CONCENTRATIONS AND BIOAVAILABILITY OF POTENTIALLY TOXIC ELEMENTS IN SOILS OF AN INDUSTRIALISED AREA OF NORTHWESTERN GREECE

Abstract

Thirty eight surface soil samples from the Ptolemais-Kozani basin, northwestern Greece were collected and analysed for their content in twenty three elements (Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, Ti, As, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Li, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Sr, V, Y and Zn) by ICP-AES and ICP-MS. The concentrations of these elements were compared with three international guidelines and the results indicated that Cr and Ni are found enriched in the surface soils of the study area, mainly as a consequence of natural processes, namely the weathering of surrounding rocks such as ophiolites. Moreover, the bioavailability of some of these elements was tested and results indicate that they do not pose an immediate threat to the environment as it all demonstrated values below 1%.