Abstract

Heavy metal contamination from mining site in marrakech-Morocco: Diffusional transport of trace elements from contaminated soil to crop plants

Author(s): Yassir Barkouch, A.Sedki, A.Pineau

Couch grass, Tamarix Galica and wheat, grown in industrially polluted region, were included in the present research. The experimental plotswere situated at two different villages near a mine area(district of DARÄA LASFAR) who is located in North-West of the Mrabtine zone, located at approximately 10 kmin thewest ofMarrakech-MORROCO. The aimof this work was to estimate whether a given soil is suitable for cultivation of plants used as food or feed. The paper discusses the transfer of metal ions(Al, Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn) from contaminated soils to plants. We investigated the level of soils pollution and the way heavymetals enter the fibre crops, by taking soil and plant samples. The contents of heavymetals in plant materials(roots and leaves) were determined after the method of the dry mineralization. The quantitative measurements were carried out with atomic absorption spectroscopy (AAS).Aclearly distinguished species peculiarity exists in the accumulation of heavy metals in the vegetative and reproductive organs of the three corps. Couch grass seems to be the most strongly absorber and accumulator of heavy metals from the soil; it removes considerable quantities of heavymetals fromthe soil with its root system. Such a relationship is generally observed between the total soil content of a given metal and that of the plant. For this reason, it was necessary to develop a mathematic expression to get easy the comprehension of the way heavy metals enter the fibre crops and their transfer fromcontaminated soils, based on diffusional transport of the soil solute towards the roots.