Abstract
Abstract. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), particularly benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), are toxic compounds emitted from various anthropogenic sources. Understanding the BaP concentrations, dynamics and decomposition in soil is required to assess the critical loads of BaP in urban environments. This study is the first attempt to evaluate all major input and output components of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) balance and to calculate the permissible load on the urban environment in different land-use zones in the Eastern district of Moscow. BaP contamination of the snow cover in the Eastern district of Moscow was related to daily BaP fallout from the atmosphere. In 2010, the mean content of the pollutant in the snow dust was 1942 ng g−1, whereas the average intensity of its fallout was 7.13 ng m−2 per day. Across the territory, BaP winter fallout intensities varied from 0.3 to 1100 ng m−2 per day. The average BaP content in the surface (0–10 cm) soil horizons was 409 ng g−1, which is 83 times higher than the local background value and 20 times higher than the maximum permissible concentration (MPC) accepted in Russia. The variations in soil and snow BaP concentrations among different land-use zones were examined. A significant contribution of BaP from the atmosphere to urban soils was identified. Based on the measurements of BaP atmospheric fallout and BaP reserves in the soils, the critical loads of BaP for the land-use zones in the Eastern district were calculated for different values of degradation intensity and different exposure times. It was established that at an annual degradation intensity of 1–10 %, ecologically safe BaP levels in the soils of all land-use zones, excluding the agricultural zone, will only be reached after many decades or centuries.
Highlights
The early 21st century is characterized by a significant exacerbation of environmental problems, especially in large industrial and urban centres
By 2050 about 66 % of the 9 billion people on Earth will be living in cities (UN DESA, 2015), which will lead to an increase in the anthropogenic impact on the environment and its further contamination
Like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their most dangerous member, benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) with its carcinogenic and mutagenic properties, are of significant importance in environmental studies (Haglund et al, 1987; Gennadiev and Pikovskii, 1996; Garban et al, 2002; Chung et al, 2007; Jacob, 2008; Pergal et al, 2015). This gives a special relevance to research focused on the long-term dynamics of BaP content in the urban environment related to the intensity of BaP emissions from anthropogenic sources and its accumulation in and destruction of soils
Summary
The early 21st century is characterized by a significant exacerbation of environmental problems, especially in large industrial and urban centres. Like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their most dangerous member, benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) with its carcinogenic and mutagenic properties, are of significant importance in environmental studies (Haglund et al, 1987; Gennadiev and Pikovskii, 1996; Garban et al, 2002; Chung et al, 2007; Jacob, 2008; Pergal et al, 2015) This gives a special relevance to research focused on the long-term dynamics of BaP content in the urban environment related to the intensity of BaP emissions from anthropogenic sources and its accumulation in and destruction of soils. PAH concentration in the air is generally significantly higher in winter than in summer because of greater fuel combustion (Ollivon et al, 2002; Gaga et al, 2009; Birgül et al, 2011)
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