Departamento de Ingeniería y Suelos, Universidad de Chile, 8820808, Santiago, Chile.
Departamento de Ingeniería Hidráulica y Ambiental, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, 7820436, Santiago, Chile.
Environ Monit Assess. 2023 Feb 2;195(3):354. doi: 10.1007/s10661-023-10973-9.
Mining generates large quantities of mineral processing wastes that are typically stored in mine tailings (MT) ponds. Long-term exposure of the surrounding areas to the material from the tailings ponds has been reported to have adverse effects on both human health and the environment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the ability of Atriplex atacamensis Phil. to phytostabilize metals (Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn) and sulfur (S) when grown directly on mine tailings with and without compost (C) and humic substance (HS). The stress status of A. atacamensis Phil. was also evaluated through the C isotopic composition of bulk leaves. A 120-day greenhouse experiment was conducted and three treatments were evaluated: (i) MT without any amendments (control), (ii) MT + C (dose: 89 ton ha), and (iii) MT + HS (0.72 ton ha). Mine tailings material exhibited low salinity, alkaline pH, high extractable S-SO concentrations, and low fertility; total Fe, Mn, and Zn concentrations were within the reference range for mine tailings, but total Cu concentrations were high at 1860 ± 236 mg kg. The HS had higher pH, EC, CEC, and available concentrations of N, P, and K than compost, while S-SO concentrations were similar in both amendments. C NMR analysis showed that the HS contained more alkyl, aromatic, and phenolic groups, while the compost was dominated by O-alkyl and carboxyl groups. At the end of the experiment, the MT + C treatment achieved a significant decrease in Cu, Fe, and Mn concentrations in the roots and aboveground parts of A. atacamensis Phil. and an increase in Zn values in both tissues. Both amendments increased the sulfur content in the aboveground parts, while metal concentrations under the HS treatment proved similar to control. Furthermore, the δCV-PDB values obtained in this study indicate that the organic amendments did not cause additional physiological stress to the plants compared to the MT treatment. Overall, A. atacamensis Phil. was shown to have the ability to phytostabilize metals and sulfur, making it a potential candidate species for in situ evaluation of the phytostabilization process on mine tailings.
采矿产生了大量的选矿废物，这些废物通常储存在尾矿（MT）池中。据报道，尾矿池周围地区长期暴露于这些物质，对人类健康和环境都有不良影响。本研究的目的是评估直接生长在尾矿上的滨藜（Atriplex atacamensis Phil.）在添加堆肥（C）和腐殖质（HS）的情况下，对金属（Cu、Fe、Mn 和 Zn）和硫（S）的植物稳定能力。还通过整株叶片的 C 同位素组成来评估滨藜（Atriplex atacamensis Phil.）的胁迫状况。进行了为期 120 天的温室实验，评估了三种处理方法：（i）无任何添加剂的 MT（对照），（ii）MT+C（剂量：89 吨/公顷），（iii）MT+HS（0.72 吨/公顷）。尾矿材料表现出低盐度、碱性 pH 值、高可提取 S-SO 浓度和低肥力；总 Fe、Mn 和 Zn 浓度在尾矿的参考范围内，但总 Cu 浓度很高，为 1860±236 mg/kg。HS 的 pH 值、EC、CEC 和 N、P、K 的有效浓度高于堆肥，而两种添加剂的 S-SO 浓度相似。13C NMR 分析表明，HS 含有更多的烷基、芳香基和酚基，而堆肥则以 O-烷基和羧基为主。实验结束时，MT+C 处理使滨藜（Atriplex atacamensis Phil.）的根系和地上部分的 Cu、Fe 和 Mn 浓度显著降低，Zn 浓度在两种组织中均增加。两种添加剂都增加了地上部分的硫含量，而 HS 处理下的金属浓度与对照相似。此外，本研究中获得的 δCV-PDB 值表明，与 MT 处理相比，有机添加剂并未给植物带来额外的生理胁迫。总体而言，滨藜（Atriplex atacamensis Phil.）表现出对金属和硫的植物稳定能力，使其成为评价尾矿植物稳定化过程的潜在候选物种。
