Protected Areas vs. Highway Construction—Problem of Environmental Pollution

Abstract

Landscape parks are protected areas, attractive to live close to and relax in. In parks, economic and agricultural activities are allowed to a limited extent. The high interest in these areas is the cause of unfavorable changes, including environmental contamination. This paper presents the results of soil quality research in Wzniesienia Łódzkie Landscape Park (Poland). The analyses were performed in 2008, before the construction of the highway in the park began, and after its completion in 2016. The contents of Zn, Cu, Pb, Cd and Ni were determined by flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS). The descriptive statistics, principal component analysis (PCA), cluster analysis (CA), and geographic information system (GIS) were used to assess the impact of different sources on the content of metal in the soil. Over the period of 8 years, there has been an increase in pH and the level of metals, especially nickel. The changes in the metal content result from the different land use, especially abandonment of agricultural activity and emissions related to the construction of the A1 highway.

Performance indicators for public evaluation of environmental management plan implementation in highway construction projects

“…Principal component analysis was chosen over explanatory factor analysis because the data was discrete, ordinal and did not meet the requirement for multivariate normality (Tabachnick et al , 2013). This technique has been used in prior works, such as Chen et al (2009) on regional water quality differences caused by highway construction and Turek et al (2022) on the impact of various sources on metal content in the soil during highway construction.…”

“…(2009) on regional water quality differences caused by highway construction and Turek et al (2022) on the impact of various sources on metal content in the soil during highway construction.…”