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Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Metals in Transplanted Lichen (Pseudovernia furfuracea) at Sites Adjacent to a Solid-waste Landfill in Central Italy

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Abstract

The aim of the study was to evaluate the airborne contamination by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and some heavy metals (arsenic [As], cadmium [Cd], chromium [Cr], copper [Cu], nickel [Ni], lead [Pb], and zinc [Zn]) of different pollution scenarios around a solid-waste landfill in central Italy using the lichen Pseudovernia furfuracea as a monitoring tool. For this purpose, eight stations around a landfill characterized by different air pollution sources (industrial, agricultural, residential areas, and roads with different traffic intensities), together with three stations far from the landfill (control areas), were monitored using a set of 22 lichen samples (11 samples analysed for PAHs and metals after 4 months, and 11 samples analysed for metals after 8 months). After 4 months of exposure, the lichen content of all of the analysed elements was greater than that in the pre-exposed lichens. In addition, the Cu and Pb concentration after 8 months was greater than the level after 4 months. The order of metal concentration was Zn > Pb > Cu (or Cu > Pb) > Cr > Ni > As > Cd in all cases. The range of ∑11PAHs concentration was 634–1,371 ng/g dw (three to seven times greater than the amount in the pre-exposed lichens). The ∑11PAHs were dominated (>70 %) by compounds with three aromatic rings. The comparison of the levels of air pollutants among the monitored stations shows nonrelevant spatial patterns between the landfill stations and the control areas; the levels of PAHs and metals found in the lichen samples around the landfill seemed to be more related to the general diffusion of these pollutants in that area.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185, Rome, Italy

    C. Protano & M. Vitali

  2. Arpa Lazio, Regional Agency for Environmental Protection, via Salaria per L’Aquila 88, 02100, Rieti, Italy

    M. Guidotti, M. Owczarek, L. Fantozzi & G. Blasi

Authors
  1. C. Protano
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  2. M. Guidotti
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  3. M. Owczarek
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  4. L. Fantozzi
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  5. G. Blasi
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  6. M. Vitali
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Correspondence to M. Vitali.

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Protano, C., Guidotti, M., Owczarek, M. et al. Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons and Metals in Transplanted Lichen (Pseudovernia furfuracea) at Sites Adjacent to a Solid-waste Landfill in Central Italy. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 66, 471–481 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-013-9965-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-013-9965-6

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