The accumulation of elements in plants growing spontaneously on small heaps left by the historical Zn-Pb ore mining

The study evaluated the levels of nine metals, namely Ca, Cd, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Pb, Tl, and Zn, in soils and tissues of ten plant species growing spontaneously on heaps left by historical mining for Zn-Pb ores. The concentrations of Cd, Pb, Tl, and Zn in heap soils were much higher than in control soils. Plants growing on heaps accumulated excessive amounts of these elements in tissues, on average 1.3–52 mg Cd kg(-1), 9.4–254 mg Pb kg(-1), 0.06–23 mg Tl kg(-1) and 134–1479 mg Zn kg(-1) in comparison to 0.5-1.1 mg Cd kg(-1), 2.1–11 mg Pb kg(-1), 0.02–0.06 mg Tl kg(-1), and 23–124 mg Zn kg(-1) in control plants. The highest concentrations of Cd, Pb, and Zn were found in the roots of Euphorbia cyparissias, Fragaria vesca, and Potentilla arenaria, and Tl in Plantago lanceolata. Many species growing on heaps were enriched in K and Mg, and depleted in Ca, Fe, and Mn. The concentrations of all elements in plant tissues were dependent on species, organ (root vs. shoot), and species-organ interactions. Average concentrations of Ca, K, and Mg were generally higher in shoots than in roots or similar in the two organs, whereas Cd, Fe, Pb, Tl, and Zn were accumulated predominantly in the roots. Our results imply that heaps left by historical mining for Zn-Pb ores may pose a potential threat to the environment and human health. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s11356-015-5859-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.