HEAVY-METAL CONTAMINATION OF SOILS IN NORTHERN SLOVAKIA

Environmental damages like forest decline in Northern Slovakia could b e a result of long-distance transport of pollutants with the dominatin g north-west winds. On 10 sites, primarily in the north-bound upper sl opes of west-east oriented mountain ranges in Northern Slovakia, the e xtent of the heavy metal contamination in soils along a north-south tr ansect was examined. Oi, Oe, Oa, A, and B horizons were sampled and th e total concentrations of Al, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn were determined. The ranges of heavy metal concentrations in the forest flo or were higher than reported for comparable samples from Bavarian soil s except for Zn (Cd: 0.65-1.77; Cr: 12-40; Cu: 19-41; Ni: 8-24; Pb: 70 -187; Zn: 31-92 mg kg(-1)), in the mineral soil the concentrations wer e lower. The depth distribution of the metal concentrations indicated a contamination with Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn. The concentration dif ferences between forest floor and mineral soil tended to be higher at the northern than at the southern sites for Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn, indica ting a long-distance transport from the north. Correlation and princip al component analyses of the total metal concentrations revealed three groups: Cu, Pb, and Zn inputs mainly seemed to result from long-dista nce transport from the north, Cr and Ni inputs additionally from local sources. Cd probably had its origin mainly in local sources. This res ult was further confirmed by the grouping of the sites when clustered.