Volume 25 (2014): Issue 1 (March 2014)

Road dust is one of the most toxic substances found in the environment. Numerous reports found in the literature confirm that proper plantations of various plants can protect areas surrounding communication routes. This way, spreading of different pollutants, including heavy metals, is limited. Determination of total and available zinc content in soil of roadside and soil of a parcel directly neighbouring the roadside on which Virginia mallow was cultivated, plantations of which were supposed to fulfil a function of a biological road screen, was the aim of the investigation. Content of zinc in particular parts of Virginia mallow was also determined. Obtained results of the investigation indicate that content of zinc in soil, on which Virginia fanpetals was cultivated, was similar to its content in soil of roadside directly adjacent to the road. In a course of two years of conducting the investigation, no decrease of the element was observed in the soil of both experimental plots. Moreover, the highest content of zinc was noted in leaves, which are the part of the plant most exposed to automotive pollution, lower in roots and the lowest in stems of investigated Virginia mallow plants.

Municipal waste landfills are a source of microbial contamination. The aim of the study was to determine the degree of air pollution by bacteria, including the coli group, fungi and actinomycetes. The object of the analysis was the landfill of the Department for the Recovery and Storage of Municipal Waste in Leśno Górne. Analyses were performed in the four seasons of the year, taking into account the weather, status of the number of microorganisms and degree of risk to human health and life.

The paper presents the estimate of externalities caused by methane emission from exploitation of the municipal solid waste landfill in the years 2002-2009. Methane emission was calculated according to the methodology recommended by the IPCC which is briefly presented in the paper. The following parameters were evaluated: mass of the landfilled wastes, correction coefficient for methane based on the landfill characteristics, content of biodegradable carbon based on waste morphology and mass of recovered methane. Based on these parameters, the amount of methane emitted from the landfill during 2002-2009 was estimated at 3.16 Gg.

A total of 409 sediment samples were collected from lake deeps of 260 lakes in the Greater Poland, Pomerania and Masuria Lakelands. All samples (fraction <0.2 mm) were analysed for the concentration of zinc (Zn), Al, Ca, Mg, Fe, K, Mn, Na, P, S and TOC. The Zn concentration in the lake sediments varied from <6 to 1006 mg/kg, the average concentration was 93 mg/kg and the geometric mean 74 mg/kg. In most of the samples, the Zn concentration was less than 200 mg/kg (except in 19 samples). The Zn concentration shows significant correlation with the contents of Al, K, S and C_org., and poor or no correlation with the contents of Mn, Na and Ca. Scatter plots show a clear relationship between the Zn content and the contents of Al and K, indicating that a significant part of Zn is associated in the sediments with clay minerals. There is also a correlation between the Zn content and the concentrations of C_org. and S, suggesting that a part of Zn is bound by organic matter. A relatively poor relationship between the Zn concentration and the concentrations of Fe and P has also been found, indicating that a part of Zn may also be associated with iron minerals. Factor analysis has shown that in lake sediments of the Masuria and Greater Poland Lakelands Zn is primarily bound by organic matter, whereas in lake sediments of the Pomeranian Lakeland by clay minerals.