Mercury Concentration in Technosols and Alder Tissue from a Plantation on a Combustion Waste Disposal Site

Abstract

Combustion of fossil fuels including coal is one of the sources of mercury pollution. Combustion waste from fly ash disposal sites poses a problem for the environment and constitutes a potential source of Hg, thus phytostabilisation is a crucial goal in the mitigation of fossil fuel impact. The paper presents mercury (Hg) concentration in technosols from combustion waste and in individual biomass components (fine roots, bark, stem wood and leaves) of alder species (black, gray and green alder) introduced as part of a long-term experiment to develop a method of phytostabilisation and afforestation of a lignite combustion disposal site. Mercury content in the combustion waste was elevated compared to the data for natural soils from uncontaminated forest areas, however, it did not exceed the amounts considered to be toxic. Hg content in technosols was related to clay and silt fraction content and phosphorus content. Mercury in the alder biomass accumulated mainly in the underground part, especially in the fine roots and displayed a positive correlation with acid and alkaline phosphatase and sulfur content, with no differences in the accumulation of Hg between the alder species. The obtained results indicate that the fine roots are the frontier of Hg biosorption in developed alder systems on combustion waste disposal sites.

Biomonitoring of Mercury Contamination in Poland Based on Its Concentration in Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) Foliage

“…No significant correlations were noted between Hg concentration in pine foliage and soil properties, including Hg content in soils, confirming the limited translocation of this element from the roots to the aboveground biomass [ 18 , 19 ]. Such localization also indicates the usefulness of determining Hg concentrations in foliage for assessing air pollution [ 17 ].…”

“…The Hg in plant foliage comes mainly from the air, because Hg uptake from the soil tends to be accumulated in the belowground biomass (i.e., the roots), and the translocation of this element above ground is poor [ 18 , 19 ]. For these reasons, the Hg concentration in the aboveground biomass of vascular plants is commonly used to assess air Hg pollution [ 17 , 20 ].…”

Studies of technogenic soils in Poland: past, present, and future perspectives

“…Organic matter properties in the topsoil layer of technogenic soils developed from ash were determined by Strączyńska et al (2009). Carbon and macronutrient budgets under alder plantation grown on a reclaimed ash landfill were examined by Woś et al (2020) and mercury concentration in the ash soils and in tissue of alder used to reclaim the combustion waste disposal site was determined by Woś et al (2019). Uzarowicz and Zagórski (2015), and Uzarowicz et al (2017Uzarowicz et al ( , 2018aUzarowicz et al ( , 2018b recognized physical and chemical properties of the Spolic Technosols developed from ash from coal and lignite combustion as the basis for soil classification.…”