Application of active biomonitoring technique for the assessment of air pollution by potentially toxic elements in urban areas in the Kemerovo Region, Russia

Abstract

In Kemerovo Region (Kuzbass, Southwest Siberia), there is the largest coal basin in Russia and one of the largest in the world. Active moss biomonitoring was applied to assess the impact of potentially toxic elements on air pollution in five urban areas of the region. In each of the chosen urban regions, the moss bags were exposed in November and December of 2022 at locations with varying degrees of anthropogenic pressure. Using a direct mercury analyzer in conjunction with coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry, the content of sixteen major and trace elements (Al, Ba, Co, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, P, Pb, Sr, S, V, Zn, and Hg) was ascertained. Compared to unexposed the exposed moss bags showed a higher content of potentially toxic elements. To draw attention to the relationships between the elements and connect them to potential emission sources, correlation, and principal component analyses were used. A strong positive correlation was obtained for elements emitted by coal mining and burning, the metallurgical industry, and vehicles. To evaluate the degree of environmental pollution and the element enrichment in the moss, the relative accumulation factor and contamination factor were computed. The mean values of the contamination factor ranged from 0.83 to 4.8, indicating the exposure sites show no contamination to moderate contamination status.