Element Cycling at Thermally Active Coal-Waste Dumps: A Case Study of Calamagrostis epigejos and Solidago canadensis

Anna K. Abramowicz () and Oimahmad Rahmonov
Additional contact information
Anna K. Abramowicz: Institute of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Univeristy of Silesia in Katowice, Bedzinska 60, 41-200 Sosnowiec, Poland
Oimahmad Rahmonov: Institute of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Univeristy of Silesia in Katowice, Bedzinska 60, 41-200 Sosnowiec, Poland

Resources, 2024, vol. 13, issue 6, 1-17

Abstract: Coal-waste dumps in the Upper Silesian Coal Basin are usually colonized by tall grass Calamagrostis epigejos and Solidago canadensis , which influence the direction of vegetation formation and the soil chemistry. The aim of this study is to analyze and determine the content of major elements (Fe, Ca, P, Mg, Al, Na, K, S) and trace elements (Mo, Cu, Pb, Zn, Ni, Co, Mn, Sr, Cd, Cr) in aboveground and underground parts of the plants and the soil at the thermally active coal-waste dump. Analysis of the heavy metal concentrations reveals that they are higher in plant materials than in soil materials within the root zone of the plants. Environmental indicator analysis (geoaccumulation index, enrichment factor, translocation factor) shows that the studied species exhibit varying degrees of pollution, with cadmium and zinc showing the highest accumulation rates. The content of elements in the analyzed species, both in washed and unwashed specimens, does not show significant differences, which is confirmed by the enrichment factor. Statistical analysis shows a positive correlation between the amount of microelements in plants (roots, aerial part) and soil samples in both thermally active and inactive zones. These findings broaden the scientific inquiry and hold practical significance for the reclamation of post-industrial areas.

Keywords: land degradation; heavy metals; elemental composition; metal translocation; burning heap; wood small-reed; Canadian goldenrod (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/13/6/73/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2079-9276/13/6/73/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jresou:v:13:y:2024:i:6:p:73-:d:1405264

Access Statistics for this article

Resources is currently edited by Ms. Donchian Ma

More articles in Resources from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().