Urban Atmospheric Environment Quality Assessment by Naturally Growing Bryophytes in Central China

Yanbin Jiang, Xifeng Zhang, Ronggui Hu, Jinsong Zhao, Miao Fan, Muhammad Shaaban and Yupeng Wu
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Yanbin Jiang: Key Laboratory of Arable Land Conservation (Middle and Lower Reaches of Yangtze River), Ministry of Agriculture, College of Resources and Environment, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
Xifeng Zhang: College of Geography and Environmental Science, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Ronggui Hu: Key Laboratory of Arable Land Conservation (Middle and Lower Reaches of Yangtze River), Ministry of Agriculture, College of Resources and Environment, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
Jinsong Zhao: Key Laboratory of Arable Land Conservation (Middle and Lower Reaches of Yangtze River), Ministry of Agriculture, College of Resources and Environment, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
Miao Fan: Key Laboratory of Arable Land Conservation (Middle and Lower Reaches of Yangtze River), Ministry of Agriculture, College of Resources and Environment, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
Muhammad Shaaban: Department of Soil Science, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan 60080, Pakistan
Yupeng Wu: Key Laboratory of Arable Land Conservation (Middle and Lower Reaches of Yangtze River), Ministry of Agriculture, College of Resources and Environment, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 12, 1-14

Abstract: Bryophytes are popular biomonitoring plants for atmospheric environments. The objectives of this study were to examine the characteristics of bryophyte communities, determine a suitable monitor species, and assess urban atmospheric environment quality by the joint use of bryophyte features and chemical properties in a large city in China. A pleurocarpous feather moss Haplocladium angustifolium was recognized as a good biomonitor of atmospheric deposition in central China by investigating bryophyte communities and habitat environment in various ecological function regions of the urban areas in Wuhan. The concentrations of trace elements, including As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, V, Pb, and Zn, in moss and soil samples from 25 sampling sites were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The concentrations of Cd and Zn in Haplocladium angustifolium collected from the entire study area were much higher than those in substrate soil. Cd was at the highest ecological risk level among the 10 elements, which contributed 34.5% to the potential ecological risk index (RI). An RI value of 392.8 indicated that urban atmospheric quality in Wuhan was in a considerable potential ecological risk. The index of atmospheric purity, regarding species richness, cover, and frequency of bryophytes, was spatially and negatively correlated with RI, also demonstrated the atmospheric quality. Effective measures should be considered to alleviate certain airborne trace element contamination and protect the environment and human health in this metropolis.

Keywords: air quality; biomonitor; bryophyte diversity; ecological risk; trace elements (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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