Research of Heavy Metals (Cu, Cr and Zn) Concentration in Bottom Sediments of Roadside Water Ponds

Audrone Mikalajune, Lina Vilniske

Pollution of the water ponds with heavy metals is meant to be one of the basic ecological problems in the world. The problems of the environmental pollution with heavy metals are created by intensive growth of the cities, industrial development, growth of intensity of the transport and agricultural progress. Automobile transport is meant as one of the sources of the heavy metals in Lithuania. Such anthropogenic pollution depends on the intensity of transport, richness of the rainfall, composition of the exhaust gas, etc. Pollution of the water ponds that surround two main roads, two national roads and two regional gravelled roads with heavy metals (Cu, Cr and Zn) in particular periods of the year is analyzed in the article. After the experimental analyses were performed, it was assessed that ultimate concentrations of the heavy metals have appeared at spring, when the traffic was the most intensive (21500 automobiles/per day) of the water ponds bottom sediments at the distance of 10 m from the roadside and have reached Cr – 61 mg/kg, Cu – 29,6 mg/kg and Zn – 217,3 mg/kg. Minimal concentrations of the heavy metals of the water ponds bottom sediments were assessed at the environment of the gravel road, where the intensity of the traffic was the minimal (up to 400 automobiles per day) – there concentration of Cr has reached up to 33,8 mg/kg, Cu – up to 17,4 mg/kg and Zn – up to 84,5 mg/kg.