Abstract
An attempt was made to determine the heavy metal concentration of the epiphytic mosses on three barks in contaminated areas. Moss samples were collected in three contaminated areas (Omuta, Kanda and Tagawa) and three control areas (Kurume, Dazaifu and Maebaru). The great majority of the samples were the specimens of Entodon Challengeri (Par.) Card. The moss samples collected were ashed and examined for heavy metal contains by atomic absorption spectrometry.
The levels of certain heavy metals determined in the moss samples were characteristic of contaminated areas: Cd was higher in Omuta, Kanda and Tagawa areas than in the control areas, Zn in Omuta and Kanda areas than in the control areas, Pb in Omuta A (the region within 10 km of the zinc smelters), Kanda and Tagawa than in the control areas, and Cu and Fe in Kanda area than in the control areas. Two zinc smelters have conducted operations on large scales in Omuta area, and several factories have produced a large amount of cement in Kanda and Tagawa areas. The studies in Omuta area showed that Cd, Zn and Pb concentrations in the moss samples decreased with increasing distance from the zinc smelters.
From the above findings, it may be said that the determination of the heavy metal contents of the epiphytic mosses provides convincing data to the assessment of heavy metal contamination in terrestrial environments.
