Application of soil amendments to reduce the transfer of trace metal elements from contaminated soils of Lubumbashi (Democratic Republic of the Congo) to vegetables

The extraction of copper and cobalt from mines has led to the contamination of agricultural soils by trace metal elements (TMEs) (e.g. Cu: 204 to 1355 mg/kg). The mining industry is one of the sources of metal discharges into the environment, contributing to water, soil, and air contamination and ca...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental monitoring and assessment 2024-10, Vol.196 (10), p.902, Article 902
Main Authors: Katebe, Félicien Mununga, Colinet, Gilles, Kyalamakasa, Jean-Marc Kaumbu, Mubemba, Michel Mpundu, Jijakli, M. Haïssam
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acidic soils
Agricultural land
Agricultural pollution
Air pollution
Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution
Cadmium
Cobalt
Consumption
Contamination
Copper
Earth and Environmental Science
Ecology
Ecotoxicology
Environment
Environmental Management
Factorial design
Gardens
Gardens & gardening
Germination
Heavy metals
Hydroponics
Lead
Limestone
Metabolic disorders
Mining industry
Monitoring/Environmental Analysis
Organic soils
Physicochemical processes
Physicochemical properties
Plant growth
Plants
Plants (botany)
Sawdust
Soil
Soil amendment
Soil chemistry
Soil contamination
Soil improvement
Soil lime
Soil pH
Soil pollution
Soil properties
Soil water
Soilless farming
Soils
Survival
Total organic carbon
Trace elements
Trace metals
Vegetables
Water discharge
Zinc
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Summary:The extraction of copper and cobalt from mines has led to the contamination of agricultural soils by trace metal elements (TMEs) (e.g. Cu: 204 to 1355 mg/kg). The mining industry is one of the sources of metal discharges into the environment, contributing to water, soil, and air contamination and causing metabolic disorders in the inhabitants of the city of Lubumbashi (R.D. Congo). This study assessed the effectiveness of organocalcareous soil improvers applied to TME-contaminated soils to reduce their transfer to plants. Following a factorial design, increasing doses of organic soil improvers (chicken droppings and sawdust) and agricultural lime were applied to the soils of three market gardens (high, medium, and low Cu contamination). The experiment was monitored for 60 days. Soil physicochemical properties (pH, TOC, and total and available copper, cobalt, lead, cadmium, and zinc (mg/kg)) were determined for the three gardens and in the vegetable biomass. The daily consumption index of the vegetables was determined based on total TME content. The results show that organocalcareous soil improvers did not promote plant growth and survival on soils with high and medium levels of copper contamination. However, on soils with low copper content, organocalcareous soil improvers improved germination and plant survival and reduced the transfer of metals from the soil to the plants. The best germination and plant survival rates were obtained with the lightly contaminated market garden. In addition, the organo-limestone amendments applied to the soils slightly increased the soil pH from acidic to slightly acidic, with pH values ranging from (5.43 ± 0.07 to 7.26 ± 0.33). The daily vegetable consumption index obtained for cobalt in the low-contaminated garden ranged from (0.029 to 0.465 mg/60 kg/day), i.e. from 0.5 to 8.45 times higher than the FAO/WHO limit, unlike the other trace metals (Cd, Cu and Pb) for which the daily consumption index found was lower than the FAO/WHO limit. Organocalcareous soil improvers can only be applied to soils with low levels of TME contamination, but for soils with medium to high levels of metal contamination, new soilless production techniques such as hydroponics or bioponics are needed.
ISSN:0167-6369
1573-2959
1573-2959
DOI:10.1007/s10661-024-13029-8