Assessment of air pollution at the indoor environment of a shooting range using lichens as biomonitors

ABSTRACT

The aim of the study was to examine the changes in ecophysiological parameters and accumulation of heavy metals in lichens transplanted to a shooting-range environment. Thalli of the epiphytic lichen were transplanted from an unpolluted site to a shooting range. Chlorophyll a fluorescence, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), and damage to cell membranes in the lichen Evernia prunastri and Ramalina farinacea thalli were determined after 3 months exposure period indoors in a shooting range. The concentrations of some heavy metals including cadmium, copper, iron, manganese, nickel, lead, antimony, and zinc were measured in lichens as indicators of the levels of air pollution in the studied environment. Thalli of the lichens transplanted to the shooting-range environment showed stress symptoms where the presence of metal pollutants produced a loss of integrity of lichen cell membranes and induced oxidative stress as evidenced by increased levels of TBARS. The response of lichens transplanted to indoors of shooting range demonstrated a significant accumulation of Pb indicating potential increased metal exposure and consequent adverse health effects.

KEYWORDS:

• Shooting range
• trace metals
• lichens
• indoor pollution
• Pb

Acknowledgments

We thank our colleague Marius Praspaliauskas from the Laboratory of Heat-Equipment Research and Testing, Lithuanian Energy Institute, Kaunas, Lithuania, for assistance with the chemical analysis that greatly helped the research. This work was supported by Vytautas Magnus university by a research grant (No. P-G-19-04).