Detoxification and amelioration of heavy-metal contaminated forest soils by means of liming and fertilisation

doi:10.1016/S0269-7491(99)00132-3

Environmental Pollution

Volume 107, Issue 1, January 2000, Pages 79-88

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0269-7491(99)00132-3 Get rights and content

Abstract

Four experiments were established in 1992 in Scots pine stands (Pinus sylvestris L.) on relatively infertile sites at distances of 0.5, 2, 4 and 8 km to the south-east of the Cu–Ni smelter at Harjavalta, south-west Finland, in order to investigate the effects of liming, correction fertiliser and site-specific fertiliser treatments on heavy metal (Cu, Ni) and macronutrient (Ca, Mg, K) availability in the organic layer. The organic layer samples were analysed for total, plant-available (BaCl₂+EDTA) and water-extractable Ca, Mg, K, Cu and Ni. A high proportion of the Cu and Ni at 0.5 km was in a non-toxic, immobilised form. Liming had only a relatively small reducing effect on free and exchangeable Cu and Ni concentrations at 0.5 km. The lack of pH increase following liming may be due to the precipitation of Fe, present in very high concentrations close to the smelter, as Fe(OH)₃, resulting in the loss of neutralising bicarbonate and hydroxyl ions, but the release of Ca and Mg. Liming strongly increased Ca and Mg availability. The correction fertiliser had no effect on Ca or K availability at any of the sites.

Introduction

Heavy-metal polluted soils have for long been recognised as a serious problem in industrialised parts of Western Europe (Alloway, 1995) and North America (Hutchinson and Whitby, 1977), and it has recently become apparent that the problems in Eastern Europe and Russia are in many cases even more extensive (Kozlov et al., 1993). In heavily polluted areas of this sort there are usually two main forest damage zones (Tikkanen and Niemelä, 1995): an industrial barren zone relatively close to the point emission source where the tree and ground vegetation are completely destroyed, and an outer zone where the vegetation is progressively suffering from serious damage but is capable, if emissions are drastically reduced, of slow recovery. Promising results have been obtained in Sudbury, Canada, in the detoxification and restoration of land that is completely deforested as a result of heavy metal deposition from the Cu–Ni smelter (Winterhalder, 1983). The main emphasis in restoring the industrial barren area has been to treat the soil with limestone and P fertiliser, and to establish a vegetation cover of grasses and shrubs, on which a cover of broad-leaved trees gradually develops (Lautenbach et al., 1995). In areas where the tree stand is less severely damaged the measures are designed to restore nutrient imbalances and to improve the vitality of the tree stand. The tree stands usually suffer from shortages of Ca and Mg (Mälkönen et al., 1999, Raitio, 1992) as a result of soil acidification (Løbersli and Steinnes, 1988) or the displacement of base cations from the organic layer by heavy metals (Derome and Lindroos, 1998). Liming has proved to be an appropriate measure for reducing heavy-metal toxicity and stimulating litter decomposition (Fritze et al., 1996). Nitrogen is the main mineral nutrient restricting tree growth in the boreal coniferous forest zone (Mälkönen et al., 1990), and there is usually a shortage of available nitrogen in heavy-metal polluted soils owing to the inhibitory effect of heavy metals on microbial activity (Fritze et al., 1989). The purpose of liming and fertilising such sites with Ca, Mg and N is thus to provide the tree stand and other vegetation with a temporary supply of nutrients that will enable them to survive up until the point where there has been a recovery in microbial activity and nutrient mineralisation.

The aims of this study were to determine: (1) whether liming decreases the toxic concentrations of exchangeable Cu, Ni and Zn in the soil; and (2) the extent to which liming and slow-release mineral fertilisers can alleviate the shortage of Ca, Mg and K concentrations in the organic layer of pine stands along a heavy-metal deposition gradient near the Cu–Ni smelter at Harjavalta, south-west Finland.

Section snippets

Materials and methods

Four liming and correction fertiliser experiments were established in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) stands located at distances of 0.5, 2, 4 and 8 km along a line running to the south-east of the Harjavalta Cu–Ni smelter (61°19′N, 22°9′E), south-west Finland. Emissions from the smelter primarily comprise Cu, Ni, Zn and SO₂ (Helmisaari et al., 1995), and in recent years they have been strongly reduced (Derome and Nieminen, 1998). The forest site type varied from the Vaccinium to the Calluna

Cation exchange capacity (CEC_eff) and acidity parameters

None of the treatments had a statistically significant effect on CEC_eff (Table 1). All the treatments, apart from the SSF treatment at 8 km, contained varying amounts of limestone. There was no significant correlation between CEC_eff and pH at 0.5 km for all the treatments combined, but at 2 and 8 km the correlation was highly significant (Table 1), and at 4 km significant. The relatively large limestone applications (LT, SSF) significantly (p<0.05) increased the BS in the organic layer at all

Discussion

The amounts of limestone used in the three treatments varied considerably: 200 kg/ha in the correction fertilisation, 1000–1500 kg/ha in the stand-specific fertilisation (not applied at 8 km) and 2000 kg/ha in the liming treatment. Liming had only a relatively small effect on acidity parameters in the organic layer at 0.5 km compared to the situation at 4 and 8 km, and at 2 km the effects were restricted to an increase in BS and a decrease in exchangeable acidity. The results obtained at 4 and

Conclusions

A high proportion of the Cu and Ni that has accumulated in the organic layer at a distance of 0.5 km from the smelter was in a non-toxic, immobilised form, and the concentration of exchangeable Cu and Ni much higher than free forms of these metals. Liming had only a relatively small reducing effect on the high concentrations of free and exchangeable Cu and Ni at a distance of 0.5 km from the smelter, as well as at 2, 4 and 8 km. One reason for this may be the absence of the normal increase in

References (24)

J. Derome et al.
Copper and nickel mobility in podzolic forest soils subjected to heavy metal and sulphur deposition in western Finland
Chemosphere
(1998)
J. Derome et al.
Metal and macronutrient fluxes in heavy-metal polluted Scots pine ecosystems in SW Finland
Environmental Pollution
(1998)
J. Derome et al.
The effect of liming and correction fertilisation on heavy metal and macronutrient concentrations in soil solution in heavy-metal polluted Scots pine stands
Environmental Pollution
(1999)
B.J. Alloway
The origins of heavy metals in soils
A.K. Cajander
Forest types and their significance
Acta Forestalia Fennica
(1949)
J. Derome et al.
Forest liming on mineral soils, results of Finnish experiments
National Swedish Environmental Protection Board
(1986)
H. Fritze et al.
Soil microbial effects of a Cu–Ni smelter in southwestern Finland
Biological Fertility of Soils
(1989)
H. Fritze et al.
Vitality fertilization of Scots pine stands growing along a gradient of heavy metal pollution: short-term effects on microbial biomass and respiration rate of the humus layer
Fresenius Journal of Analytical Chemistry
(1996)
W.H. Hendershot et al.
A simple barium chloride method for determining cation exchange capacity and exchangeable cations
Soil Science Society of America Journal
(1986)
H.-S. Helmisaari et al.
Copper in Scots pine forests around a heavy metal smelter in south-western Finland
Water, Air, and Soil Pollution
(1995)

T.C. Hutchinson et al.

The effects of acid rainfall and heavy metal particulates on a boreal forest ecosystem near the Sudbury smelting region of Canada

Water, Air, and Soil Pollution

(1977)

Kozlov, M.V., Haukioja, E., Yarmishko, V.T. (Eds.), 1993. Aerial pollution in Kola Peninsula. In: Proceedings of the...

Cited by (52)

Role and importance of microorganisms in plant nutrition and remediation of potentially toxic elements contaminated soils
2022, Sustainable Plant Nutrition: Molecular Interventions and Advancements for Crop Improvement
Potentially toxic elements (PTEs) may be toxic at low concentrations and can damage living organisms as well as being transferred through the food chain. PTEs remain in soils for a long time, and may directly affect on agricultural products and surface water and groundwater, thus endangering human and environmental health. After observing two cases, the researchers may have started using microorganisms for the remediation PTEs contaminated soils: (1) the presence of resistant microorganisms in contaminated soils and, (2) the comparison of contamination changes in microorganisms-rich soils with microorganisms-poor soils. Bioremediation is one of the ways to remediate contaminated soils. For example, bacteria resistant to metal contaminated environments can be used to reduce PTEs mobility. In fact, along with various methods for the remediation of soils contaminated with PTEs, bioremediation is a cost-effective and eco-friendly method. This biological method is a good alternative because microbial activity involves the formation of much less bioavailable forms from toxic elements such as PTEs. In order to develop this method for the remediation large-scale contaminated soils, it is crucial to understand the mechanism used by microorganisms as well as the factors influencing these biogeochemical processes. Given the benefits of this method, researchers hope that by increasing its efficiency, bioremediation methods will replace other methods deidcated to soil contamination remediation. In this chapter, after presenting different methods and the importance of microorganisms in soil, we introduce the mechanism and factors influencing the bioremediation method. Environmental characteristics, target pollutants, and microorganisms interact with each other and affect the bioremediation process efficiency. In general, microorganisms reduce the risk of toxic pollutants dissemination in the environment by using various mechanisms, and in some mechanisms, they turn them into much less toxic chemical forms.
Fungal community of forest soil: Diversity, functions, and services
2021, Forest Microbiology: Volume 1: Tree Microbiome: Phyllosphere, Endosphere and Rhizosphere
Forest soil fungal communities are extremely complex and diverse, and show a range of different lifestyles from saprotrophs, endophytes, pathogens, and mycorrhizal species. These belowground communities are differently distributed through space and time scales, and they are involved in key ecosystem processes such as plant community dynamics, belowground trophic interactions, and biogeochemical cycles. Through examples from different global forest ecosystems, we describe the principal abiotic and biotic factors, including natural disturbances, driving the assemblage of fungal communities in forest soils, as well as potential underlying mechanisms. We have selected research studies directed at understanding how soil fungi activities and interactions impact forest functioning and can influence the goods and services provided by these ecosystems. Finally, we show how anthropic factors shape fungal communities and, in return, how soil fungi can be better integrated in forest practices to improve ecosystem services in the upcoming decades.
Microcosm-scale biogeochemical stabilization of Pb, As, Ba and Zn in mine tailings amended with manure and ochre
2019, Applied Geochemistry
Citation Excerpt :
Amendments have the additional advantage of being inexpensive and readily available in large quantities, since they derive from agricultural or industrial by-products (Guo et al., 2006). Chemical and inorganic amendments that have been used widely include alkaline and phosphate materials (Hooda and Alloway, 1996; Derome, 2000; Le Forestier et al., 2017). Alkaline materials have been shown to reduce the solubility of divalent metals such as Pb and Cu by increasing pH and phosphate materials to efficiently stabilize Pb by ionic exchange and precipitation of pyromorphite-type minerals [Pb5(PO4)3X; X = F, Cl, B or OH] (Mc Gowen et al., 2001; Kumpiene et al., 2008).
Mine tailings are major sources of metals and metalloids in the environment, making the physical and geochemical stabilization of tailings a serious environmental challenge. With a view to facilitate the development of covering vegetation and of decreasing the mobility of Pb in the acid tailings of a former Ag–Pb mine, laboratory microcosm experiments were performed to enable comparison of the effectiveness of several treatments. Tailings were mixed with 5% by weight of ochre, an iron-rich material produced during the treatment of a coal mine water, and with cow manure (0, 0.15, 1 and 2% by weight), either solely or in combination. They were then submitted to weekly watering over 84 days. All treatments raised the pH values from 4 to values between 7 and 8 and induced a strong decrease in the total dissolved Pb concentration in the percolating water (from 13 to 15 mg.L⁻¹ to less than 0.5 mg.L⁻¹). Several processes seemed to be involved in the immobilization of Pb by the amendments: precipitation as hydroxide, sulfate, carbonate and phosphate, and adsorption on iron hydroxides. A transient increase was observed in both Pb mobility and functional microbial diversity with 1% and 2% manure, with a peak after 28 days of incubation. This peak corresponded to an Average Well Color Development (AWCD) in Biolog™ Ecoplates increase from 0.5 to 0.8 with 1% manure and from 0.6 to 1.5 with 2% manure. However, at the end of experiment, Pb immobilization was strengthened by 2% manure and microbial functional biodiversity fell back, with AWCD values of 0.5 and 0.8 for 1% and 2% manure, respectively. Other toxic elements present in the tailings, namely As, Zn and Ba, were not strongly mobilized by the treatments, although cow manure slightly increased the leaching of Ba and As, which maximum concentrations in the leaching water reached 65 μg.L⁻¹ Ba and 9 μg.L⁻¹ As. All amendments improved the growth of ryegrass, which maximum dry biomass ranged from 38 mg/microcosm without amendment to 155 mg/microcosm with 0.15% manure. The results provide key information about the biogeochemical processes driving the mobility of Pb, As, Zn and Ba in acid mine tailings during the first 84 days following their amendment with iron-rich ochre and manure.
Remediation of multiple heavy metal-contaminated soil through the combination of soil washing and in situ immobilization
2018, Science of the Total Environment
Citation Excerpt :
Unlike soil washing, the main goal of in situ immobilization is to decrease the mobility and bioavailability of heavy metals; however, the total amount of heavy metals in soil is not reduced. Lime (Derome, 2000; Lombi et al., 2003; Mallampati et al., 2012) and biochar (Lu et al., 2012; Tang et al., 2013; Zhang et al., 2013) are the common materials that have been tested effectively to stabilize heavy metals. In situ field experiments have shown that both lime and biochar can lower the uptake of heavy metals by plants and improve their biomass to some extent (Cui et al., 2016a; Cui et al., 2016b; Lee et al., 2009; Liu et al., 2013).
The remediation of heavy metal-contaminated soils is a great challenge for global environmental sciences and engineering. To control the ecological risks of heavy metal-contaminated soil more effectively, the present study focused on the combination of soil washing (with FeCl₃) and in situ immobilization (with lime, biochar, and black carbon). The results showed that the removal rate of Cd, Pb, Zn, and Cu was 62.9%, 52.1%, 30.0%, and 16.7%, respectively, when washed with FeCl₃. After the combined remediation (immobilization with 1% (w/w) lime), the contaminated soils showed 36.5%, 73.6%, 70.9%, and 53.4% reductions in the bioavailability of Cd, Cu, Pb, and Zn (extracted with 0.11 M acetic acid), respectively, than those of the soils washed with FeCl₃ only. However, the immobilization with 1% (w/w) biochar or 1% (w/w) carbon black after washing exhibited low effects on stabilizing the metals. The differences in effects between the immobilization with lime, biochar, and carbon black indicated that the soil pH had a significant influence on the lability of heavy metals during the combined remediation process. The activity of the soil enzymes (urease, sucrase, and catalase) showed that the addition of all the materials, including lime, biochar, and carbon black, exhibited positive effects on microbial remediation after soil washing. Furthermore, lime was the most effective material, indicating that low soil pH and high acid-soluble metal concentrations might restrain the activity of soil enzymes. Soil pH and nutrition were the major considerations for microbial remediation during the combined remediation. These findings suggest that the combination of soil washing and in situ immobilization is an effective method to amend the soils contaminated with multiple heavy metals.
Cadmium mobility, uptake and anti-oxidative response of water spinach (Ipomoea aquatic) under rice straw biochar, zeolite and rock phosphate as amendments
2018, Chemosphere
Citation Excerpt :
These might increase soil pH and form metal complexes via adsorption on soil particles. In addition, several studies on heavy metal stabilization by phosphate sources such as di-ammonium phosphate, rock phosphate and single super phosphate have been discussed to produce metal phosphate after addition to metals contaminated soil (Derome, 2000). Particularly, rock phosphate is alkaline in nature and used to reduce metal solubility by increasing soil pH and enhanced metal sorption on its surface.
Agricultural soils contamination with cadmium (Cd) has become a serious concern through anthropogenic activities. The possible environmental friendly solutions for Cd are required to address its mobility through various cost effective amendments. This study aims to evaluate the impact of rice straw biochar (BC), zeolite (ZE) and rock phosphate (RP) stabilizers to minimize the potential risk of Cd mobility and its uptake by water spinach in acidic soil through pot experiment. Concentration of Cd in TCLP and CaCl₂ extract gradually decreased with the increase of amendments (BC, ZE and RP) rates. The increase in BC addition from 1.5% to 3% significantly decreased CaCl₂-extractable Cd by 65.78%–72.89% and TCLP extractable Cd by 31.16%–37.66% respectively, over control. Whereas, RP addition decreases 53.4%–65.18% and 11.68%-19.48% in CaCl₂ and TCLP extractable Cd respectively, as compared to control soil. The addition of BC, ZE and RP decreased Cd uptake by 22.91%–61.82% with 1.5% and 3% application rate, respectively. Moreover, the antioxidant enzymes activity i.e., superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) decreased with the addition of BC, ZE and RP under Cd stress. In conclusion, rice straw biochar could be highly recommended as a safe stabilizer to immobilize Cd in polluted agricultural soils.
Potential of using immobilizing agents in aided phytostabilization on simulated contamination of soil with lead
2017, Ecological Engineering
Lead (Pb) is one of the key heavy metals which have a significant influence on the individual components of the natural environment. A glasshouse pot experiment was designed to evaluate the potential use of different amendments as immobilizing agents in the aided phytostabilization of Pb-contaminated soil, using Lolium perenne L. The research aimed to determine the influence of Pb in doses of 0, 100, 200, 400 and 800 mg/kg of soil, as well as diatomite, chalcedonite, dolomite, limestone, and activated carbon amendments on the content of trace elements in the above-ground parts and roots of L. perenne. The study utilised analysis of variance (ANOVA), principal component analysis (PCA) and Factor Analysis (FA). The content of trace elements in plants, pseudo-total and extracted by 0.01 M CaCl_2, were determined using the method of spectrophotometry. All of the investigated element contents in the tested parts of L. perenne were significantly different in the case of applying reactive amendments to the soil, as well as increasing concentrations of Pb. The greatest average above-ground biomass was observed when diatomite and chalcedonite were amended into the soil. Activated carbon, limestone and chalcedonite caused significant increases of Pb concentrations in the roots.

View all citing articles on Scopus

View full text

Detoxification and amelioration of heavy-metal contaminated forest soils by means of liming and fertilisation

Abstract

Introduction

Section snippets

Materials and methods

Cation exchange capacity (CECeff) and acidity parameters

Discussion

Conclusions

Chemosphere

Environmental Pollution

Environmental Pollution

The origins of heavy metals in soils

Forest types and their significance

Acta Forestalia Fennica

Forest liming on mineral soils, results of Finnish experiments

National Swedish Environmental Protection Board

Soil microbial effects of a Cu–Ni smelter in southwestern Finland

Biological Fertility of Soils

Vitality fertilization of Scots pine stands growing along a gradient of heavy metal pollution: short-term effects on microbial biomass and respiration rate of the humus layer

Fresenius Journal of Analytical Chemistry

A simple barium chloride method for determining cation exchange capacity and exchangeable cations

Soil Science Society of America Journal

Copper in Scots pine forests around a heavy metal smelter in south-western Finland

Water, Air, and Soil Pollution

The effects of acid rainfall and heavy metal particulates on a boreal forest ecosystem near the Sudbury smelting region of Canada

Water, Air, and Soil Pollution

Cation exchange capacity (CEC_eff) and acidity parameters