[Serpentine mine "Nasławice" as the source of contamination of soil and agricultural plants with metals and fibrous minerals].

The study was aimed at evaluation of the effect of dust, produced at crushing the serpentine, on the soil and crops in Nasławice. The serpentine dust, apart from asbestos, contains also magnesium, calcium, chromium and nickel. These elements have been determined in the soil and plants by means of the standard methods generally used in agricultural chemistry, whereas asbestos content was determined by means of X-ray diffractometry and polarization microscopy. The dust of the crops harvested contained asbestos fibres and, in the plants, the increased content of nickel an chromium was found. The highest amount of asbestos was found in soil in the area at a distance of up to 50 km from the emission source. The soil contains also the increased amounts of chromium and sporadically cadmium.