PT01 Assessing Contaminated Soil Sites
Exhibit Hall
8:00 AM - Tuesday, 11 November 2003
(PT013) Soil Ecotoxicity Assessment using Crop Plants.
An, YJ1, 1 Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea
ABSTRACT- Four crop plant species (sweet corn, Zea may; wheat, Triticum aestivum; cucumber, Cucumis sativus; and sorghum, Sorghum bicolor) were tested to assess an ecotoxicity in Cd-amended soils. The measurement endpoints were seed germination, shoot growth and root growth. Seed germination was resistant to Cd toxicity and it is not good indicator for Cd toxicity. The growth of test plants was adversely affected in Cd-amended soils. The root growth was the most sensitive endpoint. The EC50 values for sorghum, cucumber, and wheat, and sweet corn were in the range of 22-35, 88-102, 98-113, and 208-265 mg Cd/kg soil dry weight, respectively. The bioavailability of Cd was dependent on concentrations as well as test species. Cadmium accumulation was the highest in sorghum that is the most sensitive to Cd in acute toxicity test. Also the transport of Cd within plants is highly species dependent. Plant growth test can be a good protocol to assess the ecotoxicity of soil contaminated by heavy metals such as Cd. Among the plants tested, sorghum and cucumber seem to be Cd sensitive plants that can be used as positive Cd bioindicators.
Key words: plant, ecotoxicity, soil, cadmium