Heavy metal concentrations in floodplain soils of the Innerste River and in leaves of wild blackberries (Rubus fruticosus L. agg.) growing within and outside the floodplain: the legacy of historical mining activities in the Harz Mountains (Germany)

Louisa F Steingräber,Horst Kierdorf,Catharina Ludolphy,Johannes Metz,Uwe Kierdorf,Lars Germershausen

doi:10.1007/s11356-021-17320-w

Louisa F Steingräber, Horst Kierdorf + Show 4 more

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We studied heavy metal levels in floodplain soils of the Innerste River in northern Germany and in the leaves of wild blackberries (Rubus fruticosus L. agg.) growing within and in adjacent areas outside the river floodplain. Heavy metal contamination of the Innerste floodplain is a legacy of historical metal ore mining, processing, and smelting in the Harz Mountains. The heavy metal (Cd, Pb, Zn, Cu, Ni, and Cr) contents of previously studied soil samples from eleven floodplain sites along the Innerste River were re-analyzed statistically, and the levels of these metals in blackberry leaves were determined at five sites. Mean concentrations in the floodplain soils were elevated by factors of 4.59 to 28.5 for Cd, 13.03 to 158.21 for Pb, 5.66 to 45.83 for Zn, and 1.1–14.81 for Cu relative to the precautionary limits for soils stipulated by the German Federal Soil Protection and Contaminated Sites Ordinance. Cadmium, Pb, Zn, Cu, and Ni levels in floodplain soils decreased markedly downstream, as did the concentrations of Cd, Zn, and Ni in the leaves of blackberries from within the floodplain. Levels of Cd, Pb, and Zn in leaves of blackberries from within the floodplain significantly exceeded those of specimens from outside the floodplain. The findings of our study highlight the potential of wild blackberry as a biomonitor of soil pollution by Cd, Pb, and Zn and corroborate the massive heavy metal contamination of floodplain soils along the Innerste River observed in previous studies.

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Heavy metals are typically defined as metals with a density greater than 5 g/cm3 (Oves et al 2012)
The present study reports the concentrations of six heavy metals (Cd, chromium (Cr), Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in floodplain soils along a section of the Innerste River and in leaves of wild blackberries growing within and outside the Innerste floodplain
The model further revealed that the concentrations in the wild blackberry leaves differed marginally significantly with distance from the Innerste Reservoir for Cd, and significantly for Ni (Table 4), with higher levels occurring at shorter distance from the reservoir

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Introduction

Heavy metals are typically defined as metals with a density greater than 5 g/cm (Oves et al 2012). They are naturally present in the Earth’s crust and cycle through the biogeosphere, but anthropogenic activities have greatly increased their release into the environment, where they are widely transported by wind and water (Kabata-Pendias and Mukherjee 2007). Like copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), and zinc (Zn), have important physiological functions, yet are toxic above certain threshold values (Joshi et al 2019). Knowledge of heavy metal levels in the environment is important for assessing metal-related ecological risks in an area (Nadgórska-Socha et al 2017). Vascular plants take up metals primarily (but not exclusively) from the soil via their roots, and plant biomonitoring can provide a useful tool for geochemical risk assessment (Bianchini et al 2012)

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