USE OF MOSSES (HYLOCOMIUM SPLENDENS AND PLEUROZIUM-SCHREBERI) AS BIOMONITORS OF HEAVY-METAL DEPOSITION - FROM RELATIVE TO ABSOLUTE DEPOSITION VALUES

Concentrations of 48 elements in the ground growing mosses Hylocomium splendens and Pleurozium schreberi have been compared with wet deposit ion data for the same elements at 13 Norwegian sites. Significant posi tive correlations were found for V, Fe, Co, As, Y, Mo, Cd, Sb, Ce, Sm, Er, TI and Pb in Hylocomium splendens, and for Mg, V, Fe, Co, As, Se, Y, Mo, Cd, Sb, TI and Pb in Pleurozium schreberi. Regression equation s for transforming moss concentration data to absolute deposition rate s have been calculated for those of the above elements which are of in terest from a pollution point of view. The concentration levels of Li, Be, Mg, Ca, Zn, Ge, As, Se, Sr, Y, Zr, Sn, Cs, Ba, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm , Ho, Yb, Hf, Ta and U were similar in the two moss species. Hylocomiu m splendens had highest concentrations of Cr,; Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Ga, Nb, Mo, Sb, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Er, Tm, Lu, W, Tl, Pb and Th, whereas V, Mn, Rb and Cd were highest in Pleurozium schreberi. No variations were obs erved in the concentrations of the studied elements during the samplin g season. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.