Azin Sharafi; Seyed Akbar Javadi; Ehsan Zandi Esfahan; Mohammad Jafari; Mahshid Souri
Volume 31, Issue 3 , September 2024, , Pages 266-283
Abstract
AbstractBackground and objectivesHalophyte plants grow and produce in very saline water and soil conditions; however, they do not compete with agricultural products for quality soil and water as the main sources of production. Halophytes can tolerate high salinity for various reasons such as morphological ...
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AbstractBackground and objectivesHalophyte plants grow and produce in very saline water and soil conditions; however, they do not compete with agricultural products for quality soil and water as the main sources of production. Halophytes can tolerate high salinity for various reasons such as morphological characteristics, vegetative form, physiology and mechanisms of salinity tolerance. Although there have been good studies on the growth and salinity tolerance of halophyte species, there is little information about the absorption of heavy elements and the phytoremediation ability of different halophyte species. Heavy metal pollution is a serious problem in the lands adjacent to mines, which can be remedied by methods such as phytoremediation, while more studies are needed in this field. The present study aimed to evaluate the potential of several species of saltwort in the phytoremediation of mineral-contaminated soils. MethodologyFor this purpose, the ability of five halophyte species, Haloxylon persicum, Tamarix ramossisima, and Halocnemum strobilaceum, in phytoremediation of heavy metals arsenic (As), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), and nickel (Ni) was investigated at the Miduk mining site. Miduk copper mine is located 42 km northeast of Babak city in Kerman Province.The vegetation of this area includes short bushes and scattered forest trees such as Buxus hyrcana, Prunus antarctica, Pistacia atlantica, Calligonum comosum, Tamarix spp., and Astragalus spp. and bush plants such as Artemisia sieberi, Salsola richteri, Rheum ribes, Cirsium vulgare, Ferula communis and Ziziphora clinopodioides. Sampling was done from the five halophyte species at distances of 1000, 1500, 2000, and 5000 m from the Miduk copper mine, which included 4 repetitions and each repetition included 20 bases. The total number of plant and soil samples was 400 and 120, respectively. Sampling was done by harvesting the plant and then separating the shoot (aerial organs) and root (underground organ) at the flowering stage. As, Cu, Ni, and Pb elements were measured using the inductively coupled plasma ICP-OES device. ResultsThe results showed significant differences between H. strobilaceum, H. persicum, and T. ramossisima species regarding the amounts of arsenic, copper, and lead in different components of plants and soil. Ha. persicum has the highest amounts of arsenic and copper in the shoot, roots, and soil. At a distance of 1000 m, the highest concentration of arsenic is observed in the shoot, roots, and soil, as well as copper values in the shoot and soil. At a distance of 5000 m, a lower concentration of copper in the soil and a higher concentration of arsenic can be seen in the soil. In the case of Ta. ramossisima species, the highest concentration of arsenic is observed in the root and the highest amount of lead is also observed in the shoot. The results confirmed the phytoremediation potential of all five halophyte species for the remediation of contaminated soils at a distance of 1000 m from the copper mine, while the species H. strobilaceum had a higher potential for phytoremediation of contaminated soils. Furthermore, environmental pollution was not observed in the area without pollution to moderate pollution; which probably indicated the lack of transfer of heavy metals to agricultural products in lands further away from the mine. ConclusionSignificant differences in the distribution and concentration of elements have been observed between these species and at different distances, and these results can contribute to a better understanding of the environmental effects on the concentration and distribution of elements in plants. The results of this research showed the phytoremediation potential of plant species H. persicum, H. salicornica, S. rosmarinus, T. ramossisima, and H. strobilaceum, which indicated the acceptable ability of saline species to improve mineral-contaminated soils. The phytoremediation potential of H. strobilaceum species was higher than other species. Also, based on the indicators of the accumulation of elements and the low amount of contamination of the examined species in the points with a greater distance from the mine (more than 1500 m), it showed that agriculture in the area around the mine is observed with caution and periodic examination of the area in terms of concentration heavy metals are possible.
farhad razavi salim; hosseinn Arzani; Mohammad Jafari; Seyed Akbar Javadi
Volume 30, Issue 1 , April 2023, , Pages 39-47
Kambiz Kamrani; Hossein Arzani; Seyed Akbar Javadi; Reza Azizinejad
Volume 25, Issue 4 , February 2019, , Pages 748-760
Abstract
The most important executive policy of the government is optimizing range management plans in the rangelands. Improvement, development and proper exploitation of rangelands depend on understanding the current rangeland condition and selecting a range management method (balanced, natural and artificial) ...
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The most important executive policy of the government is optimizing range management plans in the rangelands. Improvement, development and proper exploitation of rangelands depend on understanding the current rangeland condition and selecting a range management method (balanced, natural and artificial) to be implemented in the form of a range management plan (RMP). Data were collected from 16 ranch units of Haraz River watershed to investigate differences in methods. At first, the statistics and information of the rangelands including the total percentage of vegetation and each of the important desirable and increasing species, rangeland condition and trend, and rangeland production were extracted and studied in 2016. To determine the best range management method based on rangeland condition, the analysis of variance was used in a completely randomized design with three treatments. To compare the effect of each method during the implementation of the plan and in the current situation on the rangeland condition, trend and production of rangelands, the Duncan's test and to compare the quantitative characteristics measured before and after the implementation of the rangeland management plans, a two-sample independent t-test were used. Moreover, the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test was used to compare qualitative characteristics using SPSS. In this research, rangeland management methods were considered as a treatment and time intervals were considered as a replicate. The results showed that although the vegetation percentage of palatable species composition did not increase, the balanced and natural methods were the best rangeland management methods in the good and fair rangeland condition, respectively. The reason for not increasing the palatable species was the unsuccessful implementation of planned programs in Range Management Plans (RMPs). On the other hand, although the artificial range management method was correctly performed in the RMPs with poor vegetation types, the implementation of these plans had no significant effect on the rangeland condition and trend of the study rangelands due to the high livestock population. It has also caused the cost of implementing reclamation and improvement projects on the beneficiaries. Although the percentage of vegetation cover of undesirable species of rangelands has increased, over the past 25 years, the total percentage of canopy cover and production has decreased. It seems that rangeland plans will be more effective when there is a balance between grazing capacity and livestock population.
Mehdi Zohdi; Hosein Arzani; Seyed Akbar Javadi; Adel Jalili; Gholamhosein Khorshidi
Volume 25, Issue 4 , February 2019, , Pages 898-910
Abstract
Rules and regulations in the last few decades have had a great impact on rangelands and its exploitation; on the other hand, these rules are the foundation of the policies governing the type of management and relevant government agencies. The aim of this research was to examine ...
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Rules and regulations in the last few decades have had a great impact on rangelands and its exploitation; on the other hand, these rules are the foundation of the policies governing the type of management and relevant government agencies. The aim of this research was to examine the effectiveness of the laws and regulations related to the rangeland and range management, with the help of a survey of experts and rangeland specialist. In this regard, the community of rangeland specialists or natural resources experts, who were empirically and professionally related to rangeland and range management issues, was identified and their opinion was collected through questionnaires. The audience was divided into three main groups of executive and research experts and academics. A total of 268 questionnaires were completed and the responses were analyzed using descriptive statistical methods. The results showed that, in general, the existing rules and regulations could not prevent the degradation of rangelands and result in rangeland conservation and improvement, and these rules have greatly contributed to the collapse of the range management systems in the past, while an appropriate management system has not been replaced. Moreover, a large part of respondents believed that the laws and regulations need to be reviewed and updated.