Atmospheric lead pollution of grass grown in a background area in Denmark

Lead in the atmosphere of the Northern Hemisphere originates mostly in lead-alkyl petrol additives emitted from car exhausts. A small portion of this lead--estimated at about 10%--is deposited within 50-100 m of the road, while the rest is presumably transported long distances before deposition. It...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature (London) 1979-01, Vol.280 (5721), p.425-426
Main Authors: Tjell, J.C, Hovmand, M.F, Mosbaek, H
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:Lead in the atmosphere of the Northern Hemisphere originates mostly in lead-alkyl petrol additives emitted from car exhausts. A small portion of this lead--estimated at about 10%--is deposited within 50-100 m of the road, while the rest is presumably transported long distances before deposition. It is reported in this paper that the lead taken up by grass in a remote rural area is predominantly from the atmosphere. Three different soils and a crop of Italian rye-grass were used. The determinations of lead in prepared sample solutions were made on atomic absorption spectroscopy with graphite atomizer. Deposition of atmospheric lead on the plant surface was responsible for 90-99% of the total lead content in the grass in this typical background area in Denmark.
ISSN:0028-0836
1476-4687
DOI:10.1038/280425a0