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Phytotoxicity and Accumulation of Lead in Australian Native Vegetation

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Abstract

Lead (Pb) is a wide spread contaminant in the terrestrial landscape. It is highly detrimental to plant and animal life and possesses no known biologic function. Yet there is a paucity of reliable information available on the response of Australian and other plant species to Pb exposure at phytotoxic doses. In this study, the response of three Australian native grass species and two tree species to Pb in nutrient solution culture was investigated. Plants were exposed to average Pb concentrations ranging from 0.020 to 15.2 μM. The plant species included Acacia decurrens, Austrodanthonia richardsonii, Bothriochloa macra, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, and Dichanthium sericeum. Few foliar symptoms were evident in any plant species, although some discolouration in young leaves of E. camaldulensis was evident from 1 μM, and B. macra showed pronounced reddening at the highest treatments. The most tolerant plant species studied based on solution EC50, roots (μM) results was B. macra (7.0 ± 0.2), followed by A. decurrens (3.9 ± 0.2), D. sericeum (2.9 ± 0.3), E. camaldulensis (1.1 ± 0.3), and A. richardsonii (0.4). A hazardous concentration value (HC5) (n = 9) for soil solution was estimated to be 0.16 μM. A. richardsonii was highly sensitive to Pb and possessed little ability to restrict Pb translocation to its shoots. B. macra was able to tolerate high root (3924 mg kg−1) and shoot (743.0 mg kg−1) Pb concentrations. A. decurrens excluded Pb from it shoots. The high tolerance of A. decurrens to Pb and limited translocation to shoots indicates it may be useful in revegetation of Pb-contaminated soils.

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the Australian Postgraduate Award (Industry), the Australian Commonwealth Government through the Australian Research Council, and the Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Environmental Risk Assessment and Remediation, University of South Australia, Building X, Mawson Lakes, SA, 5095, Australia

    Dane T. Lamb, Hui Ming, Mallavarapu Megharaj & Ravi Naidu

  2. Cooperative Research Centre for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment (CRC CARE), University of South Australia, Building X, Mawson Lakes, SA, 5095, Australia

    Dane T. Lamb, Hui Ming, Mallavarapu Megharaj & Ravi Naidu

Authors
  1. Dane T. Lamb
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  2. Hui Ming
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  3. Mallavarapu Megharaj
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  4. Ravi Naidu
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Correspondence to Ravi Naidu.

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Lamb, D.T., Ming, H., Megharaj, M. et al. Phytotoxicity and Accumulation of Lead in Australian Native Vegetation. Arch Environ Contam Toxicol 58, 613–621 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-009-9460-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-009-9460-2

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