METAL POLLUTION OF SOILS IN THE SW PART OF KOCANI VALLEY (R. MACEDONIA) RELATED WITH PB-ZN MINES ACTIVITIES

5th International Scientific Conference - SGEM2005, www.sgem.org, SGEM2005 Conference Proceedings/ ISBN: 954-918181-2, June 13-17, 2005, 249- 256pp

ABSTRACT

This paper presents the results from the study of heavy metals contamination of paddy
soil of the Kočani Field (Eastern Macedonia), an area with extensive agricultural production.
The soil of the Kočani Field is supposed to be polluted by heavy metals due to mining
activities and acid mine drainage from Zletovo-Kratovo and Sasa-Toranica ore districts. This
was supposed by the fact that acid mine drainage and direct input of Zletovo Pb-Zn mine
effluents of pH 3.4 with mean Pb concentrations of 66 mg l-1, Zn at 39 mg l-1, As at 128 mg l-1,
Cd at 176 mg l-1, Cu at 677 mg l-1, U at 396 mg l-1 (Serafimovski, 2004) polluted Zletovska
River. Influence of Kamenicka River, which drains through the Sasa mine tailings dump, to
Bregalnica River is in the range 0.04?14.3mg Zn, 30?1340g l-1 Pb, 2?90 g l-1 Cd etc., with
a pH values of around 5?6.9 (Serafimovski et al., 2004).
The results revealed that paddy soil of the south-western and southern part of the
Kočani Field is severely contaminated with Pb, Zn, As, Cd and some other heavy metals in
the vicinity of the Zletovska and Bregalnica River due to irrigation with riverine water.
The detected total concentrations of these metals are far above the threshold values
considered as phytotoxically excessive for surface soil. Highly elevated concentrations of Pb,
Zn, As and Cd and the pollution index (PI) in the range between 1 and 8 were found in all
investigated paddy soil samples in the vicinities of formerly mentioned rivers. Analitically
determined values of certain heavy metals such as Pb, Zn, As and Cd were in ranges 11?983
μg g-1, 53?1245 μg g-1, 3.4?47.6 μg g-1 and 0.1?6.4 μg g-1 respectively.