Entwicklung der Schwermetall- und Stickstoffkonzentrationen in Moosen in Deutschland

Abstract

Development of heavy metals and nitrogen concentrations in moss throughout Germany Under the Convention on Long-range Transboundary Air Pollution, moss samples have been collected in Europe every five years since 1990 and evaluated for the concentration of heavy metals (since 1990) and nitrogen (since 2005). This article uses the data of this European Moss Survey to geostatistically evaluate and map the spatial distribution and temporal development of the heavy metals cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb) and mercury (Hg) as well as nitrogen (N) for Germany. Since the year of first sampling in Germany (Cd, Pb: 1990, Hg: 1995), heavy metal concentrations in moss tissue have decreased, while nitrogen concentrations have been remaining at almost the same level since 2005. Since 1990, Cd and Pb have shown a consistent hotspot of bioaccumulation within a broad band from North Rhine-Westphalia to Saxony, while for the other regions and with regard to Hg for most regions of Germany the geostatistical analyses corroborate that the spatial patterns of element concentrations in moss are changing across time. With regard to N, North Rhine-Westphalia and Mecklenburg-West Pomerania (2005–2015), as well as northwestern Germany (2015), proved to be a hotspot of nitrogen accumulation in moss. By contrast, the N concentration in mosses has decreased significantly in the southern German states, especially in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg.