Speciation, transport and bioavailability of Cd and Zn in contaminated terrestrial ecosystems (BIOMOD)

Institutt for plante- og miljøvitenskap

Project leader: Jan Mulder
Research Scientist: Åsgeir R. Almås
Co-workers: Lars R. Bakken, Trine Sogn, Bal Ram Singh (all UMB/IPM), Ed Tipping and Steve Lofts (CEH, UK), Hao Zhang (Lancaster Univ. UK) and Oddvar Røyset (NIVA, Norway)
Source of funding: The Research Council of Norway
Project period: 2003-2006


Trace metals are major pollutants in the industrialized world affecting terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Despite intensive investigations over decades, many questions concerning trace metals remain unresolved, including their behaviour in soils and water and their ecological effects. In the past, much of trace metal research focused on total concentrations in soil and different soil fractions. Such information is valuable, but does not allow precise predictions of trace metal mobility and bioavailability. As a consequence reliable assessment of ecological risks of trace metals remains difficult. The proposed project seeks to find quantitative relationships between trace metal speciation, mobility, bioavailability and effects in selected contaminated and uncontaminated (semi-)natural catchments in Odda County, Norway. Ecological effects of Cd and Zn and their speciation and bioavailability for living organisms in soils (plants and micro-organisms) will be assessed together with the transfer to surface water. The project will use newly developed biological and chemical analytical methods, along with mathematical modelling for predicting and assessing transport, effects of trace metals on microbes and plants, and ecological risk of metal contaminated soils

Main objective
Quantify mobility, bioavailability and ecological effects on dominant plants and micro-organisms of Cd and Zn in contaminated terrestrial ecosystems. The research will be carried out at contaminated and uncontaminated semi-natural catchments in Odda municipality, Norway.

Specific objectives
1. Determination of concentrations of labile and free metal ions in soil solution using diffusive gradients in thin films (DGT).
2. Calibration of the equilibrium model WHAM for the speciation of trace metals in soils.
3. Assessment of relationships between trace metal speciation in soil solution and bioavailability (plants and micro-organisms).
4. Calibration of the CHUM model to estimate the transport of metals in the catchments and their transfer to surface water.
5. Assessment of the practical use of these techniques as tools in evaluating ecological risk of trace metal contaminated soils.


Updated: 27.03.06
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