canal (Lower Chenab) for analysis. Results indicated that average metal concentrations in soils of both orchard and non-orchard fields were Cadmium (Cd) 2.36 and 2.49 mg kg-1 and Chromium (Cr) 58.15 and 53.51 mg kg-1 respectively. Contribution of risk from Cd and Cr were significant in wheat (seeds) of orchard. In orchard field, the risk contribution from Cd and Cr were significant in crops seeds. The considerable load of toxic metals in fields revealed the anthropogenic source of pollution. Therefore, it is emphasize that the need of heavy metals monitoring in crops and soils is necessary.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chem Int

A significant flux of heavy metals, among other toxins, reaches the lungs through smoking. This study reports Cd, Pb, Cu and Zn contents in tobacco of 11 brands of cigarette commonly sold in Ethiopia. The heavy metals were determined by atomic absorption spectrophotometry after wet digestion of cigarette tobacco using HNO3 and H2O2. The concentration of trace metals in the cigarettes ranged (mean) (μg/g), Cd: 1.3−7.6 (2.48±0.32), Pb: 0.50−12.50 (6.24±2.2), Cu: 2.89−25.35 (13.70±4.12) and Zn: 24.40−62.55 (36.22±7.50) while Ni was not detected in all the eleven brands of cigarettes. Comparable levels of trace metals were obtained in the tobacco of both imported and Ethiopian cigarettes. The average trace metal contents of cigarettes available in Ethiopia were Cd 1.82±0.39, Pb 4.23±0.97, Cu 10.2±3.1 and Zn 28.2±7.8 μg/cigarette and a person who smokes 20 cigarettes per day is estimated to increase his/her daily Cd, Pb, Cu and Zn retention by approximately 0.036, 0.085, 0.204, 0.564 mg/day, respectively. The results indicate that smoking and exposure to cigarette smoke is a serious problem to be taken into account when carrying out epidemiological studies on human exposure to trace metals.


2020 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-114
Author(s):  
Amirhossein Dolatzadeh khiyavi ◽  
Reza Hajimohammadi ◽  
Hossein Amani ◽  
Hadi Soltani

1992 ◽  
Vol 26 (9-11) ◽  
pp. 2149-2152 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Grappelli ◽  
L. Campanella ◽  
E. Cardarelli ◽  
F. Mazzei ◽  
M. Cordatore ◽  
...  

Experiments on the real possibility of employing microorganisms to capture inorganic polluting substances, mainly heavy metals from urban and industrial wastes, are running using bacteria biomass. Many strains of Arthrobacter spp., gram-negative bacteria, diffused in the soil also inacondition of environmental stresses, have been proved to be particulary effective in heavy metal capture (Cd, Cr, Pb, Cu, Zn). The active and passive processes in accumulation of metals by bacteria were studied. Our experiments have been done on fluid biomass and on a membrane both for practical use and for an easy recovery.


1995 ◽  
Vol 32 (9-10) ◽  
pp. 85-94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael O. Angelidis

The impact of the urban effluents of Mytilene (Lesvos island, Greece) on the receiving coastal marine environment, was evaluated by studying the quality of the city effluents (BOD5, COD, SS, heavy metals) and the marine sediments (grain size, organic matter, heavy metals). It was found that the urban effluents of Mytilene contain high organic matter and suspended particle load because of septage discharge into the sewerage network. Furthermore, although the city does not host important industrial activity, its effluents contain appreciable metal load, which is mainly associated with the particulate phase. The city effluents are discharged into the coastal marine environment and their colloidal and particulate matter after flocculation settles to the bottom, where is incorporated into the sediments. Over the years, the accumulation of organic matter and metals into the harbour mud has created a non-point pollution source in the relatively non-polluted coastal marine environment of the island. Copper and Zn were the metals which presented the higher enrichment in the sediments of the inner harbour of Mytilene.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (15) ◽  
pp. 7099
Author(s):  
Inkyeong Moon ◽  
Honghyun Kim ◽  
Sangjo Jeong ◽  
Hyungjin Choi ◽  
Jungtae Park ◽  
...  

In this study, the geochemical properties of heavy metal-contaminated soils from a Korean military shooting range were analyzed. The chemical behavior of heavy metals was determined by analyzing the soil pH, heavy metal concentration, mineral composition, and Pb isotopes. In total, 24 soil samples were collected from a Korean military shooting range. The soil samples consist of quartz, albite, microcline, muscovite/illite, kaolinite, chlorite, and calcite. Lead minerals, such as hydrocerussite and anglesite, which are indicative of a transformation into secondary mineral phases, were not observed. All soils were strongly contaminated with Pb with minor concentrations of Cu, Ni, Cd, and Zn. Arsenic was rarely detected. The obtained results are indicated that the soils from the shooting range are contaminated with heavy metals and have evidences of different degree of anthropogenic Pb sources. This study is crucial for the evaluation of heavy metal-contaminated soils in shooting ranges and their environmental effect as well as for the establishment of management strategies for the mitigation of environmental risks.


Biomolecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 448
Author(s):  
Mahrous Awad ◽  
Zhongzhen Liu ◽  
Milan Skalicky ◽  
Eldessoky S. Dessoky ◽  
Marian Brestic ◽  
...  

Heavy metals (HMs) toxicity represents a global problem depending on the soil environment’s geochemical forms. Biochar addition safely reduces HMs mobile forms, thus, reducing their toxicity to plants. While several studies have shown that biochar could significantly stabilize HMs in contaminated soils, the study of the relationship of soil properties to potential mechanisms still needs further clarification; hence the importance of assessing a naturally contaminated soil amended, in this case with Paulownia biochar (PB) and Bamboo biochar (BB) to fractionate Pb, Cd, Zn, and Cu using short sequential fractionation plans. The relationship of soil pH and organic matter and its effect on the redistribution of these metals were estimated. The results indicated that the acid-soluble metals decreased while the fraction bound to organic matter increased compared to untreated pots. The increase in the organic matter metal-bound was mostly at the expense of the decrease in the acid extractable and Fe/Mn bound ones. The highest application of PB increased the organically bound fraction of Pb, Cd, Zn, and Cu (62, 61, 34, and 61%, respectively), while the BB increased them (61, 49, 42, and 22%, respectively) over the control. Meanwhile, Fe/Mn oxides bound represents the large portion associated with zinc and copper. Concerning soil organic matter (SOM) and soil pH, as potential tools to reduce the risk of the target metals, a significant positive correlation was observed with acid-soluble extractable metal, while a negative correlation was obtained with organic matter-bound metal. The principal component analysis (PCA) shows that the total variance represents 89.7% for the TCPL-extractable and HMs forms and their relation to pH and SOM, which confirms the positive effect of the pH and SOM under PB and BB treatments on reducing the risk of the studied metals. The mobility and bioavailability of these metals and their geochemical forms widely varied according to pH, soil organic matter, biochar types, and application rates. As an environmentally friendly and economical material, biochar emphasizes its importance as a tool that makes the soil more suitable for safe cultivation in the short term and its long-term sustainability. This study proves that it reduces the mobility of HMs, their environmental risks and contributes to food safety. It also confirms that performing more controlled experiments, such as a pot, is a disciplined and effective way to assess the suitability of different types of biochar as soil modifications to restore HMs contaminated soil via controlling the mobilization of these minerals.


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