Accessibility navigation


Lichens used as monitors of atmospheric pollution around Agadir (Southwestern Morocco) - a case study predating lead-free gasoline

Monna, F., Bouchaou, L., Rambeau, C., Losno, R., Bruguier, O., Dongarra, G., Black, S. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1396-4821 and Chateau, C. (2012) Lichens used as monitors of atmospheric pollution around Agadir (Southwestern Morocco) - a case study predating lead-free gasoline. Water Air & Soil Pollution: Focus, 223 (3). pp. 1263-1274. ISSN 1573-2940

Full text not archived in this repository.

It is advisable to refer to the publisher's version if you intend to cite from this work. See Guidance on citing.

To link to this item DOI: 10.1007/s11270-011-0942-2

Abstract/Summary

More than 30 epiphytic lichens, collected in Agadir (Morroco) and along a 150-km transect from the Atlantic Ocean eastward, were analyzed for their metal content and lead isotopic composition. This dataset was used to evaluate atmospheric metal contamination and the impact of the city on the surrounding area. The concentrations of Cu, Pb, and Zn (average ± 1 SD) were 20.9 ± 15.2 μg g−1, 13.8 ± 9.0 μg g−1, and 56.6 ± 26.6 μg g−1, respectively, with the highest values observed in lichens collected within the urban area. The 206Pb/207Pb and 208Pb/207Pb ratios in the lichens varied from 1.146 to 1.186 and from 2.423 to 2.460, respectively. Alkyllead-gasoline sold in Morocco by the major petrol companies gave isotopic ratios of 206Pb/207Pb = 1.076–1.081 and 208Pb/207Pb = 2.348–2.360. These new, homogeneous values for gasoline-derived lead improve and update the scarce isotopic database of potential lead sources in Morocco, and may be of great value to future environmental surveys on the presence of lead in natural reservoirs, where it persists over time (e.g., soils and sediments). The interest of normalizing metal concentrations in lichens to concentrations of a lithogenic element is demonstrated by the consistency of the results thus obtained with lead isotopic ratios. Leaded gasoline contributed less than 50% of the total amount of lead accumulated in lichens, even in areas subject to high vehicular traffic. This strongly suggests that the recent banishment of leaded gasoline in Morocco will not trigger a drastic improvement in air quality, at least in Agadir.

Item Type:Article
Refereed:Yes
Divisions:Science > School of Archaeology, Geography and Environmental Science > Department of Archaeology
Interdisciplinary centres and themes > Soil Research Centre
ID Code:28588
Publisher:Springer Verlag

University Staff: Request a correction | Centaur Editors: Update this record

Page navigation