The possibility of using scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) needles as biomonitor in the determination of heavy metal accumulation

Abstract

Heavy metals can remain in nature for a long time without deterioration and their concentration in the environment is constantly increasing. In addition, some may have toxic or carcinogenic effects even at low concentrations, while some others which act as micronutrients can have toxic effects for humans at high concentrations. Therefore, determining heavy metal concentrations is of great importance towards identifying risk zones and risk levels. The main sources of heavy metals are industrial plants where heavy metal ores are processed. In this study, the Combine Magnesite operating in Russia which entails-”processing and mining of magnesite ore”-was examined for Mg, Al, Fe, Mn and Ca concentrations by analysing the samples taken from the 1-and 2-year-old needles of scots pines grown at 1, 3, 10 and 25 km distances. As a result of the study, it was determined that the concentrations of heavy metals subject to the study vary depending on the distance, especially the Mg concentration which exhibited a significant decrease the farther the trees were. We determined that the concentrations recorded in the 2-year-old needles at almost all points were higher than the 1-year-old needles, and could even exceed this difference several times.