Trace element biomonitoring by leaves of Populus nigra L. from Western Anatolia, Turkey
Baslar, S.; Dogan, Y.; Yenil, N.; Karagoz, S.; Bag, H.
Journal of Environmental Biology 26(4): 665-668
2005
ISSN/ISBN: 0254-8704 PMID: 16459554 Document Number: 590076
The West Anatolian Region is one of the most important areas for industrialization, population density and traffic in Turkey. Therefore, the leaves of Populus nigra L. (Salicaceae), which are used as biomonitor to investigate the levels of the trace elements Cd, Pb, Fe, Zn and Cu, were sampled at 30 locations having different pollution levels in the region. The concentrations of elements were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry. The samples were collected at both reference and contaminated locations where iron was found as the priority element. The strong association between a gradient of contamination and concentration in all samples tested indicates that they are reflecting well the environmental changes, and that they appear as appropriate biological indicators of heavy metal contamination.