Heavy metal pollution assessment in a mangrove ecosystem scheduled as a community reserve
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Heavy metal pollution assessment in a mangrove ecosystem scheduled as a community reserve Nair G. Sarath . Jos T. Puthur
Received: 22 June 2020 / Accepted: 9 November 2020 Ó Springer Nature B.V. 2020
Abstract Heavy metal pollution is one of most toxic pollutions and cause serious threat to organisms as well as the environment. The tremendous increase in industrialization and other anthropogenic activities magnify the rate of heavy metal pollution. The present study reveals the heavy metal pollution assessment in Kadalundi Vallikunnu Community Reserve (KVCR), a scheduled community reserve of Kerala, India. The results from the study indicate that the heavy metal pollution index of KVCR was less because of the mangrove cover in this region. KVCR is endowed with different mangroves and it plays a significant role in controlling the heavy metal pollution and water quality. The higher Importance Value Index and Relative Importance Value Index was shown in the case of Avicennia officinalis, followed by Acanthus ilicifolius and the lowest values of these indices were observed in the case of Sonneratia alba. The less accumulation of heavy metals in the soil sediments was due to the potential of mangrove species for effective absorption of toxic metals from the soil sediments. Mangrove vegetation in the wetlands is potent phytoremediators and can play a significant role in phytoremediation of wetlands. The high BCF value of A. ilicifolius indicates its suitability for heavy metal
N. G. Sarath J. T. Puthur (&) Plant Physiology and Biochemistry Division, Department of Botany, University of Calicut, C.U. Campus P.O., Calicut, Kerala 673635, India e-mail: [email protected]
remediation in wetlands. Eco restoration of heavy metal polluted wetlands using mangroves is a promising and sustainable solution for heavy metal pollution in such ecologically fragile areas. Keywords Kadalundi Vallikunnu Community Reserve Mangroves Heavy metal pollution Phytoremediation
Introduction Heavy metal pollution has deleterious effects on all ecosystem due to the persistent nature of metal ions as well as their ability to accumulate within the plant biomass. Heavy metal contamination mainly occurs due to anthropogenic activities like industrialization, urbanization, smelting, sewage sludge, fertilizers and mining (Lajayer et al. 2019). Leaching of these hazardous metal ions into the deep soil pollutes the ground water and there are also chances for these toxic metals to enter into the food chain and ultimately into human beings (Antoniadis et al. 2017). Elements with atomic number greater than 20 and mass of about 5 g cm-3 are considered to be heavy metals (Alloway and Brian 2012). It includes copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), chromium(Cr), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni) and iron (Fe) which are essential for the growth and development of plants. There are also non-essential heavy metals, such as cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), mercury
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Wetlands Ecol Manage
(Hg) and arsenic (As), without
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