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Aluminium and Iron Contamination of Soil, Leaf Litter and Bioindicators in Selected South African Forest Pockets

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Abstract

Forests within major cities, such as Table Mountains, Afromontane forests, are constantly subjected to industrial and urban pollution sources. Cape Town is one of the most profound areas in the world for plant extinction and already has a high occurrence of threatened species. The objective of this study was to determine the concentrations of the metals, aluminium and iron, commonly emitted from anthropogenic activities in key forest organisms (mosses, lichens and millipedes), soil and leaf litter in three forests (Platbos, Orange Kloof and Newlands) in the Western Cape, South Africa. In general, the metal concentrations increased with traffic volumes and traffic behaviour (frequent braking and acceleration). Factors, such as the locations of the sites and forests, wind and different accumulation abilities of bioindicators had a notable impact, as did the natural geological origin of aluminium and iron. Of significance in this study was the metal contamination in forests in close proximity of the centre of the city Cape Town.

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Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank the Cape Peninsula University of Technology for funding. We also wish to thank the following organizations and people for granting permits, analysis of samples and identification of the sentinel organisms: Deborah Jean Winterton (SANParks), Francois and Melissa Krige (Platbos forest), Riana Rossouw (ICP laboratory, University of Stellenbosch), Bemlab, Professor Terry Hedderson (University of Cape Town), Dr Andre Aptroot (ABL Herbarium, Netherlands) and Michelle Hamer (SANBI).

Funding

This study was funded by the Cape Peninsula University of Technology

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental and Occupational Studies, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, P.O. Box 652, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa

    Anne-Liese Naudé & James Philander Odendaal

  2. Department of Conservation and Marine Science, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, P.O. Box 652, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa

    Reinette Georgenie Snyman

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  1. Anne-Liese Naudé
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  2. Reinette Georgenie Snyman
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Contributions

Anne-Liese Naudé acquired a PhD in Environmental Health at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. Her background is horticulture and landscaping, which expanded to environmental pollution, in particular, ecotoxicology. Her research interest is in metal contamination, specifically in forests, using bioindicators and has a keen interest in the conservation of, especially urban forests for the environment and human health.

Prof James Philander Odendaal: James Odendaal holds a PhD in the field of ecotoxicology, with an emphasis on soil metal contamination. His research interest is in the bioaccumulation and toxicity of metals in invertebrates in the soil and aquatic environments. His research interests further include the toxic interactions between metal pollutants.

Prof Reinette Georgenie Snyman: Reinette Snyman, with a PhD in the field of ecotoxicology has a keen research interest in the sustainable management of local faunal biodiversity. Her research interests further include soil, freshwater and marine ecosystems, a variety of inorganic and organic pollutants, the use of both animals and plants as biomonitors, and a range of cellular, physiological and biochemical biomarkers.

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Correspondence to Anne-Liese Naudé.

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Naudé, AL., Snyman, R.G. & Odendaal, J.P. Aluminium and Iron Contamination of Soil, Leaf Litter and Bioindicators in Selected South African Forest Pockets. Water Air Soil Pollut 232, 304 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-021-05246-5

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