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Biomonitoring of air pollution near Parichha Thermal Power Plant, Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh
Abstract
Lichens are excellent bioindicators. As bioindicators, the presence/absence of sensitive species is pointer to use for distribution patterns of air pollutant deposition. The accumulation of various air pollutants including heavy metals by lichens is well documented (Ferry et a/., 1973). Pollutants, like SO 2 and NO 2 affect the growth of lichens and its colony. Sometimes the lichens which are sensitive can die or shift their colony. This shows the presence of air pollutants in the air. The resistant lichens accumulate the heavy metals and air pollutants in their thallii. In Indian context, a survey of the lichen of 25 Kolkata streets demonstrated that the species and population of lichens could be an indicator for determining the air quality (Das et al., 1986). Upreti and Pandey (1990, 2000) studied the concentration of heavy metals in lichen growing on different ecological habitat in Schirmacher Oasis. The sampling of lichen and air pollution monitoring were carried out during the month of April to July 2007 in and around the Pariccha Thermal Power Plant, Pariccha Jhansi. We have assumed the Pariccha Thermal Power Plant as central part and collected samples from all the 4 directions. Samples were also taken from a control location at distance of about 24 km from the Pariccha Thermal Power Plant. Concentration of SO 2 and NO 2 in all the monitored locations in all the seasons were found to be well within the prescribed standard. The concentrations of the various pollutants at the control location were found to be less than that at other locations. Heavy-metal accumulation in a few prominent lichens of some localities is also analysed. Chromium was found to be accumulated more in all the species collected.
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Occurrence of 30 species of lichens belonging to 19 genera and 15 families in 12 localities of Bangalore city is reported. The Indian Institute of Science (IISc) campus and Lalbagh garden record the maximum number of 24 and 18 species of lichens respectively, which can be directly attributed to the presence of a variety of trees in the area providing diverse substrate for lichen growth. Heavy-metal accumulation in few prominent lichens of some localities is also analysed. Cr and Pb were maximum in Chrysothrix candelaris (L.) Laundon, at AMCO Batteries area with 95.29 and 623.95 μg g-1 dry wt. respectively. Fe and Cu were maximum in Bulbothrix isidiza (Nyl.) Hale and Pyxine petricola Nyl. at IISc campus with 22721 and 338.12 μg g-1 dry wt. respectively, while Lecanora perplexa Brodo at Lalbagh garden has 531.5 μg g-1 dry wt. of Zn. The lichen flora of Lalbagh garden is compared to an earlier enumeration. It is interesting to note that in the last 18 years lichen flora of the area has changed significantly, as only four species were common between the two studies. The fast pace of urbanization together with air pollution may probably be the reason for the change in lichen flora of this area. The present number, type of lichen and the level of metals accumulated will be a record for conducting future biomonitoring studies in this fastest-growing city of India.
A comparative investigation of seven heavy metals (Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Cd and Pb) in mosses, lichens and trees over the Kozani-Ptolemaïda-Amynteon lignite basin in West Macedonia, Greece has carried out. In this region there are four lignite power plants producing about 70% of the electric energy of the country. Experiments have determined both concentrations of these elements and transfer factors that are defined as the ratio of the concentration of a given element in an investigated organism to the concentration of the same element in the soil. This study indicates that compared to trees, mosses and lichens have a higher capacity for absorbing and accumulating heavy metals. The conifer Pinusnigra seems to have a higher affinity for these metals than the other tree species, which is manifested in a better correlation of the distribution functions as well as greater values of transfer factor. Compared with unpolluted areas, the concentration of chromium, manganese, iron, nickel, cadmium and lead are systematically increasing in tree leaves in the vicinity of all four power plants.
A study was carried out to assess the heavy metal (Cr (VI) and Ni) removal efficiency of Azotobacter chroococcum, Bacillus sp. and Pseudomonas fluorescens isolated from sewage effluent and sewage irrigated soils. The optimum time for maximum metal removal (82.58 %, 89.50 % and 95.54 % of Cr, 86.16 %, 84.32 % and 90.98 % of Ni by A. chroococcum, Bacillus sp. and P. fluorescens respectively) was found to be 72 hours at an initial metal concentration of 25 ppm. While comparing the percentage uptake, more amount of Cr (VI) was absorbed than Ni by Bacillus sp. and P. fluorescens. The percentage of Cr (VI) and Ni removal decreased with increasing initial metal concentration. The uptake of Cr (VI) and Ni increased as the incubation period advanced. The bioacccmulation of heavy metals by these bacterial isolates was observed to be in the order of P. fluorescens > Bacillus sp.> A. chroococcum.
Sulphur dioxide emissions in the UK have declined since the 1960s, and further reductions are anticipated. Many lichen taxa, sensitive to air pollution, have been reinvading places with reduced pollution loads. This review focuses on the response by epiphytes, for which most research has been undertaken, but comments are also made on saxicolous species. -P.J.Jarvis
Studies on lead accumulation in lichens were performed at twelve different sites in and around Faizabad city of Uttar Pradesh. The concentration of lead in lichens decreases with increasing distance from the source of pollution. Lead accumulation was more in lichens collected from higher vertical position than that of lower vertical position. The lead content also varied among the lichen species. The highest concentration of lead was found in Dirinaria papillulifera on the Faizabad-Rae Bareli Road.
X ray fluorescence was adapted to the analysis of 22 terricolous lichen species from 14 sites in the Mackenzie Valley, Northwest Territories, and 7 species from the Sudbury District of Northern Ontario. X ray fluorescence (XRF) proved to be faster and exhibited better sensitivity and reproducibility than conventional analytical techniques; also, the samples were not destroyed in the analysis. Procedural details of the XRF method are given. The levels of copper, iron, nickel, and sulphur in Arctic lichens were similar to those found in lichens growing on the periphery of the Sudbury pollution zone but very much lower than in specimens nearer the nickel smelter. A linear relationship between concentration and the reciprocal of the distance from the Copper Cliff smelter was confirmed for the occurrence of these four elements in samples collected along a 60 mi NNW transect.
Mercury pollution due to gold mining activities in Amazonian region has become a matter of worldwide concern in recent years. To assess the extent of mercury pollution and its health effects, the four years' collaborative study between our Institute and Federal University of Rio de Janeiro has been started in 1992 as a part of Global Environmental Research Project in the Environment Agency of Japan. This paper outlines the results of our preliminary study on mercury pollution mainly in Tapajos river basin, where can be considered the oldest and most productive gold mining area in Amazon. Human hair and blood as well as fish samples were collected from gold mining area and five fishing villages and analyzed for total mercury and methylmercury with new methods recently developed in our laboratory. The results to date showed that the inhabitants of fishing villages near gold mining area were more exposed to methylmercury than those far from gold mines. A few hair samples tested had methylmercury levels greater than 50 ppm, the minimum threshold value for methyl mercury poisoning. Analysis of hair samples from gold miners and workers in gold shops showed that they were mainly contaminated with inorganic mercury. From these analytical results, together with mercury analysis in fish as well as human blood samples, the mercury pollution mechanisms in the study area are also discussed.
The epiphytic lichen Parmelia caperata (L.) Ach. was used as bioaccumulator of the heavy metals Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn in the environs of the town of Pistoia (central northern Italy). The concentrations of Cd, Cr, Ni, Hg and Pb were comparable with those found in areas not subject to atmospheric pollution. Copper and especially Zn were found in rather high concentrations. Fertilizers and pesticides were the main source of atmospheric contamination.
Instrumental neutron activation analysis was used to determine trace elements in Cladina mitis (Sandst). Hale & Culb. along transects extending from uranium mines at Elliot Lake and Agnew Lake in central Ontario, Canada. Levels of 11 elements were reported and the presence of uranium (U) was confirmed, although U concentrations were much less than in Cladina rangiferina 10 years earlier. Among the elements identified in lichen thalli was Th, which occurred in higher concentrations than U. All trace elements, including the two radionuclides, were found in deteriorating thallus parts as well as living podetia, and five of these seem to have originated as airborne particulates from minesites. In spite of mine closures, levels of Th and U remained higher near sources of ore dust and there was little relationship between radionuclide concentrations in thallus and substrate. 24 refs., 4 figs., 3 tabs.
The operations of the Dave Johnston coal-fired powerplant near Glenrock, Wyoming, have had a measurable effect on trace-element concentrations in Parmelia chlorochroa Tuck., which is common to the area. Concentrations of 35 elements were measured in samples collected along upwind and downwind transects. Of these elements, concentrations of calcium, fluorine, lithium, selenium, strontium and uranium, as well as ash yields, decreased with distance from the powerplant. Compared to background levels established for this lichen from the Powder River Basin, only the selenium values near the powerplant are considered unusually high. 16 references.
An epiphytic lichen and a soil lichen in two very closely related genera (Parmelia sulcata and Xanthoparmelia chlorochroa, respectively) were sampled 16 years apart at Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota and measured for their elemental content. Mercury and cadmium decreased approximately 30% over the time period in both species. Sulfur decreased 8% in the epiphytic species, but increased 20% in the soil lichen. Factor analysis revealed that soil elements were higher in the soil lichen, indicating there was some soil contamination in that species. A relationship between iron and titanium was found only in the soil lichen. Sulfur and mercury were highly enriched in both species relative to the soil, which suggests that the atmosphere is a contributing source of these elements. New baseline values were calculated, 22 elements for both species, although it is not recommended that the soil lichen be sampled in the future.
Four species of lichen (Cladina rangiferina, Evernia mesomorpha, Hypogymnia physodes, and Parmelia sulcata) were sampled at six locations in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness three times over a span of 11 years and analyzed for concentrations of 16 chemical elements to test the hypotheses that corticolous species would accumulate higher amounts of chemical elements than terricolous species, and that 11 years were sufficient to detect spatial patterns and temporal trends in element contents. Multivariate analyses of over 2770 data points revealed two principal components that accounted for 68% of the total variance in the data. These two components, the first highly loaded with Al, B, Cr, Fe, Ni and S, and the second loaded with Ca, Cd, Mg and Mn, were inversely related to each other over time and space. The first component was interpreted as consisting of an anthropogenic and a dust component, while the second, primarily a nutritional component. Cu, K, Na, P, Pb and Zn were not highly loaded on either component. Component 1 decreased significantly over the 11 years and from west to east, while component 2 increased. The corticolous species were more enriched in heavy metals than the terricolous species. All four elements in component 2 in H. physodes were above enrichment thresholds for this species. Species differences on the two components were greater than the effects of time and space, suggesting that biomonitoring with lichens is strongly species dependent. Some localities in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness appear enriched in some anthropogenic elements for no obvious reasons.
The cellular location of lead and potassium has been studied in the lichen Cladonia rangiformis, collected from a lead-rich site. Elution of ions by dilute acid or their replacement by other ions has demonstrated that lead is ionically bound, most probably within the cell wall. The same techniques have shown a proportion of the total potassium to be also bound ionically in the cell wall. In addition potassium is present as freely diffusible material retained within the permeability barriers of the intact cell and also firmly bound in an insoluble form. The reported tolerance of lichens to heavy metals is discussed in relation to the demonstrated location of lead.