Trace elements in vegetables grown in an industrial area in relation to soil and air particulate matter.

The relationships between the trace element content of vegetables, agricultural soil and airborne particulate matter were investigated in the greater industrial area of Thessaloniki, northern Greece. Most elements were found at concentrations normally observed in vegetables grown in uncontaminated areas, however, elevated concentrations of Pb, Zn, Cr and Mn were found particularly in leafy vegetables. The trace element content of agricultural soil was low, despite the airborne particulate matter that was highly enriched with Zn, Cd, Pb and Mn. Multivariate statistical analysis indicated that the compositional patterns of the vegetables, the soil and the atmospheric particulates were largely different. The dominant pathway for most trace elements to vegetable roots was from the soil, while trace elements in vegetable leaves appeared to originate mostly from the atmosphere. High accumulation due to atmospheric deposition was found for Pb, Cr and Cd, especially in leafy vegetables. Root vegetables were found to accumulate soil Cd more efficiently than the other trace elements.

[1]  D. Rimmer,et al.  Zinc-copper interaction affecting plant growth on a metal-contaminated soil. , 1995, Environmental pollution.

[2]  R. Lipsey.  Accumulation and physiological effects of methyl mercury hydroxide on maize seedlings , 1975 .

[3]  B. J. Alloway,et al.  Heavy metals in soils , 1990 .

[4]  S. Dudka,et al.  The spatial distribution of lead concentrations in the agricultural soils and main crop plants in Poland , 1994 .

[5]  Desire L. Massart,et al.  The Interpretation of Analytical Chemical Data by the Use of Cluster Analysis , 1983 .

[6]  R M Harrison,et al.  The assessment of air and soil as contributors of some trace metals to vegetable plants. I. Use of a filtered air growth cabinet. , 1989, The Science of the total environment.

[7]  M. K. John,et al.  Factors affecting plant uptake and phytotoxicity of cadmium added to soils , 1972 .

[8]  K. Pilegaard.  Airborne metals and SO2 monitored by epiphytic lichens in an industrial area , 1978 .

[9]  M. Hovmand,et al.  Atmospheric heavy metal deposition in the Copenhagen area , 1978 .

[10]  M. Martin,et al.  A survey of zinc, lead and cadmium in soil and natural vegetation around a smelting complex , 1972 .

[11]  N. Ward,et al.  Metal dispersion and transportational activities using food crops as biomonitors. , 1994, The Science of the total environment.

[12]  A. Kabata-Pendias.  Trace elements in soils and plants , 1984 .

[13]  Rufus L. Chaney,et al.  Cadmium, Lead, Zinc, Copper, and Nickel in Agricultural Soils of the United States of America , 1993 .

[14]  J. A. Ryan,et al.  Cadmium sulfate application to sludge-amended soils I. Effect on yield and cadmium availability to plants☆ , 1987 .

[15]  J. Tjell,et al.  Atmospheric lead pollution of grass grown in a background area in Denmark , 1979, Nature.

[16]  Atmospheric deposition of trace elements around point sources and human health risk assessment. I: Impact zones near a source of lead emissions. , 1992, The Science of the total environment.

[17]  X. Xian.  Chemical partitioning of cadmium, zinc, lead, and copper in soils near smelter , 1987 .

[18]  J. Tjell,et al.  Plant uptake of airborne cadmium , 1983 .

[19]  M. K. John.  Cadmium uptake by eight food crops as influenced by various soil levels of cadmium , 1973 .

[20]  E. Hallsworth,et al.  The heavy metal content of rainfall in the east midlands , 1973 .

[21]  E. Larsen,et al.  Atmospheric deposition of trace elements around point sources and human health risk assessment. II. Uptake of arsenic and chromium by vegetables grown near a wood preservation factory. , 1992, The Science of the total environment.

[22]  A. Chamberlain.  Fallout of lead and uptake by crops , 1983 .

[23]  M. Sánchez-Martín,et al.  Lead and cadmium in soils and vegetables from urban gardens of Salamanca (Spain). , 1994, The Science of the total environment.

[24]  A. S. Baker,et al.  EFFECTS OF SOIL TYPE, LIMING, AND SLUDGE APPLICATION ON ZINC AND CADMIUM AVAILABILITY TO SWISS CHARD1 , 1985 .

[25]  Characterization of airborne particulate matter in thessaloniki, Greece: Part I: Source related heavy metal concentrations within TSP , 1990 .

[26]  R. Perry,et al.  Handbook of air pollution analysis , 1986 .

[27]  J. Vangronsveld,et al.  Evaluation of metal mobility, plant availability and immobilization by chemical agents in a limed-silty soil. , 1994, Environmental pollution.

[28]  J. W. Huckabee,et al.  Distribution of mercury in vegetation at Almadén, Spain , 1983 .

[29]  A. E. Greenberg,et al.  Standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater : supplement to the sixteenth edition , 1988 .

[30]  R. Unwin,et al.  Cadmium and lead content of vegetable crops grown on land with a history of sewage sludge application , 1982 .