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Connectivity approach in urban protected area management based on soil and vegetation chemical status

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Abstract

The quality and vitality of cities largely depend on the design, management, and maintenance of green areas, including urban protected areas (UPAs), since they provide multiple benefits for the city. Due to urbanization and higher anthropogenic pressure, green areas are decreasing which directly affects natural habitats and biodiversity. This study aims to assess soil and vegetation chemical status in UPAs in the city of Belgrade, Serbia, and to understand how their distance from pollution hotspots affects soil and vegetation quality. Additionally, this paper considers the inclusion of soil and vegetation conditions in the urban protected areas management as a basis for introducing a connectivity approach to expand green infrastructure throughout the city. Chemical properties, the content of nutrients (C, N, P, and K), and microelements (Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Sn, Pb, Zr, U, and Th) in soil and conifer needles were analyzed. Results showed that the distance of pollution hotspots does not affect nutrient and microelements concentrations in soil, i.e., they do not vary significantly between sites and do not exceed remediation intervention values. However, the microelements status of vegetation is affected since Cr, Cu, Zn, Sn, and Pb are higher in needles from trees from the city center. The state of soil and plant composition supports the establishment of a network of green corridors and should become a part of management strategies, thus helping biodiversity protection, climate change mitigation, and human well-being in the cities.

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Funding

This research has been financially supported by the Ministry of Science, Technological Development and Innovation of Republic of Serbia (Contract No: 451-03-47/2023-01/200026 and 451-03-47/2023-01/200012) and the Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation which supported the project entitled “Water and sediment fluxes within urban and peri-urban areas,” through the Programme for Cooperation in Science between Portugal and Serbia. Laboratorial analyses were done during the STSM process of author Nevena Antić as a part of COST action Climate-smart Forestry in Mountain Region CA15226 CLIMO.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Chemistry, Technology, and Metallurgy, University of Belgrade, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia

    Gorica Veselinović, Snežana Štrbac, Nevena Antić & Milica Kašanin-Grubin

  2. Department of Physical Geography, Stockholm University and Bolin Centre for Climate Research, SE-10691, Stockholm, Sweden

    Carla S. S. Ferreira

  3. Navarino Environmental Observatory, 24001, Kalamata, Messinia, Greece

    Carla S. S. Ferreira

  4. Research Centre for Natural Resources, Environment and Society (CERNAS), College of Agriculture, Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra, 3045-093, Coimbra, Portugal

    Carla S. S. Ferreira

  5. Forest Research and Management Institute, 500035, Brasov, Romania

    Lucian C. Dincă

  6. Institute for Testing of Materials, IMS, 11000, Belgrade, Serbia

    Nevenka Mijatović

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  1. Gorica Veselinović
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  2. Snežana Štrbac
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  4. Carla S. S. Ferreira
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  7. Milica Kašanin-Grubin
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by NA, LD, and NM. The first draft of the manuscript was written by GV, and revision was done by SŠ, MK-G, and CF. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Gorica Veselinović.

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Veselinović, G., Štrbac, S., Antić, N. et al. Connectivity approach in urban protected area management based on soil and vegetation chemical status. Environ Geochem Health 45, 9525–9540 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-023-01553-4

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