Short-term changes of metal availability in soil. II: The influence of earthworm activity

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate short-term earthworm-induced changes in the availability of metals applied to soil directly (metal-spiked) or via an organic matrix (sludge-amended). A laboratory experiment was performed using destructive sampling of microcosms filled with agricultural soil. A concentration gradient of industrial sludge contaminated predominantly with Cr, Cu, Ni, and Zn, and a soil freshly spiked with the same metal concentrations were applied on top of the soil columns. Individuals of Dendrobaena veneta (mimicking a realistic density of 500 earthworms per m 2) were introduced in half of the replicates of each treatment. Total and 0.01 M CaCl 2 extractable metal concentrations were measured in soil after 0, 3, 6 and 12 weeks and metal concentrations in earthworms and percolates were measured after 3, 6, and 12 weeks. Earthworm activity did not affect metal availability of any treatment over time, but Ni and Cu concentrations in D. veneta were higher at the highest treatment levels. Earthworm Zn concentrations were similar in all treatments while Cr concentrations increased with increasing soil total metal content only for sludge treatments. Existing relationships of earthworm metal concentrations with total metal content in soil, taken from the literature, were not able to predict the metal levels measured in D. veneta. Results demonstrated that although over 12 weeks earthworm activity did not affect metal availability in soil, their burrowing activities did influence the metal concentrations of percolates over time.