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Toxic effects of lead in plants grown in brazilian soils

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Abstract

Lead (Pb) in soils can be transferred to plants, animals, and even humans. The toxicity of Pb is worrisome and therefore environmental quality criteria, established by laws to support the management of contaminated sites, have been developed to prevent its deleterious effects in a wide range of soils, uses, and occupations. In Brazil, the CONAMA Resolution 420/2009 established that Brazilian states may define their prevention values (PV) for metals in soils. However, the established values should be well studied, since a wide variation of sensitivity of species exposed to Pb is reported and several have a high tolerance. We aimed to evaluate Pb toxicity to validate the suitability of the current Brazilian Pb-prevention value. A trial was carried with two plant species (sorghum and soybean) grown in two tropical soils (Typic Hapludox and Rhodic Acrudox), following ISO 11.269-2 protocols (ISO 2012). The tested soils were contaminated with Pb-acetate at the following concentrations: 0, 200, 400, 800, 1200, 1600, 2200, 2800, and 3200 mg kg−1 of dry soil. Differences regarding species sensitivity were observed and sorghum seemed to be less sensitive to Pb concentration in soils. Soil characteristics as higher clay and organic matter content were responsible for decreasing the overall availability of Pb for plants. Using data from this study and from the literature, we constructed a species sensitivity distribution curve and calculated the HC5 (hazardous concentration to 5% of variables evaluated). The HC5 was 132.5 mg kg−1, which suggests that the PV currently used in Brazil (72 mg kg−1) is sufficiently protective for Brazilian soils.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Minas Gerais State Research Foundation (FAPEMIG), National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), and Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES) for the financial support in the development of this work and for the scholarships provided.

Funding

This study was funded by FAPEMIG, The State of Minas Gerais Research Foundation (grant number APQ 1084/15).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universidade Federal de Lavras, Lavras, MG, 37200-000, Brazil

    Geraldo S. Cândido, Francielle R. D. Lima, Polyana Pereira, Mateus M. Engelhardt, Rayner H. C. L. Reis & João José Marques

  2. Instituto Tecnológico Vale, Belém, PA, 66055-090, Brazil

    Gabriel C. Martins

  3. Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, MG, 36570-000, Brazil

    Isabela C. F. Vasques

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  1. Geraldo S. Cândido
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Cândido, G.S., Martins, G.C., Vasques, I.C.F. et al. Toxic effects of lead in plants grown in brazilian soils. Ecotoxicology 29, 305–313 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10646-020-02174-8

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