Site recovery in the Zn-‐Pb mine of Olkusz, Poland, as shown by changes in the soil properties, nematode communities and plant tolerance
(Biscutella laevigata L.)
Mar$na Polek Master Thesis
Master of Biogeosciences 2013/2014 University of Lausanne and University of Neuchâtel
15.01.2014
Prof. Jean-‐Michel Gobat (University of Neuchâtel)
Dr. Pierre Vollenweider (Swiss Federal Ins$tute for Forest, Snow and Landscape) Ins$tute of Botany, Cracow (Poland)
Background
Previous study about the alloca$on–based Zn-‐tolerance in foliage of laboratory grown B. laevigata individuals
Ins$tute of Botany PAN • Biscutella laevigata L. (Brassicaceae) is a pseudometallophyte
• Alpine pioneer plant • Adapted to dry and warm
environment • occur in the Tatra Mountains and on
mining waste material around Olkusz
Orlowska et al., 2002
• Geology: metalliferous Triassic sediments (mainly dolomite) and Pleistocene fluvioglacial and eolic sands
• Important ores: galena (PbS) and various calamines mainly smitsonite (ZnCO3) cerussite (PbCO3) limonite (FeOOH)
Cabala et al., 2009
The Surroundings
Chrastny et al., 2011
History of the Region • Mining ac$vi$es date back as far as the 12th century • Periods of low and high ac$vity • Diminishing of mining ac$vi$es over the last decades • Today only two mines and one smel$ng factory are s$ll ac$ve • Mining will probably come to an end in the next five years
Calaba and Sutkowska, 2006
Effects on the Environment • Lowering of ground water level • Changes in the landscape: excava$ons, mining waste heaps, sedimenta$on ponds, slag heaps
Effects on the Environment • Air and soil pollu$on by emission of
-‐ heavy metal containing dust (1.5 tons/year, 500* tons/year) -‐ SO2 (400 tons/year, 5’000* tons/year)
* un$l the 1980s
Szarek-‐Lukaszewska, 2009
Objects of Interest
Biscutella laevigata alloca$on based zinc
tolerance
Bioindicator Nematode community structure
à food web condi$on
Soil
CaCO3 total, pH, par$cle size analysis
C organic, C total
N total
Zinc total and Zinc disposal to plants
Objectives of the Master Thesis • To document site recovery by various parameters
• To analyse the alloca$on–based Zn-‐tolerance in foliage of B. laevigata from field samples and compare it to the results from laboratory grown popula$on
Hypothese • There is a posi$ve correla$on between the amount of zinc in the Biscutella laevigata plants (roots and leaves) and zinc disposal to plants but no correla$on exists with the age since the deposi$on of the mining waste (parent material).
Materials and Methods • on each study site were collected:
-‐ 5 Biscutella laevigata plants (with roots) -‐ 5 soil samples around the plant’s roots of B. laevigata -‐ 5 soil samples with lider layer
min. 4 m +
+ + +
Materials and Methods • Soil: Analyse of total zinc concentra$on and zinc available to plants
• B. laevigata: Analyse of total concentra$on of zinc in leaves and roots
0"
1'000"
2'000"
3'000"
4'000"
5'000"
6'000"
7'000"
8'000"
9'000"
0"
20'000"
40'000"
60'000"
80'000"
100'000"
120'000"
140'000"
10" 20" 30" 40" 50" 60" 70" 80" 90" 100" 110"
Zn#dispo
sal#to#plan
ts#(p
pm)#
Zn#to
t#(pp
m)#
Age#since#mining#waste#deposi4on#(years)#
Zinc#contamina4on#in#soil#(ppm)#
Zn"tot"(ppm)" Zn_disp"(ppm)"
First Results BL 5
0"
1'000"
2'000"
3'000"
4'000"
5'000"
6'000"
10" 20" 30" 40" 50" 60" 70" 80" 90" 100" 110"
zinc%con
centra+o
n%(m
g/kg)%
Age%since%mining%waste%deposi+on%(years)%
Total%zinc%concentra+on%in%leaves%and%roots%of%B.%laevigata%%on%site%of%different%age%%
Zn"leaves"[mg/kg|" Zn"roots"(mg/kg)"
First Results
R2 (Zn_leaves&age) = -‐0.047 R2 (Zn_roots&age) = -‐0.205
0"
1'000"
2'000"
3'000"
4'000"
5'000"
6'000"
0" 1'000" 2'000" 3'000" 4'000" 5'000" 6'000" 7'000" 8'000" 9'000"
Zinc%con
centra+o
n%(m
g/kg)%
Zinc%disposal%to%plants%(mg/kg)%
Zinc%concentra+on%in%leaves%and%roots%%of%B.#laevigata#vs.%Zinc%disposal%to%plants%#
Zn"leaves"[mg/kg|" Zn"roots"(mg/kg)"
First Results
R2 (Zn_leaves&Zn_disp) = -‐0.156 R2 (Zn_roots&Zn_disp) = 0.045
First Conclusions • One site does not represent one habitat but a very heterogenic accumula$on of many different milieus BUT the places were B. laevigata grows are very similar habitats.
• A recovery gradient can not be established because there is no informa$on about the prevailing condi$ons when the recovery started and we analyse only one specific habitat of the sites.
• There might be a correla$on between various parameters and the age of mining waste or the zinc concentra$on of soil but due to high heterogeneity of the sites, the number of samples is not large enough to show such correla$ons.
References • Cabala J, Sutkowska K. (2006). The past extrac$on and processing of Zn-‐Pb ore effect on the industrial soil minerals composi$on, Olkusz and Jaworzno District. Prace Nauk. Inst. Gorn. Polit. Wroc. 117. Studia I Materialy. 32. 13-‐22.
• Cabala J., Krupa P. and Misz-‐Kennan M. (2009): Heavy Metals in Mycorrhizal Rhizospheres Contaminated by Zn-‐Pb Mining and Smel$ng around Olkusz in Southern Poland. Water Air Soil Pollut. 199:139-‐149.
• Chrastny V, Vanek A, Teper L, Cabala J, Prochazka J, Pechar L, Drahota P, Penizek V, Komarek M, Novak M. (2011). Geochemical posi$on of Pb, Zn and Cd in soils near the Olkusz mine/smelter, South Poland: effects of land uase, type of contamina$on and distance from pollu$on source. Environ Monit Assess. 184:2517-‐2536.
• Ferris H, Bongers T, De Goede R.G.M. (2001). A framework for soil food web diagnos$cs: extension of the nematode faunal analysis concept. Applied Soil Ecology, 18, 13-‐29.
• Orlowska E, Zubek Sz, Jurkiewicz A, Szarek-‐Lukaszewska G, Turnau A. (2002). Influence of restora$on on arbuscular mycorrhiza of Biscutella laevigata L. (Brassicaceae) and Plantago lanceolata L. (Plantaginaceae) from calamine spoil mounds. Mycorrhiza. 12:153-‐160.
• Szarek-‐Lukaszewska G. (2009). Vegeta$on of Reclaimed and Spontaneously Vegetated Zn-‐Pb Mine Wastes in Southern Poland. Polish J. of Environ. Stud. Vol. 18, No. 4, 717-‐733.
Hypotheses • The higher the carbonate concentra$on at a site, the more zinc is fixed on the carbonates. Thus the zinc concentra$on that is measured in the roots and leaves of Biscutella laevigata does not increase significantly even if the concentra$on of zinc in the soil does.
• Significant changes at the same sites can be observed on behalf of the amount of zinc in Biscutella laevigata plants as well as in the nematode community structure, which might imply a mutual influence between the two variables.
• The zinc is allocated in the same Biscutella laevigata $ssues as observed in Biscutella laevigata grown in laboratory.
As Biscutella laevigata forms arbuscular mycorrhizal symbioses (Orlowska et al., 2002), the Zn bioaccumula$on capacity of field popula$ons will differ from those of popula$ons grown in laboratory.